Tokyo Soft Rice King.

It's already unstoppable.

After lunch, the two hugged each other and closed their eyes to cherish each other until 2 p.m. before leaving the activity room to continue their afternoon date.

"The band performance in the afternoon won't start until around 4 p.m., so let's wander around a bit before then."

"Hmm... this band is going to be in their class, right? And the one on the list, Hikawa Makoto, is Saionji Makoto's younger sister, right?"

Kuroba Akira remembered that the class president had said that Saionji Machi's parents were divorced, so it wasn't surprising that she and her sister had different surnames.

"Yes, Makoto will be performing on stage as a substitute guitarist and vocalist. Originally, Mirai-chan was supposed to be the guitarist and the other person would be the vocalist. They seemed to have been rehearsing together during the summer vacation... But, Mirai-chan beat up the vocalist. As for what happened after that, you know, Akira."

"I see……"

No wonder she said she would come to see the band's performance tomorrow; it turns out she was one of the original members herself.

So the conflict arose during rehearsals outside, and the lead singer and guitarist got into a fight. As a result, the singer was criticized by the school and eventually stopped going to school altogether, hoping to take this opportunity to uncover his mother's secret.

Next, Kuroba Akira accepted the class monitor's request and successfully resolved the problem of the Takanashi family.

However, the problems within the school have not yet been resolved.

Although I won't need to go to school anymore in the future, it's still better to finish what I started to avoid leaving any lingering resentment.

"If she's not going to school in the future, then what about the lead singer? Why did she quit?"

"I'm not entirely sure about that. If you're curious, why don't you ask Makoto?"

"No need... Let's go see their performance together later."

"Okay, shall we go buy something to eat first?"

"Didn't you eat enough for lunch?"

"Hmm... because I only made one bento box, and... I gave you more of it, Mingjun."

The reason is that it doesn't feel like we're eating a meal, but rather like we're eating a wise ruler...

If people don't eat 'normal food,' it will make them crave the taste of a wise ruler...

She parted her lips slightly, a smile playing on her lips, the smile slowly spreading from her lips to her cheeks like ripples.

Once again, Kuroba Akira was captivated by her seemingly magical smile, following her like someone bewitched by a witch, obediently following her instructions.

The two of them then began browsing the stalls at the cultural festival...

"Ah, these takoyaki taste pretty good. Why don't you try some, Myungjun?"

Anri Hitomi directly offered the takoyaki she had only taken a small bite of to Kuroba Akira, who then ate the other half without a second thought.

Anyway, the two of them had already exchanged plenty of saliva in the haunted house and in the literature department room.

But to other students, it was a powerful flashbang that was enough to blind them.

Within the category of student couples, this couple is a bit too high-class.

Other young couples are still in the awkward stage where they blush and feel shy even when holding hands, but every interaction between these two is like that of a newlywed couple, full of love and sweetness.

Therefore, they attract attention wherever they go, half of which are curious and shy glances, and the other half are cursing looks.

Normally, Kuroba Akira would definitely feel very uncomfortable, but today he completely ignored his surroundings because he could see Anri Hitomi smiling brightly beside him.

The cultural festival, which I found rather boring in the morning, became much more interesting in the afternoon because she was with me.

This is the same principle as being a playmate for Takanashi Mirai...

In the end, am I also someone who needs someone by my side...?

Akira Kuroba also realized that his human strength had definitely weakened, but...

Isn't it good too?

Kuroba Akira has slowly come to acknowledge that this is his true feeling.

To be honest, when he first realized it, he felt a little embarrassed. After all, he was already a 30-year-old man inside, yet he had feelings for a high school girl...

But now he feels that perhaps through his interactions with Hitomi Anri, his heart has become younger as well.

He thought his 'youthful spirit' had died with the end of his first love and could never be found again, but it was revived by the warmth and care she gave him.

Therefore, it is only natural that a boy named Kuroba Akira would develop feelings of 'love' for a girl named Anri Hitomi.

Chapter 236 A Cultural Tribute for Those Who Shared the Storm (Part 8)

Akira Kuroba was completely immersed in this pure moment.

It's simple and direct, without having to consider money or personal connections.

Looking back now, both the preparation process and the experience the students had on the day of the cultural festival are precious memories that are worth remembering.

The two of them strolled through all the stalls and obstacle courses that interested them, and even watched a cheerleading performance along the way. Before they knew it, it was evening.

As darkness fell, the bonfire in the school playground was lit, and students gathered on the playground. Drum sets, keyboards, and other instruments were set up on the temporary stage, and the band performance was about to begin.

Kuroba Akira and Anri Hitomi did not follow the crowd to the playground, but instead went to the library.

Last semester, Kuroba Akira used to spend every day here, but since joining the Literature Club, he hasn't been to the library much.

Actually, the library should have been closed during the cultural festival, but Hitomi Anri had already borrowed the key beforehand, so now they have a great viewpoint overlooking the entire school playground.

"Oh...good visibility."

Kuroba Akira opened the window and looked out onto the playground. From this height, he could see the bonfire and the entire stage, which was somewhat like the third-floor seating area at a concert.

However, coming here also means giving up the opportunity to dance around the campfire.

Kuroba Akira pointed to the men and women who had already started holding hands and dancing to soothing background music.

"Class monitor...aren't we going to dance?"

"Do wise rulers enjoy dancing?"

Anri Hitomi didn't ask, "Does Myo-kun want to dance?" or "Can Myo-kun dance?" Instead, she asked him as if he were asking about a hobby, whether he liked dancing.

This left Akira Kuroba with no choice but to honestly answer his own opinion on dancing.

"This... I don't think I like it, and I've never skipped it before..."

However, if it were with the class president, Kuroba Akira felt that it would be a memorable moment, worth having the courage to try, so he still extended an invitation to her.

Anri Hitomi also walked to the window, looking at the noisy playground. Her eyes flickered slightly, reflecting the firelight, and the corners of her mouth maintained a faint smile, as if she had already expected Kuroba Akira's answer.

"Just as I thought. I knew that Mingjun was the type who preferred watching others dance to dancing himself. He was really engrossed in the cheerleading performance just now."

"Well..."

Kuroba Akira scratched his cheek somewhat awkwardly.

"Don't worry, I'm not making fun of you. I also think the cheerleading performance was great, and the cheerleading outfits were cute. Even though they all wear safety shorts, when their tops flutter and their belly buttons are exposed, it's kind of a little...uncomfortable..."

Oh my god, the class monitor's cesium point is the same as mine!

Do people find common ground in places like this?

"However, liking to watch and participating are two different things. There are quite a few members in our school's girls' cheerleading club, but there are very few in the boys' cheerleading team. This year, there are no performances at all."

"Because boys are very thin-skinned and afraid of losing face during puberty, they may feel ashamed."

"So, the same goes for dancing. Maybe only those show-off guys would like to do street dance, but they would be too shy to hold hands and dance with girls... Mingjun, look, most of the people dancing around the campfire now are girls, only a few are mixed-gender groups, and they all seem very awkward, right?"

"Yeah... But for guys, dancing itself isn't important, what's important is who they dance with."

It's enough to just hold hands with the girl I like and create memories together.

Then a more innocent guy might think, 'I'm not washing my hands today,' while a more lewd guy might think, 'I'll use this hand today.'

"Actually, girls think the same way. Who you dance with is more important, because it's actually a kind of 'simulation' process."

"simulation?"

Kuroba Akira was unaware of his meaning.

Speaking of which, the class monitor should be quite good at dancing. I've seen her proficiency before, and she even does high-difficulty dances like ballet.

"Dancing is an activity that involves swaying your body to the rhythm of music to express your emotions and self. Dancing with someone is actually a bit like 'that'... both of you are trying your best to cooperate with each other while also satisfying yourselves."

What Anri Hitomi was referring to was the final form of interaction between couples that leads directly to home base.

Speaking of which, animals only dance when they are courting, and after a successful courtship comes the training phase.

In other words, the men and women who are dancing around the campfire now will all go to a hotel room afterward.

Hearing her say that, Kuroba Akira suddenly felt that a very lavish party was taking place downstairs.

"So, if only one party is satisfied, but the other feels awkward for fear of embarrassing themselves, I would feel a little regretful..."

"I'm not afraid of making a fool of myself..."

As mentioned before, Akira Kuroba used to care about what others thought, but after completely saying goodbye to his first love, he changed and became completely indifferent to others.

For example, he used to dislike taking photos as souvenirs, finding it too deliberate, so he would try to avoid the camera. But later he realized that there was nothing embarrassing about taking photos.

Some opportunities, if missed at the time, will never come again.

However, class monitor Anri Hitomi is someone Kuroba Akira cares about a lot right now, so he still wants to try his best not to cause her any trouble.

"However, I probably couldn't completely relax; my attention was probably focused on avoiding stepping on your foot, class monitor..."

"Now that you mention it, I suddenly feel a bit curious to see Mingjun clumsily trying to cooperate with me and keep up with my pace. I think it would be quite adorable, hehe~"

Anri Hitomi laughed happily.

“But… I still hope that you, my wise ruler, can also be satisfied, and not just make ‘sacrifices’ to accommodate me.”

"Calling it a sacrifice is too much of an exaggeration..."

"Even though he doesn't like dancing, he still invited me. Just that gesture alone makes me very happy."

So Hitomi Anri didn't not want to dance; she just didn't want Akira Kuroba to do something he didn't like for her sake.

Furthermore, if you want to create lasting memories, you don't necessarily have to participate in the cultural festival activities.

Just like now, spending time alone with the two of them in the empty library is a memory that belongs only to the two of them.

"Besides, we don't need this simulation process between us, do we?"

"That's true..."

The bonfire party at the cultural festival is called a confession party because it provides an opportunity for boys and girls who have never had the chance to meet to get together.