Tokyo Soft Rice King.

"I'm resting right now... I already feel very relaxed."

After a hearty meal, resting with your head on a beautiful girl's lap and enjoying her gentle head massage—that must be one of the most pleasant things in life.

“I’m not talking about this kind of mild relaxation, but about leaving everything behind and having a blast.”

"I play too. You see, I usually read comics and novels, and I sometimes play games with my future partner."

"Myo-jun, when you read comics now, can you still immerse yourself in the story? When you read novels, it's to discuss the gimmicks and pacing of the story with Shiori. And when you play games, you're probably thinking about whether the game is suitable for making videos and live streams in the future."

If we're talking about who understands Kuroba Akira best, it has to be Anri Hitomi. She sees everything about Kuroba Akira, and she never misses these everyday details. She even perfectly captures his thoughts.

"Uh……"

It seems that's really true...

Kuroba Akira realized that he wasn't reading manga for fun anymore. He was either looking for reference material for his new manga or reading the original work to judge the quality of the story in order to support Shion's anime adaptation project.

He could no longer immerse himself in the story as completely as Hikaru Amane had when he first encountered the manga.

Just as the class monitor said, when reading novels and playing games, one would unconsciously think of Shiori and her future career prospects, which is actually a manifestation of occupational disease.

Anri Hitomi immediately saw through Kuroba Akira's feigned relaxation.

"If entertainment itself becomes a reference for work, then it's not entertainment anymore, it's just material gathering."

"No, I can't refute it..."

"And even though it's winter break now, Mingjun, you seem to have more things to do every day?"

"This...it does seem to be true. I also feel like I'm at work. Before I knew it, it was evening, but I don't feel very tired..."

"It's just that my body isn't tired, but the mental strain is several times greater than before. For example, we used to draw comics during club activities after class, but now you and Mengmeng can draw for an entire afternoon. And because these are drafts for serialization, you also have to constantly come up with the next storyboard, which is obviously more mentally taxing than last year."

"My stamina bar isn't empty, but my energy bar is empty first...?"

The "energy bar" here refers to actual mental energy, not the 'energy' used to seduce women.

"Yes, so you'll actually have an easier time in class, Mingjun."

"I'm still paying attention in class now, so instead of wasting more time having you tutor me later, I might as well listen properly from the beginning."

“I know that, but for you, Mingjun, it’s not about learning new things, it’s just about recalling what you’ve already learned, so I think it should be easier.”

"That's true, I wasn't taking any notes."

Anyway, if I really need to use the notes, I can just borrow the class monitor's; they're definitely a hundred times better than my own scrawled handwriting.

"So, it's strange that even though it's a holiday, we're more tired than on school days, isn't it?"

"What you said makes so much sense, I'm speechless..."

The main issue is that for Akira Kuroba, the memories of summer and winter vacations are already too distant.

After graduating from school, winter and summer vacations became like a dream, and he could hardly remember how he used to spend them.

During his first summer vacation in this world, Kuroba Akira spent every day in the library studying Japanese, feeling like he was taking private lessons. He didn't feel like he was on vacation at all, except for the last day... which was also the fateful day when he met Anri Hitomi and Murasomiya Shion one after another.

So how do you spend your holidays after you start working?

Sleeping...taking a second nap...taking a second nap...

Holy crap! It's already evening! My vacation has been stolen!

And then, it's Monday again... I feel like dying...

This is the endless cycle of brain death for corporate slaves.

It seems like being a teacher is really great, because students get holidays along with them.

Akira Kuroba suddenly felt a little envious of Kobayakawa-sensei and Ohno-sensei.

That's probably why I had time to participate in the Winter CM and even do cosplay, although that was practically a miracle.

"So, let's go out and have some fun together, my lord. We've already made so much money, so we don't need to worry about travel expenses. We can have a luxury trip without any budget restrictions."

"Just the two of us?"

Kuroba Akira was somewhat tempted to take a spontaneous trip with the class president.

Anri Hitomi gave a regretful, bitter smile.

"Although I also want to take a honeymoon trip with Mingjun, I can't set a bad precedent... If we start by sneaking off, everyone will definitely follow suit, and you, Mingjun, who can't refuse, will be in a difficult position."

"That...is true..."

"Then you, Mingjun, will have to go out and play with everyone for a few days. Not to mention that many projects that cannot progress without you will come to a standstill, the most important thing is that you will be exhausted. That would be putting the cart before the horse."

"Yes, in that case, my physical strength and energy will definitely be severely overloaded."

Traveling is a physically demanding activity, and you need energy to fully enjoy yourself and have fun.

Besides, when you travel with a girl, it's almost impossible for nothing to happen.

Nighttime is the real battleground! A man can't run away from it! Then it's time to rest...

"I hope that you can put everything behind you, not just work, but also your feelings. So, if this is your first long trip, please go with everyone. We can find another opportunity to go on our honeymoon together later."

"But, squad leader, are you sure that if we all go together, it won't turn into the situation at the end of last year? If it's a continuous bombing campaign with multiple targets, it doesn't seem to be much different from a one-on-one, long-duration, sustained battle..."

"Don't worry, Xia will be with you this time."

"Ah Qing is a neutral person. As long as the basic rules are not violated, she won't interfere. For example, when everyone goes out to play together, I think she won't interfere with the free (female) competition."

"Hehe, whether Xia herself will interfere is not the key point. Her presence alone can play a role in maintaining discipline, because people do not yet understand where Xia's bottom line is."

Aside from the class monitor and Ziyin, not many people know much about Qingxia, so they might think she is an extreme conservative who completely forbids serenity.

"Furthermore, both Mirai and Mengmeng are quite worried about your health, so they will be more considerate of you and their tolerance will be much higher than before. As long as you don't say things like 'Warmly welcome everyone to UP me' that would get everyone excited, I think the situation won't get out of control."

"I shouldn't be that casual..."

"Yes, I also believe that a normal, wise ruler would not act recklessly."

However, when a person is impulsive, their rationality disappears, and the pituitary gland in the brain secretes a large amount of gonadotropins.

Anri Hitomi was just thinking that if Kuroba Akira completely let loose during this relaxing trip, he might go berserk.

However, even if things really get out of control, Haruka can fulfill her other duty as a priestess serving the gods by offering her body to help Kuroba Akira replenish her magic.

Anyway, there's a safety net in place, so there's no need to worry about Kuroba Akira's health having any problems.

If this method allows him to enjoy himself and regain control, Anri Hitomi thinks it's good and can also serve as a warning.

The most extreme way to make a hungry person completely lose their sense of hunger is to force-feed them an excessive amount of food until they can no longer eat.

That way, when they want to eat again in the future, they will have to consider whether their bodies and stomachs can handle it.

Hitomi Anri believes she is just as talented as Shion Murasakinomiya in this regard.

Actually, Hitomi Anri didn't expect that she would enjoy that kind of activity so much.

She initially thought that the fusion of body and soul was merely a way to pursue pure emotions, and a rather superficial one at that. However, after fully enjoying it, she discovered that the two were actually complementary.

There's no such thing as love being more noble; rather, it's the addition of this seasoning that makes eating meat even more enjoyable.

That's why, after the first time, she intentionally seduced Kuroba Akira, not only to compete with Murasaki Shion for physical space, but also to satisfy her own appetite.

Just now, when they met, Anri Hitomi couldn't hold back anymore. Her calm demeanor was just a facade to mask her inner turmoil.

However, a strong sense of shame afterwards made it difficult for her to remain calm.

If you become addicted to this kind of happiness... wouldn't you be just like... that love-struck woman?

I am not like her!

This isn't about being love-struck.

Hitomi Anri doesn't admit that this is love-struck.

"By the way, Mingjun, I heard that her work is also coming to a temporary halt."

"Oh, Ziyin? Yes, I guess she'll have some free time before her next job, so she can come on this trip too..."

Ah, but the class monitor probably wouldn't want Shion to come, right? After all, those two are mortal enemies...

Thinking this, Kuroba Akira looked up and circled around the mountains in front of him to observe the class monitor's expression.

But then I found her smiling and looking down as she spoke.

That's wonderful.

"This is actually too good?"

"Yeah, wouldn't it be a lot less fun if she weren't around?"

"Uh... whatever makes you happy..."

I really don't understand whether these two have a good or bad relationship. Is this what they call a case of enemies appreciating each other?

"Then let's take this trip as the first training camp for the new club 'Beginner's Club'. After all, once everyone's careers have developed to a certain point, it will be increasingly rare to have everyone together like this."

"Indeed... I can relate to that very much."

For Japanese students who don't have to worry about further education, junior and senior high school are probably the most carefree time of their youth, which is why many anime and film works focus on depicting the beauty of youth.

Due to different national conditions, high school students in China are freed from the pressure of college entrance examinations and enter university, at which point their true youth begins.

However, the happy times in college are also limited. Friends who could play games together all night in college are no longer playing together after graduation.

Perhaps the initial enthusiasm has faded, or perhaps there's simply not enough time and energy left.

This is the wear and tear of life.

This reminded Kuroba Akira of the meme image with the bad ending that had been circulating online.

Unlike before, your brain is now dull and sluggish.

All people and things, both on and off the screen, gradually revealed their mundane and impoverished side.

You lost; you lost your sense of humor.

That was supposed to be your last weapon.

Instantly, a sense of familiarity washed over Kuroba Akira.

It seems this isn't the first time he's experienced this feeling.

Its name is loneliness.