He hung up the phone, having arranged to meet Ohara Nanako tomorrow.
Kobayashi Itsuki decided he needed to start working hard, striving to shorten the time it took to publish collected volumes as much as possible, so he could grind for more treasure chests sooner.
The next day.
Kobayashi Itsuki got up at six in the morning, dug out a backpack from his home, packed a change of clothes, filled a thermos with chilled black coffee, put on his sportswear, and headed out.
His destination was the twenty-four-hour gym where he had just signed up for a membership yesterday.
Kobayashi Itsuki's plan was already very clear.
In the morning, he would get up at six to go to the gym, work out for over an hour, take a shower, change clothes, eat some breakfast, and then go to the Kindergarten.
In the afternoon, after finishing work at the Kindergarten, he would go to the driving school to practice driving, start writing after returning home, and practice using the Invisible Hand before sleeping.
He was balancing earning money and exercising, while also continuously refining his use of skills.
It was practically perfect!
The gym was exceptionally empty in the morning; hardly anyone came to work out this early, meaning Kobayashi Itsuki practically had the place to himself.
After diligently sweating for over an hour, around 7:30 AM, Kobayashi Itsuki stopped his workout.
He quickly took a shower and changed his clothes.
While eating bread, he headed towards the Kindergarten.
He arrived exactly at the Kindergarten entrance at eight o'clock.
After the kindergarten bus had left, Kobayashi Itsuki started cleaning as usual.
However, something was slightly different from usual.
They waited until 8:30 AM, the time the kindergarten bus was normally supposed to return, but Kobayashi Itsuki and Takakura Bunta did not see the kindergarten bus come back.
"It's half past eight, why hasn't the kindergarten bus returned yet?"
Takakura Bunta stood by the Kindergarten gate, pacing back and forth, speaking with great worry.
"Perhaps it was delayed by traffic congestion."
"Principal, please don't worry too much."
Kobayashi Itsuki said, comforting Takakura Bunta.
Kasukabe City is not overly bustling, and the kindergarten bus route doesn't involve roads with heavy traffic, so there shouldn't be any possibility of an accident.
The two stood at the entrance, waiting for quite a while.
Kobayashi Itsuki, who had initially thought Takakura Bunta was being overly anxious, started to feel worried himself when the time reached 8:40 AM.
This... did something actually happen?
The kindergarten bus schedule is usually fixed. For places like the Nohara Family Home, they wait for a bit at the entrance, but if the time is up and the person hasn't arrived, they don't wait long.
Generally speaking, 8:30 AM usually allows for some buffer time, so being late is almost impossible.
Just as both of them were starting to worry and Kobayashi Itsuki was preparing to call on his phone, the kindergarten bus appeared and drove towards them.
"Beep beep."
The kindergarten bus stopped at the entrance of the Kindergarten.
As soon as it stopped, Yoshinaga Midori quickly got out and bowed towards Takakura Bunta, her face full of apology.
"I apologize, Principal, we accidentally arrived late."
Takakura Bunta hurried forward and asked anxiously, "Are the children all safe? Did anything happen?"
"No, no."
Yoshinaga Midori quickly waved her hand, "Nothing happened..."
As she spoke, Yoshinaga Midori shot him a resentful look for some reason, leaving Kobayashi Itsuki utterly bewildered and full of questions.
"It's just that many parents were asking about Teacher Kobayashi, and I couldn't very well say nothing..."
Hearing this, Kobayashi Itsuki's mouth twitched.
Good grief, so that's what happened?
He wondered what this had to do with him.
He didn't expect such a reason behind the delay.
Takakura Bunta was also stunned upon hearing this and instinctively looked at Kobayashi Itsuki.
"So that's how it is."
"I'm truly sorry, Teacher Yoshinaga, for causing you trouble."
"Let's not talk about this now. Hurry and take the children back to the classroom for class."
Takakura Bunta said quickly. This kind of situation wasn't anyone's fault to blame.
Kobayashi Itsuki was an innocent victim, and Yoshinaga Midori couldn't do anything about it—it wasn't possible for her to completely ignore parents who asked a couple of questions, right?
Yoshinaga Midori quickly led the Sunflower Class toward the classroom.
Right after the Sunflower Class left, another kindergarten bus arrived.
The Rose Class and Tulip class were also late.
As for the reason, it was naturally the same one, needless to say.
Takakura Bunta quickly waved his hand, urging them to hurry back to class.
Kobayashi Itsuki, meanwhile, gave an awkward smile and slipped away towards the office without speaking.
In times like this, it was best just to keep quiet.
The daytime hours were relaxed and leisurely.
Before long, it was nearing the time for him to finish work in the afternoon.
Kobayashi Itsuki's phone rang just as he was about to clock out.
"Teacher Kobayashi, you must be finishing work soon. Is it alright if I come over now?"
"Yes, that's fine. By the time you arrive, I should be finished with everything."
"I'll come right away then."
Hanging up the phone, Kobayashi Itsuki sped up his cleaning work.
By the time the children were dismissed from school, Kobayashi Itsuki had almost finished cleaning the courtyard.
"Children, say goodbye to Teacher Kobayashi."
At the entrance, Matsuzaka Ume was standing by the kindergarten bus door, directing the children in her class to greet Kobayashi Itsuki and then board the kindergarten bus.
However, compared to usual, the entrance of the Kindergarten was much livelier today.
This was because many parents who usually let their children take the kindergarten bus home had come to the Kindergarten today to pick up their children themselves.
And those who came, needless to say, were mostly the children's mothers.
These parents had clearly heard their children's comments after returning home yesterday and came out of curiosity to see for themselves.
What exactly did such an impressive Physical Education Teacher look like?
Unexpectedly, upon seeing him in person, he was even handsomer than they had imagined.
With such good looks, coupled with such sharp skills, he truly was eye-catching.
"These aunties..."
Matsuzaka Ume maintained a polite smile on the surface, but inwardly she was extremely displeased with the way these people were looking at Kobayashi Itsuki.
Fortunately, she still had her basic professional ethics.
However, the low pressure emanating from her scared the children in her class, making them behave like quails, quiet and obedient.
Kobayashi Itsuki, on the other hand, didn't mind at all, occasionally nodding politely and smiling cheerfully at these wives.
If the timing hadn't been inappropriate, Kobayashi Itsuki would have wanted to proactively approach them and ask for their names.
It was clearly a pile of treasure chests waiting for him to harvest.
'What a pity...'
"Teacher Kobayashi."
Just then, a clear voice rang out from a distance.
Matsuzaka Ume looked up and saw a beautiful figure walking quickly towards them, waving her hand.
The moment she saw Ohara Nanako, Matsuzaka Ume's face froze.
She hadn't even figured out how to deal with the big trouble and threat that was Higashimatsuyama Yone yesterday, and now another beautiful college student girl, radiating youthful energy, had shown up?
"Nanako Older Sister?!"
Nohara Shinnosuke, who was lining up in the courtyard, ready to board the bus.