"You're Wu Shen from my class?" Kasumigaoka Utaha also froze for a moment, then asked after a short hesitation.
"Kasumigaoka? You come to this bookstore too? What a coincidence."
Learning from his last experience, Wu Shen managed to calm himself this time, and didn't blurt out nonsense like "Your stockings are really nice" in a panic.
He picked up the books, and his gaze inadvertently swept over the covers of several of them. They all had anime-style colored illustrations, and the titles were light novels familiar to Wu Shen, an anime enthusiast, such as "My Sister Can't Be This Cute," "Haruna with Emerald Eyes," and "Phoenix and Lion."
Seeing these book titles, Wu Shen was stunned. So the high-achieving literary queen of the school, the unreachable flower, was actually an anime enthusiast. She was so well hidden! As a fellow anime fan, he had never discovered any clues before.
He had always thought that besides himself, the only anime enthusiasts in the class were Aki Tomoya and Nishimura Hideki.
Of the two, Nishimura Hideki was an extremely bold and passionate anime fan, even having performed the great feat of discussing with the Chief Education Officer whether animated shorts could be shown on the big screen. He could discuss ACG topics with others without any reservations.
Aki Tomoya, on the other hand, was a so-called open otaku, never hiding his hobbies, and could chat easily with any boy, earning him the nickname "This guy is fine to talk to about really otaku topics."
Influenced by the two of them, Wu Shen had also never deliberately hidden his hobbies. So he subconsciously assumed that others wouldn't hide their preferences either.
As a result, he never expected that his target, Kasumigaoka Utaha, was such a deeply hidden existence.
"Just some ordinary youth readings." When Kasumigaoka Utaha noticed Wu Shen's attention was on the books he had picked up, her usually unperturbed expression showed a hint of panic, and she hastily snatched the books back from Wu Shen's hand.
She was afraid he would find something unusual about them.
If it were normally, Wu Shen might have said nothing and left, keeping it a secret. But now that he had decided to pursue Utaha, Wu Shen didn't intend to give up such a good opportunity to establish a connection.
There's a famous saying: common secrets are the strongest bonds. Wu Shen had always struggled with finding common topics with Utaha, and now he had found a direction forward.
He never expected to encounter her in a bookstore and even discover her secret; it was truly heaven-sent. It seemed he had a great advantage this time.
"Kasumigaoka, these books… do you like reading light novels?" Wu Shen pointed at the books in Utaha's hand, feigning an innocent, curious look.
Upon hearing the words "light novel," Kasumigaoka Utaha's body involuntarily trembled slightly, but she quickly calmed herself down.
"Um, but about this, I hope you…"
Utaha was still deliberating over her words, unsure how to explain it to Wu Shen, when Wu Shen interrupted her with a serious expression: "I understand. Don't worry, I'll keep this a secret and never tell anyone else."
If a secret is widely publicized, it ceases to be a secret. Having finally obtained a secret that could tie their bond, Wu Shen certainly wouldn't be foolish enough to blurt it out. Moreover, purely considering Utaha's personal feelings, Wu Shen wouldn't reveal it.
Seeing Utaha still looking slightly uneasy and skeptical, Wu Shen smiled and said in the gentlest tone possible: "I'm also an anime enthusiast, so I can understand your feelings and thoughts. I respect others' principles of conduct."
"However, being alone can be a bit lonely. If you, Senior, have any topics in this regard that you'd like to chat about with someone, you can always find me. I've also read many novels, comics, and animations."
He didn't make any forceful demands, just subtly presented a possibility. This way, even if Utaha didn't have such a thought now, when she encountered any problems in this area, the first person she would think of would definitely be Wu Shen, who had made the gentle invitation.
"Thank you. If I have any problems, I'll consider it." Kasumigaoka Utaha nodded slightly, revealing a playful smile, quite like a little devil.
She had never paid much attention to her classmates, focusing only on her own little world. However, after the events of the day, Utaha was subtly developing a small interest in this boy, Wu Shen.
Wu Shen could feel that there was still a large gap between himself and Utaha in her words, but this was normal, as the two of them had no previous interaction whatsoever. It would be a big problem if they became familiar in just one day.
Now that the iceberg was slowly melting, and he could see a hidden corner behind Utaha's iceberg, Wu Shen was already content.
As the saying goes: eat one bite at a time, walk one step at a time. Haste makes waste.
What was needed next was to slowly close the distance between them.
After Kasumigaoka Utaha put away the novels and went to the cashier to pay and leave, Wu Shen suddenly noticed a small head peeking out from behind a row of bookshelves; Wu Yi was secretly smiling and looking this way.
"When did you get here?" Wu Shen was too lazy to lecture her about why she had sneaked out again.
"I've been here from the start, oh. Shoo shoo, as expected of Papa, he's already struck up a conversation with Mama so quickly. Rapid progress! But it's a bit different from the plot I imagined." Wu Yi gave Wu Shen a thumbs-up.
"The plot you imagined? What plot?" Wu Shen suddenly had an ominous premonition.
"Hehe, if you don't want this secret to become known throughout the school, then listen to me obediently and don't resist." Wu Yi imitated Wu Shen's tone, lowering her voice.
"I wouldn't laugh so pervertedly." Wu Shen was mortified.
"Hahaha, saying no with your mouth, but your body isn't very honest, is it! The next development will probably be like this."
"What kind of perverted manga plot is this?! I'm not a pervert! And this kind of threat wouldn't even work! (╯‵□′)╯︵┻━┻"
Wu Shen couldn't help but complain. Where on earth did his daughter learn these things?
"You're not allowed to read those messy things anymore, understand?" Wu Shen felt he should reclaim his "fatherly authority."
"Eh heh~☆! (·ω·｀)"
"Cute acts won't work! Sigh… Boss, give me a parenting guide. Specifically for mischievous six or seven-year-old daughters." Wu Shen said weakly.
He truly had no way to deal with his mischievous daughter. Wu Shen felt he needed to read some books and receive some professional parenting training.