Their restricted abilities are refreshed every week.

After being encouraged by Shirakawa Haru, the girls in the band regrouped and rehearsed for more than an hour.

They played several songs that needed to be performed on stage several times until they were sure that there would be no mistakes in the rhythm.

At lunchtime, Shirakawa Haru took them to the cafeteria. A few days ago, due to the problem of the athlete Oguruma's appetite, the cafeteria's menu and prices had been adjusted, becoming cheaper and with a wider variety of dishes.

"The existence of Uma Musume is truly amazing~" Nagasaki Motoyo exclaimed. "By the way, where has Shirakawa-kun's Uma Musume Ogururo been lately? I heard from Aine-chan that she doesn't seem to have seen Ogururo much lately."

"She has to go back to her hometown for something, and she'll probably be back in Hinomori soon." Shirakawa Haru chewed on some fried noodles and bread, feeling a little dry in the mouth. He went to get a free lemonade, "I only found out about this the day before yesterday."

"Hey, I really want to get to know that horse girl!" Nagasaki Motoyo exclaimed.

Le Nai ate soba noodles, puffed up her cheeks and looked at Nagasaki Suyo with dissatisfaction. Nagasaki Suyo was stunned by Le Nai's eyes and felt a little puzzled.

"There will be a chance." Faced with Nagasaki Suyo's suggestive words, Shirakawa Haru neither agreed nor refused.

"I want to eat dessert." Le Na said. Although she didn't mention anyone by name, Shirakawa Haru knew that Le Na was talking to him.

"Who is Lena talking to?" Chihaya Aine asked doubtfully, but just as she said that, she saw Shirakawa Haru leave her seat and go to the window on the second floor of the cafeteria to buy a small cup of matcha shaved ice. "...So she's talking to the chairman!"

Chihaya Aine covered her face, somewhat envious of the close relationship between Lenna and Shirakawa Haru.

She thought that it would be great if she and the chairman could both know that the other was calling her even if she didn't call each other's names during their communication.

But the relationship between Lenai and the chairman...

Rather than being an affair between a boy and a girl, it's more like the affair between a pet and its owner.

Looking at Rakuna humming a song while eating shaved ice, Chihaya Aine's expression was a little strange. How did the relationship between these two people come about? Not only did the high school girl and the handsome boy not have any ambiguous feelings between them, but they became pets and owners.

After lunch, Shirakawa Haru took Chihaya Aine and the others to explore the layout of the Hinomori Auditorium. The live performance for the school festival would take place on the stage built there. Since it was lunchtime, the auditorium was sparsely populated, allowing Shirakawa Haru to give them a tour without disrupting the Student Council's work.

"Is this true...The auditorium in Hinomori is truly amazing." Several people were shocked by the grandeur of the small auditorium in Hinomori Academy, and even Li Xi couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.

The college's small auditorium is like an art gallery hidden deep in the campus.

From the outside, it boasts a simple yet elegant European style. The off-white exterior glows softly under the gentle overhead lighting, while the exquisite relief carvings on the walls appear and disappear in the light and shadow. These are all symbols of the designer's wisdom and ability, and seem to softly sing the history of Hinode Mori Academy.

The auditorium's doors consist of two thick, solid wood panels, their weathered marks imbued with a quaint and mysterious air. When you place your hand on the doorknob and push it open, the hinges rotate with a subtle click, welcoming every visitor into the small auditorium.

"Chairman, why is the small auditorium so big, big enough to accommodate all the high school students, but it is called a small auditorium? It would be more correct to describe it as a large auditorium, right?" asked Chihaya Aine.

"Aine, you should have visited the school's auditorium when you enrolled," Shirakawa Haru explained. "The auditorium is actually smaller than the small auditorium. The difference between the large and small auditoriums lies in their functions."

"The large auditorium is used for formal and serious events, such as the opening ceremony and the chairman's important speech. The small auditorium is a place for students to have fun, such as galas and various entertainment activities."

"That's amazing," Nagasaki Motoyo said. "If only I were a student at Hinomori Academy, I would definitely come to the small auditorium."

At this time, Nagasaki Suyo was still hinting to Shirakawa Haru that she wanted to go to Hinomori Academy frequently.

Shirakawa Haru looked at her deeply and said nothing. By now, he almost understood the purpose of Nagasaki Suyo's "chance encounter" with him. She approached him for Toyokawa Shoko. He thought that Nagasaki Suyo might not know that her feelings for Toyokawa Shoko were so heavy that Toyokawa Shoko even regarded her as a trouble.

This afternoon, let's try asking Shoko about her opinion on Nagasaki Suyo. If we want to resolve Toyokawa Shoko's concerns, we probably need to understand the people related to her, and Nagasaki Suyo is a good starting point.

"President."

A student council member walked out from behind Shirakawa Haru, holding a work board in his hand.

Shirakawa Haru recognized that this was the one he gave to Toyokawa Shoko.

"The live stage in the small auditorium has been set up. Vice President Fengchuan has already inspected it. She's currently dealing with a classmate dispute and would like me to hand over the work board to you."

"I see. Thank you. You've worked hard. If you have nothing else to do, go and have a good rest." Shirakawa Haru replied to the student council member and took the initiative to praise him. The praised student council member blushed and left.

Nagasaki Suyo looked at Shirakawa Haru and the student council member with interest and said jokingly:

"Shirakawa-kun seems to be very popular in Hinomori Academy. I've noticed that even boys of the same gender can't help but blush when they receive praise from Shirakawa-kun."

"Whether it's a boy or a girl, as long as you acknowledge their efforts, maintain a positive attitude and praise their achievements, and always care about their psychological problems and living conditions, becoming popular is a matter of course. As long as someone asks me for help, I will lend a hand."

Shirakawa Haru looked at Nagasaki Suyo and said:

"The most important thing is to maintain a good social distance. You absolutely cannot get too involved in one person's world just because of their feelings. Otherwise, it will only backfire. The more you do, the more mistakes you will make."

Nagasaki Suyo felt that Shirakawa Haru had other intentions, but she didn't care. She only cared about Toyokawa Shoko's attitude and feelings towards her.

Now Nagasaki Suyo just wants time to speed up and flow to the afternoon. After the live performance, she wants to find Toyokawa Shoko and make her understand her feelings for her. She wants her to know that Toyokawa Shoko and CRYCHIC are things that are absolutely indispensable in her life.

Looking at Nagasaki Motoyo's face with no change in expression, Shirakawa Haru knew that she definitely didn't hear anything.

"Is it possible that Shirakawa-kun and Shoko have a very good relationship?" Nagasaki Motoyo suddenly asked. "Today, I heard people discussing the relationship between Shirakawa-kun and Shoko at the gate of Hinomori Academy. They said Shirakawa-kun and Shoko are the 'president and his wife.' I'm a little curious about this."

Nagasaki Suyo looked at Shirakawa Haru indifferently. She couldn't accept that Shoko had become the dating partner of another boy... In fact, she just didn't want to admit that Toyokawa Shoko placed the most important feelings in his heart on someone other than her.

Please... Xiangzi, please give me a chance, I just want to know what happened to you.

Why have I done so much silently, but you are still unwilling to give me a chance?

Nagasaki Suyo lowered her eyes. She didn't want Shirakawa Haru to see her lonely expression.

Shirakawa Haru saw her eyes that were filled with loneliness.

As soon as Nagasaki Suyo finished speaking, everyone except Rakuna, who was following behind Shirakawa Haru, and Riki, who was standing aside admiring the small auditorium, watched Shirakawa Haru intently with bated breath. Chihaya Aine had a romantic interest in Shirakawa Haru.

Takamatsu Deng wants to know more about Shirakawa Haru. She doesn't know the difference between "boyfriend and girlfriend" and friends yet. She thinks both are boys and girls becoming friends, but why is it that every time she asks others about this question, they always give her a mysterious and ambiguous smile.

"We're just good friends," said Shirakawa Haru.

Four sighs were heard in the small auditorium, three of relief and one of pain.

Chihaya Aine looked at Shirakawa Haru, the joy in her heart was beyond words, her expression was so beautiful that it was bubbling. She thought to herself that she was really lucky. A boy like Shirakawa Haru, who was a treasure, had not found a partner until now. And judging from the tone of his words, he seemed to have never been in a relationship before.

It turns out they were just close friends... Takamatsu Deng blinked and looked at Shirakawa Haru, feeling a sense of relief and joy. He was Haru's first "lifelong" friend. No one else could ever surpass her.

Nagasaki Suyo looked at Shirakawa Haru with satisfaction, as if to say, "Fortunately, Xiangzi and you are not in a romantic relationship. If she regarded you as more important than me, I would definitely be jealous to the point of going crazy."

"What kind of friends are considered closer friends?" Nagasaki Suyo asked again.

"We can talk to each other..." Bai Chuanqing subconsciously said what he thought was the relationship, but he immediately changed his words mid-sentence, "It's like the ancients, a gentleman's friendship is as pure as water."

"So this is ah."

"Ah."

Lenai tilted her head slightly, letting her soft and beautiful short silver hair fall onto her round shoulders. Her heterochromatic eyes were filled with doubts, like a dreamy sea of stars interwoven with the dazzling sun and mysterious stars. She was like an ignorant kitten, quietly looking at the girls in front of her.

In Lenai's simple world, their every move and every word seemed so inexplicable, as if they were a group of creatures from a mysterious planet, speaking a language she could not understand and doing actions she could not comprehend.

She tried hard to guess what they were thinking, but their minds were as complicated as a maze, making Lenai feel like groping in the dark and unable to find a way out.

She thought to herself that these girls' heads must be filled with all kinds of thoughts, like tangled threads, chaotic and numerous, just like balls of yarn. She liked playing with balls of yarn, but she was not good at untangling them because it was too troublesome.

In comparison, Lenai prefers her current state, which is as pure as a flower with dew in the morning, without a trace of impurities. Her feelings for Shirakawa Haru are very simple.

She felt comfortable staying with Shirakawa Haru, so she would follow him. When she was hungry and told him she was hungry, he would feed her snacks and desserts. When she wanted to sit on the convenient speaker and play on the slide, he would slow down and wait for her.

Lenai said that this was fine and she liked her current relationship with Shirakawa Haru.

Shoko Toyokawa hid behind the trapdoor at the highest point of the small auditorium. She was holding a bento box containing the food she had gotten from the cafeteria.

She was eavesdropping on the conversation between Shirakawa Haru and a group of girls in the band.

While getting food at the cafeteria window, Toyokawa Shoko saw that Shirakawa Haru bought a fried noodles and bread as his lunch. She thought that such a small amount would definitely not be enough for him, so she got another meal and put it in an insulated box borrowed from the cafeteria auntie to bring to Shirakawa Haru.

In order to find Shirakawa Haru, she first went to Shirakawa Haru's classroom, but when she found no one there, she walked around the school for a while. It was only now that she remembered that he might be in the small auditorium of the college. She hurried over and saw this scene again.

Shirakawa Haru led a few band girls to the small auditorium.

Originally, Toyokawa Shoko wanted to ignore the girls following Shirakawa Haru and walk down from the highest point to hand the lunch box to Shirakawa Haru.

But when she saw Nagasaki Suyo in the crowd, she instinctively felt disgusted.

Later, she heard Nagasaki Suyo asking Shirakawa Haru about her relationship with him. At this time, Toyokawa Shoko didn't want to walk out of the door and be exposed to Nagasaki Suyo's sight.

She was eavesdropping on their conversation.

Qing, do you now only regard me as a friend who is as light as water and has a "gentleman's friendship"?

Yes...I asked for this myself...

If I hadn't lost my temper with him yesterday, he would definitely say that Xiangzi and I are friends who can confide in each other, right?

You definitely don't need the lunch box in my hand now, right?

Even if I gave it to you, you might not eat it...

Now I seem to have become the second Nagasaki Suyo. I always take things for granted and think that you will naturally accept what I give.

Then smile at me again, as if I had never hurt you yesterday.

Shoko Toyokawa opened the thermal cover of the lunch box, took out her chopsticks and ate her lunch box. However, as she ate, she felt that the light food in her mouth became more and more salty and bitter.

She wondered why the cafeteria aunt's cooking skills had changed so much. It was so light yesterday, but why did it taste so strong today?

She looked up at the glass in the corridor, and in the reflection of the transparent glass, she saw herself silently shedding tears.

After finishing her lunch in a few bites, Shoko Toyokawa didn't want to stay in the small auditorium any longer.

At this moment, she was thinking that as long as it was a place that Shirakawa Haru had never set foot on, or a corner where there were no memories of the two of them, she would go anywhere.

To her, everything here made her feel suffocated, and she just wanted to escape as soon as possible.

She thought about it and found that there seemed to be no such place in the entire Hinodemori Academy.

Shoko Toyokawa was still thinking about where to go. She thought, why not go back to the classroom and lie on the desk?

Don’t look at anything, don’t listen to anything, don’t think about anything. Then maybe you will feel better.

As soon as Shoko Toyokawa raised her head and took a step, she found that Haru Shirakawa was looking at her from the bottom of the small auditorium.

He was walking towards him.

Chapter 5.8: Su Shi's Wisdom: Becoming a Girlfriend? (k)

The small auditorium is now very quiet. Soft lights are pouring down from above, making the hair of several people sparkle.

At this point in time, only Shirakawa Haru and a group of band girls were still in the small auditorium.

On the newly built live stage in the center of the small auditorium, Shirakawa Haru saw Toyokawa Shoko hiding behind a movable door high up in the auditorium.

That bunch of long aqua blue hair fell softly on the side of the movable door.

"You can explore the small auditorium on your own. You can even go into the workshops that aren't open to the public, but be careful not to break anything. The academy festival will officially begin in just over an hour, and it would be very troublesome if you broke anything." Shirakawa Haru turned to the girls following him and said, "I have something to do, so I have to leave for a while."

"I'll be back soon." Shirakawa Haru added, and he let Lenai, who was holding onto the corner of his clothes, let go.

"Yeah..." Gao Songdeng nodded, and she took Li Xi's hand and walked backstage to the auditorium. The backstage area of the small auditorium was divided into a makeup area, a costume area, and a prop area. The first two areas were used for resting and adjusting appearance, while the prop area was where various props were stored, such as the lighting control room and the speaker control room.

"I didn't expect the backstage of the auditorium in Hinomori to be so spacious." Chihaya Aine sighed. "Although I am a student of Hinomori, Hinomori is quite mysterious to me."

"After all, Aine, you just transferred here." Deng said.

"I wonder if the chairman is free tonight," Chihaya Aine said as she walked, pressing her fingers against the wall of the prop area, feeling the rough texture from her fingertips, her heart full of anticipation, "I really want him to take me to learn more about Hinomori Academy."

"Haru probably doesn't have time today..." Takamatsu Deng looked like a child who had done something wrong in front of Chihaya Aine, with a flustered expression. She knew that she was much more cheerful now than before, like the sun breaking through the haze.

However, deep down, she knew that she still had weaknesses that she had not yet overcome, especially when it came to matters related to Shirakawa Haru.

Whenever she touched this area, her inner cowardice would come back like a vine.

She really didn't want to reveal to Chihaya Aine that she had already agreed with Shirakawa Haru that after he finished his work, they would go to the Astronomy Club together.

Her eyes were a little evasive, her lips trembling slightly, and she tried to make her tone sound calmer: "He is the student council president of the high school department. On a day like today, he must be very busy."

"Really?" Chihaya Aine said that it was such a pity. She didn't expect that he was so popular that even the school was competing with her for him. She must make an appointment with the chairman as soon as possible next time.

"By the way, has anyone seen Su Shi?" Li Xi walked out of the dressing area. "She was clearly with me just now, but she disappeared in the blink of an eye. The backstage is so big here, she didn't get lost, did she?"

"Hey, could a girl like Suye also get lost?" Chihaya Aine was very surprised.

"Tsk, who knows?" Li Xi said with some dissatisfaction. "The small auditorium in Hinode Forest is really huge, so it's possible to get lost. Really, doesn't she know to follow me?"

"Then let's go find Suyo quickly," Chihaya Aine said. "If she really gets lost, I wonder if she'll be scared and embarrassed."

"Who knows!" Li Xi said.

"Li Xi... let's go find Su Shi quickly!" Deng asked Li Xi anxiously.

"Okay!" Li Xi nodded like a loyal dog.

Toyokawa Shoko looked at Shirakawa Haru walking towards her from afar, and her heart suddenly tightened.

She hurriedly set the lunch box gently on the ground. The subtle sound of the lunch box hitting the ground exploded like thunder in her heart in the quiet atmosphere. With the back of her trembling hand, she hurriedly wiped away the tears on her face. The tears were salty and bitter, as if they were a testament to the bitterness in her heart. She rubbed her face vigorously with the back of her hand, and each wipe seemed like an attempt to wipe away the panic and sadness in her heart.

She was extremely scared and prayed secretly in her heart that she didn't want Baichuan Qing to see her in such a miserable state, which hid all her fragility, panic and unbearableness.

Otherwise she didn't know how to face him. This was an almost instinctive escape, the last bit of protection for her wounded heart.