My love index is at its maximum.

[Hanami: I dreamt this morning that you got first place in your exam, and I rewarded you... I didn't want to wake up so quickly and overslept. Who else can I blame but you?]

[Tazaki: I understand. I will make your dreams come true.]

Put down your phone.

Hoshino Hanami took a long breath, and a crescent-shaped smile appeared on her face.

At first, I just wanted to try it out and enjoy spending time with him, thinking it wouldn't hurt. I never expected to fall for him so quickly. It's only been a few days, and I already want to be with him all the time...

Even though the air conditioner was blowing cold air continuously, her heart was still burning hot. Hoshino Hanami couldn't help but roll around on the bed with a pillow between her legs.

He would occasionally let out strange, inexplicable laughter.

At the bedroom door, Hoshino Shika silently took out her phone and recorded her sister wriggling like a baby insect, so she could secretly watch it alone under the covers at night.

While doing so, I silently cursed Tsukasa Tazaki in my heart.

……

[My mortal enemy, draw your sword! Hoshino Shikami Index drops 5 points, current stock price: 6]

My sister's obsession is really strong...

Tsukasa Tazaki smiled and shook his head, packing up the remaining bento box to have for lunch. After finishing the bottle of lemonade with salt, he left the gazebo and walked back to Higashi Shinjuku.

Before the sun gets too scorching, let's finish today's run.

After returning home and taking a shower, Tsukasa Tazaki changed into clean clothes, picked up his schoolbag, and headed to Shinjuku Station to take the train back to school.

The tram swayed slightly, and the air coming from the vents felt much colder than usual.

Amidst the expectant gaze of a female office lady, Tsukasa Tazaki put on his headphones to listen to an Italian program on his phone, and casually sent a message to Shiori Ninomiya.

[Tazaki: Good luck on your exam! If you get into the top ten, I'll treat you to a coffee shop.]

The cutie replied instantly.

[Ninomiya: Kiki wants to buy me coffee, am I seeing things?]

[Tazaki: You read that right. Also, this is coffee meant to be encouraging, don't steer it in other directions.]

[Ninomiya: Oh no, I'm completely filled with the satisfaction Kiki is giving me, what should I do?]

[Tazaki: Don't say such strange things.]

[Ninomiya: I just wanted to know if Kiki would blush when she saw these words...]

[Tazaki: No.]

[Ninomiya: I don't believe you unless you open a video call and let me see your face.]

[Tazaki: My phone's dead. Goodbye.]

Putting his phone back in his pocket, Tsukasa Tazaki half-closed his eyes, focusing all his attention on the Italian program playing in his earphones. The tram swayed and moved forward between the skyscrapers, soon arriving at Yotsuya Station.

Today is the first day of the midterm exams.

Emerging from Yotsuya Station, Tsukasa Tazaki walked alone on the slope leading to the school gate. It was only eight in the morning, yet the air was already unusually damp and heavy. The sunlight cast distorted shadows on the asphalt, and geothermal heat rose continuously from beneath his feet.

As soon as I stepped into the school gate, a patch of my clothes, which had been dry, became wet again.

This scene made Tsukasa Tazaki think that Tokyo was really hot.

After changing into the same flat shoes in front of the shoe cabinet, students can be seen everywhere in the corridor around the corner, cramming for exams with their textbooks in hand.

Midterm exams are not like the minor tests of monthly exams; they are serious tests that assess academic ability. The results not only affect scholarship awards, but also serve as a key indicator of a student's performance during the semester and are reported to their parents.

No wonder their enthusiasm for learning is at an all-time high.

Back in the classroom, there were still more than ten minutes before the exam. In Class F's classroom, some students were looking down at their phones, some were catching up on sleep, and some were playing a game of eye contact with the modern Chinese textbook that was about to be tested.

Murakami Mizuiro is playing PUBG on her phone.

As Tazaki Tsukasa walked over, he glanced at the screen and saw a kill notification pop up in the upper left corner.

[“I will always love Mai Sakurajima” used an M4A1 to kill “Mai Sakurajima”]

The first one is Murakami Mizuiro's account name, and the second one is his new wife.

This is what they mean by "e-sports has no love."

Tazaki Tsukasa sat down in his seat and had just put his bag down when Murakami Mizuiro looked up and tossed him a bottle of coffee.

"Take this, and wake up."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome. If you fall out of the top five, I'll be in big trouble."

Tsukasa Tazaki held the condensed coffee bottle, his eyes filled with doubt: "What does my drop in ranking have to do with you?"

"You really don't pay any attention to what others are saying." Murakami Mizuiro's gaze returned to the phone screen. "A few people in the class have been talking behind your back, saying that you got second place in the monthly test by cheating. I made a bet with them that you'd be in the top five again this time. Don't get me into trouble, it's a whopping 20 yen, I've bet all my allowance for the month on it."

"You actually trust me." Tsukasa Tazaki unscrewed the cap of the coffee bottle and took a sip. The taste was so-so. He glanced at the bottle, and sure enough, the logo was Nestlé.

Murakami Mizuiro replied casually, "Rather than saying I believe you, I'd say I understand you. How could someone like you, who has no pressure about grades and doesn't care about other people's opinions, possibly care about rankings? Whether you get first place or last place, it all comes down to your ability, doesn't it?"

Aren't you curious about how I went from being last in the class to second in the class?

"I was curious, but I was only curious for two days, and then I forgot about it. Ugh, it's creepy for a grown man like me to be so curious about another grown man all the time, don't you think?"

Tsukasa Tazaki nodded: "Absolutely right."

"Hmm... since you agree with me, let's go play pool this weekend. I know a lot of pretty girls..."

"No, I'm going to spend the weekend with my girlfriend."

Murakami Mizuiro suddenly raised her head: "Let's break off all ties right now!"

Tsukasa Tazaki replied, "That would be best."

The exam bell rang.

Murakami Mizuiro put away his phone and turned to sit up straight.

The first exam was on modern Japanese language, and the proctor changed from Hoshino Hanami, who had been proctoring during the monthly exam, to a little old man I had never seen before.

Tsukasa Tazaki took out his pencil case from his bag and neatly arranged the mechanical pencils, ballpoint pens, and erasers on the table.

As he was handing out the papers, he thought to himself that relationships between men don't necessarily mean they're close because they're always sticking together. Maintaining a proper distance is also a commendable behavior.

Having a free-flowing chat occasionally, or going crazy together when playing games, is enough.

Chapter 103 Apart from that, there was no other sound in the room.

After finishing the second chemistry exam in the morning, it was lunchtime.

Hoshino Hanami called out from the back door, "Tazaki, come out here."

Tazaki Tsukasa, who was tidying up his desk, immediately went out. The two of them walked one after the other to the corner of the corridor. It was close to the office, and since it was after school, there were very few students passing by.

"How did the exam go?" Hoshino Hanami asked, leaning against the wall.

Tsukasa Tazaki smiled confidently: "It feels great."

"Great job, keep it up." Hoshino Hana smiled and turned to leave.

Tazaki Tsukasa asked, bewildered, "You're leaving already? Nothing else?"

"Oh, right, there's one more thing." Hoshino Hanami slapped her head as if suddenly realizing something, turned around and ran back to Tazaki Tsukasa's side, reaching out to ruffle his slightly long hair: "I used to think your messy hair made you look listless, and I wanted to force you to cut it several times. But now the more I look at it, the more I like it, and I want to ruffle it a few times every morning when I wake up."

"..."

After she rubbed for a few seconds, Tsukasa Tazaki took her soft and warm hand away with a hint of annoyance: "Don't treat me like a navy officer."

"It feels great, no worse than the Navy's." Hoshino Hanami said coquettishly like a little girl.

"You really think I'm comparing myself to the Navy?"

"Haha... Just kidding, don't get angry."

Hoshino Hanami smiled slightly and tapped his chest with her finger: "I have a few boxes of L'éclat planet chocolates in my cabinet. Go get them yourself when no one is in the office during lunch break."

L'éclat planet chocolates, a box of eight, each shaped like one of the eight planets in the solar system, are priced at 7000 yen.

Rich women are awesome.

Especially since she's a wealthy woman who deeply likes you.

After lunch, Tsukasa Tazaki stuffed the entire Earth into his mouth. The cocoa flavor was so sweet it made his nose tingle, but he also felt a sense of happiness as if he owned the whole Earth.

The first exam in the afternoon was Japanese history. The proctor was Naoko Morisawa, the homeroom teacher of Ninomiya's class and also the English teacher of Class F.

After the questions began, the entire classroom fell silent, and certain subtle sounds were amplified several times over. These included the whirring of the air conditioner vents, the scratching of pens and pencils across the answer sheets, and the dull thud of erasers falling to the floor…

The loudest sound was the occasional clatter of high heels hitting the floor.

As she passed Tsukasa Tazaki's seat, Naoko Morisawa deliberately craned her neck to glance at his answer sheet.

The clear and neat printed text, with its elegant strokes and perfectly balanced font density, is as pleasing to the eye as if it were printed by a printer.

Looking at his profile again, he was more handsome than any idol star I had ever seen.

Back at the podium, Naoko Morisawa picked up her water glass and took a sip. Her gaze remained fixed on Tsukasa Tazaki's face when a question suddenly occurred to her. Lately, Hoshino Hanamichi had been frequently daydreaming and often wore inexplicable silly smiles. Could this symptom of 'love-induced silliness' be related to his confession?

But teacher-student relationships are not allowed!

How dare they...?

This is too...exciting!

The English teacher slumped dejectedly on the podium, when suddenly she felt a sour taste in her mouth.

At 3:30, the closing bell rang.

Tazaki Tsukasa sat in his seat, waiting for the teacher to finish collecting the papers. While wondering why the English teacher was looking at him so strangely, he put his pencil and eraser into his pencil case, closed his schoolbag, and walked through the elevated corridor to the club building.

In the ATF club activity room bathed in the setting sun, a girl is feeding a cat with a snack stick.

The chubby orange cat ate with relish.

She gently stroked the fur on its cheek with her other hand, her expression tender.

"click"

I heard the sound of a door opening behind me.