They are really too low!

Hoshino, who had been keeping a straight face, suddenly became a little annoyed after hearing what she said.

"You really aren't worried at all about what I might do to you?"

His expression was so funny that Toyokawa Shoko couldn't help but chuckle.

"You won't." The girl finally managed to stop smiling, her long eyelashes trembling slightly, but a teasing smile still lingered in her eyes. "If you really do something to me, then I'm out of luck."

Hoshino's heart skipped a beat. What did it mean that she was unlucky?

These words coming from a girl's mouth can easily lead to all sorts of speculation.

"You'll call the police as soon as you make a move, right?" Hoshino thought she wouldn't be fooled so easily.

"I won't call the police," Toyokawa Shoko said with a slight smile.

Hoshino couldn't help but glance over. Looking at the girl's delicate face, full breasts, slender waist, and skirt that fell to her calves, he could still see the girl's perky and rounded buttocks. Although she hadn't developed into an exaggeratedly sexy figure, she still had the assets of a beautiful girl.

The girl's calves were not wearing stockings, and her fair and delicate skin looked particularly alluring in the slightly dim kitchen. Only a thin layer of white short socks covered her two feet, and she was wearing his family's slippers, making her look well-behaved and cute.

This outfit isn't particularly sexy; what's alluring is the girl herself. Anyone would feel a momentary flutter in their heart if such a beautiful girl stood next to them.

However, Hoshino realized that the moment he looked over, he had already fallen for it.

Because Toyokawa Shoko was suppressing laughter, it was obvious that she was just teasing Hoshino Mi.

"I almost fell for your trick. Pretty girls are really good at lying."

"I wasn't lying. I was testing you. Who told you to keep saying you have ulterior motives?"

"If you say something like that again, I'll take it seriously."

Toyokawa Shoko blinked. Although they had only met a few times, she inexplicably trusted Hoshino Mi. She didn't believe that Hoshino Mi would really do anything to her.

After cleaning up the dishes, the two returned to the living room together.

Toyokawa Shoko sat on the sofa, stretching gently. For some reason, she felt particularly relaxed and at ease.

“Sit down, I have something to tell you.” Toyokawa Shoko patted the sofa next to her.

Hoshino sat silently next to her and waited for a while, but still did not hear the girl speak.

"What do you want to tell me?" Hoshino sensed that the atmosphere was a bit awkward.

“I’m thinking about it, don’t rush me.” Toyokawa Shoko took a deep breath. “I haven’t told anyone about these things except for Komu. You should understand how I feel.”

"The more you say that, the more I think it's going to be a lot of trouble." Even she could joke about it just now, so Hoshino could naturally retort.

Before they knew it, the two had developed a relationship where they could tease and joke with each other.

Even Toyokawa Shoko found this unbelievable. Was it because he had just beaten up Hoshino Mi that he was in such a good mood?

Toyokawa Shoko didn't pay any attention to his complaints. Instead, seeing his disgusted look, she couldn't help but smile.

"You're just a defeated opponent, senior, you have no right to object to me." Toyokawa Shoko snorted lightly, "Please listen to me honestly, because this is a very important matter."

In fact, Hoshino was able to guess what she was going to say and was mentally prepared.

My mother passed away last year.

Thinking of those pleasant yet painful memories, Toyokawa Shoko slowly closed her eyes and unconsciously clenched her hands.

Meanwhile, a system window suddenly popped up in front of Hoshino Mi's eyes.

Because of your proactive approach, Toyokawa Shoko now considers you a friend.

[Toyokawa Shoko's intimacy with you has increased. You can choose one of the following options.]

【…】

Chapter Twenty-Four: The Girl Raises the Flag

Although a reward suddenly appeared out of nowhere, Hoshino didn't rush to check it, but continued listening to Toyokawa Shoko's story.

The story that Toyokawa Shoko wanted to tell Hoshino Mi was very simple.

The story begins with her mother passing away from illness last year, which made her feel extremely sad and painful, and she felt extremely empty every day.

It wasn't until she witnessed her classmates' band performance at school that the impact of rock music and their stage presence deeply moved her.

From then on, Toyokawa Shoko developed a great interest in bands, and she wanted to form her own band.

Shoko Toyokawa is full of initiative. She brings along her childhood friend who plays guitar, recruits a girl who plays bass at school, and at the same time, leverages her connections with her seniors to invite a drummer from another school.

That wasn't all. Guided by fate, she met a girl who was exceptionally talented at writing lyrics. Although the girl wasn't a great singer, she was full of emotion and could move people's hearts.

With a guitarist, bassist, drummer, lead singer, and herself as the keyboardist, the band that belongs to her and them has finally been formed.

Their first song was written by the lead singer and composed by Shoko Toyokawa. It was an entirely original song that they practiced together and performed together on stage.

Toyokawa Shoko has lost count of how many wonderful days they spent together, but whenever these pleasant memories are mentioned, Hoshino Mi notices that the corners of her mouth involuntarily turn up, then slowly suppress it, revealing an extremely complex look in her eyes.

What should have been a wonderful beginning ended last month.

After her mother passed away, her father tried to devote himself to his career, but failed miserably and ended up with a staggering amount of debt. Now he can only live in a dilapidated old house and drowns his sorrows in alcohol every day.

Because of this incident, Toyokawa Shoko had to consider the pressures of reality, working part-time to earn a living while taking care of her father.

It's easy to imagine that with such a situation, Toyokawa Shoko not only neglected the band, but also rarely went to the school, spending her days worrying about what to eat next.

Ultimately, Shoko Toyokawa chose to leave the band.

This is what Hoshino saw on the street at that time, just as she broke away from her band and accepted her reality.

After hearing the whole story, Hoshino hesitated for a moment: "Don't they know about your situation?"

“They don’t need to know, and even if they did, what could they change?” Toyokawa Shoko clenched her fists. “I… I’m no longer fit to be in their band.”

She can never go back to the way things were. She has to work, she has to accept reality. She doesn't have time to continue playing those childish band games with them.

Even if she told them about her situation, the reality wouldn't change; she and they were already from two different worlds.

“Splitting up like this is a good thing for both of us,” Toyokawa Shoko said in a low voice. “It’s just one less keyboardist, but they can find another one. It’s no big deal.”

But didn't you cry a lot back then?

Hoshino, inwardly criticizing the girl, then asked, "Was that girl also a member of the band?"

"Yes, Xiao Mu is my childhood friend." Toyokawa Shoko's expression did not improve; instead, it became even darker.

Because of her childhood friend, Wakaba Mutsu said those words to everyone at the end.

Hoshino finally realized their relationship; they were childhood friends. No wonder the girl had such a distressed expression back then.

However, Hoshino still felt a little regretful because he didn't know the other person and was in a hurry, so he didn't get the other person's reward.

"So, you're still in contact?" Hoshino asked.

"Of course we're still in touch. I returned the umbrella to her last time." Toyokawa Shoko's eyes were complicated. Speaking of which, Hoshino had seen her embarrassing state.

“She should know about your situation, right?” Hoshino asked softly.

Shoko Toyokawa was silent for a moment, then said, "I told her not to tell anyone. You are the second person to know."

That's not the case. Although she didn't show it, Hoshino knew that she was hiding a lot of things.

Hoshino watched her quietly. These things seemed complicated, but the reality she was talking about was very simple—because of an accident at home, she felt she should quit the band.

If they had just talked things out properly, they could have remained good friends even if they weren't in a band anymore. But Toyokawa Shoko turned this into a complete falling out.

However, Hoshino had no grounds to criticize Toyokawa Shoko for doing something wrong, nor did he have any reason to lecture Toyokawa Shoko on any profound principles.

Their relationship was merely that of casual acquaintances, nothing more.

Shoko Toyokawa knew this, which is why she decided to tell Mi Hoshino about her situation.

In this story, Hoshino Mi is merely an observer, someone to whom Toyokawa Shoko confides.

As someone to confide in, Hoshino Mi's job is simply to listen; Toyokawa Shoko won't ask him to offer any evaluation.

“Alright, that’s my story,” Toyokawa Shoko said softly. “I’m grateful for what you did to me, so please don’t do that to me again.”

Toyokawa Shoko glanced at the boy from the side. Just a few days ago, they were complete strangers, yet he had done so much for her.

For this reason, Toyokawa Shoko did not want to continue accepting this kindness.

"Thank you for spending time with me today. I don't know what you mean by ulterior motives. If you're referring to me personally, I'm sorry to disappoint you. I will never fall in love with anyone."

Shoko Toyokawa spoke very seriously. She was carrying too much on her shoulders and couldn't even take care of her former band, so how could she possibly be in a relationship?

However, Hoshino looked at this with a strange expression.

"Is this a friend card?" Hoshino complained. "Being rejected before even confessing makes me feel a little awkward."

"I... I'm just telling you in advance that I won't be in a relationship," Toyokawa Shoko said somewhat awkwardly. "I think quite a few people will like you."

Hoshino sighed. The beautiful girl was indeed very confident, although he had indeed felt a momentary flutter in his heart.

"Okay, I'll keep that in mind," Hoshino asked. "But we're still good friends, right?"

Toyokawa Shoko, who had initially felt somewhat guilty, slowly recovered as she looked at his expression, and the corners of her mouth turned up again.

"Of course we are good friends."

The girl added in her mind that she wouldn't mind staying friends with Hoshino Mi.

Having such a friend inexplicably made her feel relaxed, and she couldn't help but hope that this fateful friendship could last a lifetime.

Chapter Twenty-Five: Better Teachers

Since it was getting late, Hoshino let Toyokawa Shoko take a bath first, while he began to check the rewards.

[Toyokawa Shoko's intimacy with you has increased. You can choose one of the following options.]

[One: Charm +1]

[Second: Intelligence +1]

[Part 3: The Tsukinomori school uniform worn by Toyokawa Shoko]

Hoshino was a little disappointed that she didn't get the skill this time.

However, he was surprised to learn that Toyokawa Shoko was a student at Tsukimori Girls' Academy.

Hoshino had heard of this school; the students who could study at Tsuki no Mori were basically from prestigious families, a so-called aristocratic school.

As the daughter of a diplomat, Eriri could have gone to this school, but she insisted on going with Hoshino Mi, saying that Tsukimori was too far from home, so she reluctantly went to Toyonosaki instead.

There was a time when Hoshino was quite curious about the school uniforms in Tsuki no Mori.

After much deliberation, he finally chose [Intelligence +1].

Charm, Intelligence, and Stamina are all basic stats for Hoshino.

Although he didn't know what the average person's score was, he knew that his score was definitely higher than that of an average person.

When his [Charm] score broke through 20, Hoshino was appreciated by a talent scout. As the score increased, he found that he could easily strike up conversations with strangers.

Shoko Toyokawa's acceptance of him as a stranger might also be due to her "charm."

Furthermore, [intelligence] actually better reflects Hoshino's uniqueness.

Hoshino had noticed the effect of [Intelligence] a long time ago.

It won't make Hoshino Mi an unprecedentedly intelligent person, but it can greatly improve Hoshino Mi's learning ability, calculation ability, memory ability, and so on.

The reason I chose Intelligence instead of Charm is because Hoshino feels that she needs Intelligence more in the future.

As a faint sense of refreshment washed over her, Hoshino let out a long sigh of relief, then looked at Toyokawa Shoko's personal panel again.

[Target: Toyokawa Shoko]

[Intimacy: 21]

[Status: Considers myself a good friend, currently in a good mood...]

Hoshino's lips curled up slightly; he felt that this girl was actually a bit dull.

……

When Toyokawa Shoko came out of the bathroom, Hoshino Mi had already made up the bed for her in the study.

Yes, tatami mats.

Hoshino noticed that there weren't many things in the study, and that tidying up would free up space. Besides, Toyokawa Shoko wasn't very tall, so there was just enough room for her to sleep alone.