Spring break ended, and school welcomed another opening day.
The students went to school one after another.
Cherry blossoms are beautiful, but their blooming period is very short.
Walking up the sloped path, I noticed that the cherry blossoms planted along the roadside had already begun to fall from the trees, covering the ground.
For a moment, it was a shower of falling 'cherry blossoms'.
Without time to stop and admire the flowers, the students stepped on the cherry blossoms on the ground, chatting and laughing as they entered the school gate.
New students arriving, graduates giving speeches—a familiar scene that occurs every year.
It's a cycle.
In the queue for Class 3-1.
"Yo, hello, Nishikino."
Izumi Chihiro turned his head, and the girl's striking hair color already revealed her identity.
"Mm, good morning."
Nishikino Maki responded with a smile.
She was still a little happy.
Because she had someone she could talk to.
She wasn't inherently cold or unwilling to socialize; she just hadn't met anyone she could talk to before.
"Good morning, Maki, and Izumi-kun!"
From behind, Ozaki Mako made her presence known.
"Hello, Mako."
Nishikino Maki turned her head.
Calling each other by name indicated that their relationship had progressed to a very good level.
After all, there are usually more topics to discuss between people of the same gender.
"Mm, Ozaki is here too, so it seems Nishikino won't have to worry about not being able to communicate with anyone this year."
Izumi Chihiro nodded.
"I'm not unable to communicate with people, and this isn't even a problem!"
Nishikino Maki fumed.
"Nishikino, you can lie to others, but don't lie to yourself."
He whispered a reminder from the side.
Nishikino Maki nearly trembled with anger.
...
In fact, besides Nishikino Maki, his former deskmate, being in the same class as him, Eriri and Takasago Tomoe were also in this class.
After returning to the classroom, they entered the usual routine: first, seats were assigned by drawing lots, and then self-introductions were made.
There was nothing special about the seating; everyone's seats were spread out this time. However, the self-introductions were much more interesting.
Because this class, unusually, brought two young ladies together.
Whose demeanor would come out on top?
The answer was clear: Eriri, as the daughter of a diplomat, had already become skilled in acting, and her self-introduction was full of poise.
The other person, on the other hand, merely gave a cold self-introduction of her name and then stopped speaking.
And so, from the very first day, Eriri once again became the center of attention.
"I am Izumi Chihiro, my hobbies are..."
Izumi Chihiro gave a rather nonchalant self-introduction.
It wasn't outstanding, nor did it seem cold; it was a relatively moderate approach.
"Izumi-kun, we're in the same class again! That's great."
As soon as class was over, Takasago Tomoe walked over, expressing her delight.
"Please take care of me for the coming year."
Izumi Chihiro said.
"Takasago-san, why are you approaching Chihiro as soon as class is over?"
Eriri also walked over at this moment, looking at their interaction and questioning them.
Her childhood friend relationship with Chihiro was well-known among the students in their grade, so she didn't need to pretend to be aloof; greeting him was simply taken for granted in everyone's eyes.
"Isn't it normal for friends to chat with each other? I haven't done anything out of line. Sawamura Student, you're being too nosy, aren't you? It's just a mere childhood friend..."
Takasago Tomoe replied gently yet firmly.
"What, a mere childhood friend!?"
Upon hearing this, Eriri really couldn't stand it.
"What do you know? A childhood friend is the most precious relationship in the world. It's closer than a friend, yet without the constraints of family..."
"Oh~ that's truly amazing. From now on, Izumi-kun and I will become childhood friends too!"
"Do you even know what a childhood friend is? Mere Takasago, that's simply impossible to satisfy."
"You're not going to say that only you understand what a childhood friend is, are you, Sawamura Student?"
Out of nowhere, these two began arguing in front of him over the issue of 'childhood friends'.
That wasn't a big deal.
The whispers from around them were what made him most embarrassed.
"Hey, hey, hey, isn't this the legendary love triangle? Ah, I'm so envious!"
"There are three of them? This is going to be interesting."
… …
"These guys really are… Imi wakanai!"
Nishikino Maki heard some discussions, and her earlobes immediately flushed crimson.
She clearly didn't participate, yet she was still being talked about. How unlucky!
Her relationship with Izumi wasn't that good!
These instigating guys were truly annoying!
"Ahem, if you keep arguing, the class is really going to turn upside down."
Izumi Chihiro couldn't help but remind them.
"Class is about to start, I'm going back now."
The two realized, feeling everyone's various gazes, and tacitly called a truce.
On the first day of school, the atmosphere was already tense. Izumi Chihiro rested his chin on his hand, watching the two leave, and began to worry about how he would get through the rest of the year.
If this truly was a battlefield, how would he cope?
This was a historical challenge.
However, after the explosive opening, the atmosphere gradually cooled down. There was no scene of everyone happily fighting over someone, but rather another period of uneventful daily life.
At the same time.
Senju Muramasa's "fantasy demon blade chronicles" finally reached its last volume. Due to the impending completion of her debut work, the online buzz was immense.
Kani Nayuta, after chatting with him that day, no longer 'harassed' him as frequently as before, but instead devoted herself wholeheartedly to the creation of her new work, "a silent voice."
Clearly, the girl had put a lot of effort into the completeness of this work.
During this time, Izumi Chihiro naturally couldn't be idle. Besides dealing with his daily studies, he was busy writing "rebellious story."
For him now, this intensity of updates, even while maintaining quality, no longer felt like much pressure.
He even had time to do other things.