Living in Tokyo, all I want to do is laze around.

Hanabi Hanamaru stared blankly at her phone, her cheeks flushed.

Uesugi Kai waited a long time before receiving her message.

Hanabi-chan, who tries her best to draw well: Always...?

Oars paddling on the water: Always, Kai-kun loves fireworks.

After that, Uesugi Kai never received a reply from her.

He stared intently at the cartoon avatar, his pupils dilating and then constricting.

Isn't this a bit too much flirting?

But it felt pretty good.

With a smile fading from his face, Uesugi Kai's expression returned to its usual calm.

He picked up the bamboo bow from the stand, put on the bow-doting box, and walked towards the shooting position.

In the archery dojo where the sound of bowstrings echoed, Sugita Sohei put down his longbow and said to Uesugi Kai, who had returned to his side:

"You didn't even shoot 10 arrows today. Aren't you being a little too lazy?"

"It's alright."

Uesugi Kai gazed at the target on the ground 28 meters ahead, drew an arrow from his quiver, and raised the light bamboo bow above his shoulder.

Hold the bowstring firmly with your right hand on the saddle, hold the bow with your left hand, and pull your shoulder muscles back.

Slow, steady, like a gentle breeze, natural and reliable.

Maintaining this state for the instant the bow is fully drawn, the sixth section of the eight-section archery technique, "Meeting," is now complete.

Uesugi Kai looked ahead, aimed the arrow at the bullseye, and released his slightly trembling fingers.

Crack!

A sharp yet deep string sound rang out, signaling the arrow to pierce the green field and hit the target.

【Precision Lv7 (12/40)】

[Constitution Lv6 (5/20)]

Kai Uesugi swung his arm; the 21kg bow still felt a bit too heavy for him.

On the other side, Qing Youya smiled and said to him, "We've finished the divorce, but you forgot to do the eighth chapter, 'Remnant Heart'."

“Sigh,” Uesugi Kai shook his head, “I’ve run into trouble with my archery training.”

"A technical problem?"

Qing Youya also said, "But I don't think you have any problems at all. Apart from occasionally making a mistake in your posture, I've never seen you miss the target."

Holding a bamboo bow, Uesugi Kai said to his hakama, "The kyudo uniform is so cool. A female classmate saw me practicing archery and gave me a love letter today."

"love letter!?"

Chitose Mai, who was chatting and laughing with Sakurai Fuko in the back, came over to him and asked, "Senior, did a female classmate confess to you?"

"Yes."

Kai Uesugi said calmly, "I was going to decline as soon as the club activities ended."

His calm tone sounded heartless to Chitose Mai, and she couldn't help but sigh silently, "Why did I fall in love with my senior? Now this school has one more heartbroken girl."

"Kyudo (Japanese archery) has no need for love."

Asaka Ogata's cold voice, mixed with the notes of her strings, drifted over.

“That’s right.” Sugita Sohei was the only person in the archery dojo who agreed with her.

The outermost shooting position, where Masanobu Hirata had been rather unremarkable, scratched his head and chuckled: "I don't think we can be so absolute."

Taketa Yuasa and the other virtually invisible members nodded in agreement.

###Chapter Ninety-Seven: Afternoon is the Time to Reject Confessions###

Where is Uesugi-senpai?

Chitose Mai, who had just returned from the restroom, did not see him in the archery dojo where the floor was reflecting light.

Everyone is cleaning.

"Give."

Sakurai Fuko handed her the mop and said, "Uesugi-kun thought he shouldn't keep other girls waiting too long, so he went ahead first."

"what?"

Chitose Mai looked at the wet mop in surprise, then looked up and asked, "What about his cleaning today?"

Sakurai Fuko winked at her, pointed to the mop in her hand with both fingers, and said with a smile, "It's yours now."

Looking across the lush green lawn, one sees the target that hasn't been removed from the ground.

"Where's the target?" Chitose Mayi asked, pointing in that direction.

Sakurai Fuko glanced to the side, spread her hands, sighed, and said, "Well, I guess I can only leave it to you."

Before Chitose Mayi could protest, Sakurai Fuko added:

"The lawn needs some work today; the weeds are getting a bit too tall."

"I have to do it too?" Chitose Mayi pointed to herself, her pretty face showing great shock.

Sakurai Fuko shook her head repeatedly: "There's nothing we can do, nothing we can do. We don't have many people in our archery club, and several of them have recently quit."

She patted Chitose Mai on the shoulder and said with a smile, "The capable should do more, right?"

"..."

------

Dusk and sunset enveloped everything, and yesterday's raindrops lingered among the beautiful petals, making them even more delicate and giving them a crystal-clear glow.

The pleasant time brought a pleasant mood. Smelling the fragrance of the flowers climbing on the back garden wall, Uesugi Kai switched the direction of the bow bag in her right hand and continued walking slowly forward.

Several lively girls, carrying shoulder bags, walked past Uesugi Kai with smiles on their faces. When they saw him, they secretly turned their heads to look at him.

"Hey, Yuko, you're a handsome guy."

"Yeah, yeah, it seems to be the archery club."

"He'd look even cooler in an archery uniform. I bet we'll see him at the sports festival."

"Hehe, Mana, you can see him shooting arrows if you go to the archery club. Do you want to go back now and ask him for his contact information?"

"No... I don't want to."

"Haha, you're shy."

"No, go away."

The high school girls joked with each other and then left.

Kai Uesugi shook his head helplessly, inwardly complaining that his charm level of 7 was completely fake.

If it were upgraded to 9, that would be incredible!

They'll probably come with a built-in halo buff, showering blessings, empowerments, and excitement all at once, leaving them completely surrounded and unable to escape.

Being too handsome isn't good either.

Kai Uesugi thought to himself that he shouldn't use those attribute points to improve his charm; his handsomeness was enough for Hanabi to appreciate alone.

"Little Hanabi~"

He imagined Hanabi smiling at him; she was so cute that he wanted to pinch her soft cheeks.

The beech tree in the backyard has a dignified appearance.

The tender green leaves spread outwards, and beneath the swaying shadows of the trees, there is a girl with long hair.

She bowed 90 degrees to Uesugi Kai standing in front of her and bravely uttered a very ordinary confession:

"Please go out with me, Uesugi-kun."

The setting sun's breeze stirred the girl's hair by her ears and brushed against her cheeks.

Kai Uesugi remained unmoved: "I'm sorry, Kai... uh... Sawatori-kun, I have a girlfriend."

It's a cliché response, but it's the truth.

Sawatori Mina looked up in surprise, her eyes filled with confusion behind her black glasses.

She opened her mouth, then asked cautiously, "Uesugi-kun, you're not... lying to me, are you...?"

Before confessing her feelings, she naturally inquired about Uesugi Kai from various sources.

"no need."

Kai Uesugi remained expressionless, the over two-meter-tall black kimono sack in his left hand adding to his unique coldness.

Things that are so predictable should be ended as soon as possible.

The cold rejection caused Sawatori Mitsuru to hang her head.

She had even imagined him holding her hand, happily strolling together on campus.

Countless classmates cast envious glances at the two, sighing and feeling jealous of their love.

how so......

For a girl to muster the courage to confess her feelings, she must have put in ten times the effort.

Sawatori Mina's first love, she doesn't want to give up yet.

Come on!

She gritted her teeth, mustered her courage, her face hardened, and raised her head to say loudly:

"Uesugi-kun, actually we can start by doing—"

Beneath the rustling beech tree, the sincere expression on her face gradually faded into the distance, and the girl's outstretched right hand fell regretfully.

“Friend…of…”