My love index is at its maximum.

"Is the teacher treating us?"

"We can't expect the students to treat us, can we?"

The two walked out of the park entrance and passed a slope. The open space was covered with summer grass, and the automatic watering wheel turned back and forth. The sunlight made the roofs of the cars on the roadside sparkle.

An Akita was standing by the Odakyu Line railway watching the trains pass by. When Tsukasa Tazaki walked over, he casually patted the dog's head and barked.

Akita wagged its tail excitedly and barked twice in response.

The scene of the person and the dog was harmonious. Hoshino Hanami smiled and asked, "You like dogs?"

Tsukasa Tazaki shook his head: "I don't like it."

"Then why play with it?"

"I felt it must be quite lonely for a single dog to be watching the train like this, so I encouraged it: Don't be discouraged, the dog you're waiting for is still in the distant future."

"Hmm?" Hoshino Hanami looked both amused and exasperated.

After walking along the road for a few minutes, I passed a wall covered with ivy. Several gray pigeons perched on the top of the wall, and inside the wall stood a tall oak tree, with a wisp of white smoke rising straight up from the side.

“This is Aota Girls’ High School.” Hoshino Hanami said to Tazaki Tsukasa, looking at the oak trees swaying in the wind, “You went to high school here, teacher.”

Tazaki Tsukasa looked up and saw that the rising smoke had a particularly hazy gray hue in the early summer sunlight.

After passing this wall and turning into an alley, I smelled the aroma of broth.

Hoshino Hana noticed a strand of hair on her head suddenly stick up, pointing like some kind of radar towards the noodle shop in front of her. Following the pull of that strand of hair, her body rushed into the shop.

Tazaki Tsukasa stared in disbelief, as if the melody of "Bunny Charge" was ringing in his ears.

As soon as she stepped into the shop, she seemed like a completely different person, yelling at the counter, "Three bowls of tonkotsu ramen, please."

Three bowls?

Tsukasa Tazaki looked puzzled and asked, "Why would the two of us need three bowls of ramen?"

"Oh... I forgot about you." Hoshino Hanami laughed, holding her head. "Four bowls of tonkotsu ramen, please."

"..."

Good grief, when other people have a holiday, it's like a horse that's let loose, but when you have a holiday, it's like a pig that's broken free of its pen!

When Tsukasa Tazaki sat down opposite her, he gazed at her intently for a moment.

Hoshino Hanami subconsciously touched her cheek. "What's wrong? Is there something on my face?"

"No... I just have a question I really want to know the answer to."

"What's the problem?"

How much does a teacher need for food expenses per month?

"Let me calculate..." Hoshino Hanami thought for a moment and replied, "If we only consider the main meals, it's about 150,000 yen a month."

This spendthrift woman… Tazaki Tsukasa felt a strange pang of heartache, as if she were spending his money.

After a while, four steaming bowls of tonkotsu ramen were served. The milky yellow broth was topped with light green scallions, and the ramen was served with half an egg, slices of meat, and enoki mushrooms. It looked very tempting.

The taste was great, the noodles were chewy, and the broth was very fragrant. After finishing a bowl, I felt completely happy.

"It tastes pretty good, doesn't it..." Hoshino Hanami said indistinctly as she ate her second bowl of noodles, her cheeks bulging. "I... I often come here to eat."

"It's very good."

Tazaki Tsukasa glanced at her and noticed that although she ate quickly, her movements weren't rough. She just chewed very fast, and in a short time, she finished her second bowl of noodles and started on her third.

If you can eat so much, where do all the calories go?

My gaze quietly shifted downwards to the curve of her chest.

It dawned on me.

It turns out they've all grown where they were supposed to.

"I have to go back to school this afternoon to grade papers..." Hoshino Hanami suddenly asked while eating, "You said you'd surprise me, so don't just say it. At least... at least you can't be in the bottom ten!"

"..." Tazaki Tsukasa had a string of complaints stuck in his throat, not knowing how to get them out.

Hoshino Hanami slurped up a mouthful of noodles, chewing as she asked, "What's wrong? Don't you have confidence in yourself?"

"Teacher...it's because you lack confidence in me. You can set your goals higher."

"Oh, so you're in the top 200 of the grade?"

Kitagawa Academy has 286 new students this year. For someone who ranked last in the entrance exam to be able to enter the top 200 is already a leap forward.

Although she didn't think Tsukasa Tazaki could do it, Hanami Hoshino didn't hurt his pride too much.

It's a good thing that students are eager to learn. As a teacher, what she needs to do is encourage and help them.

"Teacher, move forward a little more."

"Top 100?"

"Far from enough."

"We'll reach the top if we keep going."

"We're going to reach the top."

Hoshino Hanami wiped her oily lips with a handkerchief, scrutinizing him intently: "It's not that I don't believe you, it's just..."

Before she could finish speaking, she couldn't continue. She just chuckled a few times and then lowered her head to drink her noodle soup.

For some reason, Tsukasa Tazaki remembered a line from the movie "Kung Fu Hustle"—"It's not that we don't believe you, we just want to broaden our horizons."

"Ahem..." He cleared his throat and said seriously, "I can at least be in the top ten of the grade."

Actually, getting first place isn't impossible, but he's not sure if he can beat Yui Kichikawa and the little flat-chested girl who also has an intelligence of 8. So, to be on the safe side, he can only give a more secure position.

Hoshino Hanami lifted her face from the bowl of noodles, frowned, and said, "Talking big is not a good habit."

"Let's make a bet then," Tsukasa Tazaki said, setting her up. "If I can get into the top ten in the grade, the teacher will have to give me a bonus."

"No problem, if you lose, you'll have to make up for it this semester!"

Hoshino Hanami smiled, her eyebrows curving into small brackets. Sunlight streamed in through the glass window, illuminating her delicate, oval face with a healthy, warm glow.

nice!

Tsukasa Tazaki thought to himself, "My teacher's looks and I are a match made in heaven..."

"Well then, that's all for today." Hoshino Hanami waved her hand and walked to the counter to pay.

As Tazaki Tsukasa walked to the shop, a small truck delivered ingredients to the shop, including a basket of cucumbers. A thought struck him, and he walked over and picked one up.

After paying the bill, Hoshino Hanami turned towards the store door, her foot that had just stepped out froze in mid-air.

In my line of sight, a handsome young man leaned against the doorframe, took a bite of cucumber, and looked up at the sky with a melancholy expression. A gentle breeze blew, lifting his bangs and highlighting his artistic flair.

What a melancholy and beautiful young man… Tsukasa Tazaki thought to himself, and sighed, “The astringency of May cucumbers carries a kind of sadness that makes one’s chest feel empty, stinging, and itchy.”

Hoshino Hanami tilted her head, blinked, and then stepped forward.

One slap knocked his head to the side.

"Trying to teach a fish to swim, huh? Do you think a Chinese language teacher like me wouldn't know that this line comes from Osamu Dazai's 'The Schoolgirl'?"

Chapter Twenty-Six: Next time, you'll definitely be left behind by me.

Ask questions.

Does the astringent taste of May cucumbers truly carry a kind of sorrow that makes one feel empty, stinging, and itchy in the chest?

Tsukasa Tazaki could never taste the difference.

Given that this statement was made by Osamu Dazai, it is most likely not true, but this conclusion does not prevent him from continuing to like cucumbers in May.

After parting ways with his teacher, Tsukasa Tazaki returned home and opened the system while taking a shower.

[Hoshino Hana's current stock price: 30]

[Purchase of Hoshino Hana shares, quantity: 1000, confirmed.]

Current available funds: 25000

For some reason, after seeing Mr. Mancang's new stock listings, Tsukasa Tazaki felt particularly excited, and even his scrubbing motion became much stronger.

After taking a shower and changing into clean clothes, Tsukasa Tazaki browsed through student part-time job listings on his phone and found one located in Akihabara.

They wear mascot costumes and hand out flyers from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., for four hours.

This kind of work is quite strenuous, so the hourly wage is also relatively high, at 1200 yen per hour, and you can earn 4800 yen by standing for an afternoon.

Tsukasa Tazaki calculated that he currently earns 1.8 yen per week working at a convenience store. If he did this part-time job every weekend, his weekly income would be about 2.8 yen, and he would be guaranteed at least 11 yen per month.

After deducting rent of 4, food expenses of 4, transportation expenses of 1, daily necessities expenses of 5000, communication expenses of 3000, water, electricity and gas... oh, that's it.

Sigh, life in big cities is really too difficult. Now I finally understand why so many people are shouting the slogan "escape from Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou".

Desperate for money, Tsukasa Tazaki even entertained the urge to become a henchman for the yakuza gangs in Kabukicho...

I took the train to Akihabara Station and found the ACG supplies store where I worked not far from the exit. I changed into a Brown Bear costume, grabbed a flyer, and stood on the bustling street, becoming another proud part-time worker.

At three o'clock in the afternoon, the sky darkened, and several crows flew overhead. The whole of Tokyo seemed to be in mourning for someone, with a somber atmosphere pervading the air.

"Hey, what an adorable Brown Bear! Kanae, come over here, let's take a picture together."

The sudden appearance of Ninomiya startled Tsukasa Tazaki, but fortunately, the hood was large enough that he could see outside but those outside could not see inside.

"Little bear, let's take a picture together."

"Eggplant!"

"Click".

"Bye-bye~" Shiori Ninomiya hugged Brown Bear and rubbed against him before disappearing into the crowd with Kanae Kasuga.

Tazaki Tsukasa watched the girls walk away, along with the bags and purses in their hands, and sighed with relief that he hadn't agreed to go shopping with them.

"I'm 14 years old, I'm pretty, 元気な小さいLady"

The cell phone in his pocket rang. Tsukasa Tazaki took off his hood and pulled out the phone. It was a call from Mizuiro Murakami.

"Hey, Tazaki? Come out and play pool."