I'm in a real religion, why are all the people who confess to me girls?

Compared to being watched by a group of people, it's not unacceptable if it's just Tianyin alone.

Hmm? Is things starting to take a strange turn?

Shiina felt that something was wrong, but looking at Amane's calm expression, Shiina couldn't sense that Amane was trying to trick him.

Unable to figure it out, Shiina chose to give up thinking about it.

Seeing that Shiina had been led astray, Amane mentally made a victory sign. Now that Shiina's little head was a complete mess, it was time to get down to business.

"Speaking of which, aren't you planning to give a rather difficult question for this special exam day?"

"I did mention to Ryuen that I could help prepare the questions, but for some reason, Ryuen seemed very confident during this special exam... I have a bad feeling that even if the opponent is Class D, we shouldn't be careless. But what if Ryuen has some incredible backup plan...? Amane! You actually tricked me into saying that!"

Chapter 165: It really is French coffee!

"Hiyori~"

Amane's affectionate voice rang in Shiina's ears.

Shiina didn't even glance at Amane.

"Hmph~ Tianyin, please keep your distance from me. This is a public place, and there are surveillance cameras over there."

Shiina puffed out her cheeks and angrily pointed to the surveillance camera not far away.

If it were an ordinary person, they might back down upon seeing surveillance footage, but Tianyin is clearly not one of those ordinary people. After all the humiliating play, Tianyin's thick skin means that surveillance footage is no longer a concern for her.

So she chose to move closer to Shiina. It's worth mentioning that Amane, who was originally sitting opposite Shiina, had now come to Shiina's side, and even her little paws were itching to move.

"Don't be so careful about what I did to you or me."

"I won't fall for your tricks again! I wouldn't say the same thing twice, even if I did it myself~"

Shiina proudly puffed out her chest while still staring at Amane with a wary expression.

Seeing Shiina's wariness, Amane decided to try a different approach to break down Shiina's guard against her.

"How about this, as a thank you, I'll treat you to a French coffee and some 'Shiina Hiyori Like-for-Him Bear Cookies No. 2'~"

Hearing about the French coffee, Shiina Hiyori was slightly tempted, but when she heard the name of the little bear biscuits, her face couldn't help but flush slightly.

"Didn't I tell you not to use such an embarrassing name? It makes me so embarrassed."

"Blushing Hiyori is so cute~ And I think the name is really nice, don't you think so?"

"It's...it's not that nice!"

"I wasn't talking about bear-shaped cookies, but the name Shiina Hiyori. Hiyori... isn't it a nice-sounding name?"

"Hey!"

Shiina felt a stinging sensation on her cheek. This was the first time anyone had ever said such a thing to her in her life. Her reason was desperately telling her that Amane was just trying to gain her trust with sweet words.

But... what is that feeling deep inside, like honey being sweetened and soothed by the taste of honey?

Shiina couldn't help but turn her head to the side.

"It's alright... I don't think this name sounds as good as you said, Tianyin, but since it's the most precious gift my parents gave me, I still like this name..."

Shiina spoke somewhat awkwardly, when suddenly she felt a hand seemingly placed on her leg.

"Heavenly Sound..."

"Aren't we good friends?"

"But……"

Before Shiina could say anything, she felt as if another hand had appeared around her waist.

Embarrassed, Shiina instinctively closed her eyes.

Shiina may have thought that closing her eyes would prevent her from being influenced by Amane, but to Amane, this action was tantamount to tacitly granting her the opportunity to get to know Shiina Hiyori and this girl more deeply.

Just as Amane slowly approached to a distance close enough to feel Shiina's rapid breathing, a sudden sound interrupted her actions.

"Kissing is prohibited in the library!"

"Hey!"

Upon hearing the voice from behind, Amane quickly withdrew her hand. When she turned around to look at the source of the voice, Ichinose, wearing a red armband, was looking at the two of them with a mischievous grin.

"Ichinose-san, it's not what you think..."

As soon as Shiina opened her mouth, Amane knew things were going to get bad. At this point, no matter how she tried to explain, Ichinose would just follow the topic and continue the conversation.

As expected, Ichinose first let out a meaningful "Oh~" and then her expression became somewhat excited, as if she had seen something worth gossiping about.

"What does it look like? Shiina-kun, how did you know what I was thinking? And Shiina-kun, why is your face so red?"

Faced with Ichinose's three deadly questions, Shiina stiffly turned her head to look at Amane.

Seeing this, Tianyin had no choice but to bite the bullet and try to change the subject.

"By the way, Honami, what brings you to the library?"

Upon seeing Amane's inquiry, Ichinose happily pointed to his armband.

"Because I'm a librarian too~ Hmph, you almost fooled me, Tianyin! Don't try to change the subject! Instead of asking how I got here, tell me why you're playing kissing games in the library?"

It's often said that girls' IQ drops to varying degrees when they're in love, but Amane thinks the opposite is true for Ichinose.

She's probably the type of person whose IQ increases dramatically when she's in love, and whose keen sense of detail also reaches a level comparable to Sherlock Holmes.

While Amane was trying to bluff her way out of Ichinose's questioning, Shiina had already quietly packed her little schoolbag.

Shiina, with her small backpack on her back, turned around and waved to Amane and Ichinose.

"I suddenly remembered I have some things to do. Tianyin, you can treat me to French coffee next time. Bye~"

After saying hello, Shiina turned around and sped out of the library, leaving Ichinose and Amane speechless.

Amane was stunned because she didn't expect Shiina to be so disloyal as to leave her here alone, while Ichinose was stunned because she clearly heard a dull thud when Shiina put the backpack on the table, which showed that the backpack was quite heavy.

But! Shiina was able to carry a backpack and walk briskly, such physical ability was completely different from Shiina's delicate and weak appearance.

"It seems Shiina-kun has run away."

Ichinose turned around and met the gaze of Amane, who was staring at him.

"Fanbo-kun! Do you realize you've ruined my plans?"

Seeing Amane's serious expression, Ichinose lowered her head in grievance, her fingers intertwining as she muttered something under her breath.

"So what if I ruined your kiss with Shiina-kun..."

Amane breathed a sigh of relief when she realized that Ichinose had successfully fooled her with her acting skills. Otherwise, if Ichinose had told others, it would have been very difficult for her to get close to Shiina next time.

"I never imagined that I'd be seen this way in your mind, Fanbo. Am I the kind of person who would take advantage of cute girls?!"

Amane tried to defend herself, but after making eye contact with Ichinose, she felt that Ichinose's gaze seemed... a little off, as if he were saying, 'Isn't that how it is?'

Tianyin thought back for a moment and realized that she was probably, maybe, and perhaps she was still a decent person... right?

To cover up her embarrassment, Tianyin coughed a few times and then continued.

"Ahem, this time is different. I deliberately approached Hiyori in order to get information about the special exam for Class C from her. I was so close to success... Sigh."

Amane sighed with some regret, and Ichinose's aggrieved little face turned pale.

"Did I accidentally ruin your plan, Tianyin?"

"It's alright. Although you ruined the plan this time, it was unintentional. I'll try to get more information from Hiyori next time we have the chance."

Ichinose recalled that when the mission was assigned, Amane seemed to have said that she was in charge of gathering intelligence, which meant that... the mission failed because she alerted the enemy.

After learning that Amane's operation had failed because of her, Ichinose lowered her head.

"I'm sorry, Tianyin, I didn't know you were gathering intelligence. I thought... I thought..."

"It's okay. Just thinking about it makes it clear that I could never have any feelings for Hiyori. After all, you're so cute, Honami. I'm too busy spoiling you to even think about doing 'that' with Hiyori."

Amane was somewhat impressed with herself for managing to explain herself. Fortunately, Ichinose was simple-minded; if it were Horikita, she probably wouldn't have listened to Amane's explanation and would have just choked her with a chop.

"Ugh! There are outsiders here, how can you say such mushy things?"

Ichinose blushed slightly, then hesitated for a long time as if she had thought of something before asking in a low voice.

"Amane, do you often coax girls like this? You probably say things like this to Horikita and the others too, right?"

"I'm only saying this to you."

"really?"

"Of course it's true, I can guarantee it!"

Amane's ghost story successfully brought a smile back to Ichinose's face, but Ichinose felt a little guilty afterward.

She felt that if she hadn't been so impulsive, Tianyin's plan might have succeeded, and with the information about the special exam from Class C, they could have prepared for the exam more calmly.

Therefore, Ichinose hopes to do something to make amends to Amane.

"I still feel a little guilty. Is there anything I can do for you, Tianyin?"

Amane admitted that her heart started racing the moment Ichinose looked at her with pleading eyes.

This sudden surge of attraction left Tianyin feeling somewhat dazed, even as if she had become a monster controlled by desire.

One second she was harboring ill intentions towards Shiina, the next her heart was racing for another girl.

"Tianyin, what's wrong?"

Amane shook her head in response to Ichinose's concerned gaze.

"It's alright. Since the plan has failed, there's nothing more to say. I happen to have some French coffee at home; would you like to come back and try it? It's really good!"

Amane looked sincerely at Ichinose, and Ichinose agreed almost without hesitation.

After informing another librarian that she had some urgent business, Ichinose happily followed Amane toward the dormitory.

I don't know when it started, but Ichinose also began to use lies.

Amane always felt that Ichinose wasn't as innocent as she seemed on the surface, but she had no interest in tearing off other people's masks. If being an innocent girl was the persona Ichinose relied on to survive in this school, then tearing off that persona would only hurt both of them, and Kushida was the best example of that.

Actually, Amane never disliked Kushida from the beginning, but Kushida was determined to make Horikita drop out of school. Amane only tried to stop Kushida's little tricks when she had no other choice. In the end, she realized that she could never succeed in making Amane and Horikita drop out of school. She was provoked by Sato and tore off her mask.

What was the result?

Almost everyone suffered injuries to varying degrees, making it Tianyin's only attempt to achieve nothing and arguably their first defeat.

Kushida's experience made those around Amane more cautious, and even those who could easily see through things would no longer speak carelessly.

Not long ago, Horikita praised Amane for growing up, looking quite pleased with himself.

However, in Tianyin's view, she had simply changed her mind about seeing herself as an observer.

Sometimes, living life seriously feels pretty good.

It was precisely this change in attitude that made it so that even if she sensed Ichinose was deliberately maintaining a perfect persona for her, what did it matter? She liked Ichinose the way she was, and that was enough.

Tianyin skillfully opened the door, then slammed it shut with a little force.

Horikita, who was studying the special exam in the next room, glanced thoughtfully at the wall next to him, let out a soft snort, and then continued to bury himself in studying the questions he was going to set for the special exam.

Ichinose sat at the table, looking forward to Amane brewing her French coffee. Although she didn't know much about French coffee, she had heard of some well-known brands like cappuccino.

The reason she only heard about it was because she had never tried it before. The coffee at school wasn't cheap either, and Ichinose, who was very careful with her points, always tried to avoid such high consumption.

Therefore, coffee-type drinks were not on her shopping list for a long time. They were not as thirst-quenching as mineral water, nor as flavorful and nutritious as juice. In Ichinose's eyes, the value of coffee was far less than the price she paid.

Moreover, she found the taste of coffee somewhat unpalatable. Once, when Ichinose saw everyone around her buying canned coffee at a vending machine, she inexplicably bought a can of Americano instead of a can of juice.

She almost spat it out after just one sip. In order not to do anything impolite and to cherish what she had bought, she forced herself to swallow the coffee little by little, enduring the bitterness in her mouth.

She simply couldn't understand why anyone would like something so bitter.

The reason Ichinose was sitting here happily wasn't because she was particularly looking forward to the coffee, but because Amane had specially invited her here and brewed it for her alone. Whether it symbolized that her relationship with Amane had progressed further, or proved that she was now a member of Amane's inner circle and had her own place in the class, it was all of great significance.

In Ichinose's opinion, Amane's brewing technique was probably more professional than that of the people in the coffee shop, since the people in the coffee shop wouldn't grind the beans... However, Ichinose was still a little disappointed when it was served.

Because coffee has a very bitter color.

"I won't stand on ceremony."

Ichinose picked up her coffee and took a sip. It tasted very good, but unfortunately, it was still bitter. Luckily, Amane had prepared creamer and sugar cubes, otherwise she would have had a hard time swallowing it.

But just as Ichinose was preparing to take another sip of coffee after adding plenty of creamer and sugar, Amane stopped her.

"Fanbo, that's not how you drink French coffee!"