They all have hidden attributes!

If I had known this would happen, I definitely wouldn't have said those strange things when we first met.

"To the point where he could jump off Shinjuku Station on the Yamanote Line at any time."

Maya Uesugi remembered that Makoto Takahashi had once joked about jumping off the Yamanote Line, and suddenly felt that simply reminding him of this was not enough, and that she needed to do something more.

"To be honest, that was just a joke. I don't want to be reincarnated into another world yet."

"If you are attacked, always remember that there are people who will always support you."

When Uesugi Maya heard the word "[other world]", she took it as an inappropriate joke and turned to go through the ticket gate: "I'll pick up the painting in a few days. See you tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow." Makoto Takahashi waved goodbye to her retreating figure.

Monday, June 13th.

The old saying goes, "It's hot for ten days after the rainy season," but that's actually a lie. Tokyo will only get hotter in ten days.

After the plum rains, the sweltering heat arrives in quick succession. The sun is glaring from the morning onwards, and the temperature can easily exceed 30 degrees Celsius at noon.

Under a clear blue sky, cicadas chirped incessantly until one entered the courtyard of Tsurumizawa, where the summer heat was finally relieved by the shade cast by the lush green cedar trees.

Entering the teaching building, opening the shoe locker, and finding no new friend requests today, Takahashi Makoto changed into his indoor shoes and went straight upstairs to the classroom of Class 1-C.

After the final exams, the classroom returned to its usual noisy atmosphere, with the girls chatting in small groups, their voices floating in the glaring summer sunlight.

There was no air conditioning in the classroom, so Makoto Takahashi opened the window to ventilate the room. After pulling out a chair and sitting down in his seat, he used his phone to check the list of recently released light novels.

After I took the girl I liked as my maid, she secretly... in my room!

This book looks pretty good. There's only one volume... No problem, I'll buy it when I go to Ikebukuro for dinner after club activities tonight.

Just then, a new message popped up at the top of the phone screen.

[Nekoya-Nekoya: Good morning, Acheng.]

[Nekoya-Nekoya: (Photo)]

[Nekoya: I'm about to start today's training!]

In the photo, Hina Nekoya, wearing sportswear, raises her left hand, which is adorned with a wristband, and clenches her fist to cheer herself up, with a refreshing smile on her face.

[Takahashi: Do your best!]

[Nekoya-Nekoya: Acheng, you're so cold—]

[Nekoya-Nekoya: I can only go back to school on Wednesday.]

[Nekoya-Nekoya: Do you feel so lonely eating lunch alone that you want to cry?]

[Takahashi: I'm planning to go have lunch with Uesugi-kun]

Although Maya Uesugi seemed to have mentioned before that she was used to eating alone, the two of them got much closer last night. It shouldn't be a problem for her to go to the light music club at noon, right?

[Nekoya-Nekoya: That darn Makoto! I was even thinking of asking Nagai and Furuta to keep you company!]

[Takahashi: Being with strangers is worse than being alone]

[Nekoya-Nekoya: We're classmates, after all. Surely we know each other completely?]

[Nekoya-Nekoya: Oh well, actually it's because those two are members of the art club, and they've been asking me about you lately, so I just said I'd help if I had the chance.]

She quickly changed the subject and started talking about gossip from the badminton club.

[Nekoya-Nekoya: Acheng, listen to me]

[Nekoya-Nekoya: Yesterday, the junior player Hanakawa, who shut me out, is the daughter of the badminton coach, and has withdrawn from the training camp.]

[Nekoya-Nekoya: She also said she wouldn't participate in the national tournament and wouldn't play badminton anymore.]

......

[Nekoya-Nekoya: So, everyone thinks it's the coach's fault, but the child is actually quite natural. His becoming gloomy must be due to his family environment, right?]

Makoto Takahashi rubbed his temples, looking at her endless stream of gossip about family ethics, and replied after a while.

[Takahashi: Didn't you just say you were going to train?]

[Takahashi: If you have time to share gossip with me, you've already finished your stretching exercises, haven't you?]

[Nekoya-Nekoya: What?! A-Cheng is so heartless!]

[Nekoya-Nekoya: Actually, I didn't eat enough for breakfast, and I was just planning to go to the convenience store to buy a few more meat buns.]

[Nekoya-Nekoya: (Photo)]

Nekoya Haruna sent a photo of herself paying at a convenience store: four meat buns and a serving of oden, which matched Takahashi Makoto's stereotype of her.

Since Nekoya Hina had time and it was still early before class, Takahashi Makoto decided to inquire about Kashima Reiko.

Rather than hiring someone he didn't know, he preferred Kashima Reiko, whom he was more familiar with, to be the band's drummer. Besides, Kashima Reiko wasn't a bad person and also liked the drums.

[Takahashi: Do you know anything about Kashima-senpai's personality?]

[Nekoya-Nekoya: ? ? ? ]

[Nekoya-Nekoya：！！！ ]

[Nekoya-Nekoya: Acheng, you—]

Makoto Takahashi did not reply. After a good three to five minutes, Hina Nekoya on the other side of the phone screen seemed to have calmed down and sent a message again.

[Nekoya-Nekoya: Kashima-senpai, did you really confess to me during the fireworks festival?]

[Takahashi: I want to invite her to join the light music club as the drummer]

[Takahashi: How did you know Kashima-senpai went to the summer festival?]

[Nekoya-Nekoya: Checking my Instagram updates]

[Nekoya-Nekoya: (Photo)]

Nekoya Hina sent me a screenshot of a post shared by Kashima Reiko, showing a sky full of fireworks.

Due to the camera angle, you can see Makoto Takahashi's profile on the camping chair.

[A feeling I don't know how to express, like the takoyaki being too hot, or eating too much fried noodles, leaving a warm sensation that's causing indigestion in my stomach.]

Looking at the clumsy yet sincere words, Makoto Takahashi made up his mind to have Reiko Kashima join the band.

— Doing so is not without reason.

[Nekoya-Nekoya: Makoto, you really do like Kashima-senpai's type, don't you?]

[Takahashi: There weren't any complicated feelings like those in a romantic relationship.]

[Nekoya-Nekoya: I don't know Kashima-senpai very well either. I heard from the club president that she's quite stubborn and not good with words.]

[Nekoya-Nekoya: The badminton club captain was originally supposed to be Kashima-senpai, but she said she doesn't like badminton. The upperclassmen know more about these things, so I'll look into it for you.]

[Nekoya-Nekoya: Oh, right]

[Nekoya-Nekoya: Kashima-senpai is quite frugal; she buys cheap grip tape and other cheap items, and she uses the same racket for a long time without replacing it.]

It's probably because she doesn't like badminton at all, so she wouldn't buy expensive equipment.

After learning about Kashima-senpai from Nekoya Hina, Takahashi Makoto sent a text message to Tachimi Yuki before the morning meeting started.

The most important thing in getting Reiko Kashima to join the band is to get Yuki Tachimi's permission.

[Tachimi-senpai, what are your thoughts on Kashima-senpai joining the light music club?]

I didn't receive a reply until the morning meeting started.

Didn't see it, or do you just not want to deal with it?

It wasn't until the break between the second and third classes that I received a completely baffling reply.

[Takahashi-kun, do you like playing in a band?]

Tachikami Yuki's attitude was unpredictable, so Takahashi Makoto sent a message to Kashima Reiko to inquire.

Kashima-senpai replied to the message instantly.

[Reiko: I'm sorry]

[Reiko: The young lady has her own ideas, so I probably still can't play in a band with you guys]

[Takahashi: Senpai, I'll make sure you get into the Light Music Club!]

Chapter 43 Petite and inexperienced, but...

After the message was marked as "read," Kashima Reiko did not send a reply.

Because Line doesn't display the "[typing]" function, Makoto Takahashi was unaware that during the third and fourth periods that morning, the tongue-tied senior had been repeatedly selecting and deliberating on her words.

Just as the bell rang for the end of the last class in the morning, and the math teacher announced the end of get out of class, Kashima Reiko, wearing her school uniform, walked in through the back door of the classroom.

The two girls, who originally planned to have lunch with Makoto Takahashi while Nekoya Hina was away, awkwardly sat back down after taking only half a step when they saw their stern-faced senior.

Makoto Takahashi stood up to face Reiko Kashima, who was walking straight towards him. He looked directly into her emerald eyes and greeted her, "Kashima-senpai, is there anything I can help you with?"

"As a return gift, I'll treat you to a meal."

The return gift probably refers to the snacks served on the night of the summer festival.

Makoto Takahashi remembered the complete set of light novels she had given him and waved his hand in refusal: "The Light Music Club will reimburse the expenses for the summer festival. You're too kind, senpai."

"No."

"Then let's treat the snacks as a return gift for the light novel."

"The cat house has returned the gift on your behalf."

Kashima Reiko remained expressionless, but her tone conveyed a sense that she would not give up easily: "I must express my gratitude, and there's also the matter concerning the young lady."

Remembering that he had treated Nekoya Hina to beef hot pot, Takahashi Makoto decided to agree to have lunch with Uesugi Maya the next day.

“Okay, shall we go to the student cafeteria?” He closed the window and walked out of the classroom through the back door with Kashima Reiko.

After the two girls left together, the other female students who had been eagerly waiting in the classroom for an opportunity, apart from the two girls who had initially been there, all showed expressions of frustration, regret, and disappointment.

“Go to the student council,” Kashima Reiko said.

"Senior, did Senior Lijian send you?"

"Miss is taking the day off today, and I also have my own things to do."