Tokyo Soft Rice King.

Visiting the cultural festival? Or stealing a man?

She didn't specify, so perhaps it could mean both.

And Shion would definitely take the bait.

"Hmph...! I'll play along to the end!"

Because she definitely wants to settle things today.

The winner takes all, the loser...

Just leave him!

Chapter 242 A Cultural Sacrifice at Lightning Speed, Part Fourteen

The cultural festival for three people continues.

Kuroba Akira still wanted to ease the tension between the two women as much as possible.

At first, I wanted the class monitor and Ziyin to become friends... but now it seems that was just wishful thinking.

The class monitor suddenly drew her sword and chose to confront Ziyin head-on, instead of maintaining her usual style. This was the main reason for the chaotic scene that unfolded.

It's because Kuroba Akira couldn't control himself yesterday that things have become so unpleasant. And it was he who invited Shion to the cultural festival; now that he thinks about it, it's all his own fault...

But who knew the version would change so quickly?

While it's unlikely they can rebuild their relationship, there are still ways to get them to temporarily cease hostilities.

For example... solving puzzles.

When Kuroba Akira saw Shirai Shiori, he immediately remembered yesterday's riddle.

Because the students all went to watch the performance after it started last night, the prizes for solving the puzzles have not yet been redeemed.

There are also puzzles exclusive to the second day; you can check them out first.

After Kuroba Akira made the suggestion, the two girls who were holding his arms locked up agreed.

Ziyin didn't care; she would do anything as long as she could be with Kuroba Akira.

On the other side, it was the same for Anri Hitomi, since it was still morning and she could do whatever she wanted.

So the three of them went together to the location where the riddle was revealed yesterday.

Upon arriving at the location, it was discovered that the Go puzzle related to Shiori Shirai's autograph had not yet been solved. This was partly because the puzzle was too abstract and difficult to understand, and partly because many people were not particularly interested in the prize.

Although Shiori Shirai has won short story awards, she is just a promising newcomer in the industry, and her popularity is very low for people who don't follow the literary field.

Therefore, only students at school who had heard of her would be interested in this prize, and they didn't really want an autograph; they just wanted to take this opportunity to get to know this aloof literary girl.

However, because the puzzle was too difficult, the guys who came with the intention of picking up girls quickly gave up. They figured they might as well use that time to flirt with other girls who were easier to win over.

Kuroba Akira originally only wanted to use the prize to tease Shirai Shiori, but now he feels that the more difficult the puzzle is, the better.

The more difficult the puzzle, the more it will make the women on both sides rack their brains, leaving them no time to think about anything else, let alone compete for attention.

Moreover, in order to compete with each other, they will definitely go all out, so that I can take a breather.

In this way, the trio can coexist peacefully for the time being...

If I can manage to hold out until night, I'll be free after the cultural festival ends.

However, Kuroba Akira overlooked one thing...

"It looks like a three-star formation in Go."

"..."

The squad leader immediately thought of the crucial information he obtained yesterday through a chance encounter with Senior Shi Guang.

Kuroba Akira then remembered that the class monitor was proficient in Go!

"Hmm... And speaking of the triad, that's Orion... So, shall we go check out the Astronomy Department first? Although I have a feeling this mystery won't be that simple."

After Anri Hitomi won the first round, Ziyin showed a very unwilling expression. However, all her talents were in music, acting, and physical skills, which were of no help to thinking. Moreover, she did not have the relevant knowledge reserves and could not think of any useful clues.

The three of them went to the Astronomy Department together, but they couldn't find the card to redeem the prize.

"It seems it's not here. It's not that simple after all. I should think about it one more step... I think it has nothing to do with location. After all, it's about solving a puzzle to find a prize, so the direction should be more specific... Speaking of Orion, it's about the legend of Orion, right?"

"Orion... the one who fell in love with Artemis, the moon goddess."

Kuroba Akira remembered this mythical figure because of a certain moon game, where the muscular man was turned into a cute little bear.

“That’s right… but I didn’t expect that you, wise ruler, would think of this version of the legend first. Generally speaking, the most famous version is that Orion was killed by a scorpion, the scorpion became the constellation Scorpio, and Orion became the constellation Orion.”

"what……"

"But no matter which version it is, the cause is that Orion was frivolous and lustful, and he provoked the wrong woman, which led to his death, hehe."

"..."

Kuroba knew perfectly well that the class president was subtly referencing him.

Lustful, frivolous, and provoking women he shouldn't have... that's all describing Kuroba Akira.

I wonder if the woman who shot and killed Kuroba Akira will be Hitomi Anri or Shion Murasaki?

No way! I don't want a woman to kill me! Being shot through the head is too gruesome! It's as tragic as Makoto Shinkai's death!

Upon hearing Anri Hitomi teasing her man, Ziyin immediately became displeased.

"In the end, Orion was only devoted to the moon goddess, wasn't he!"

That means Kuroba Akira will definitely choose one in the end... and that will be himself!

"That's not wrong either..."

Anri Hitomi didn't refute Shion. Instead, she gave Kuroba Akira, whose face was tense and who didn't take sides, a meaningful look, as if asking, "Who is your moon goddess?"

However, Hitomi Anri didn't want Akira Kuroba to make a choice, so she didn't make things difficult for him and continued to explain her thought process.

"Well, scorpion elements are hard to find on campus, but moon elements are very prominently displayed at this school festival, right?"

Ziyin wasn't a student at this school and didn't know where she was referring to, but Kuroba Akira figured it out immediately.

"Ah! The moon in the multi-purpose hall theater!"

Although Akira Kuroba had never seen the third-year students' theatrical performance, he remembered seeing the prop that served as the moon when he passed by the multi-purpose hall before.

"Bingo~ I think the card is probably hidden there."

After finding new clues, the trio went together to the multi-functional hall that had been set up as a theater.

There was a performance in the morning, so the three of them decided to watch a play together.

And then, of all things considered, they were performing Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night"... which, to put it simply, is a melodramatic love triangle story.

However, this love triangle involves three one-way arrows, so it's quite different from their situation...

Even so, Kuroba Akira was still sweating profusely.

Caught between two women, unable to move, and subjected to the curious stares of others.

　The three sat side by side. Most people were focused on the stage, but the two pretty girls next to him only paid attention to him, and they were making all sorts of little gestures, like touching his thigh, blowing on his ear, and playing with his fingers...

Kuroba Akira felt like he was being harassed by two perverted women on a train at the same time, and he could only swallow his anger while they were taking advantage of him.

Wait a minute... why am I, the man, being teased?!

It's the same old story: mentally tormented, but physically obedient—a bittersweet experience.

If only I could embrace two women without feeling guilty...

After finally getting through the ordeal, during the break, Kuroba Akira quickly got up to find the card to redeem the prize, mainly because he wanted to escape from the control of the two women.

Sure enough, the card was found behind the wooden moon used as a prop.

The class monitor is too smart; he's the top student in the grade. This kind of puzzle can only buy him a little time.

Just when we thought we'd made it through the morning, there was still noon and afternoon to go...

However, what followed was a 'routine' that Hitomi Anri had specifically designed for Shion Murasaki.

When Hitomi Anri mentioned that she had also made bento boxes that day and invited the two of them to eat together, her planned scheme officially began.

Yesterday, Kuroba Akira and the class president ate lunch together in the arts club's activity room, and they did the same today, while Shirai Shiori and Aizono Moe have already left.

Previously, when Anri Hitomi was changing clothes in the Literature Club, she asked them to make room for the three of them at noon.

The other two naturally had no objections, but Shiori Shirai also asked Hitomi Anri what she was planning to do.

Hitomi Anri stated that she was simply fulfilling someone's wish.

Shiori Shirai didn't understand, but she didn't ask any more questions. She knew that Hitomi Anri had her own ideas and would carry them through to the end.

Back to the present, Anri Hitomi took out the prepared bento boxes, which were for three people, including one for Shion.

Upon seeing the exquisite and luxurious bento box, Ziyin's face darkened, feeling that she had been outshone.

Although she had also noted down the foods that Kuroba Akira liked, thinking that she would cook for him when she had the chance, it was clear that if her cooking skills were just average, she couldn't possibly cook anything better than this bento.

Furthermore, Shion astutely noticed that this was probably not the first time Anri Hitomi had made a bento for Kuroba Akira, because when distributing the chopsticks, the chopsticks she handed to Kuroba Akira were clearly 'Kuroba Akira's special chopsticks'.

School is definitely Anri Hitomi's home turf.

Unbeknownst to herself, her progress in winning over the wise ruler was also very rapid.

On the other side, Kuroba Akira was also flustered because he remembered the scene yesterday when he ate lunch with the class president in the same activity room of the Literature and Art Department.

We used to eat a lot together, but with Ziyin here today, we definitely can't be so unrestrained.

Just as Kuroba Akira was thinking this, Anri Hitomi started feeding him with chopsticks as usual.

Come on, ah~

"Ah! Mm!"

The person who ate the food that Anri Hitomi fed her was Shion; she didn't want to see Anri Hitomi and Kuroba Akira have any intimate interactions.

Moreover, after grabbing the food, Ziyin directly fed it to Kuroba Akira with her mouth.

"Well……!"

Since kissing is now allowed, this more intimate way of feeding each other is certainly acceptable too!