They all have hidden attributes!

"Taxis are too expensive."

Seeing that she was still hesitant, Takahashi Makoto opened the car door without saying a word and stuffed Nekoya Hina inside: "It's okay, I usually spend money to buy some useless things anyway."

Although I'm reluctant to take a taxi myself, I don't feel it's that expensive to take a friend home.

Hina Nekoya hesitated for a few seconds, then smiled brightly and said, "Then I won't be polite."

Watching the taxi's red taillights disappear into the fine rain at the street corner, Makoto Takahashi turned and went upstairs.

Back in his apartment, he unpacked the newly acquired paints and began studying them, preparing for the Japanese Young Artists Group Exhibition.

The day after having hot pot with Haruna Nekoya at the apartment, it was the start of a new week.

Monday, June 6th.

After waking up in the morning, Makoto Takahashi began to regret eating hot pot in his apartment.

—The living room became more cluttered and had an added pungent smell because of trying out new paints and brushes, which made me quite unhappy.

It's still raining outside, so I can't open the window for ventilation. The thought of the lingering odor when I get home tonight makes me feel as bad as the weather.

Upon arriving at the academy, Makoto Takahashi encountered Haruna Nekoya, who was returning from her morning exercise at the gymnasium, in the courtyard. He didn't mention the taste to her and greeted her as usual.

During their casual conversation, the two walked into the teaching building together.

Upon opening the shoe cabinet, Makoto Takahashi noticed several thin envelopes neatly stacked next to the indoor shoes, two of which were pink.

He paused briefly, took out his indoor shoes and placed them on the ground. After changing his shoes, he took out the envelope just as Nekoya Hina came over.

Upon seeing the envelope, she tilted her head innocently, blinked, and said with a hint of admiration, "They really have a strong ability to get things done."

"I was a little surprised too. I never thought I would actually receive a love letter one day." Makoto Takahashi randomly opened one and took out the letter inside.

[Greetings, Takahashi-kun]

I heard you really like oil painting, and so do I, so I'd like to be friends with you.

My family has a collection of many precious oil paintings. If you have time, feel free to contact me for afternoon tea.

My contact information is...

[3rd Year, Class C, Rinao Amamiya]

The words were subtle, written by a third-year student.

Makoto Takahashi put away the letter, walked towards the stairs, and asked Hina Nekoya beside him, "Will my shoe cabinet be filled with these kinds of friendship declarations from now on?"

"Very likely."

She nodded confidently, emphasizing, "Acheng, don't you know how handsome you are? To be honest, you are the most charming man I've ever met, in every sense of the word."

"Then why am I only receiving a dating message for the first time today?"

“Because handsome is the most ambiguous concept in the world. People didn’t know anything about A-Cheng before, they didn’t even know that you came from Yamanashi Prefecture.”

“Actually, I was born in Kyushu,” Makoto Takahashi said.

"That's not the point, Acheng. Other classmates know more about wanted criminals than they do about you."

Nekoya Hina pouted, looking very troubled, and gave him a helpless look.

Even for wanted criminals on TV, we know what they've done, where they're from, and the crimes they've committed.

Most people in the academy perceived Takahashi Makoto as a handsome guy with excellent grades.

Apart from that, almost nothing is known.

"Looks are important, that's true, but other qualities that attract girls are also necessary, such as being an artist," Hina Nekoya added.

"I personally have no interest in this kind of peacock display," Takahashi Makoto said with a listless and indifferent expression.

As I climbed the stairs to the second-floor corridor, in front of the classroom of Class 1-C, a cool and aloof figure stood straight in the corridor, his emerald eyes fixed on the rain outside the window.

Upon hearing Makoto Takahashi and Hina Nekoya's voices, she turned to face them, raised her right hand, and blocked their path.

Kashima-senpai looks a bit cold today.

For some reason, the moment Takahashi Makoto met her gaze, he suddenly stopped in his tracks and even shivered as if he had been locked in a refrigerator.

"Good morning, Kashima-senpai." Nekoya Hina smiled brightly and waved to greet her.

Kashima Reiko nodded expressionlessly and asked Takahashi Makoto, "I'd like to talk to you alone."

"Okay." He gestured with his eyes for Nekoya Hina to go back to the classroom first.

Hina Nekoya looked the two of them up and down with a suspicious gaze, hesitated for a moment, and then walked into the classroom.

After she left, the two went to the vending machine in the corridor. Takahashi Makoto took out his wallet to buy a drink and asked Kashima Reiko, "Senior, would you like a drink? It's on me."

He actually had a good impression of Kashima Reiko; she even gave him a set of light novels, so she seemed like a good person.

"Need not."

Kashima Reiko shook her head, and instead of waiting for him to buy the drinks like last time, she asked somewhat impatiently, "When you saw me on Sunday, you weren't surprised at all, why?"

With a dull thud, the drink fell into the chute, and Makoto Takahashi, who was about to bend down to pick it up, froze on the spot.

How do you explain this?

Aside from the system, no one had ever told him that Kashima-senpai was a maid. When he saw her with Tatemi Yuki on Sunday, he didn't find it strange because he already knew the information.

He immediately pretended to be nonchalant, took out a can of Coke, straightened up, and, avoiding eye contact, pulled open the metal tab, saying vaguely:

"Aren't Kashima-senpai and Tatsumi-senpai good friends? It's not surprising that they hang out together on weekends."

Seeing that Takahashi Makoto's actions and tone had clearly wavered, even to the point of being suspicious, Kashima Reiko fell silent.

This is clearly not the truth.

But she stayed up all night last night and still couldn't find any possible sources of information about Makoto Takahashi, let alone any information about his experience studying oil painting.

As a result, Tachibana Yuki will definitely not believe his own words, and will only think that he is incompetent and a fool.

The thought of losing the young lady's trust caused Kashima Reiko's emerald-like eyes to visibly dim.

Her gaze lingered in the air for a long time, unfocused and devoid of warmth. Makoto Takahashi keenly sensed the increasingly unsettling atmosphere.

After an awkward silence, he swallowed a mouthful of cola and tentatively asked, "Senior Kashima, is this important?"

"Goodbye." Kashima Reiko shook her head and walked towards the classroom of Class 1-A, hoping that Uesugi Maya would inadvertently let slip the secret.

Makoto Takahashi sipped his cola, his gaze fixed on her.

"Am I going to cause trouble?" he wondered to himself.

A short while later, Maya Uesugi walked out of the classroom of Class 1-A. When she saw Reiko Kashima, her face suddenly turned cold.

Even from a distance, you could still clearly feel the distinctly unpleasant atmosphere.

The two exchanged a few words briefly, but parted on bad terms.

After finishing his cola, Makoto Takahashi returned to the classroom. With final exams approaching, the atmosphere was completely different from before; almost everyone was studying and doing practice problems on their own.

Nekoya Hina was no exception, diligently studying her math textbook amidst the pattering rain, a scene of tranquility and peace.

Makoto Takahashi didn't follow the atmosphere or disturb others. He read a light novel by himself for a while, and soon heard the class bell ring. He looked up and saw Chihaya, the supervisor in charge of English, walk into the classroom and take out her textbook to start studying.

Today was a good day. I frequently triggered friendship training during class, which increased my intelligence by 3. Unfortunately, I couldn't trigger the assistance card.

The double assistance cards for Nekoya Hina and Uesugi Maya correspond to [Constitution]. Would it be better to do morning exercises with them?

The moment the thought crossed his mind, Makoto Takahashi promptly smacked his head. Getting up early for school was already torture enough; if he could, he'd like to sleep until he naturally woke up every day.

He expressed his admiration for the two who persisted in their morning exercise.

During lunch break, I ate lunch with Haruna Nekoya as usual, and after school, I went to the Light Music Club to learn bass, just like always.

Today, both Uesugi Maya and Tachimi Yuki are in the clubroom.

—It was hell.

Chapter 32: Hokkaido Girls Are Still the Most Pure and Simple

Amid the hum of the air conditioner, the club activity room was illuminated by the cool white light of the incandescent bulbs.

When Maya Uesugi pushed open the door and walked in, Yukimasa Tachimi was playing chess alone.

Amidst the elegant and delicate aroma of black tea, her fair fingers held a black chess piece, while her other hand supported her head, exuding a leisurely and languid aura.

"What are you doing here?" Uesugi Maya asked coldly.

"boring."

"Give up?"

"It failed."

Tachibana Yuki's calm tone made it sound like she was talking about something trivial, but Uesugi Maya knew that the more indifferent she seemed, the more she cared about it.

Frankly acknowledging one's failures and shortcomings, carefully analyzing and reviewing them, and then launching new challenges, repeating this cycle until success, is precisely the strength of Rikka.

Simply put, she's a stubborn person who will never give up on things she has to do or things she's interested in.

Defeating Tachibana Yuki is by no means an easy task.

"You still have time to play chess after losing? That's rare." Uesugi Maya closed the clubroom door, walked to the makeshift desk, pulled out a chair, and sat down, pressing her skirt down with her hands.

Seeing her open a music theory book, Ichika picked up her black tea, took a sip, and said slowly, "Because I have something more important to do."

"It's hard to imagine anything more important than your family business."

"It's alright to tell you, it's about Cheng-kun."

Hearing Tachibana Yuki's affectionate address, Uesugi Maya looked up at her, her gaze gradually becoming serious: "Makoto-kun?"

"Don't worry about it, it's just how we address each other in private," Tachimi Yuki said with a smile.

"How about we exchange some information?" Maya Uesugi suggested.

"Xiaoye is really stubborn, but there's one thing I can't allow you to mess around with."

Li Jianxing narrowed her beautiful eyes slightly, a hint of danger in them: "You can play whatever game you want, but he must belong to me."

The light, airy tone pressed down on Uesugi Maya's shoulder, making her feel a long-lost sense of pressure, and her beautiful caramel-colored eyes became even more serious.

What do you like about him?