"Ring ring ring~"
As the bell signaling the end of class rang out, Mio looked up from the textbook she'd been memorizing.
Good. An entire morning had passed without triggering [As Your Heart Desires]. Honestly, even if it did trigger, it wouldn't have been a big deal.
Because she'd spent the whole morning studying seriously. Her mind had been focused on nothing but her studies.
As long as she kept up this mindset, today would pass by quickly.
Just as Mio pulled out her bento to eat, a flash of brilliant gold appeared by the hallway window.
The instant she spotted Eriri, Mio felt like things were about to take a turn for the worse.
Because whenever Eriri came looking for her, there was basically only one topic on the agenda—discussing their doujinshi.
And once they started talking about doujinshi, there was no way Mio could keep her mind under control.
To avoid any accidents, the best choice right now would be to politely decline Eriri's lunch invitation.
And that's exactly what Mio was about to do.
But the moment she stood up, the System's voice echoed in her ears. The voice was gentle and pleasant, like a beautiful girl whispering softly beside her—but to Mio, it might as well have been the devil's whisper.
"Host, I have good news and bad news. Which would you like to hear first?"
"What if I don't want to hear either?"
"Then I'll start with the good news. Host, you've triggered a task involving Yuigahama Yui. Please find a way to kiss Yuigahama Yui before lunch break ends. Success may reward you with a Yuigahama Yui series card or item. Failure will result in a punishment card draw."
Hearing the System's task description, Mio raised an eyebrow. "You're calling this good news? You want me to punch you?"
"I completely understand how Host is feeling right now. But please don't get agitated—there's still the bad news to come."
If the good news was already a task related to Yuigahama Yui, then what could the bad news possibly be? Though the System hadn't said it yet, Mio already had a sinking feeling.
"The bad news is: Please find a way to have Eriri kabedon you before lunch break ends. The kabedon must last for at least one minute. Success may reward you with an Eriri series card or item. Failure will result in a punishment card draw."
"???"
"Since when can two tasks trigger at the same time?"
"This kind of thing is fairly rare, but it's not impossible. Let's just say Host's luck is... a teensy bit good."
"Heh."
Two tasks at once—fine, whatever. But both were required to be completed before lunch ended, and on top of that, she still had [As Your Heart Desires] influencing her. Wasn't this a bit much?
She still had one [Free Win Card] that could instantly complete one of the tasks, but unless absolutely necessary, Mio didn't want to use it.
After a moment's thought, Mio pulled herself together and walked straight out of the classroom.
Lunch break was long. If everything went smoothly, completing both tasks wasn't impossible.
Seeing Mio finally emerge, Eriri tilted her head. "What were you spacing out for just now?"
"Oh, just suddenly thought of something. Don't worry about it, Sawamura-san. So, what did you need?"
"To eat lunch together, obviously! And to discuss some exhibition stuff."
Eriri had been relying on Mio for ideas lately, which made her feel a bit guilty. So she figured she'd repay the favor by walking Mio through what to expect at the exhibition.
"Sure. Same spot as usual?"
"Let's go with the usual spot."
After the club president had walked in on them yesterday, Eriri had originally wanted to change locations. But after thinking it over, the Art Club's activity room still felt like the most private option.
As long as she and Mio didn't do anything weird, it wouldn't matter even if the president suddenly barged in.
Yeah, that was totally fine!
Maybe it was just Eriri's imagination, but she felt like Mio's pace was a bit faster than normal today.
Arriving at the Art Club's activity room, the two sat down as usual, pulling out their respective bentos and chatting about exhibition matters while eating.
Most of the issues had already been handled by Eriri. Mio only had one thing to worry about: the printing costs for her doujinshi.
But for Mio, even that wasn't really a problem. The quantity she was printing wasn't large, and White Album was about to start serialization—which meant she'd soon be receiving manuscript fees.
Eriri had been ready to offer to cover the costs herself. With her discerning eye, she could tell Mio's doujinshi was quite good. Plus, sharing a booth with her meant it definitely wouldn't go unsold.
But unexpectedly, Mio didn't even bat an eye before saying she had it covered.
Looks like this silver-haired beauty was actually a little rich girl.
After finishing their bento, Mio cleared her throat and said to Eriri with a serious expression, "Sawamura-san, I have a favor to ask."
"You're not going to ask me to push you down again, are you?" Eriri narrowed her eyes suspiciously at Mio.
"N-No, that's not it. This time I want you to... kabedon me."
Looking at Mio—face slightly flushed, expression bashful, yet eyes filled with anticipation—Eriri momentarily didn't know what to say.
Honestly, she'd been a little worried just now, worried that Mio might say something... 404-worthy.
But usually, wasn't it the other person doing the kabedon? Who actually asks to be kabedon'd?
Eriri had every reason to suspect that this silver-haired beauty's operating system had some kind of bug.
Still, compared to last time's "push me down," a kabedon was considerably tamer. And nobody else was around, so... she might as well help out a little.
With that thought, Eriri gave a small nod. "Since you treated me to bento before, I guess I can help you out."
Hearing this, Mio's face lit up with surprise. Then, without another word, she walked over and positioned herself against the wall, her beautiful crimson eyes looking at Eriri with eager anticipation.
Compared to Mio, Eriri was notably more petite. To make her kabedon look more impressive, Mio quietly bent her knees a little to lower her height.
Seeing this, Eriri slammed her palm against the wall next to Mio's ear in annoyance, then leaned in with an aggressive air. "I'm not that short, okay?!"
"I-I was just trying to create a height difference! Also, Sawamura-san, your face is getting really close..."
"Huh?!"