The arrogant young lady in the class works as a maid in my house

"It's not difficult, I'm just praising you."

This was the first time Jinai praised me like this face to face.

Although she said "thank you very much" to herself last time, it didn't feel like a compliment.

"Ah, no, wait a minute... I'm not used to your compliments, and I don't know how to react. You're not teasing me, are you?"

"I'm not teasing you."

"Is that so? Thank you."

"You're welcome."

"By the way... Nishikawa. You came here alone, is it okay with your friends?"

"Yeah, it's okay. I told them I needed to go shopping and wanted to go alone."

"So that's it."

"Let's not talk about that for now. Since we're here, let's go to this temple and pay our respects."

"Ah, yes, that's right."

At Jinai's invitation, they walked up the stone steps and entered Qingxian Temple.

*

The students on campus were noisy and bustling wherever they went, and Shinnosuke had been one of them just now. But now it was just him and Himeno, walking in the unfamiliar Seikan-ji Temple.

The noise just now seemed fake, and the two of them were shrouded in silence.

Perhaps it was because of Kyoto, but the rustling sound of their feet on the stones sounded like a melodious background music.

"It feels so magical."

"What's so magical about it?"

"I never thought I'd go to a temple with Azuma-san before."

"Yes, that's right."

"But this atmosphere is quite nice."

Himeno looked around as she walked, then stared at Shinnosuke's face.

"what?"

"Yeah...it's okay."

Although Jinai said that she was fine, she looked inexplicably happy.

They arrived at the main hall soon after.

The main hall was not big. After they offered incense money, they stood shoulder to shoulder and put their hands together to pray.

Shinnosuke didn't have anything to wish for. He hesitated about what to pray for, and suddenly glanced at Himeno who was standing next to him.

She was seen with her eyes closed and her head lowered, looking serious.

Seeing her profile, Shinnosuke remembered that Himeno's reason for working was to earn money to live independently from her father.

But her father was very strict. It didn't mean she could live on her own just by saving enough money. It was conceivable that she would encounter some difficulties.

(I hope Injicheon can live alone smoothly.)

Shinnosuke made this wish.

After the worship, the two set off on their journey home.

After leaving Qingxian Temple, they walked side by side, and Jinai asked:

"What did Agatsuma-san wish for?"

"No, it's not a big deal."

In fact, he made a wish for Jine, but it was too embarrassing to tell the truth, so he couldn't say it.

"Where's Nishikawa?"

"Yeah... I just hope I can live alone soon."

"I see. I hope everything goes well for you!"

This was exactly the wish he had just made, so he couldn't help but respond forcefully.

Hearing his tone, Jinai stopped and looked a little surprised.

Shinnosuke's tone was filled with such enthusiasm.

"Thank you, Master."

Jino bowed gracefully and suddenly switched to maid mode to express her gratitude.

Before this, Himeno, who had always been a lady, suddenly switched to maid mode. In Shinnosuke's opinion, this contrast was so cute that it was unfair.

"Ah, no. No, you're welcome."

“…Hmm?”

Himeno stared blankly at Shinnosuke's sudden panic. Then, as if suddenly amused, she laughed out loud, "Hehehe."

"Don't laugh at me."

"Because it's fun."

"I was so scared because you suddenly changed into maid mode."

"You said you were startled, but your face is red now. Why is that?"

"Ah, no, it's because..."

"Because?"

"No, nothing."

"It's not good not to finish what you're saying. I'll take it very seriously, Master."

"Right……"

"That's it."

Shinnosuke hesitated whether to tell the truth.

He was hesitant. What if he suddenly said something like that and she thought he was a bad guy?

However, because the two of them were chatting with each other and the atmosphere was so good, they accidentally blurted out the truth.

"Because you're cute."

"Alas……"

Himeno let out a cute scream that she would never normally let out.

She didn't expect Shinnosuke to say "You are cute" so directly, catching her off guard.

Then she too began to blush, and the two walked side by side with red faces.

"Ah, do you want to go in here?"

Trying to hide her shyness, Himeno pointed to a small souvenir shop she happened to see. Shinnosuke agreed, and they went inside.

The store was filled with all kinds of goods, and Himeno exclaimed "Ah" when she saw something.

"What's wrong?"

"This is so cute."

It's a felt mascot doll. The two-headed character is a Shinsengumi warrior. It looks very Kyoto-esque.

"I like cute things like this."

"Oh, that's really cute."

Shinnosuke was surprised that Himeno would react this way to something cute. The contrast between the cool and mature girl showing this childish side made him want to smile with joy.

(I hadn't noticed it before, but come to think of it, Nishikawa also has a felt mascot doll hanging on his school bag.)

Even though she was a cold young lady, she still felt like a real girl in that respect. She was so cute that Shinnosuke couldn't help but smile.

“Eh…”

Seeing Shinnosuke's expression, Himeno whispered meaningfully.

"Hmm? What's wrong?"

"Since you were snickering happily, I thought you might like this."

"I, I'm not sniggering. But I don't hate it either. No, maybe I like it."

Shinnosuke said that what he liked was not the two-headed mascot, but Himeno's unexpected cute side. However, he felt embarrassed and did not say it out loud.

Finally, Himeno bought a mascot doll as a souvenir before leaving the store. She also asked Shinnosuke if he wanted to buy one, but since there was no chance to use such a cute thing, Shinnosuke declined.

*

After walking out of the store, cold water drops fell on Shinnosuke's face.

"Eh, is it raining?"

"Really?"

"This is bad. This place is quite far from the meeting place."

"Anyway, let's go back quickly."

"it is good."

Although they walked back quickly, the rain became heavier halfway.

It was June, and the temperature wasn't very cold. But if they continued walking, they would be soaked to the skin. With no other options, they took shelter under a roadside eaves.

They stood side by side under the eaves, looking silently at the rainy street.

However, Shinnosuke could see Himeno's figure out of the corner of his eye, which made him very concerned.

Jino's clothes had become semi-transparent due to the rain. The chest of her dress in particular clung tightly to her body, making her look very sexy.

(Although Nishikawa doesn’t have huge breasts, her breast shape is quite nice. Hmm…what am I thinking?!)

If he didn't talk, his mind would inevitably be filled with random thoughts, so he deliberately found a topic to talk about.

"What bad luck! It's all because of me coming to a place like this and causing you trouble. Sorry."

"I came here on my own, so don't worry about it. Besides... I'm pretty happy too. I'm glad I came."

(Illustration 014)

"I see. Hearing you say that, I feel a little better."

As the rain did not stop, they continued to chat about all sorts of things.

After a while, their bodies, soaked by the rain, began to feel cold. Naturally, they stood closer and closer, and continued to chat with their shoulders pressed against each other.

"Azuma-san, thank you so much for today."

"Thank you for what?"

"Thank you for agreeing to my impulsive request and joining me. Thank you for running like crazy to help me pick up my wallet, even though you were injured. Thank you for everything else."

“No, I didn’t do anything remarkable.”

"No, no matter how you look at it, being willing to do these things is remarkable, isn't it?"

“Ah, really? Hahahaha…”

"Yeah. Hehehe."

The rain stopped soon after, so they moved towards the meeting place. Suddenly, the rain started and stopped quickly, which seemed to be what is called a thunderstorm.

On their way back, Shinnosuke sneezed with a "huff".

"Are you okay? Do you have a cold?"

"I'm fine. I'm strong."

They chatted as they headed towards the meeting place.

In order to avoid being discovered by other students as they were acting together, when they approached the school's designated area of ​​action, they went back to the gathering place separately.