My love index is at its maximum.

"Stop talking."

The little cutie patted her cheeks: "I hate Kawabata Yasunari!"

"Kawabata Yasunari is innocent; you should hate the person who set the question."

Who set the questions?

Tsukasa Tazaki thought for a moment and then shook his head: "I don't know, but it wasn't produced by Hoshino-sensei anyway."

Shiori Ninomiya was silent for a moment, then rested her chin on her hands and looked at him with her eyes curved into crescents: "I'm so envious of Hoshino-sensei."

Bathed in the bright sunlight streaming through the window, Tsukasa Tazaki saw the undisguised smile in her eyes. Thinking of the straightforward personality she shared with Ooku, he couldn't help but smile as well: "Go for it, Shiori-chan is just as good."

After lunch, Shiori Ninomiya brought up the kendo club's training camp, asking while drinking water, "Kiki, do you have any plans for summer vacation? Would you like to come to the training camp with us?"

"Hmm... I'll think about it when summer vacation starts." Tsukasa Tazaki cleaned up the food scraps on the table and walked out of Class D classroom.

Shiori Ninomiya smiled, her eyes narrowed.

He used to refuse outright, but is he starting to hesitate now?

These subtle changes made the little cutie feel that even plain water tasted delicious.

The three-day final exams passed quickly, and the peaceful daily life on campus returned to Tazaki Tsukasa. Every morning, he would get up early to go for a run at Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden, go to the library at noon to chat and read with Shimamoto Kana, spend the afternoon drinking tea and studying at the ATF club, and work part-time in the evening. He spent the rest of his time doing housework and being affectionate with Hoshino Hanami. On Thursday night, the two of them made soy milk again by grinding tofu.

Another week passed just like that.

Time flows by in an orderly and unobstructed manner.

This week and next week seamlessly connect into one whole.

A peaceful and stable daily life—this is the life that Tazaki Tsukasa has dreamed of ever since he transmigrated here. But compared to the beginning, he feels that his mindset has changed somewhat.

At first, he was just afraid of trouble and wanted to spend the three years of high school alone, a time that he didn't think would be very fun. Overall, his mindset was negative.

Now, I'm starting to enjoy it a bit.

Whether it was drinking lemonade with Ninomiya in the cafeteria, arguing and bickering with the department head, teasing the fat cat, or even the doujinshi about the snow woman widow that Murakami Mizuiro sent him last night, he found it all quite interesting.

Of course, this change only applies to him passively accepting enjoyment. Asking him to actively participate in kendo club training camps doesn't really arouse much enthusiasm.

Monday, January 19.

After today and tomorrow, Tsukasa Tazaki will begin his first summer vacation in high school.

The exam results will be posted on the bulletin board at 1 p.m.

During lunch break, Murakami Mizuiro leaned on the corridor railing, staring blankly at the couples in the courtyard for a long time before turning to ask, "Tazaki, what rank did you get this time?"

"First."

Tazaki Tsukasa answered with a confident tone, biting on the straw of his lemonade.

When the girl from the same class who had just finished eating arrived, she nodded vigorously: "Tazaki-kun is definitely number one!"

Murakami Mizuiro glanced disdainfully at the girl who thought good looks guaranteed good grades, then looked back at Tazaki Tsukasa with an adoring expression: "Please, Tazaki-kun, the fact that the French team went from being a 'Gallic Rooster' to a 'Gallic Black Chicken' has already cost me a month's allowance. You're my best friend, please don't cost me next month's allowance too!"

Tazaki Tsukasa said helplessly, "Give me half of the money you won from the bet!"

"no problem!"

"Also, don't touch these things again."

"why?"

“Gamblers’ minds are twisted. In their eyes, Liu Bei visited Zhuge Liang three times because Zhuge Liang bet on a 2.5 handicap, and the Battle of Red Cliffs was because Cao Cao bet on a Sun-Liu alliance to win.”

Murakami Mizuiro stared at him blankly for ten seconds before turning her gaze back to a random point in the courtyard.

Do you know why I like these uncertainties so much?

"Tell me about it."

“Life has already been planned out; you can see at a glance what you’ll be like when you grow up.” Murakami Mizuiro sighed softly. “The thrill of the unknown, the feeling of making bets with others, is what I want.”

Tazaki Tsukasa sipped his lemonade: "First place is definitely mine, there's no sense of uncertainty about it."

Murakami Mizuro: "..."

I said such sentimental things to you, just waiting for you to put your arm around my shoulder and comfort me, but instead of comforting me, you were showing off your strength.

Is this guy even capable of doing this anymore?!

Just as Murakami Mizuiro was about to loudly condemn this fake brotherhood, Tazaki Tsukasa's phone rang.

"Greetings, Minister."

"Come up here."

"what's up?"

"Let's go check the results together later."

"Come on, Class A is on the fifth floor, Class F is on the fourth floor, and the bulletin board is on the first floor. It's obvious that you should be the one coming down..."

"Beep...beep..."

As soon as Tazaki Tsukasa put his phone back in his school uniform pocket, Murakami Mizuiro immediately asked with a gossipy look, "Is the Empress here to check up on me?"

"She just wanted me to go with her to see the results."

"Relationship-obsessed people are so annoying, they're always thinking about showing off their love!"

“You’ve misunderstood,” Tsukasa Tazaki explained earnestly. “We just made a bet that the one with the lower ranking would have to wear a maid outfit and be the other’s servant for a day.”

Murakami Mizuiro looked at him with a sour expression that seemed to want to stab him to death: "You've started playing maid play, isn't that just showing off your love?"

Is this considered showing affection?

Tsukasa Tazaki doesn't quite understand what single people think.

After all, he simply wanted to see the minister's cool and beautiful face turn red with anger and shyness after she put on the embarrassing cat-eared maid outfit.

He handed the empty cup, now only containing lemon slices, to Murakami Mizuiro to throw away, and then turned and walked up the stairs to the fifth floor.

Classroom A was a bit noisy during lunch break, but that was unavoidable. After all, putting adolescent males and females in the same classroom was like putting rabbits in heat in the same cage.

The boys huddled together, discussing the new games and the specifications of their respective electronic devices. The girls, on the other hand, were engrossed in gossiping about who was who and where to go after school, with occasional cross-border interactions between boys and girls that elicited bursts of laughter.

The area where the two most beautiful girls were located was eerily quiet, creating a vacuum.

Gazes frequently swept toward the two young ladies, but no one dared to approach them and speak to them.

When the only boy who could break this vacuum arrived, it even caused a small sensation.

After all, all three are prominent figures in the school. The two beautiful girls need no introduction, and the boy himself is a handsome guy with charm at the top of the human realm. Moreover, the three of them have a very complicated emotional entanglement.

For high school students who are obsessed with dating, these "I was here first, why did things turn out like this?" scenarios are endlessly entertaining.

Amidst the enthusiastic gazes of the crowd, Tsukasa Tazaki calmly walked to Sakura Kuriyama's table. "Let's go, it's almost time."

A murmur arose among the girls watching.

"Are we going to go check the results together?"

"She's definitely getting the treatment of an empress. Tazaki even came up from the fourth floor to accompany her down."

"Why does Kirikawa still have such an indifferent expression?"

"Although Kikawa is very nice, I also think Kuriyama and Tazaki are a better match."

Amidst the murmurs, Kuriyama Sakura calmly closed the hardcover book in her hands, but instead of getting up, she turned to look at Kichikawa Yui, a smug smile playing on her lips.

“See?” she said, “Tsukuru Tazaki listens to me.”

Kikawa Yui gave an indifferent hum.

Tazaki Tsukasa bent down slightly, leaned close to Kuriyama Sakura Yoshikazu, and whispered, "You asked me to come up here just to spite her?"

"Correct."

"why?"

"This kind of thing is quite enjoyable."

"So childish! Do you still want to maintain your aloof persona?!"

Kuriyama Sakura smiled casually and said, "I learned it from you."

"...You really have a lot of hostility towards Yui Kichikawa."

"It's all because of you!"

"..."

Regarding the story of "My Empress Holding a Resentment Against My Childhood Friend," Tsukasa Tazaki didn't know whether to be moved or troubled.

The way the two talked looked like that of an ordinary couple to onlookers, which made the sight of the golden retriever all alone look particularly pitiful.

Kuriyama Sakura stood up, smoothing her collar with the grace of a victor, then smiled at Tazaki Tsukasa and said in the tone of a girl talking to her boyfriend, "Let's go down together."

Tazaki Tsukasa was speechless for a moment, and could only walk out of the classroom with her side by side.

Dozens of sympathetic glances fell on the blonde girl, and whispers continued.

"How pitiful, Kikawa-kun is completely powerless to fight back."

"Blonde hair + childhood sweetheart, she's got too much of a 'loser' vibe."

"The white-stocking party will not accept this outcome!"

"I think it's great this way. Kuriyama and Tazaki are the perfect couple."

Kikawa glanced at the 'Takaguri Party' member who spoke for the second time, and broke a pencil under the table with one hand.

……

As the two walked down the stairs, someone posted the grade sheet on the bulletin board, and in the blink of an eye, it was crowded with people.

Kuriyama Sakura chuckled softly: "Where do you think you'll be this time?"

"First."

"You are very confident in yourself?"

Tsukasa Tazaki blurted out, "I'm as confident in my appearance as I am in my looks."

As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly remembered that Kuriyama Sakura had said the same thing during the first monthly test, and then she was proven wrong by him...