Eriri, who is about to defend Yukinoshita Yukino with an awkward explanation, froze at those words.
Her delicate face went blank, and she stiffly turned her head with a mechanical creak, like a robot, towards Kyousuke, hoping she'd misheard.
But when she glanced around, she realized it wasn't just her—everyone wore the same stunned, confused expression.
Even the ever-composed Katou Megumi wasn't an exception.
So...
Eriri swallowed hard.
Her mind went blank.
She couldn't even come up with a clever way to shift the blame onto poor Momotarou this time.
Yukinoshita, noticing everyone's reactions, frowned deeply and spoke with quiet seriousness:
"In a dark, damp place like that alley... not just cats—people can get sick too."
Even Kyousuke, the source of this chaos, fell into an awkward silence.
Uh… uh...
Eriri glanced at Sakura, but the girl gave no sign of stepping in to rescue the conversation.
She then looked to Shouko—the sweet little thing only smiled nervously, eyes lowered, lips pressed together in embarrassment.
Looks like it's all up to me now.
'So what if I'm terrible at scary stories? It's not the end of the world.'
'I can't let Yukinoshita suffer like this!'
Of course, this wasn't because Eriri imagined herself having to tell a horror story afterward and panicked—certainly not!
It was purely because she was the kindest, most beautiful girl in the world.
"Ahem... b-but maybe... it's a ghost cat?" Eriri suddenly offered. "Like, maybe a little kitten that died after being abandoned there and became an earthbound spirit... forever stuck in the alley, cold and lonely, waiting for someone to notice it."
"But only the most kind-hearted, beautiful girls can hear its voice! And if someone goes into the alley for it, the cat's soul can finally be freed and ascend to peace!"
'Yes! Well done, Eriri!' She cheered for herself in her mind, clenching an imaginary fist of triumph.
Her sincere blue eyes shone—no doubt a skill she'd picked up from too much anime.
Kyousuke turned his head slightly to glance at Eriri's not-so-bright little head and sighed inwardly.
From the moment he opened his mouth, he'd seen Yukinoshita's face go pale.
Yukinoshita's "scary stories" weren't scary at all—but Eriri's words?
Now those were truly terrifying to her.
Yukinoshita, visibly paler now, took a deep breath.
She gritted her teeth and forced herself to graciously accept Eriri's kind intention.
"Earthbound spirits don't exist," she said firmly.
At that, both Kyousuke and Sakura silently raised their hands to their foreheads, turned away, and shook with suppressed laughter.
Kasumigaoka Utaha gave Yukinoshita a strange look, wondering why she ever considered this girl a threat.
Maybe she'd spent too much time around Eriri, because she felt like she was losing brain cells.
"Of course I know they don't exist! But... aren't we supposed to be telling ghost stories right now?" Eriri stared wide-eyed at Yukinoshita, nearly spiraling into confusion.
Of course there are no earthbound spirits—if there were, she'd have forced Kyousuke to let Mitsuha move in by now.
But this is supposed to be a horror story!
Yukinoshita lowered her head slightly, uncomfortable under Eriri's pure, sincere gaze, but her voice stayed firm.
"...That's scary enough. Just thinking of a little kitten left in that awful place keeps me awake at night."
Of course she hadn't checked that alley just once.
She'd cleaned every inch of it, fighting nausea to haul out every last piece of garbage, until nightfall.
Good thing she wasn't in any school clubs—she wouldn't have had the time otherwise.
"So... this really happened to you?" Eriri asked.
"Art imitates life..." Yukinoshita mumbled awkwardly.
'Exaggerating much...' That was everyone's thought.
What Yukinoshita did wasn't something as simple as "cat lover" could explain anymore.
"To reach out a helping hand to those in need... that's simply what the kind and fortunate ought to do." She lifted her chin proudly.
For a moment, the gloomy living room seemed to light up with the brilliance of her compassion.
"And cats shouldn't be left out of that kindness, either," she added.
Eriri swore—even when she saw Momotarou somehow climb to the top of the fake mountain in the koi pond last Wednesday, she wasn't this dumbfounded.
The last time she'd felt this speechless was just yesterday, when she discovered that the dreamy prince in a game she almost considered a masterpiece was actually a girl.
Of course, that wasn't because Eriri had a fragile heart that broke at the slightest thing—it's just that...
Listen to what Yukinoshita was saying!
"The fortunate," "the compassionate," "a helping hand," "those in need"—even Asahi News wasn't this dramatic.
What's next, world-saving speeches? Is she secretly training to be Saitama—one hundred pushups, one hundred squats every night?
Eriri's gaze drifted to Yukinoshita's glossy black hair as her thoughts started to wander.
"Cats do tend to get ringworm in places like that," a soft voice suddenly said, breaking the silence.
"Mm~ and ear mites too, I think?" Katou Megumi chimed in lightly.
"Exactly! And not just that—damp, dirty, cramped places like that are breeding grounds for all kinds of bacteria."
"Besides ringworm and ear mites, there are rarer things like feline stomatitis, cat flu, feline infectious peritonitis..."
As the two of them spoke, Yukinoshita dropped to her knees and leaned forward, passionately listing every cat illness she knew.
Katou and Shouko exchanged bewildered looks—both with the exact same blank expression.
"Wow, Yukino-chan, you really know your cats," Sakura finally spoke up, ending her fit of laughter to save them.
"Ahem... that's just common knowledge," Yukinoshita replied matter-of-factly.
'Like hell it is!' Eriri screamed in her heart.
"Yaha! Since our dear president has spoken the club's motto so perfectly, let's do a little promo, shall we?"
Sakura cheered happily, pulling a small item with great effort from the pocket of her pajamas.
"Hi hi, pleased to meet you, pleased to meet you!" she said brightly.
Crawling on her knees toward the candlelight and handing out slips of paper to everyone like a cheerful newbie on her first day of work.
'Yamauchi Sakura... what the hell are you doing...?'
As everyone examined the slips by candlelight, Yukinoshita widened her eyes at the beaming Sakura.
With her intelligence, it took only a moment to realize what they said—something about the Service Club, no doubt.
But... when did this turn into a recruitment drive?
Weren't they just giving a lecture on cat health... no—telling ghost stories?!
Yukinoshita tilted her head, suddenly feeling like all human emotions were finite and conserved.
Eriri had just been the shocked one a minute ago—and now it was her turn to gape in disbelief.
"Service Club?" Eriri asked, confused.
"Mhm~" Sakura nodded enthusiastically.
"A club that offers free help to those in need?"
Kasumigaoka's smirk curled upward, practically begging to be smacked.
The "those in need" she mentioned obviously meant one specific needy person—the Service Club president herself.
"Mm-hmm!" Sakura nodded eagerly.
"Kyousuke's 'Create a Happy Life Club' sounds more reliable than this," Naoka muttered sarcastically.
"I know right" Kyousuke nodded earnestly in agreement.
Shouko subtly scooted backward.
She admired Yukinoshita, but she had yet to develop the same steel-like mental strength.
"Is this new content for your novel, Hojou-san?" Katou Megumi asked curiously.
"Something this grand? Not a chance. I'm way too selfish for that," Hojou Kyousuke replied, shaking his head.
"Mm-hmm!" Sakura nodded again, vouching for that statement.
Kyousuke definitely wasn't the 'spring sunshine for all the world.'
"I see" Megumi gave a small nod and glanced down at the slip of paper in her hand.
The handwriting was a little uneven but charming in its own girlish way, decorated with cute little symbols like the flyers clubs would post on school bulletin boards.
————————————————————————
"Service Club
Vice-President: Yamauchi Sakura
Mission: Offering free help to anyone in need
Anytime, anywhere, the righteous hero Yukino is always on call! (⌯꒪꒫꒪)੭"
————————————————————————
Megumi thought to herself that it was strange for the vice-president to be the one representing the club, while the president—Yukinoshita—was reduced to an errand girl.
But then again, Sakura was as cute as ever.
"Give me one too," Yukinoshita reached out toward Sakura.
"No way! I worked so hard on these. As the club president, you don't need one, so don't waste my effort!" Sakura quickly hid the cards behind her back.
"I'll just look and give it back. If I damage it, I'll pay you ten times over."
"Still no!"
"I am the president, you know."
"According to Sobu High's club regulations, if two-thirds of the members vote in favor, they can impeach the club president at any time," Sakura grinned slyly.
"You sure about that?" Yukinoshita's eyes narrowed, her voice suddenly taking on a dangerous edge.
"Hehe... I meant we could impeach the fourth club member who skips all our activities—Hojou-san," Sakura said with a sheepish smile, handing Yukinoshita one of the spare cards she'd made.
'The Righteous Hero'? Why not 'Dragonfly Captain'? Do you think I've never seen that tokusatsu show?'
A phantom tic mark appeared on Yukinoshita's forehead, and while the mark was imaginary, the clenching of her jaw muscles was very real.
"Well? Doesn't this make you really want to seek help from the Service Club?" Sakura beamed with pride.
Yukinoshita shot her a sidelong glance, then casually slipped the rest of the cards into the little pocket on her pajamas without resistance.
Seeing Megumi still staring intently at the paper slip, Sakura asked cheerfully:
"Hey, Megumi, do you have any wishes you want to make come true?"
'Stop making it sound like the Service Club is some kind of magic wish-granting machine…'
Hojou Kyousuke sighed silently, imagining the dark lines forming on Yukinoshita's forehead about to turn into a mask of rage.
Careful—she might actually snap for real.
Still, he couldn't help but be curious.
What kind of wish could a girl like Megumi have?
"Eh?" Megumi looked up, startled to see the three pairs of eyes on her.
For a brief moment, panic flashed in her mind—had they seen through her thoughts?
But in less than a second, she composed herself.
No... there's no way they could know.
Her calm exterior was the unique charm of a girl like her.
"Hmm… let's see~ To be honest, I don't really have anything that's troubling me right now."
Like any normal girl, she had her share of worries—but thanks to her particular personality, they rarely left any lasting trace in her mind.
The troubles would quietly dissolve before they could even bother her.
And today, here she was—eating food personally made by Hojou, who was practically an idol thanks to his cousin Keiichi's fame, and watching Eriri.
The school's most popular rich girl, nearly jump out of her seat from the scary story she'd told.
How could she possibly have any complaints?
...Well, maybe one small thing.
She was wondering whether to carefully treasure this happy moment in her heart—or let it fade quietly away as she always did, like every other pleasant memory.
If you let nothing leave a mark, you never get hurt. That was how she lived.
No one could ever guess what was going on in her mind.
"Hey, could you help me wash my paintbrushes?" Eriri suddenly raised her hand.
"Eh? Pencils need washing?" Sakura asked, confused.
"Idiot. Not pencils—oil paintbrushes!" Eriri scolded.
"Ohhh, oil painting, oil painting…" Sakura muttered, still not quite following.
Kyousuke and Utaha weren't surprised by Eriri's request.
Even though she always presented herself at home as a hardcore otaku and doujinshi artist, there was no doubt—the blonde girl was a true art genius.
Back when she collaborated with a certain someone on manga and doujin projects, she'd fallen completely in love with the joy of that creative process.
But after applying for the Tokyo Youth Art Exhibition, Eriri had returned to oil and watercolor painting.
Of course, art took many forms—but there were definitely "higher class" styles in the art world.
A genius like Eriri switched between modes effortlessly.
Lately, her home was filling up with oil paintings again.
She kept offering to have her father send more finished pieces from their main house for decoration, but someone had stubbornly insisted on hanging up her rough practice sketches on the walls instead.
As a result, she was training harder than ever, and her skill was visibly improving.
"Hey hey, Righteous Hero Yukino, would you be willing to shine your merciful light on this struggling artist and lend a helping hand?" Sakura grinned, turning to Yukinoshita.
"Are you stupid? Can't you just hire an assistant for this kind of thing?" the 'Righteous Hero' snapped.
"Ohhh, you've changed, Yukino-chan. The old you would've said, 'If you can't do this much on your own, you might as well give up on painting altogether.'"
Sakura mimicked Yukinoshita's voice perfectly—so well that Eriri shot a glare at Yukinoshita instead of her.
"Ridiculous. I know full well that assistants help artists paint better," Yukinoshita retorted.
"Ooohh~ So you do know~" Sakura dragged out every syllable, her tone thick with unspoken teasing.
"…Of course I do." Yukinoshita met her gaze head-on without flinching.
"Then could you walk my dog for me? Honestly, I'm terrified of dogs, but I can't leave Momotaro cooped up in the house every day—it'd be bad for his health."
"Since you even tolerate cats, I'm sure Momotaro could benefit from your kindness too?" Kasumigaoka said with a troubled expression—so perfect that even Detective Sakura couldn't spot a single flaw.
She really seemed like she'd been wrestling with this for ages.
But in her shimmering crimson eyes gleamed pure mischief.
Every word, every sentence aimed straight at Yukinoshita's weak spot.
'Too funny. I always thought this girl had her head screwed on straight. Who knew she was so naive?'
Kasumigaoka wasn't expecting much—she just wanted this junior of hers to understand the harshness of the real world.
So… what will you do, Yukinoshita? Will you help this poor little dog—or give in to your fear of them?
If Yukinoshita chose the first option, Kasumigaoka would get to enjoy the sight of her awkward fluster every day.
If she chose the second, Kasumigaoka could flash a triumphant, scornful smile and gain a permanent "Yukinoshita Yukino Special Attack Buff"—a card she could play in every future argument.
No matter what Yukinoshita said, Kasumigaoka could toss this moment back at her and leave her speechless.
In other words, Kasumigaoka would win no matter what.
Crossing her arms confidently, Kasumigaoka straightened her posture and gave Yukinoshita a hard, unwavering stare—one so sharp that even Kyousuke couldn't help but glance at her out of the corner of his eye.
"..." Sakura turned her head away, no longer asking Justice Superwoman Yukino for a response—because she knew Yukino had heard everything loud and clear anyway.
Heh heh.
Hearing his name, Momotarou's little triangular ears twitched ever so slightly—but the pup was far too sleepy to lift his head.
Yukinoshita, who was staring nervously at him, flinched in surprise at the sudden ear twitch.
Her shoulders jerked and she instinctively leaned backward a little.
"..." So—how should she respond?
Tell them that the Service Club only helps students of Sobu High?
That would work… but it went against the very principles upon which the club had been founded.
Accept the request but dump the task onto the other three club members?
After all, Sakura and the others lived at the dormitory anyway, so logistically it made perfect sense.
That would also work… but that wasn't something Yukinoshita Yukino would do.
...
Her mind spun at full speed.
A moment ago, she had firmly declared that having an assistant could help an artist focus better on their work.
But now, when it came to herself—she immediately rejected every option that involved relying on others.
That was Yukinoshita Yukino: always upright, always uncompromising, always unwilling to depend on anyone.
And Kyousuke decided to said nothing.
What was he supposed to say?
Should he cradle the drowsy Momotarou and shout:
"Oh no! Disaster! Momotarou's fallen into depression because no one's walking him anymore!"
Or maybe:
"Oh no! This is serious! Without daily walks, Momotarou's slowly losing his ability to walk at all!"
Or… wait, why were all his ideas so backhanded?
'Hey, hey—why was he thinking from Yukinoshita's perspective?'
'He, Hojou Kyousuke, had his own sense of justice too!'
[Hojou Kyousuke's Absolute Justice]:
No matter the time, no matter the place—his conscience would always side with the girls.
See? He might seem like he had no principles most of the time, but if you just shifted your perspective, you'd realize he was actually a man of unwavering conviction.
In some ways, he was like an immovable stone statue.
Of course, if the one being teased was Eriri, he'd immediately try to shrink his presence as much as possible.
Then, when both sides inevitably dragged him out as the judge, he'd fire up his unmatched genius brain and devise some perfect win-win solution for everyone.
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