They all have hidden attributes!

Chapter 10 A Night When You Shouldn't Have Said

At 6 o'clock sharp, Maya Uesugi pushed open the door to the clubroom. The sound of her black round-toed leather shoes clicking on the floor accompanied her beautiful legs, encased in over-the-knee socks, swaying gracefully.

"Sorry, something came up and I didn't inform you."

Under Makoto Takahashi's gaze, she walked coldly to Hina Nekoya's side, picked up the eco-friendly bag she was carrying, and turned it upside down.

Amidst a powerful voice, bags of snacks were piled up like a small mountain in the center of the desk.

Beside her, Hina Nekoya, who had been lying on the table in a daze out of boredom, sat up straight, staring blankly at all sorts of snacks she had never seen before, her brown eyes filled with bewilderment.

She paused, blinked blankly, and asked, "Are these for us?"

"Here you go, not you guys." Uesugi Maya put away the eco-friendly bag, pulled out a chair, pressed her skirt down with both hands and sat down, her caramel-colored eyes looking at Takahashi Makoto.

"Give me?"

Noticing her gaze, Hina Nekoya, somewhat confused, nudged Makoto Takahashi's side with her elbow: "We're not that close, we're just in the same club."

Although she has many friends, she is not without boundaries; she just doesn't dislike most people.

Makoto Takahashi didn't explain. He reached into the pile of snacks and took out a chocolate called "[Black Thor]". Seeing that he didn't intend to explain, Maya Uesugi readily admitted it herself.

“He thinks I said bad things about you, and that may be true. This is an apology to you.”

When she said this, her expression remained indifferent, and her calm tone was no different from usual, making her appear very composed.

Hina Nekoya stared blankly for a few seconds before nodding in realization: "Oh, I see. I forgive you."

After saying that, she picked up a bag of potato chips, tore open the packaging, and started eating with a happy smile on her face.

The incident should have ended perfectly, but Makoto Takahashi ignored Maya Uesugi's advice that "curiosity killed the cat" and pressed her for the reason for changing her mind.

"Can you tell me what happened? I'm curious." He unwrapped the second layer of foil wrapping on the chocolate and took a bite.

The slightly bitter taste spreads across the tongue, with minimal sugar, perfectly highlighting the flavor of the cocoa itself. The elegant aroma and delicate texture create a wonderful balance.

High-end goods.

“I haven’t received the love letter yet,” Makoto Takahashi added.

"After school today, a girl from Group A asked me how she could become friends with me."

Maya Uesugi opened her laptop, staring intently at the screen, her lips pursed into a "he" shape as she said, "I've tentatively confirmed her thoughts, and it turns out she's innocent."

When she said the second "she", Maya Uesugi glanced in the direction of Hina Nekoya to indicate, then turned the laptop over and faced Makoto Takahashi.

"The girls in Group A said they didn't know how to talk to you. It turns out that you're not good at socializing because your conversational structure is terrible. The girls are also confused."

"What do you mean by the structure of a dialogue?" Takahashi Makoto looked blank, somewhat confused.

According to the rules of the world.

I am clearly very polite. Is it because modern people have given up their freedom of speech for the sake of interpersonal relationships?

"I've edited together all the parts of 'Tomorrow's Girlfriend' that you need to learn, with annotations on dialogue structure and conversation skills."

Maya Uesugi pushed the laptop in front of him. The folder on the screen contained the edited video content and an instruction document.

It must have taken her a lot of time and effort. Not wanting to disappoint Maya Uesugi, Makoto Takahashi moved the laptop in front of him and asked, "Can I take it home to read?"

"can."

Uesugi Maya nodded, her gaze drifting to Nekoya Hina, who was stuffing potato chips into her mouth. A hint of disdain flashed in her eyes as she continued the previous topic:

"Another reason for my conclusion that she did not take advantage of the unspoken rules among girls is that I did not know she had quit the badminton club when I made the judgment; I overestimated her."

Upon hearing this, Makoto Takahashi suddenly had a bad feeling.

He suddenly remembered that on the morning he accepted the friend's fee, Uesugi Maya had also said something like "reflect on yourself." Now that he thought about it, her way of reflecting on herself might be different from that of normal people.

He didn't have time to stop Uesugi Maya from continuing.

"I have reflected on myself. It was my mistake to draw conclusions without obtaining accurate information."

“A person who has suffered a mental breakdown after a setback has no right to do evil. In the end, not everyone is qualified to be a bad person. It’s my judgment that’s wrong.”

Hearing her calm words, Nekoya Hina froze in place, and Takahashi Seiya was speechless.

Uesugi Maya's statement, in short, can be summarized as: how bad can someone who can't even play badminton be?

This kind of disregard for others' feelings in her remarks is really typical of her style.

An incurable silence enveloped the office. After a moment of staring at each other, Takahashi Makoto spoke first, asking Uesugi Maya, "So, you've reflected on your decision to draw conclusions without gathering accurate information?"

“That’s right, I brought these snacks so we could stay friends.” She nodded, her gaze towards Nekoya Hina filled with pity.

Hearing their conversation, Hina Nekoya slowly swallowed the potato chip in her mouth and belatedly asked, "Makoto, was she just mocking me?"

"I didn't mean to mock you, I was just stating the facts," Uesugi Maya said coldly.

No wonder she's always getting into conflicts with others; her behavior is just too...

Takahashi Seiichi couldn't find a suitable adjective for the moment, while Nekoya Hina, who was sitting next to him, slammed her hand on the table and stood up.

She leaned closer to Uesugi Maya, her eyes wide with displeasure: "Hey, I'm furious."

"That's normal, because I touched a nerve." Uesugi Maya nodded calmly, her tone as composed as an outsider.

Her attitude was really bad, no wonder Nekoya Hina was angry.

Uesugi Maya showed no remorse whatsoever, only saying things like "I had a bad eye for people" and "You're not worthy of my malicious speculation." She brought the snacks to show that she valued Takahashi Makoto, and her purpose was to give Takahashi Makoto an explanation.

In Nekoya Hina's view, this was nothing short of humiliation.

The atmosphere suddenly became tense, as if gunpowder was burning in the air.

As Takahashi Makoto was racking his brains about not asking more questions, he noticed that Uesugi Maya's right hand was reaching into the pocket of her black pleated skirt under the desk. It looked like she had some self-defense item inside, enough to repel Nekoya Hina.

Unable to determine whether Uesugi Maya was carrying any dangerous items, he could only temporarily appease Nekoya Hina, standing up and pressing her back into her seat: "Hina, forget it. It's actually quite a bargain; these snacks are all high-end imported goods."

Upon hearing this, Nekoya Hina scoffed in dissatisfaction, but for the sake of the snacks, she temporarily backed down.

Chapter 11 Assessment Objectives: Spring

In some ways, Nekoya Hina is quite easy to whip up, like cream.

Seeing that she had calmed down after being fed, Uesugi Maya placed her right hand back on the table and made sarcastic remarks as if it were none of her business:

"One of you is emotionally stable, and the other is easily emotional. It's amazing that you two can become friends."

"Hey, don't you think about other people's feelings? I was just wondering if I should be friends with you."

Makoto Takahashi's lips twitched slightly, his words filled with helplessness and weariness: "Don't you ever feel lonely being alone all the time?"

No, never.

Maya Uesugi brushed a strand of hair behind her ear and met his gaze without any hesitation: "I don't need any friends. You can just treat me as a friend to me."

From her cool, caramel-colored eyes, Makoto Takahashi could confirm that she was serious.

She gave him the money as a favor so that he would consider Uesugi Maya a friend, but she didn't intend to go through the friend request process.

“There’s always something that no one can do,” Makoto Takahashi said.

"For example, when it comes to dating, do you want to date by yourself?" Nekoya Hina chimed in, her puffed-up expression still showing some resentment.

"I don't need to be in a relationship. I've never dated anyone before, and I have no plans to in the future."

Uesugi Maya gave her a mocking look, as if looking down on a fool whose mind was only filled with love: "I've already said, I don't need to depend on anyone, is there a problem?"

The cold voice was like a death sentence, leaving no room for doubt. In that case, Takahashi Seiya gave up the idea of ​​becoming friends with her.

This result can be considered a gain.

He received a friend's fee, which allowed him to train with Uesugi Maya. Although playing house with her was a waste of time, there's no such thing as a free lunch.

"Are there any kendo or archery competitions this month?" Makoto Takahashi inquired about information regarding the [examination].

"No, it's already the end of the month. The Jade Dragon Flag is in late July," Uesugi Maya replied dismissively, her eyes seeming to ask, "Don't you know how to use the internet?"

Are there any art competitions I can participate in for painting?

Upon hearing this question, both Maya Uesugi and Hina Nekoya looked at each other with suspicion. Neither of them had ever heard of him being able to draw, let alone participate in a competition.

"Ah-Cheng, you've never told me this before," said Nekoya Hina, chewing on potato chips.

Don't you have your own secrets to hide?

Makoto Takahashi finished the last bite of his chocolate, shrugged at her, and then turned his gaze to Maya Uesugi: "I'm probably at an advanced level, but I'm not skilled enough. Are there any competitions where newcomers can win awards?"

His expression was so sincere, it didn't seem like he was lying, so Uesugi Maya rubbed her temples in exasperation, her voice tinged with obvious fatigue:

"Are you sure you've studied painting? Why do you know absolutely nothing about art exhibitions? And yet you still dare to dream of winning an award?"

She gave me a look that said, "You know absolutely nothing."

"Is it difficult?" asked Hina Nekoya.

“Art is something that often reveals talent at a very young age. Some so-called geniuses start showing their talents as early as seven or eight years old, or even younger.”

Uesugi Maya revealed a cruel expression, her eyes slightly dark: "The art world is very cruel. I heard that a once-in-a-century genius debuted this year."

"Just tell me the competition, and I need the results announced by the end of the month," Makoto Takahashi said, lowering his expectations.

His [assessment] only requires participation in the current month and obtaining results; even if no prize is won, the reward will only be reduced.

It's better than wasting a monthly opportunity.

"Only the [Xuanjian] Newcomer Exhibition is left in June. Although the submission deadline has passed, I can help you get in line. The final judging is on the 30th."

"Thank you, is it possible to do this behind closed doors?"

"No, that genius will officially debut at this talent show."

Hearing Uesugi Maya say that, Takahashi Makoto decisively gave up his expectations of winning the award. After all, his skill was only Lv.2, and judging from Uesugi Maya's expression, it was not enough to win at the newcomer exhibition, not to mention there was another genius.

"Thank you for your help. I will give it to you as soon as possible."

After exchanging polite pleasantries, he remembered to ask, "What type of competition is this? Sketching or something else?"

This question made Maya Uesugi frown. Makoto Takahashi's understanding of the field of painting was as if he had never touched a paintbrush before.

The fact is that he has never touched a paintbrush in his entire life.