I, the mastermind behind the scenes at Soubu High, refuse to be caught in a bloodbath.

Himekoji nodded approvingly. "So, what is it you want to talk about?" Although he was in a hurry, since the other party had changed from a man to a woman, he decided to postpone asking the question for a while. He glanced at the shrine's worship hall, nodded his chin, and asked, "Have you already worshipped?"

"not yet."

Kawasaki took a step forward and walked to Himekoji's side.

"Shall we go together?"

"it is good..."

Kawasaki seemed reluctant to speak the whole way. No matter what Himekoji asked her, she just responded with casual "uh-huh" and "yeah". The clattering sound of her wooden clogs against the ground was louder than her voice, making it quite difficult to hear her in the crowd.

Perhaps it was that school trip that left her with some unpleasant memories, because Kawasaki always seemed uneasy when she was alone with Himekoji. By the way, the black lace was really nice.

She tossed in a five-yen coin, clapped twice, bowed her head in prayer, and after the prayer, Kawasaki seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. It's unknown what wish she made for the New Year, but Himekoji's wish was for Yoko to recover quickly, which meant finding a suitable donor. "If there really is a god who sent me to this world, then it must be able to hear my voice," Himekoji thought.

Chapter 279 However, [Yukino Yukinoshita] also happens to be here.

Clearly, the gods did not respond. In fact, if they had, it would have been terrifying.

"What will you do after that?"

"Want to stroll around a temple fair... or something like that?"

Kawasaki asked uncertainly, pointing with his bright pink fingernails towards the stall. The stall had already been set up by this time. Although he felt some sympathy for these people who had to come out to earn money in the freezing cold, he couldn't help but feel sorry for them since they could earn quite a bit in a day.

Seeing Himekoji nod, Kawasaki smiled with delight for a moment. Then, she didn't notice the protruding brick under her feet and tripped on it, letting out a "Ah!" and falling forward. Fortunately, she grabbed Himekoji's arm just before she fell. Although Himekoji was jolted, he managed to straighten Kawasaki up in the end.

"Wearing wooden clogs is already difficult to walk in, so you'd better watch your step. If the straps break, I'll have to carry you again."

Once the straps on the wooden clogs break, you can forget about using them for a while if you don't want to throw them away. Just wrap them in a plastic bag and have someone carry them. When you get to a shoe store, just buy a pair of shoes and hurry home.

"Thank you so much."

Kawasaki, still somewhat shaken, thanked Himekoji and tightly gripped Himekoji's long trench coat sleeve, only letting go after several seconds. However, after she nearly fell again within a minute by bumping into a protruding brick, Himekoji began to take her hand and walk away.

Strangely enough, when she was left to walk on her own, she would almost fall every time, but when she was led by the hand, she became noticeably more distracted and was able to avoid the sections of the road where it was easy to fall. This left Ji Xiaolu speechless. Women are truly amazing creatures.

"What do you want to eat?"

"Marshmallow..."

Okay, it's marshmallows again, but this time Kazusa didn't email her asking me to bring her this or that, which made things a bit easier.

The cotton candy stall and the apple candy stall are together. The stall, run by an honest and kind-hearted middle-aged owner, is very popular with couples and young girls. Of course, there are also quite a few noisy children, after all, the human fascination with sugar is etched deep into our genes.

As Kawasaki browsed through bags printed with anime characters for girls, Himekoji stood beside her, waiting to pay. Kawasaki eventually chose a bag featuring a little girl and a masked boy; Himekoji vaguely recognized the design, but couldn't quite place it. After paying, Kawasaki casually handed Himekoji her hand, and the two turned to leave, only to unexpectedly encounter two characters.

Yui Yuigahama and Komachi Hikigaya come to buy candied apples.

Since Komachi and Yuihama are here, then Hachiman Hikigaya, who is no less of a sister-complex than Lelouch vi Britannia, must also be here, right? However, compared to Himekoji's focus on Hikigaya, the two girls, whose minds were completely occupied by love, turned their attention to Himekoji and Kawasaki's hands clasped together, and both showed expressions of great surprise.

Komachi is Kawasaki's younger brother's classmate, and Yui is Kawasaki's classmate. The two of them naturally know Kawasaki, but this is the first time Komachi has seen Kawasaki dressed like this. Yui immediately recognizes him as the beautiful girl in a yukata from her summer night memories. She claps her hands and points at Kawasaki, exclaiming, "Ah—! You're Saki Saki from our class!"

"Damn it, don't call me Sashi Sashi!"

Faced with Yuihama, who was also a woman, Kawasaki instantly lost his composure. His ferocity made Himekoji wonder if the girl with the blushing face and a voice so soft that she couldn't be heard was just his imagination.

"Cough cough—" Then, Kawasaki immediately realized his problem and quickly covered it up with a cough, but he did not let go of the hand he was holding with Himekoji.

"By the way... why are Saki-nee and Himekoji-senpai here? And why are they holding hands..."

Komachi looked at him with suspicion; in her mind, she was already pretty much ready to label Himekoji as an absolute scumbag.

"Huh? This...that...this guy did it without permission..."

"Hey, are you just going to label me like that?!"

Himekoji rolled her eyes upon hearing this, but even though the other two had the same foxy expression, they still held hands and showed no intention of letting go. Kawasaki said that it was Himekoji's unauthorized action, but she did not show any resistance. The implication was intriguing to Komachi and Yuihama, but they could see through it at a glance.

But why is this happening?

"Happy New Year. Also, since you're all here, I assume Hachiman and Yukinoshita are here too."

Himekoji looked around but didn't see the two people. However, Yui and Komachi immediately confirmed Himekoji's guess. While Kawasaki and Komachi were exchanging pleasantries, Himekoji heard Yukinoshita's thoughtful voice say, "Copycat? That sounds like a name I've heard somewhere before. I remember the surname is Hi-Hiki..."

"Wait a minute? Are you talking about me? Putting aside my name, you didn't even remember my last name?"

Immediately following was Hachiman's rebuttal. It seemed they were discussing something that was a pirated product, a copy. In Japanese, a pirated product can be called "pachimon," which sounds somewhat similar to Hachiman's name. So, Yukinoshita was probably using this to bully Hachiman.

So the two of them walked through the crowd one after the other and arrived in front of Yuihama and Komachi. Yukinoshita asked somewhat displeasedly, "We haven't bought the apple candy yet..." Then she turned around and saw Kawasaki and Himekoji standing together holding hands, and her words stopped abruptly.

"It's you guys... Happy New Year."

Yukino nodded politely, but her previously cheerful expression immediately turned cold as she and Hikigaya focused their gazes on the two holding hands.

Kawasaki grew increasingly flustered under the gaze of the four people. He subtly twisted his hand, releasing Himekoji's grip. However, Yukinoshita continued to scrutinize the two hands that had been clasped together, before suddenly looking up at Himekoji and asking, "By the way, why are you here?"

"Don't you all do the same when you visit temples at the beginning of the new year?"

"No...that's not what I meant...never mind..."

"..." Himekoji remained silent, while Kawasaki spoke haltingly, "Th-that..."

"Which one?"

Yukinoshita suddenly turned her sharp gaze to her again, revealing a very strong expression.

Chapter 280 In the crowd, [Yukino Yukinoshita] makes a choice.

"No...it's nothing."

Kawasaki, who would normally stand up for himself, suddenly backed down at this moment, which seemed to make Yukinoshita feel a little better. She took one last look at the two of them holding hands, turned around and said, "Yuigahama-san, Komachi, let's go."

"Oh...oh..."

The other two turned around and quickly followed, with Yui Hama pulling Hachiman away at the very end.

"So, what was the one thing you wanted to say from the very beginning?"

After the group left, Himekoji asked Kawasaki, who seemed a little lost.

"No... well... actually... I'm just really grateful to you for providing me with such a great job. I really don't know how to repay you."

Kawasaki sighed, staring at his toes and gently twisting his shoulders.

"Oh, is that so... Speaking of which, you dressed up like this and suddenly asked me out, making it seem like you were going to confess your feelings to me. Well, don't mind it, I was just saying it casually."

Himekoji waved her hand, while Kawasaki suddenly raised his head and said in a higher tone, "I'm actually—!"

"What is it?"

"Yes... um... it's nothing, sorry, forget about it." She lowered her head again, shaking it as she said, "Sorry for calling you out so suddenly. It's all over now, I'm going to go find my younger brother and sister and go home."

"Okay, okay, but if it's going to be like this again, it's best not to suddenly ask me out. I'm busy too."

Although I have some free time during the New Year holiday, and even stayed up late with Ms. Reiko last night, it doesn't mean I'll be able to relax after the New Year. Especially since I'm about to enter my senior year of high school, Himekoji needs to make more preparations for her university life.

Kawasaki bid farewell, carefully protecting the cotton candy Himekoji had bought for her amidst the crowd, stumbling and falling as she walked away. Her awkwardness in the wooden clogs, barely able to keep up with the flow of people, was truly pitiful. Himekoji glanced at her a few times, then looked away, preparing to head towards the parking lot where Reiko was waiting. But just then, his phone suddenly rang; quite unexpectedly, it was Hachiman calling.

"It's me. What's the matter?"

"Let me make this clear first, I don't want to owe you any favors, so there's something I need to tell you... Um... Yukinoshita's birthday is January 3rd. If you need to prepare anything, then hurry up and do so. Bye."

Before Himekoji could reply with a single word, Hikigaya suddenly hung up the phone. It seems that making phone calls is something he's not used to at all. Of course, Himekoji knew that Yukinoshita's birthday was January 3rd. As for why he called and said he didn't want to owe Himekoji a favor, it was probably because Himekoji had called to inform him of Yuihama's birthday last time. Even if Hikigaya is stupid now, he can tell that Yuihama is probably interested in him.

As for Kawasaki... Himekoji is more inclined to believe that she confused feelings with gratitude, which is common among men. Women are generally more sensitive to emotions and therefore usually do not make mistakes in judgment. However, as for Kawasaki... just thinking about her delinquent-girl appearance, it's clear that she doesn't have much emotional experience.

What gift should I give? I just gave a Christmas present a while ago, and now I have to give a birthday present. It's a bit of a headache. Himeko thought to herself as she glanced into the crowd.

About thirty meters away from him, Yukino Yukinoshita stood quietly, staring blankly in his direction. However, due to her height, she couldn't see through the thick crowd. Although Himekoji could see her, he could only occasionally make out the top of her head and her striking red ribbon in the bustling crowd. He only knew that she was facing him.

Strange, shouldn't she be with Yuihama and Komachi? Shouldn't Hikigaya be by her side the whole time? Himekoji looked around; she was surrounded by unfamiliar people. Thinking of this, he squeezed a few steps toward them, but then shook his head and turned to walk toward the parking lot.

For Yukinoshita, it was merely a fleeting coincidence. A gap opened in the crowd, and the figure with pure white hair, who had been gazing at her from afar, turned and walked in the opposite direction. A few glimmers of light suddenly appeared in Yukinoshita's dazed eyes. She slightly parted her thin lips, as if wanting to shout something, but the gap in the crowd closed abruptly the next second. With that fleeting glimpse, the words she wanted to utter seemed to vanish into the throng.

One, two, three, Yukinoshita struggled to push through the crowd, using her petite frame to navigate the throng. She apologized repeatedly, chasing after the figure according to her last memory. Although she was running, her speed was comparable to that of a snail, but she firmly believed in her heart that she could definitely catch up with him.

"Excuse me, please let me through. Excuse me, please let me through. Excuse me, I have an emergency. Thank you."

He kept apologizing as he walked through family after family and couple after couple, burying his head in his work under the snow.

Ji Xiaolu was unaware of what was happening behind him and was simply making his way towards the parking lot. When he was about a short distance away, he noticed a black-haired girl suddenly appear beside him, shouting "Please move aside!" Ji Xiaolu instinctively moved aside, but just as she was about to pass by him, he caught a glimpse of a bright red hair tie.

Himeko grabbed the hand that was about to disappear from her side, and at the same time felt the touch of the silver bracelet she had given her on her wrist. There was no mistake, this was definitely Yukinoshita.

Yukinoshita hurriedly turned around, trying to break free from the person holding her hand, but upon turning around, she discovered that the person holding her wrist was none other than the figure she had been subconsciously searching for.

"Running through the crowd without even looking up, is something urgent?"

Gently releasing her hand from the snow, Himekoji asked a question to the still somewhat dazed woman.

"You're the one who suddenly grabbed the hand of the girl running past. If it wasn't me, wouldn't that seem too frivolous?"

Wearing a white coat and black tights peeking out from her plaid mini-skirt, Yukinoshita seemed unwilling to explain her wandering through the crowd, and instead wanted to blame Himekoji.

"It's okay to admit my mistake, I just don't want to miss out."

Himeko reached out and ruffled Yukinoshita's hair. Given their height difference, it couldn't be more convenient to do this.

"Please don't touch my hair, thank you."

Yukinoshita rolled her eyes at him, pushed Himekoji's hand away, straightened the strap hanging on her shoulder, and adjusted her small handbag. Her appearance was a little disheveled from the journey through the crowd.

Chapter 281 In the cold wind, [Yukino Yukinoshita] extends an invitation.

"So, what are you rushing through the crowd to do? Did you lose something?"

“A little bit…but—” Yukinoshita shook her head, looked up and smiled, “I’ve already found it.”

"Really? That's great. And what about Yuihama and Hikigaya?"

"We parted ways after strolling around for a little while. Yuihama was being called by Miura, and as for Hikigaya... he went home with Komachi."

Yukinoshita touched her lips with her slender finger and pondered for a moment.

"Speaking of which, your outfit today is really nice. Well, of course, it's also because I'm well-endowed, so with a little embellishment, it looks even cuter."

"Did you just say these words to Kawasaki verbatim?"

Yukinoshita gave a look that seemed to indicate she was trying to bolster her confidence, but Himekoji quickly waved her hand and said, "How could that be? I didn't tell Kawasaki that."

They just said similar things.