Even while stuck in the muddy swamp of Class D, whenever grades were mentioned, Horikita Suzune would unconsciously straighten her back a little.
She was proud of her results.
"Compared to your classmates?" Asakusa Tetsu raised an eyebrow.
Horikita didn't quite understand, but still nodded.
Who else would she compare herself to if not her classmates?
"…That's kind of hilarious," Asakusa sighed softly, then declared without hesitation,
"You don't know how to study at all."
"No, to be fair, compared to people like Yamauchi Haruki, you're definitely better."
"But that doesn't mean you're good at studying."
Someone who was truly good at studying wouldn't need to rely on endless hours just to barely keep up with their peers.
Putting in the same effort as others and still struggling among them didn't count as talent.
"That's just you being good at exploiting yourself."
"Good at putting shackles on yourself and locking yourself in a cage."
"In short: a born factory-line worker."
Seeing that Horikita still hadn't looked away, Asakusa finally let go of her face and continued,
"Studying more than ten hours a day is your real strength."
"But it's also your weakness."
"You study too much and too rigidly. Your brain stops being flexible. And once your brain stops working, all that knowledge becomes useless."
"You just end up looking like an idiot."
He raised his hand, curled his finger slightly against her forehead, gathered strength—
And flicked.
"—"
Horikita reflexively closed her eyes.
But the impact was extremely light.
He hadn't used any force.
"What you need to do now is… download—cough, broaden your horizons," Asakusa shrugged.
"Seriously, does graduating from Class A really matter that much to you?"
"Did you come to this school for the Class A privilege?"
"Or are you just chasing after your brother like a super-powered follower, going wherever he goes?"
After speaking, Asakusa slowly stood up and stretched.
"Your self-awareness is terrible. If you can't see anything when you look in the mirror, then go ask others."
"Find more people. Piece together what 'Horikita Suzune' looks like in their eyes."
"And then…"
After thinking for a moment, he took out his terminal.
"Add my contact first. I just got an idea."
Holding two ice-pop sticks, Horikita obediently took out her terminal and added him.
She didn't fully understand yet…
But somehow, she felt like she did.
Self-awareness…
"Oh, and don't be stupid and grab people one by one asking, 'What do you think of me?'" Asakusa added, tapping his head.
"That's not profiling. That's begging for validation."
Horikita: "..."
"Wait, don't tell me you were actually planning to do that?" Asakusa was shocked.
"I-Isn't that okay?" Horikita looked awkward.
"And what does 'begging for validation' mean…"
"No, it's not okay," Asakusa said firmly.
Then he raised an eyebrow.
"Go make friends."
"Don't tell me nonsense like 'I don't need friends' or 'friends are meaningless.'"
"That kind of thinking is the stupidest."
He poked her forehead again.
"With just one sentence—'We're friends, right?'—you get a free helper who'll do things for you."
"Where else can you find such useful tools besides friends?"
"Honestly, if you need more than ten hours of study just to stay near the top, this is probably your limit in life."
"Instead of grinding alone for twelve hours, spending some time on basic socializing gives you better returns."
Studying one or two more hours wouldn't turn her into a genius.
Studying one or two hours less wouldn't make her fall behind either.
So there was no need to push herself this hard.
Unless…
She was addicted to studying.
Or addicted to suffering.
Asakusa couldn't see the first.
So it had to be the second.
He felt she had slight masochistic tendencies.
"I've talked too much," he said, shaking his head.
After finishing his thoughts, he continued casually,
"You don't have to force yourself to find friends in your own class. Low-quality friends aren't worth having."
"But if you really want friends in Class D and don't know how to start…"
"Start with me."
He lightly pressed a hand to his chest.
"I, Asakusa Tetsu, provide short-term loans. Limited amounts. First come, first served."
"Class D won't be getting any points lately, right? That must be tough."
"Anyway, that's it. Think it over. I'm heading out."
He waved casually and walked away.
Horikita remained sitting on the bench, her ears filled with his words.
"…Friends."
A word that felt incredibly distant to her.
In the past, she would never have wasted time on socializing.
But…
What Asakusa said wasn't wrong.
She had limits.
And her current situation proved that.
"..."
Lowering her head, Horikita looked at the two sticks in her hand.
One read: "Thank you for your purchase."
The other: "Try again."
After hesitating, she put the stick—already empty—back into her mouth.
"…It's still sweet," she murmured.
Afternoon — Palette Café
"Ah! Over here, over here!"
Seeing Asakusa approach, the golden-haired girl raised her hand enthusiastically.
Bright. Cheerful. Open.
With natural leadership.
Ichinose Honami.
Beside her sat Shirahama Chihiro.
On her right was an empty seat reserved for him.
Farther ahead were Kanzaki Ryuuji and Shibata Sō.
In short—
This was a Class B meeting.
"So I really didn't need you all to wait for me…" Asakusa said as he pulled out a chair and sat down.
"Ah, since you didn't say what you wanted, I ordered you a matcha parfait, okay?"
Cream. Matcha. A huge glass.
"..."
"…Why is it a matcha parfait?"
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