My love index is at its maximum.

If you really put in the effort to win over the teacher, the results seem to be quite good.

She teaches him during the day and he mentors others at night. Isn't this kind of life happier than being alone?

Looking at the bright Tokyo night sky, Tsukasa Tazaki secretly made up his mind—he had to drive this big car, the teacher!

……

May 10th, Monday, a pleasant morning.

The sky was a surprising shade of blue, with sparse white clouds, and sparrows perched on the roadside utility poles.

As he entered the school gate, Tsukasa Tazaki pressed the personality switch button.

A positive and passionate young man X

A cool and aloof handsome guy √

Good morning, Tazaki-san.

"morning."

"Have you had breakfast yet? I have an extra one here."

"have eaten."

"What book is that you're holding, Tazaki-san? Can I borrow it?"

"No loan."

As he walked along, bold girls would occasionally greet him and strike up conversations with him.

There was no way around it; ever since the results of the monthly exam came out, the teenage girls at Kitagawa Academy had been like they'd discovered a new continent, with countless green eyes fixed on Tsukasa Tazaki.

Handsome or not doesn't matter, good grades are just a bonus, the main thing is that I like people whose last name is Tazaki.

Whenever a female classmate wearing a pleated skirt and a bow comes over to greet him, Tsukasa Tazaki would calmly respond to them, then turn away and forget what they looked like.

When a girl shamelessly asks for his Line account, he will agree, but of course, he will read all subsequent messages from her without replying.

While changing her shoes in front of the shoe cabinet, Tsukasa Tazaki thought to herself: "High school girls who are obsessed with dating are terrifying."

It seems that maintaining a cool and aloof persona is still very necessary.

This not only saves a lot of time from being approached by strangers, but also allows you to make a small contribution to environmental protection.

As for why...

A large part of the responsibility for global warming should be attributed to those "gentle and kind" men.

Back in the classroom, before class started, Tsukasa Tazaki continued reviewing Japanese history.

The first class was English, and the young but not very pretty English teacher was explaining dry English grammar.

"The simple past future tense refers to an action or state that will occur in the future from the perspective of a certain point in the past."

"The grammatical structure of an affirmative sentence is: subject + be going to + verb in its base form + other."

Tazaki Tsukasa's English level was well past the CET-6 (College English Test Band 6), so he didn't need to worry too much about this kind of high school knowledge. While staring at the blackboard, his mind was contemplating the profound significance of the Meiji Restoration for Japanese history.

Whenever the English teacher looked at him, he would lower his head and pretend to take notes, writing two meaningless words in his English book.

For a period of time, the English teacher left the podium and read an article aloud around the classroom.

As she passed by Tazaki's seat, she glanced curiously at the textbook of the student who had scored full marks in English on the monthly test and saw Tazaki's notes from class.

Then, this high-achieving graduate from Kyoto University spent an entire day thinking about a problem.

【you see see you，one day day de】

What exactly does this sentence mean?

Can it be translated completely into Japanese?

Unable to come up with an answer even after racking her brains, she could only complain to Hoshino Hanami: "The brains of genius students are indeed beyond the reach of a mere high achiever like me."

The last class in the morning is the weekly home economics class. This week's lesson is about making pizzas, and the F and D classes are combined.

Tsukasa Tazaki and Mizuiro Murakami walked together, trailing behind the group as they walked through the elevated corridor, talking as they went.

"Tazaki, do you know any tsundere girls? Introduce me to a few."

Why are you suddenly asking this?

"I've recently become obsessed with Rin Tohsaka and want to find a girlfriend with the same personality."

"Isn't the English teacher just a tsundere?"

"Huh? How did you know? Does that mean you're having an affair with her too, besides Hoshino-sensei?"

"Don't talk nonsense." Tsukasa Tazaki kicked him and explained, "Think about it yourself. Your English teacher always says things like, 'You're learning for yourself, I don't care about you,' and 'I'm not concerned about you, I'm only concerned about the college entrance rate.' Aren't those just typical tsundere statements?"

Murakami Mizuiro scratched his head: "That makes a lot of sense."

Tsukasa Tazaki patted him on the shoulder: "And that bald math teacher, he's just as arrogant. Why don't you consider him?"

What happened to the math teacher?

"You little brats, I get the same pay whether you get high or low scores, why should I worry about you every day? What else can you say but arrogance?"

"I feel like... the word 'tsundere' has become a derogatory term in my mind."

"And there was that white-haired geography teacher, he often said..."

"No, brother, please stop talking. I can already picture it in my head."

The two walked into the cooking classroom while talking.

Shiori Ninomiya, who had been following them all the way, pouted, feeling somewhat aggrieved.

Some people can talk a good game with their brothers, but when it comes to pretty girls, they can't say a single sweet word.

The huge cooking classroom was packed with people, with students working in groups of four to complete the tasks assigned by the teacher.

Tsukasa Tazaki and Mizuiro Murakami, along with two other boys from the same class, formed a group.

"First, mix the high-gluten and low-gluten flours, add the dry yeast, and then pour warm water into the flour while stirring..."

The dormitory supervisor's voice had barely begun when it was interrupted with a "bang".

The sound of the stainless steel bowl used for kneading dough falling to the ground was extremely jarring, and the entire classroom fell silent as everyone turned their attention to the direction from which the sound came.

"I'm so sorry..." Murakami Mizuiro apologized as she picked up the stainless steel basin. "This thing is really too difficult to handle. I'm afraid someone might die if this continues. Teacher, could you please assign two girls who are good at cooking to help us?"

Tazaki Shiki glanced at Murakami Mizuiro without saying a word. He could see clearly that Murakami Mizuiro had deliberately fallen.

"This is the only way." The dormitory supervisor stroked her chin and glanced around the classroom. "Which group is willing to come over and help?"

"Let's go over there."

"Eh?"

Two voices rang out from the crowd one after the other.

Immediately afterwards, dragged along by Kasuga Kanae, Ninomiya Shiori reluctantly walked toward Tazaki Tsukasa.

Chapter Thirty-Eight: Murakami Mizuiro Feels Like She's Lost Her Love

After the groups were reassigned, the classroom returned to order. Students brandished their tools, the clanging of knives against cutting boards filling the air, occasionally punctuated by the teacher's instruction.

Tsukasa Tazaki glanced at Mizuiro Murakami, who in turn glanced at Kanae Kasuga.

Kasuga Kanae glanced at Ninomiya Shiori, and Ninomiya Shiori glanced at Tazaki Tsukasa.

"..."

"Teacher...I have something to say!"

The dormitory supervisor lifted her head from the sink and looked over: "Murakami-kun, what's wrong with you now?"

"Excuse me, I have a stomachache and need to use the restroom."

"Go, and come back soon."

"no problem!"

Murakami Mizuiro winked at Tazaki Tsukasa and dashed out of the cooking class like a shot.

Based on his actions, Tazaki Tsukasa thought, "I can do without a girlfriend, but I absolutely must make this friend."

"Alright... let's begin." Kasuga Kanae smiled, silently picked up a shrimp, and hid on the other side of the counter to peel it alone.

Good grief, you two were in cahoots?

From Murakami Mizuiro deliberately smashing the steel basin, to Kasuga Kanae taking the initiative to come over, to Murakami Mizuiro using the "excrement escape" tactic, to Kasuga Kanae finally choosing to spend this lesson with shrimp.

Tsukasa Tazaki glanced at Shiori Ninomiya with a headache, and she looked at him with the same expression.

After a moment of silence, she smiled and said, "Let's begin, Tazaki-san."

[I'm not angry anymore! Shiori Ninomiya's stock index rose 20 points. Current stock price: 60]

The energetic girl took the stainless steel basin to the sink to wash it, then heated some butter on the stove, followed by cracking an egg and mixing it with a small amount of self-rising flour. Finally, she added milk and flour and kneaded the dough on the counter by herself.

Tsukasa Tazaki was cutting bacon into small pieces, his eyes occasionally catching her movements.

It seemed the flour ratio was wrong. Ninomiya grabbed a handful of flour and added it to the dough, then tucked her bangs behind her ears. The flour-covered fingertips left two white streaks on her forehead, like paint primer left by a painter testing paint.

Upon closer inspection, she was indeed a beautiful and elegant young woman, with a stunning appearance.

After slicing the bacon, Tsukasa Tazaki asked, "Is there anything I can do to help?"

"No need, I'm used to doing it by myself." After saying that, Shiori Ninomiya smiled slightly at him. Because kneading dough requires a lot of strength, her pretty little face was flushed and very cute.

She kneaded the dough and set it aside to ferment for twenty minutes. She washed two bell peppers, one red and one yellow, and cut them into rings on the cutting board.

Tazaki Tsukasa stood to the side, unsure of what to do, so he could only watch Ninomiya Shiori cut the bell peppers. Her skillful knife work was quite beautiful, agile, and cohesive.

He watched and secretly admired it.

"Do you cook often?" he asked.

“Yes, I’ve been learning to cook since I was little.” Shiori Ninomiya said with her back to him, her voice full of confidence: “I’m not bragging, but I’m really good at cooking. Whenever guests come over for dinner, they always praise my cooking.”

I'd like to try it if I have the chance.

"Really?" Shiori Ninomiya turned to look at his face, her eyes as clear as a bottomless mountain stream.