After arriving at the university, Ichin and Utaha were met with a campus overflowing with the energy of the sports festival. The athletic fields, as well as all indoor and outdoor venues, had already been fully set up.
Checking the time, Ichin said, "The opening ceremony starts at nine. Kou and the others are coming around nine-thirty, right?"
Utaha nodded as she glanced at the two-day match schedule in her hands. "Mm, nine-thirty. As for Yukino's match—let me see… her preliminary round starts at 10:15 a.m. There are quite a lot of participants for tennis."
"Well, it is a pretty popular sport."
Looking around, Ichin said, "Let's go. It's about time anyway. We'll join our class for the opening ceremony first. After that, we'll go find Kou and the others, show them around campus, and then head over to cheer for Yukino."
"Okay~~"
At nine, the University of Tokyo's autumn sports festival officially began. After the principal's speech, followed by the student council explaining the schedule for the two-day event and various reminders, the festival was formally underway.
Once dismissed, Ichin notified his classmates, then headed toward the literature department to find Utaha. The two of them walked together toward the main gate.
Visitors from outside the school were allowed to enter, but only after going through a registration process. Kou and the others had already arrived and were registering at the gate.
By the time Ichin and Utaha reached the entrance, the group had finished signing in and were walking in together.
Seeing them, Yagami Kou waved energetically. "Over here~~~! We're here!"
After everyone gathered, Ichin looked at the large group and laughed. "So none of you are at the company today, huh? All taking leave together—that's pretty bold."
Everyone just smiled. They were using their paid vacation, and it was only for two days, so it wouldn't cause any major issues. Otherwise, Ichin definitely wouldn't have approved it.
With that, Ichin and Utaha led everyone on a tour around Todai's campus.
As they walked, Aoba widened her eyes in amazement. "Oh! So this is Todai… it's really nice!"
On the other side, Sakura Nene huffed proudly. "Hmph. It's not that much better than my college."
To be fair, Kira Women's University—where Nene graduated—was one of Tokyo's top women's universities. It might not compare to Todai in academic breadth, but in terms of campus environment, it was just as impressive.
Ichin and the others had never visited Nene's alma mater, but Umiko had been there once.
Hearing Nene's comment, she nodded with a smile. "Yeah, Kira really does have a beautiful campus. Well, it is a women's university."
As they talked, Mochizuki Momiji tugged gently on Narumi's sleeve.
"What is it, Momo?"
Narumi followed where she was pointing—straight at Todai's cafeteria.
"…"
Narumi sighed and shook her head, pulling Momiji along to follow the group. "Alright, alright, we'll eat there at noon. It's only nine-thirty! It's nowhere near lunchtime yet!"
Momiji blinked her eyes, reluctantly turning her gaze away from the cafeteria.
She couldn't help it—her sharp sense of smell had picked up all sorts of delicious aromas the moment they approached the building. It was almost impossible not to look.
But since Narumi had said as much, she could only resist the urge to explore the cafeteria and continue walking with the group.
The group continued moving forward, and the students on campus quickly took notice of this unusual lineup.
Ichin and Utaha were already well-known figures—after three years at the university, almost everyone recognized them. But the people they brought along today… aside from a few who looked very youthful, none of them looked like students at all.
Some of the students who knew about games instantly recognized Yagami Kou and Toyama Rin walking at the front. They immediately understood—those developers had come to Todai for a group visit.
What they didn't expect was the sheer number of beautiful women among them. It was… excessive. Ridiculously excessive.
Looking around nervously, Hajime whispered, "Why do I feel like the gazes around us are kinda weird…?"
Iijima Yun glared at her. "Isn't it obvious? Have you even looked at how you're dressed today?"
"My outfit?"
Hajime lowered her head and looked at her T-shirt and hot pants. "What about it?"
"Come on, it's the end of October! You're wearing that? Aren't you cold?"
Yun huffed and pointed accusingly at Hajime's exposed long legs. "With legs that long out in the open, of course the boys are staring!"
"Ohhh! So that's why!"
Hajime clapped her hands as if enlightened.
"But I really am not cold. I biked here, so I've already warmed up! Plenty of exercise!"
After saying that, she turned the tables and looked at Iijima Yun.
"But Yun, your lolita dress is way more eye-catching than mine, isn't it?"
Mm-hmm!
Everyone nodded in agreement.
All of them wore casual clothes today—except Iijima Yun, who came dressed exactly like she did at work: in a gorgeous frilly lolita outfit. Kuroneko, who shared her fashion hobby, hadn't taken leave today and stayed at the office.
Kuroneko's reasoning was: I've never been to Todai, but I've seen Kirino's sports festivals plenty of times. Nothing new. I'd rather stay at work.
Yagami Kou turned back, grinning at Hajime and Yun. "You two really are attention magnets. So? Want me to give you both some free time? Go fishing for hot guys?"
Both shook their heads instantly, saying in perfect sync, "No need!"
Iijima Yun crossed her arms, serious. "My standards for romance are very high. Even Todai students might not pass. They're still just students after all."
But Hajime countered, "But… Ichin is also a student, isn't he?"
"How is that the same?"
Yun shot her a white-eyed glare. "Show me one Todai student as outstanding as Ichin. If you find one, I'll pursue him on the spot!"
"…Okay, fair enough."
Hajime had no rebuttal. She shrugged. "But if he's your standard, aren't you going to be single for a long time?"
"I'm fine with that! Being single is amazing!"
"Yeah… true, being single is amazing!"
And just like that, the two single dogs reached a perfect consensus.
As for Ichin—the one being used as the benchmark—he simply exchanged a look with Utaha and helplessly spread his hands.
---
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