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Shion: Hm? Oh, it's Kyoro-kun.

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 Mao: Let's go eat Mizuame next! Then let's go do the raffle!

[TL Note: Mizuame is a type of sweetener similar to corn syrup that

can also be eaten on its own as a candy.]

The GJ-Bu's fun sized president. Looks like she's in elementary

school, but she's actually a capable second year high school student.

Mao: Whoa! It's raining! It's raining!

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 Game genius. A cool woman who can do anything. Second year
high school student.

Shion: Do you have any requests?

Shion: It's my first time coming to a festival, but... I had fun.

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 Megumi: Mr. Goldfish, do you want to be part of our family?

Megumi: I love the language of flowers.

The president's little sister. Has an angelic personality and likes

taking care of everyone. A first year in high school like Kyouya.

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 The main character, even though he's terrible at both studying and
sports. Nicknamed "Kyoro", he's a first year in high school.

Kyouya: Ah, the ball came to me.

Kyouya: Prez is in a good mood today, that's good.

Kirara: Nya. Nyaa nyaa. Grrrrr.

Kirara: This is. Cotton. Meat?

Quiet and absent minded. A wild girl who can talk to cats? Second
year in high school.

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 The training camp was really rough. I didn't think we would go to a
place like that.

But the pool is nice and spacious.

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 After school as always, in the usual clubroom.

Mao, who had been searching her hair for split ends for a while
now, suddenly spoke up.

“Ah, nothing to do.”

“Yeah, nothing.”

Kyouya immediately replied while reading a manga.

He’d been thinking that maybe she was bored for a while now.
Specifically, since about ten minutes before she started staring at her
hair.

“Say something funny.”

“What do you mean by something funny?”

Kyouya asked.

Mao was always saying unreasonable things, but even so, Kyouya
just couldn’t get used to it.

“Anything’s fine, just say something.”

“Er… something.”

“Wow, that was really funny!”

Mao said, baring her fangs as she smiled.

“Really? I’m glad you like it.”

Kyouya felt relief. When he was about to go back to his manga…

“Ok, ten more to go.”

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 “What’s that? What’s with that scary countdown?”

“Nine.”

Mao gave him no answer. Instead, she procceeded with the

countdown.

“Shion-san!”

Kyouya turned to the only person capable of toying around with

Mao.

However, his last ray of hope was currently at the old computer
which could do nothing but connect to the internet, having a match
with someone.

Probably that “Chess World Champion” person. Recently, even his

screen name had changed to “World Union Champion”, though it
seemed a lot like a self-given title. He had quite a lot free time for a
world champion too. On top of that, Shion was giving him the works
as usual.

Shion loosely waved her hand in the air.

That indifferent back turned to him and her long hair were
incomparably eloquent in conveying the message: “Keeping Mao
company is your job.”

“Eight.”

The countdown moved down another step.

Having found another split end, Mao reached for a pair of scissors.

“Megumi-chaan!”

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 The next person Kyouya turned to was Megumi. Mao’s sister, the
GJ-club’s resident angel, and more importantly, the only one capable
of scolding Mao.

Megumi, who’d been keeping a watch on the fire as she boiled the
water at the stove, smiled peacefully at Kyouya.

“You two always get along so well. You’re going to make me

jealous like that, hu hu hu.”

No good.
With Megumi’s Angelic Love everything was always seen in a
positive light.

“Seven.”

Mao idly said.

“Kirara~…”

Kyouya cried out to the last person left.

Kirara could always be found eating something at the inner end of

the room. She had a wildness to her, as if there was a lion sleeping
inside her, which gave the impresssion that when the time came she
was someone you could depend on, but it was really nothing more
than an impression. She was the only person capable of biting back
against Mao.

In case you’re wondering why Kyouya didn’t use an honorific like

“san” when calling her name, even though she was his senior, that’s
because if he did, she’d just reply by saying: “One Kirara, not three.”

Kirara turned her head in Kyouya’s direction with a chicken leg in

her mouth and tilted her neck with a confused look. After giving it

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some thought she took another chicken leg and held it out towards
him.

“That’s not what I mean.”

“Five.”

Mercilessly, Mao skipped a step of the countdown.

“Something funny… Something funny…”

“Four.”

Kyouya desperately tried to come up with something.

“When the president feels anger, that’s a clear sign of danger!”

“One.”

“Why did you just jump three steps all of a sudden? That’s
dishonest! It’s not fair!”

“Zero.”

Mao attacked him. In the end he got biten anyway.

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 “I’m bored.“
CHARACTER PROFILE:
Amatsuka Mao – Part 1
The tiny club president. She’s energetic, obstinate and has a habit
of biting people.

Boredom is her natural enemy, as well as loneliness.

“Stay sharp! Or else I’ll bite you!”

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 After school as always, in the usual clubroom.

Mao was idling her time away; Megumi was busying herself with
tea making; Shion was having a battle over the net; Kirara was eating
meat. Watching all of these girls was Kyouya, who was presently in
the middle thinking about something.

It was something Yokomizo had said during lunch break.

Yokomizo was the boy who sat behind Kyouya in class, and his
friend since middle school. During lunch break they’d sit face to face
and accompany each other in eating the uninteresting contents of
their lunch boxes. Yokomizo’s lunch always consisted of dried plum
and onigiri and every day when eating he’d scowl at his food… wait,
this doesn’t really matter.

What Yokomizo said to Kyouya was: “There are only girls in your
club? My condolences.”

When Kyouya tried asking him what he meant with condolences,

Yokomizo only nodded his head and said: “I know, man. I know.”
Somehow he ended up being pitied by his friend, even though he
didn’t really understand why. Perhaps it had something to do with
him coming from a big matrilinear family line and having several
sisters both older and younger than him.

I’ll show him. Kyouya thought.

There’s no need to feel sympathetic about me being in this club.

“President.”

Kyouya called out to the girl who’d been doing nothing but playing
with her hair.

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 “What do you think are your positive traits?”

“What’s with that question all of a sudden?”

“You know, like your selling points.”

“Don’t go putting me for sale!”

Mao said, looking at her hair.

“I’m not really trying to.”

Kyouya laughed and explained the situation to her.

“Blah, blah, etc, etc…”

“I see. so you want to show this suspiciously close friend of yours

what it is that you admire so much about your wonderful senior.”

“I deny that first part, but the second part is more or less on on the
mark.”

Mao solemnly nodded. “Alright, I don’t see why not.” And so she
calmly started talking.

“Let’s see, my positive traits… first of all, my kindness.”

“Oh yeah, like how you bite me so much, right?”

“Of course! I bite you gently don’t I?”

“Why do you even have to bite me?”

“What’s wrong with me biting you?”

“Err…”

Being asked that question with such a serious face actually made
Kyouya uncertain. He could say “Normally people don’t just bite

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others,” but Mao wasn’t normal to begin with so that wasn’t really a
proper answer.

“Never mind that. I just don’t really think you give out a kind
image. If I had to say anything I’d go with… strict? Let’s just go with
that to play it safe. I don’t see any other way.”

“I’m kind to my juniors aren’t I? Here I am putting up with your

rude question after all.”

“Eh? Was it rude? Why?”

“You really are rude aren’t you?”

“Eh? Eh?”

“Let’s see, what else? Tell your dear friend how I am modest,
refined and ladylike.”

“What’s refined about a lady who relies on intimidation?”

“Also, I have perseverance and a noble character. Quite

appropriate for my position as president.”

“That’s not even close to you anymore. Ah! Ouch! Ouch! Please
stop with the biting!”

After Mao let go of his arm, they continued the conversation.

“The worst part about you is how you approach people already
enquiring them. And what’s worse, asking them personal questions.
Your rudeness knows no bounds.”

“Really? I just thought it would be faster to do things that way.”

“What do you think of me then?”

She said, squinting her eyes and staring at him, or rather, pouting
at him.

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 “Umm… You’re obstinate and stubborn, but I guess you could also
say you’re determined instead. From that perspective it’s actually a
positive trait, right?”

“R-really? You think so?”

“You have a short stature and a weak constitution, but you’re

super energetic so you always use up your batteries too quick and
end up taking a nap on the sofa.”

“I-is that supposed to be a positive or a negative trait?”

“And please don’t bite me for saying this, but it’s really cute how
you have the appearence of a little kid.”

“Cute… that is… you mean… was that a compliment?”

“You could say that.”

“G-good. I’ll let you off the hook without a bite this time then.”

Seeing Mao’s awkward smile, Kyouya decided what he would tell

Yokomizu.

The president is energetic and obstinate, likes to bite people, and is

generally a weirdo, but she also has a very cute side to her, you
know? Perfect.

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 “You see, the president…“
CHARACTER PROFILE:
Shinomiya Kyouya – Part 1
Aka Kyoro. A peaceful defeatist.

He won’t try to oppose that which he can’t win against (the

president).

Surprisingly skillful. Not particularly bad at any subject or

sport. (Not particularly good at any either.)

It’s generally understood at the GJ-Club that it’s Kyouya’s

job to entertain the president when she’s bored.

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 In Shion’s case, it was easy to figure out what her appeal
was.

“It’s got to be being a genius.”

Kyouya told Shion, who had just moved to the round table
after finishing a chess match on the net.

“R-right…”

For some reason Shion showed abrupt discomfort on her

face.

“Shii doesn’t like it too much when people call her a

genius.”

“Eh? But why? Being a genius is a good thing, right?”

“See? Isn’t he rude?”

Mao tried to get everyone to agree with her.

“It’s fine. I don’t care about it that much. Go ahead and ask
whatever you want.”

“What’s it like being a genius?”

He’d been told to ask whatever he wanted and so he did.

Being called a rude person over and over again by Mao made
him worried that it was an impolite question, but it was
something he’d been wanting to ask her for quite a while.

“Straight to the chase. As expected of Kyoro. You just can’t

read the mood, huh?”

Mao slapped her knee.

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 “That’s a complicated question.”

Shion answered him.

It was an unusual sight to see, but the look on her face

showed she was hesitant to answer.

“The tea is done!”

Megumi’s cheerful voice blew away the heavy mood that

had settled amid them.

The pleasant smell of black tea refreshed the atmosphere.

Even the girl who was more of a coffee person decided to

taste the tea that day.

“Lonely, perhaps…”

Shion said, but only after taking several sips of tea.

“I mean… because of how different I am from other

people.”

Kyouya quietly listened to her.

“It’s not as if I personally feel that I’m different. It just

makes me perplexed when I think of why there are things
which are so simple for me, but not for other people. Also,
why are things that other people can do so easily not as
simple for me? Why can’t people simply access the memory
of something after they have seen or heard it? Why don’t I
harbor strong feelings towards things like other people?”

“See? She’s sensitive to this kind of thing. Man, geniuses are

a handful.”

“Please don’t make fun of her, president.”

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 “Hey, I’m just picking up where you left off.”

As Mao feigned innocence, Shion watched her with warm

eyes. Every now and then there were times like this when
Kyouya admired the relationship between those two.

“Shii doesn’t have many friends, you know?”

“Eh?”

Mao had said that with a grin on her face. Kyouya was
startled at her words. He felt the topic was gradually turning
heavy again.

“Ah, don’t worry. It’s true after all.”

Shion said, following a light laughter.

“There aren’t too many people who hang out normally with
me like this. It’s as if people get tense around me.”

“Oh, I know what you mean.”

“I call bullshit.”

Shion said.

In other words, she didn’t believe him. Those words were

the same you’d say on a certain card came when you see
through your opponent’s lie.

“There’s no way you know what I mean. You’re always

normally hanging out with me after all.”

Somehow that made Kyouya flustered, so he cast his eyes

down.

“You’re cute.”

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 Shion smiled. Kyouya’s blush was increasingly intense.

“As if the people in class weren’t enough, even the teachers

treat Shii super politely.”

Mao was still keeping up her typical provocations. That was

Kyouya’s only life line.

“I… I speak politely to her too.”

“In your case it’s just a matter of respect for your seniors.
Despite our age difference, I believe a friendship relationship
has blossomed between us… is that perhaps nothing but
wishful thinking? A delusion?”

“No! No, of course not!”

Kyouya said without thinking. Maybe I denied it too

strongly.
“You’re really cute, aren’t you?”

Kyouya thought Shion to be a genius, smart, cool, mature

woman. She often toyed around with him… actually, she was
at it right now.

However, this time he got a new impression of her.

Sure, she was a genius, but that didn’t really mean all that
much. Having no friends was also a sad thought to her, and
she would feel lonely by herself, just like anybody else.

That’s what I’ll tell Yokomizo Kyouya thought.

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 “I don’t mind if you want to call me a genius though.“
CHARACTER PROFILE:
Shion – Part 1
An, intelligent, mature and cool girl.

A genius at games and puzzles. Proud possesor of eidetic memory.

In compensation for being a genius, she’s (lethally) clueless when it

comes to common sense.

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 Finding Megumi’s strong points was child’s play.

She was kind and considerate. She was good at sewing. She would
always make delicious snacks and bring them to the club.

She had no shortage of positive traits he could easily use to explain

her appeal to Yokomizo.

“Here you go, another cup of black tea.”

Even now, Megumi was right in the middle of pouring a round of

tea for everybody.

She filled Kyouya’s empty teacup with the red steaming liquid.

Nobody had told her to do any of that. Megumi voluntarily took

care of everyone. It felt as if she enjoyed it so much she couldn’t help
herself.

“Thanks.”

Kyouka tried his best to always show his appreciation. However,

there were times when his cup would be filled without him even
noticing it, so saying thanks all the time was actually a hard
endeavor.

“So, is Megu next?”

Mao said after throwing a cookie into her mouth, cracking it with
her strong teeth and washing it down with the black tea.

“Well, Megumi-chan is… I think I got it covered already.”

Kyouya had been feeling somebody watching him for a while now,
so he turned to look.

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 Kirara had just walked to the round table and back. She had picked
up a chair and calmly sat down on it. She looked as if she was
decided on waiting for her turn, looking fixedly at him with
expectation in her eyes.

“So, shall we go for Kirara next?”

But when Kyouya said that…

“Ehh? You’re not doing it for me?”

Megumi said in a downhearted tone.

“Err… well…”

Kyouya was stumped.

Unlike with Mao or Kirara’s difficult personality, with Megumi

there wasn’t really any need to go out of his way to find her positive
traits.

“Okay. Okay. Okaaay. There, please go ahead!”

After rushing to dispose of the teapot, Megumi ran back and

picked a chair.

“You can be surprisingly cruel, huh? Trying to leave only Megu out
like that, how heartless.”

“That’s right. Please sell me out too.”

“No selling, I said!”

“In Megumi-kun’s case, how about you just do the reverse?”

Shion said.

“Reverse? You mean search for her flaws?”

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 “I don’t think you can give a complete impression of somebody if
you don’t transmit both their positive points and their flaws.”

“I see.”

Even thought the topic had changed from positive to negative

traits, Megumi was still smiling brightly.

“Me! Me! Me! I know!”

Mao eagerly raised her hand.

“This girl always takes away my futon in the morning! Oh, and she
always forces me to eat broccoli! There’s not a shred of mercy or
sympathy in her!”

“I don’t think that’s a flaw. She’s just teaching you some

discipline.”

“Me.”

Kirara said while raising her hand.

“Megu. Nice smell.”

“Only you would be able to tell something like that. I needed

something more concrete. And that’s a positive trait too.”

“Rrr.”

Kirara put herself to think. For some reason she started consulting
a dictionary.

“Megumi-kun can be an unexpectedly sore loser perhaps? Though I

think that’s because she really loves competition.”

“Aah. That might be true.”

Megumi gave a large nod in response to Shion’s words.

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 “Okay, let me try too. Speaking of unexpected things… perhaps
there’s something you’re bad at? Like having a bad sense of
direction?”

“Ah, that’s true! But… how did you know that, Shinomiya-kun?”

“Oh… it was just a guess. I was right?”

“I think you might be right.”

Megumi was pleased.

“Stop right there! This isn’t working at all! She’s totally enjoying it!
If the person in question is not bothered by it you can’t call it a flaw!”

Mao’s words were persuasive. She herself had a million things he

could say to her for which she would bite him back.

“Okay, let’s see… she’s unexpectedly quick to ignore what people

are saying?”

“Eh? That’s not true. I pay attention to what people say.”

“That’s it! She’s denying it, so this is it!”

Mao folded her arms and raised her voice.

Megumi’s flaw had been decided.

She was a really good girl, kind and caring, but she also had times
when she’d settle on doing things her own way. That’s what he’d tell
Yokomizo.

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 “It’s cheap.“
Sign: “600 Yen (Tax Included)”

CHARACTER PROFILE:
Amatsuka Megumi – Part 1
Mao’s younger sister. Calm and kind, she loves helping people.

The feminine virtues are condensed inside this ideal angel.

However, she has some unexpected sides to her, like being a sore
loser or getting too excited over cute things.

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 “Megu. Smells like. Sunlight.”

Kirara said abruptly.

“Aah… Kirara, we’re done with that already.”

After Kyouya told her that he needed a “more concrete”

explanation of Megumi’s smell, Kirara had been consulting the
dictionary

nonstop. Now, she’d finally come up with an answer.

“Kirara takes some stuff very seriously, huh?”

“She really does. I’ve never seen her trying to make fun of me, not
even once. I have it written down in my notebook actually.

President’s currently at 57 times, Shion-san is at 123, but Kirara is

still at zero.”

“Are you serious!?”

Mao turned to him with a frightened face.

“Of course not. Do you think I’d count each and every time like
that? It would be scary to have them written down in my notebook.”

“R-right… Y-yes, of course.”

For some reason Shion had a relieved expression on.

Shion was the one who teased Kyouya the most.

“I smell like the sun? Are you complimenting me? I guess I have no
choice but to bring out my special snacks then.”

Megumi stood up and went to open a secret cupboard.

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 “Do you think being strong counts as a compliment?”

Kyouya tried to start with what he’d come up with. The nearby
culture club would often come by asking for help. After going with
them,

Kirara carried around cupboards and tables weighing several tens

of kilograms.

“I don’t know about that. You don’t really think much of Kirara as a
girl, huh?”

“Of course I do.”

“Well then you must be the type of rude guy who thinks saying a
girl has retarded strength is a compliment.”

“I guess I can’t go with that then?”

“Kirara. Strong?”

Kirara flexed her arm revealing a large bicep. She grinned sweetly.

“Isn’t strong okay? Kirara herself seems to like it.”

“Let’s see… oh right. Kirara also eats a lot. It’s so amazing she could
even appear on TV for it.”

“You really know no manners do you? This much is certain

already.”

“But why?”

“Kirara. Amazing?”

“Well, Kirara herself liked it, so why not go with that?”

“You’re one to talk president. Aren’t you always going on and on

about how you think Kirara is weird? Is that not rude?”

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 “I have no idea what you’re talking about. ‘Weird’ is a compliment,
right?”

She said with a straight face.

“What?”

Kyouya tilted his head. Suddenly he wasn’t so sure anymore.

“But…”

He was about to retort when Kirara stopped him with a scary

expression on her face.

“Fighting. Bad.”

“Ah. No. We weren’t really fighting. Look, she didn’t even bite me.”

Kyouya showed Kirara his arm free of wounds. She seemed

satisfied with that. In addition, she said:

“Kirara. Weird.”

She puffed her chest with conceit.

Kyouya was growing even more uncertain. He was starting to lose

sight of what was real and was not.

“Kirara is very reliable, isn’t she?”

Megumi said. She had placed the special snacks on the table and
started pouring tea for everybody.

“That’s right. She’s definitely much more reliable than Kyoro here.”

“Just because I’m a boy I have to be more reliable? I think that’s

prejudice.”

Kyouya drank the black tea while hiding his expression behind the
teacup. Being called unreliable had bothered him a bit.

44
 “I told you that men aren’t allowed in this club, didn’t I? If you
were really a boy, then you’d not be allowed in here.”

The wound was only getting deeper. Kyouya hung his head low
upon hearing Mao’s harsh words.

“Hm. Kyoro. Cheer up.”

Kirara’s grasp was tight.

She’d enveloped his head in her arms to comfort him.

“Wah! Wait. Err… I-I’m fine! I’ll do my best!”

Kirara was a very physical about showing affection. She lived within
the world of her senses of touch and smell.

If you showed her even an opening, you’d end up in caught in her

grasp as she patted you. It often happened to Megumi, but watching

such a scene between two girls was actually quite enjoyable.

Kirara doesn’t speak much, but she’s earnest and strong, making
her a reliable person. She has some weird sides to her, but it’s
not as if there’s anything wrong with that. They’re just her
personal quirks.
That’s what he’d tell Yokomizo.

45
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 “Kirara. Strong?“
CHARACTER PROFILE:
Kirara – Part 1
A mysterious girl with a slightly wild aura about her.

Loves physical contact. Likes being in the sun too. Likes meat even
more.

Apparently, because Kyouya “smells good” she’s really fond of him.

47
 The weather was damp once again on that day.

It might be an inevitable consequence of the season, but

nevertheless, the rain kept falling on that day.

“It’s already the fifth day.”

Kyouya mumbled without spirit.

Just to make things clear, this mumbling just now was mostly
directed at Mao.

“Any time now.”

Mao gave a peculiar reply.

“Sorry? What was that?”

Kyouya retorted to her evasive reply.

“Yes, any time now.”

Shion replied in the same fashion.

“This place is pretty run down, huh?”

“Home is where you make it they say.”

Their conversation was going completely over Kyouya’s head. It

was as if they were repeatedly exchanging codes with each other.

They weren’t even bothering with letting him in.

“Che” Kyouya purposefully clicked his tongue loud enough for

them to hear and pouted.

“Megumi-cha~n.”

48
 Hanging his empty teacup on his finger by the handle he spun it
around in the air.

It was very unusual for his cup to become empty and get no refill
for so long that it became completely dry like that. Bringing out refills
at such a fast pace that you could call it a “full course tea attack” was
Megumi’s trait.

“Huh?”

That was kind of a stupid act. He only noticed it after he called out
to her that she wasn’t anywhere to be found.

But she was here just now.

“Hey, Kyoro.”

When he started looking around the room, Mao called out to him.

“What is it?”

Kyouya instantly replied.

“That will work perfectly. Take that cup and go stand over there.”

“Sorry?”

“Come on, just do it.”

“Okay…”

Kyouya stood up from his chair and walked to the spot she told him
to while holding the cup.

He stood on the floor over the place Mao had pointed to.

He just stood there with cup in hand, doing nothing.

“Hmm, let’s see.”

49
 Mao looked at him from the front, then from the side, and then
she exchanged a meaningful glance with Shion.

“Kyoro-kun, go three centimeters forward. Now one centimeter to

the right.”

Kyouya moved as she indicated.

He wasn’t really thinking about why he was doing any of it. He was
just doing as he was told by the older ladies.

“You went too far. Walk just one finger’s length to the left. There,
that’s it.”

After all the fine adjustments, his standing spot was finally settled.

“What’s so special about this spot?”

“It’s coming. Get in stance.”

“What?”

“Kyoro-kun, put the teacup over your head.”

“Like this?”

Not understanding a thing, Kyouya put the teacup on top of his

head like he was told.

And there…

Something fell, letting out a subtle sound.

“What was that?”

When he looked up, a drop of water hit him on the head.

“Uhya!”

“Hey, don’t move! Megu will be back any time now.”

50
 “Megumi-kun and Kirara went to look for a vessel.”

I see. He understood what was going on.

“Every year it’s that same spot. What’s more, it always happens
precisely when there are five consecutive days of rain.”

“The building is made of old wood, so I guess it can’t be helped.

Whoa, there! Wouldn’t want to get the computer wet.”

“We’re back. We borrowed some bowls, buckets and other things.”

The door suddenly opened, revealing Megumi and Kirara as they

made their way into the room. Megumi was carrying as many vessels
as her hands could support. Meanwhile, the powerful Kirara was
carrying three times as many.

They distributed the vessels around to everybody.

Drip. Drop. Plop. Plat. Plot.

The GJ Club had become a great symphony of water leaks.

Together they made up a full orchestra.

51
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 “It’s raining…“
The GJ Club’s Clubroom
The GJ Club’s resting and chatting spot.

A run-down clubroom, its ample space being its only redeeming

feature.

It excels in leakage when it rains. The wind that blows in through

the gaps during winter is not to be underestimated either.

Of course it doesn’t have anything like air conditioning.

53
 “Check out what I found!”

A clear day in the middle of the rainy season, Mao arrived at the
clubroom while letting out a powerful voice.

She must picked up some weird object again. Kyouya thought as he

raised his face from the light novel he’d been reading.

Kirara followed Mao into the clubroom, and she was bringing
something with her on her shoulder.

At first glance, Kyouya thought it was a dresser.

But he was mistaken; it was a television.

The reason he could think that the ridiculously big and ridiculously
old-looking object was in fact a television was because of the CRT-
like glass screen on it’s front side.

The reason he wasn’t completely confident in that judgement was

because despite being electronic equipment, the object was made of
wood and had legs attached to it.

On top of that, it looked as if it had been around for a long time. No

matter how you looked at it, without a doubt it had been made
before Kyouya was born. It was probably even older than Kyouya’s
parents. At a glance one could tell that the dust covered object had
been through quite a lot.

“How about over here?”

Following Megumi’s indication, Kirara placed the object at a corner

of the clubroom.

54
 The television hit the floor with a deep thump. This looks more like
a piece of furniture than a household appliance.
“You’re so strong, Kirara.”

Megumi expressed her admiration, joining the tips of her fingers.

Despite her slender appearance, Kirara was incredibly strong.

“Oh, no, not again! Honestly, president, why would you pick up this
junk?”

Kyouya said, dumbfounded.

“This ain’t no junk. It’s amazing! A real treasure!”

“Aah… right, right. Of course.”

“It’s a black and white television, right? By the looks of it, it works
on vacuum tubes. I’ve read about those, but this is my first time
seeing the real thing.”

Shion eyed the television with curiosity.

The room’s corner was teeming with weird objects the president
had previously taken an interest in, but this one still managed to
stand out among them.

“Where did you find this thing?”

“It was lying around.”

Mao puffed out her chest, sniffing with pride.

“Doesn’t that just mean you stole it?”

“Idiot! Of course I asked! When I asked the old man who was
throwing it in the garbage if we could take it he said ‘Sure, I’m
getting rid of it anyway.'”

55
 “I wonder if it works.”

Shion walked around to the back of the television and pulled out
the power chord. Kyouya was amazed to see that despite being
decades old the power plug was still shaped the same as a normal
one.

They plugged it into the power strip and pushed the power switch.

Unfortunately, there was no response from the television.

“It’s really broken, I guess.”

“Oh, no. Not just yet!”

Kyouya was quick to give up, but Mao stopped him with her hand.

“These old TV’s take a while until they light up, you know? The TV
we used to watch at grandpa’s house as kids was just the same. If we
turned the TV on at the last minute, we would even end up missing
the opening of the show.”

They waited for a while as Megumi had said. At first, the sound
started coming out.

SHHH, came the noise, just like the one you can hear if you turn on
the TV right after a late Sunday night blackout.

“There’s no antenna cable, so I tried connecting a speaker cord.”

Shion was fumbling with the back of the TV.

Another moment passed and a sandstorm appeared on the screen.

It’s definitely broken Kyoua thought, giving up.

“Wait! Don’t move!”

The president’s brusque movement came to halt them. Everybody

stood still as if they were playing ‘Statue’.

56
 “Something appeared on the screen just now! Kyoro, go back to
the pose you were standing in before!”

“Before? You mean… like this?”

Kyouya put a hand on his chin, assuming a “person who gave up

hope” pose, and sure enough, something changed in the sandstorm
on the screen.

The faint image of some television program could be seen. They

say electromagnetic waves on the air can suffer small changes from
the position of the people around them.

“It worked! Yes! It worked! Oh, yes!”

“Yay! It worked, sis!”

“Megu, don’t move! That’s the pose!”

Megu froze at her “it worked” pose. Not only her, but Kirara was
also stuck on an “air chair” pose. Adding to that, Shion was doing the
“airplane”. Mao herself had one leg raised up as if she were a
ballerina. That turned out to be the best formation to get a good
image from the TV.

The GJ Club had acquired a television set. However, watching it

was an extremely exhaustive task.

57
58
“Uuuuugh…“

59
60
 “Let’s just throw it away. There’s almost nobody who could look at
that and not see a piece of trash.”

“No. Ab-so-lu-te-ly not.”

61
 After classes, as always, Kyouya went to the club room, like he
always did.

“Huh?”

He opened the door and stopped dead on his tracks. There was
nobody in the room.

Oh, well. Whatever. He casually brushed it off and took his usual
seat. He took the light novel he was reading from his bag, but the
second he touched the bookmark…

The door opened. It was Mao.

“Oh, hi.”

“Uh… right. If it isn’t Kyoro-kun? Where’s everybody?”

“It’s just as it looks, I’m the only one…”

Midway through his sentence, Kyouya felt like something was off.

Just now, Mao had definitely called him “Kyoro-kun”. Mao always
called him simply “Kyoro”, the one who usually called him “Kyoro-
kun” was Shion. Incidentally, Megumi called him “Shinomiya-kun”
and Kirara called him “Kyoro.”. They each had a personal way of
calling his name.

It was then that Kyouya realized.

Mao was wearing glasses. He’d never seen Mao wear glasses.

Also, the seat she was sitting on was the one across the table. That
was Shion’s seat.

62
 On top of that, upon closer inspection, the glasses Mao wore were
the same Shion would sometimes wear.

“You read pretty often, don’t you? Won’t you recommend me a

romance the next time you come across something interesting? Ever
since you lent me that novel, I’ve grown a bit of a taste for them.”

Mao said.

Her speech pattern was a bit weird too, in fact, she sounded just
like Shion.

“Err…”

Kyouya was at a complete loss for words.

Then, once he made up his mind, as he was about to say

something…

The door opened. Someone else came in.

“Eh?”

It was Shion, but there was something different about her. Kyouya
took a good look at her, looking for what was off, as if he were
playing spot the difference. Instead of black tights, she wore a pair of
knee socks. Also, she wasn’t wearing her jacket in the sort of sexy,
loose, fashion she usually did.

Incidentally, wearing knee socks was Mao’s usual style.

“What are you looking at, Kyoro? Is there something stuck on my

face?”

As she spoke in a way that resembled Mao, Shion headed straight

to ‘her’ seat.

She sat down beside Kyouya, that is, on Mao’s usual seat.

63
 Umm…
Muttering to himself, Kyouya turned to the door in expectation for
the ‘next person’.

The third person opened the door. It was Kirara, but…

“Hi. Everybody. Nice weather. Today.”

She entered the club room with that broken greeting.

“Hey Megu, serve us some tea will you?”

Shion said in a Mao-like way. Kirara nodded back.

I guess that’s really supposed to be Megumi-chan. Kyouya thought

as he watched Kirara heading to the mini stove and tea set at the
room’s corner.

And so he waited for a while.

The last person, Megumi, opened the door and came in.

She wore a short jacket and had her sleeves folded. In her hand, a
piece of meat which she continuously bit down on as she headed
straight to the sofa at the opposite side of the room.

That’s not very convincing, Megumi-chan. Kirara never eats while

walking.
“Everybody. Today. The tea is. Earl grey.”

Kirara put out the tea, maintaining her Megumi impression.

The tea was ridiculously concentrated. There had to be at least ten

times more leaves than usual in there.

“See? I told you he wasn’t going to do anything!”

Came a loud, mocking voice. Mao had returned to being her self.

64
 “Shinomiya-kun, I’m Megumi. Kirara’s here, okay?”

Megumi said while exchanging her jacket with Kirara’s.

“Earl Gray. Good. Drink.”

“That’s enough already!”

Mao said, but Kirara didn’t seem to understand at all.

“We were all talking about how you’d react, see? How many of us
it would take you for you to say something. Of course, my bet was
that you wouldn’t say a thing! You are an indecisive coward after all.”

Mao boasted about her victory.

“But wouldn’t you say that he was being kind to us? Sorry about
forcing you into it.”

Shion offered him a more gentle interpretation of his acts.

“Umm, right…”

Kyouya just nodded to everything they said.

But really, why didn’t I say anything? Kyouya questioned himself

about that all day.

65
66
Mao Meister
Kirara the Tea Master
Death Shion

67
68
“How come I didn’t get any lines? I do a great Kirara impression.”

“‘sup. Me. Kirara.”

“That was awful!! What the heck was that “‘sup”?”

69
 “Move out of the way!”

The club door suddenly slammed open and Mao came barging in.

Kyouya didn’t flinch at the usual shouting, but what came after the
Mao surprised him. Kirara was carrying a long, green thing that
rustled at every step –

“Why did you bring a bamboo plant?!”

Mao always brought strange things to the club room, but what she
brought today was on a different scale.

You couldn’t see through the plant, mainly because it was so large.

“Aah, it’s impossible. It won’t fit through the door. Did you not
hear me? See, it’s stuck…”

“Shut up. You don’t know anything. Bamboo can bend, you know.”

As Mao was saying that, she gave the bamboo plant a push. With a
pop, she bounced back and fell on to the ground.

“Oh great. Kirara, don’t move. I’ll help out.”

Kirara, listening to Kyouya, stopped moving. However, even with

Kyouya’s help, the bamboo couldn’t squeeze in; it took all four
people to get it through the door. Mao tried to lend a hand, but she
could only do so much as a person with the body of an elementary
school kid.

Using the wall as a support, the club members finally got the
bamboo plant to stand.

“What do we do about this plant? What is this plant even for?”

70
 Mao, who was crouched down panting, immediately straightened
herself upon hearing Kyouya’s voice.

“Are you an idiot?”

Mao glared upwards towards him, something which she’s rather

good at.

“I didn’t say anything. Especially not to President.”

“Someone who has time, teach this idiot.”

“Shinomiya-kun. Today is a very special day, you know.”

Megumi said that as she joined her fingertips and grinned very
happily.

“Kyoro-kun. I have one question. What day is it today?”

Shion asked with her finger sticking upwards. She looks like she’s
trying to give a hint.

“Um… July 7th… ah… is it the Tanabata Festival today?”

“Correct! That’s why I brought this bamboo grass!”

“President, didn’t you say this was a ‘bamboo plant’ earlier?”

“It’s better if you don’t pry into a girl’s past.”

“I don’t follow your logic.”

“Do we have enough paper, Onee-chan?”

“Nope, none at all. We need to make this a big celebration, or else

our wishes won’t come true.”

“Geez, going off and cutting this down without anyone’s

permission. Did you take this from the forest on the hill behind the

71
school? You shouldn’t do that. They’re going to get angry if they find
out, you know. You bamboo thief~.”

“Then I’ll go ask the Origami Club to exchange some tokens for
some paper. Be back later!”

Megumi-chan left. In her arms, she carried “GJ Club Tokens”, or

just “tokens”, which could be used to exchange for special items at
the upcoming Culture Festival.

“So who can fold a crane? How about making Altair and Vega, or a
Kabuto? We also need to make a boat. If we don’t, they can’t go on a
date!”

“I’ve seen people fold them, but never done it myself. I can
replicate it though.”

“Then, Shion, teach Kirara how to fold origami. Afterwards, we

should make paper loops and make chains out of them. Now, where
are the scissors and glue? Where indeed… over there? Over here?”

“Please listen to me. I beg of you…”

Kyouya, being left out of the conversation, continued to say that in

a resigned voice as he followed Mao, who was searching for supplies,
around.

“Have you reflected on your actions?”

“Yes, I have.”

Tossing over scissors and glue, Kyouya sat down with Mao and
began to make decorations for the festival.

“If you don’t have fun at events, you’re not qualified to be a GJ

Club member.”

72
 “You just said ‘Gujjobu’, right? That’s the first time I’m hearing it
said like that . But now I’m curious. Is stealing bamboo plants part of
1

GJ Club activities as well?”

“It’s okay, I’m friends with the spirit of that hill. He even let me
build a secret base there.”

“Take me with you next time.”

“Only when you start acting more like an adult.”

“I’m back! I brought back lots of paper!”

Everyone diligently made decorations, then wrote their wishes on

the paper.

On those five slips of paper, which are hung on a bamboo plant

(not bamboo grass), this was what was written:

I want to become more of an adult.

I want to grow tall. Also, I want my chest to not be flat.
I want for these days to never go away.
I want meat.
I want for the world to be at peace.

73
 Mao: To qualify as a GJ Club member, you must have fun at events.
Kyouya: I do like festivals.
Mao: Having fun at festivals is what normal people do. To be a GJ
Club member, you must make a festival yourself when none exists.

74
75
 TRANSLATOR’S NOTES

1. So far, GJ Club has only been pronounced/written as GJ部. This is

the first instance of it actually being pronounced “gujjobu”, or グッ
ジョぶ.

76
 Today, the GJ Club was quiet.

The reason why it was quiet was because Mao was busy with
homework. If no one suggests anything strange, then no one can
make up a new game and have Kyouya as the guinea pig.

Her hair spilling over the table, Mao diligently filled out the
questions with a serious face that’s so rarely seen.

Mao hates studying. Of course, she always uses someone else’s

notes.

Shion doesn’t need notes, and while Kirara does take surprisingly
good notes, they’re hard to use because it’s all in a language that
only Kirara reads. And then Megumi is in the same year as Kyouya, a
first year.

So, because it couldn’t have been from anybody in the club… that
meant she had borrowed the notes of some other friend that Kyouya
wasn’t aware of. It might be from the rumored nerd from Class 1.

An unfamiliar Mao sat in front of Kyouya. In a strange daze, Kyouya

stared at the unfamiliar Mao.

As Mao tackled the homework, Kyouya’s eyes followed her hands

and hair.

Without appearing concerned, Kyouya looked at her profile.

When Mao turned the page, Kyouya noticed dozens of stickers that
were stuck to the desk pad under her homework. Faces were all
lined up together.

“Huh, so President also did stuff like stickers.”

77
 “Hmm? Oh, this was a long time ago.”

Even though Mao looked annoyed, it seemed Kyouya was given the
all clear to ask about her private life. He peered at the friends in the
small stickers on the battered desk pad.

“Ah, this is the victim of the Christmas Tragedy.”

Shion pointed with a finger and explained the context. Kyouya

really wanted to hear what had happened during the “Christmas
Tragedy”; however, he instead asked:

“Shion-san, have you known President for a long time?”

Neither of them said anything, but Kyouya felt that Mao and Shion
went way back.

“Hmm? Oh, our families met long ago. How do I describe our
relationship… we weren’t as close as friends as children, but we did
meet each other.”

“Didn’t we often meet at parties?”

Megumi added in as she brought over a tray with black tea. She
promptly served Kyouya and Shion some tea.

“In Shion’s family, she has a lot of older brothers. We were a bit
jealous since we only have three people, and they’re all girls. I want
an older brother~”

Three people in a house is enough already, thought Kyouya.

“You can’t take my fifth brother, but I’m not opposed to letting you
have my sixth brother. But the replacement must be Seira-chan,
because I don’t have a younger sister.”

“No can do. Seira is ours. I guess it can’t be helped. We’ll give up on
the sixth brother.”

78
 The third daughter of the Amatsuka family seems to be called
Seira-chan. The girls of the Amatsuka family seem to love this Seira-
chan.

However, even though Shion’s family and the Amatsuka family

gives off a wealthy feel, it was peculiar that they liked to throw
parties.

“By the way President, you still look short even now.”

“Mao was pretty tall. Until elementary school that is.”

Shion said that with a distant look in her eyes.

“Hey look, I’m carrying a ransel. ”

1

Megumi held the tray to her chest as she pointed at the picture.

It was Megumi as an elementary school student.

“Ahh, so cute.”

Kyouya suddenly said his thoughts out loud.

“You just said cute! You have a duty to explain yourself to the big
sister!”

Mao suddenly shouted.

Mao couldn’t handle being left out of the fun any longer.

“I just thought she was cute as an elementary school student.”

“Do you look at all elementary school students like that?!”

“I don’t follow what you’re trying to say.”

“This is Mao during her first year in middle school.”

79
 The Mao in middle school wearing a sailor uniform looked no
different than the Mao of right now.

“President, you really haven’t changed a bit, have you?”

“Mao was always taller than me for most of elementary school.

Until fourth grade that is.”

Shion said that with a distant look in her eyes again.

“She stopped growing in fourth grade.”

“Are you trying to say that I’m small?!”

“Well, couldn’t she be saying that you were always cute?”

“I-idiot.”

Then, Mao became quiet.

80
81
I’m the older sister.

82
83
 Sign: Continuation
The Genius Brothers
Shion has a large family.

People refer to her brothers as the Genius Brothers.

Translator’s Notes

1. A ransel is a backpack that’s popular for children in Japan to

carry when going to school. Images

84
 “Do you have any memories of your childhood Shion-san?”

“I should have some.”

As soon as she said that, her finger stopped on a certain photo.

“Ah.”

“Oh, I kept that because it was funny.”

Mao smiled playfully.

“Can you stop that? It brings back bad memories.”

“What is it?”

Because he rarely got to see Shion upset, Kyouya asked with great
interest.

“Hey, look at this. Shion was really fat during middle school.”

“No wait, you’ve got the wrong ide-”

Shion tried to snatch the photo away, but Mao blocked her hand
and showed the picture to Kyouya.

The girl in the image had a really flat face.

“Huh?”

It was unmistakable. The girl in the picture didn’t look like Shion. If
this really was a picture from when she was fat, her face was so fat
that it changed her facial structure.

“Were you 200 kilos then? Or was it 300?”

“Neither.”

85
 Kyouya took a long hard look at Shion’s profile as she pouted off to
the side.

He looked back and forth between the photo in front of him and
Shion.

“Do you believe me?”

Kyouya was asked by Mao. He absentmindedly nodded his head.

“Is that so. So you do believe me. He believed it, Shii.”

Upon hearing that Kyouya believed it, Shion strangely relaxed

suddenly.

“Was it disappointing?”

“Well, um, uhh…”

Kyouya was speechless.

He couldn’t understand why Shion was smiling.

Kyouya was shocked and surprised that Shion, who is so beautiful,

was that fat in the past.

However, he felt that he had to say something to Shion, who was

grinning to herself. This is a guy’s obligation.

“Well, um… how do I say this… It’s okay. It’s not about if you’re fat
or skinny. And even then, now… now you’re really skinny.”

“I think I went on a diet. Yeah. A pretty strict one at that. I’m still
trying to slim down even now.”

“I-I think that’s pretty amazing. No, uh, I didn’t mean to sound
arrogant by that. Anything I say is just pointless flattery. But that’s
what I really think…”

86
 Said Kyouya, flustered.

“Pfft… kukukuku…”

Mao was sitting on a chair hugging her legs when she started to
shake from giggling. Her feet soon started shaking back and forth.

Kyouya calmed down a bit. It seemed he was acting so panicked

back there that it could get Mao to laugh at him that much.

“Everyone~ The tea is ready~”

Megumi brought some more tea over.

“Megumi-kun, look at how horrible I looked like in the past.”

“Aha. That was really popular back in the day. Taking pictures using
the “slim mode” on a camera to appear fat. I know because Mao
made me do it for her.”

“Huh?”

“Anyways, Shinomiya-kun, today we have tea from Nepal from a

company called Ilam Valley. Doesn’t it taste like Darjeeling tea?”

“No, um…”

Kyouya looked at Megumi as she poured the tea in disbelief. He

couldn’t believe what Megumi just said.

Mao chuckled.

She looked like she couldn’t bear it anymore.

“Ahh, this is too funny. You really will believe anything.”

“???”

“From the start, didn’t I say you had the wrong idea? Even then,
you didn’t listen.”

87
 While taking in the scent of the tea, Shion pointed a finger up and
waggled it back and forth like a metronome.

“You’re hopeless. You caused this misunderstanding yourself. Even

the Code of Hammurabi has this idea of self-retribution written
down.”

Kyouya finally understood.

I’ve been tricked again! Everyone played a trick on me!

88
89
90
Sign: Continued

91
 As Kyouya turned his face away pouting, Mao moved a chair in
front of him.

“Hey, did you know-”

“I don’t know. I never heard of it before. You’re not tricking me!”

“When did I ever trick you?”

Oh really now. What about just now? If I remember correctly, you

tricked me just three minutes earlier.
“While we’re on the subject of our pasts, why don’t we talk about
Kirara’s past.”

Mao tried to explain to the unwilling Kyouya.

In the back of the room, Kirara, who had been busily eating her
meat, suddenly twitched her ears.

Well, it wasn’t really her ears, but the things that looked like ears in
her hair.

In any case, her ears twitched and she stopped eating. She started
scanning the room, like she was sniffing something out.

Finally, she turned towards Kyouya’s direction.

She stared questioningly towards his direction, wondering what he

wanted.

Whenever she’s brought up in a conversation, sensing it with her

instincts and sniffing the air was just like Kirara.

Due to Mao gesturing to her to come over, Kirara stopped eating

her meat. She sat neatly in her chair that was often empty.

92
 “Didn’t you ever think that Kirara was weird?”

“I-I’ve never thought of her that way.”

“It’s okay. Kirara doesn’t mind being called weird. Right, Kirara?”

“Yes. I, don’t mind.”

“Uhh, well… I thought that… you’re a pretty unique person. But I

only thought that for a moment. I don’t think like that now.”
confessed Kyouya.

Kyouya felt a little uncool for sticking up for Kirara. Sometimes, he

thought that people like Mao who could easily say what’s on their
mind were a bit cool.

“Well, Kirara can’t help but be seen as weird.”

“You really should stop saying that she’s weird.” said Kyouya,
feeling a bit concerned for Kirara.

Not everyone is like Mao, who can boldly call someone out for
being weird.

However, looking at Kirara…

Kirara seemed happy about being the focus of the conversation.

Like she was being praised.

Or maybe…

Maybe she likes being called weird?

Kyouya could feel his common sense warping.

“Do you know the story of the wolf girls? I’m not talking about the
one in Aesop’s Fables.” said Shion as she took over the conversation
from Mao.

93
 “Hah… was it the girls who were raised by wolves?”

Kyouya glanced to the side. He saw Megumi off to the side using
the stove, seemingly not paying attention at all. It seemed like
Kyouya was the only one who didn’t know what the story was.

“The story of the wolf girls is no urban myth. As for orphans that
were not raised by humans, there are many examples in trustworthy
sources.”

“Really?”

Kyouya looked at Kirara.

Kirara was sitting upright with a blank face. Kirara seemed to

understand that the topic was shifting towards her.

“Wolves are a social breed like humans. That’s why you often see
examples of humans being raised by wolves. However, there are also
examples of humans being raised by something other than wolves.”

Just how is Shion’s explanation and Kirara related?

“Kyoro-kun. Do you know what a UMA is? It means an Unidentified

Mysterious Animal. Well-known examples of UMA are Bigfoot,
Sasquatch, Yeti etc. A Yuki-otoko would be the Japanese term for
Yeti.”

“Huh? W-what?”

Kyouya thought he misheard Shion. It sounds like she is saying that

Kirara wasn’t raised by wolves, but instead by UMAs.

“Kirara was raised by one of them until she was eight years old.
We’re not just guessing her age here. She was also taught by them
how to say her age, according to Kirara.”

“Whaaaat?!”

94
 It wasn’t him mishearing her! She really did mean it.

Kyouya took a hard look at Kirara.

When their eyes met, Kirara grinned.

“Kyoro, believed?”

Kyoro believed it.

“Pfft… Hahahahaha…”

President started laughing like she couldn’t handle it anymore.

Kyouya’s face turned blue. It happened again… I’ve been tricked

again!

95
96
Kirara. Had friends.

97
98
 Mao: Kirara is pretty proud of her english.
Kyouya: Ehh, really?
Kirara: Yes, I can speak English pretty well. I had been in British
Columbia long time.

99
 One day after class, in a certain club room.

“Hey, Kyoro.”

When Kyoro looked up, he saw Mao first in line in a line of 4 people
standing side by side.

“What is it?”

“I acknowledge you as a club apprentice.”

Mao suddenly said this as she stood in the middle of the room.

“Then what was I before?”

As Mao stood before everyone like she was the presenter in an

award’s ceremony, Kyouya asked this question for the time being.

“You were a trial member, or something?”

“So I wasn’t a club member?”

“You didn’t write a club member application form, did you?”

“I didn’t write one…”

Said Kyouya despairingly. He even thought he was a club member

all this time.

“Hey, hey. We have the forms right here. If you sign it, you’ll be a
club member… right?”

“Sis, you completely forgot about them in the desk drawer for
three months.”

“Ah, Megumi you little – don’t rat me out!”

“At any rate, I guess I’m just… well…”

100
 “You’ve improved enough that I acknowledge you as a club
apprentice.”

Mao forcefully changed the topic as she boldly declared this.

“Did I ever do anything?”

“Now you can do greetings, and you did vocal training.”

“You mean this?”

Kyouya raised a hand and made a greeting. It was a strange sign. It

was like a V sign, but the middle and ring finger were split apart. His
fingers seemed cramped up. It was the traditional GJ-bu’s greeting.
At first, it seems silly. But if people put enough effort into it, they
could do anything. As for the so-called voice training, they would
stand in front of an electric fan and talk into it to sound like robots. It
was a weird training.

“Anyways, congratulations Shinomiya-kun.”

“Congratulations. Let’s continue to get along.”

“Kyoro. You happy? It tasty?”

Everyone congratulated Kyouya. He felt a little embarrassed.

“Then, I’ll give this club member badge to you.”

Mao gave Kyouya a green badge. It was a custom badge with the
words “GJ” written on it.

If you actually looked around, you could see everyone was wearing
a badge on their chest or lower torso. Each badge was a different
color: Mao had orange, Megumi had pink, Shion had purple, and
Kirara had yellow.

101
 As for Kyouya, his badge was the color of green grass – a bright
green. The color of a greenhorn.

Mao, who couldn’t just reach up, stretched up and put the badge
on Kyouya’s chest. Kyouya, as he thought about things like liking
ceremonies and Mao, calmly accepted the badge.

“What’s with you? You don’t seem very happy with it.”

“Huh? No way, I’m very happy. Wooo.”

Mao scoffed.

“Hearing you say that makes me glad. That badge is a

communication device. If you press the button on the back side, you
can talk with the other club members.”

“Huh, really?”

Kyouya took off his button. He immediately pressed the button on

the back.

Nyaa~ was the sound that came out.

A sound came out from the button. Upon pressing the button
again, the same sound, Nya~, definitely came out.

“Pfft…”

Mao was holding her stomach as she curled up laughing.

“I’ve been tricked again!” shouted Kyouya.

How is Kyouya this easy to fool? Was he Mao’s toy or osmething?

“In about 1 in 100 times, a different voice is used, right?”

Megumi said as she kept pushing her badge’s button.

“What? No way!”

102
 Mao exclaimed and then plucked her own badge off. Shion also
silently kept pressing the button on her own badge. Even Kirara was
pressing the button three times the speed of everyone combined.
Until the sound came out, they couldn’t stop pressing the button.

The sound of button pressing filled the room as they silently

continued their task.

As they continued to press their buttons, from somewhere

a Pya~ sound came out. A sound that was like a kitten calling out for
her mom was heard.

“It’s really true!”

Mao exclaimed excitedly. When she realized, she cleared her

throat.

“Uh… Ahem. Well, uh… Basically… That’s great right?”

Mao patted Kyouya’s shoulder. As Mao fixed her necktie, Kyouya

said:

“Yeah, looks like everything’s more or less settled.”

103
 GJ Club Badge

Proof that you belong in the GJ Club. It looks like a normal metal
badge, but it’s specially made so that it can make a “Nyaa~” sound.
On the back of button, “Paw-shaped” is written. It looks like
everyone wears this badge during club activities. However, because
Kyouya wasn’t a club apprentice yet, he never got one as well.

104
105
 Top Left: GJ Club Membership Proof
A specially made metal badge

Top Right: Each person’s color is chosen

Kyouya’s color is grass green

Bottom Left: Not a communication device

Everyone is fooled

Bottom Right: On the back is written “Paw-shaped”

If you press the button, “Nyaa~” will sound. 1 in 100 times, “Pyaa~”
will come out instead.

106
 At the clubroom’s circular table, Kyouya was looking at his cell
phone.

He had been busily typing on his cell phone. It was perfect timing,
and he had just stopped.

“Ah, can you print this on the computer?”

Kyouya asked to Shion, who was in front of the computer.

He lightly waved the phone in his hand at Shion.

“Oh, okay. I can do that. Can you send an email to me?”

As usual, Shion was practicing her chess against Mr. Pan-American

Chess Champion. Kyouya thought he was a foreigner, but he lately
has been using more and more crying emojis.

Kyouya sent an email to the clubroom computer.

The clubroom computer is a really old antique.

Was it the previous President’s? Or maybe the one before that

one? Or maybe even one even further in the past? In a long line of
presidents, at some point a gallant hero had dared to take it from
another club. It was an antique with a shady history.

It was an old model computer that barely connected to the

internet, but it was connected to the printer for now.

“Hmm?”

Shion raised her eyebrow when she took a look at the list on the
monitor screen.

107
 What was on the screen was… a list filled with titles of light novels
and manga.

“What’s this? Your personal recommendations?”

Shion asked with interest.

“Quite the opposite. It’s a list of forbidden books.”

Kyouya smiled as he responded.

“Forbidden books?”

Shion’s smooth, silky hair shook as she tilted her head.

“Yes. It’s for the President… you know how she doesn’t like to read
books with stuff like kisses in them, right? I thought I might as well
check out those books and putting them in a list. They’re filled with
kissing or more daring kinds of acts. Stuff like that.”

“M-more daring…”

“So, we’ll put all the dangerous ones on this list…? Shion-san? Are
you listening?”

When Kyouya asked her, Shion suddenly snapped back to the

moment.

“No, no, sorry, I was thinking of something. Wait, I only thought of

it a little bit. No, sorry, forget what I just said.”

“I don’t understand what you’re saying… Just print this out please.”

“O-oh, right.”

Shion clicked the mouse.

Kyouya went to the front of the printer and sat down, waiting.

He stared at the sheets as they came out of the printer.

108
 One sheet… Two sheets…

…Huh?

Kyouya looked at Shion. One sheet was fine, but Shion somehow
printed two sheets.

“Huh? One sheet is enough. It’s just for the President.”

“Ah, no, that’s my copy…” mumbled Shion.

In the next moment, she burst into a lecture.

“I’ve always been interested in the literature on expression of

psychology. In other words, I wanted to study the works of Freud and
his research into how libido manifests itself during adolescence and
influences behavior. Of course, I don’t have to tell you that each
writer has his own prejudices. But in this case, to receive a good
enough sample to constrain p to less than 0.05, we at least had take
data from dozens of different written works…”

Cutting off Shion’s long lecture, Kyouya asked Shion a question.

“Um, in short, we can conclude that this list will be of use for you.”

“Y-yeah.”

Shion turned red as she bowed her head down.

When Shion starts to give long lectures, it means that she’s

embarrassed. She tries to hide something behind her long lectures.

In this case, she was really interested in the list.

However…

Kyouya has the delicacy and instinct to know not to mention it.

Instead, Kyouya changed the subject.

109
 “Let’s make this bookshelf the ‘Forbidden Bookshelf’.”

“I have to agree with you.”

Not wanting to return to the previous topic, Shion eagerly nodded

her head repeatedly.

110
111
 Forbidden Catalogue Bookshelf

Mao’s bookshelf exclusively for forbidden books.

Contains stuff like kissing and other risqué acts.
The last book of certain series are often placed here.

112
 “It’s hot…”

As summer break approached, the clubroom became boiling hot.

In the corner of the room, an electric fan was running. However,

with all the hot air being circulated, it didn’t feel any cooler.

In the old culture club building, things like air conditioning

obviously do not exist.

“President… That’s unfair…”

Lying down on the sofa with only her feet in a bucket of water,
Mao was unfairly cooling herself off.

With her kneesocks lying around her, she stuck both of her feet in
the bucket of water. Ice cubes were floating on top of the water in
the bucket. There were a few more hours until more ice was created
in the refrigerator in the corner of room. It seemed like an eternity.

Mao abused her authority as President as she lay there

exhaustedly. It was hard to tell if she was dead or alive. Since she
doesn’t respond, she really seems like a corpse.

“Kirara… Are you alive…?”

Kirara, who was pushed out of her usual sofa seat, sat on the
wooden floor, grasping her knees.

She was staring blankly in the air.

She also stopped bringing meat to her mouth for a while now.
While Kirara absentmindedly stares at the air, Kyouya thought about
how she was squirming around.

Megumi, being herself, was fanning her skirt hem.

113
 That was to be the case, but Kyouya couldn’t confirm with his eyes.
He could only hear the flapping of of her skirt.

“It’s so hot…”

Kyouya said out loud, not directed at anyone.

“How hot is it today?”

Kyouya muttered to himself, not expecting a response.

Directly stating the obvious out loud was Kyouya’s style. Mao
would normally respond by saying, “You’re loud, shut up, I’ll kill you,”
but that same Mao is now down for the count at the moment.

“It’s because the sun is shining in from the window.”

Shion said with a cool face.

“It would be great if we had curtains, but if Mao doesn’t apply for
room furnishing, it’ll be troublesome.”

Kyouya weakly nodded. It was Mao’s duty. If Kyouya does it, she’ll
get mad. He’ll be bitten.

“Shion-san, do you not feel hot?”

Kyouya asked that to Shion, who seemed to be the only one not
sweating.

“Hm? Ah, I think it’s because I have a cold body. See?”

Shion put her hand against Kyouya’s forehead. Her hand felt cool
against his skin.

“Ah… That feels nice~”

Interested in Kyouya’s reaction, Shion reached out with her other

hand.

114
 “Like this?”

Shion put her hand against Kyouya’s cheek.

“Ah~ This feels good~ Aah~”

Shion, not limiting herself to Kyouya’s cheek and forehead, also

touched other places on Kyouya’s body.

“Ah… yeah… This is… kind of… a workout.”

“Ahaha~”

Shion touched Kyouya’s shoulder, which caused him to giggle.

Kyouya lay down on the table, letting Shion to touch all over his
body.

“How is it? Even a cold-blooded girl like me can be a little useful.”

“It’s nothing like that at all~… Shion-san feels nice~”

Kyouya responded strangely. However, because Kyouya was feeling

good, Shion paid no attention

Shion brushed across Kyouya’s back and shoulders.

“Aah~ Shion-san~ Can you do the forehead~? Or the cheek~?”

Shion’s hands wouldn’t leave Kyouya’s shoulders.

“You’re unexpectedly strong, Kyoro-kun”

“No, it’s nothing like that~”

“Kyoro-kun really is a guy.”

“Maybe so~”

Kyouya waited for a response, but Shion suddenly stopped.

115
 “Um…”

Hearing that, Kyouya turned his head towards Shion.

“Sorry. I’m feeling hot.”

Shion was standing there with a flushed face for some reason.

Kyouya thought about the reason why she was blushing

afterwards, but ended up not finding the reason.

Culture Club Building

Made of wood, the entire building is used by the culture clubs.
Really out of date. You can even see the age all over the walls and
floor. Because it’s charming and in a good enough condition, culture
clubs surprisingly like it.

116
117
*flap*

118
 At the usual clubroom after school.

Kyouya was first to the clubroom today. Since no one else was in
the room, Kyouya started reading a light novel while waiting for the
others.

“Sup.”

The door opened with a rattle, and the first person to arrive was
Mao.

“Oof.”

Mao leapt into her usual seat.

Coincidentally, her feet flew up when she sat down.

“Huh?”

Kyouya glanced at Mao from the corner of his eyes. He felt

something was off and turned towards her.

Normally, Mao would let her hair down, appearing almost doll-like.
Today, however, her hair was up in a ponytail.

Tied up at the top of her head, her hair flowed down in one
straight line.

Kyouya stared wide-eyed at her—

“What? What are you staring at?”

Mao asked while she put her hand over the exposed skin on her
neck.

“No, I’ve only seen ‘that’ for the first time.”

119
 “What do you mean by ‘that’?”

“Um… I mean… that thing.”

Kyouya said flustered. He was nervous and panicked over his

words, but Mao just thought it was weird. She was more confused
than angry.

“Geez, if you have something to say, say it out loud. Or else I’ll bite
you.”

“N-no, it looks nice… but why?”

“This? I’m trying to change my image.”

With that, the confusion disappeared and Mao returned to her

confident self.

“How is it? Isn’t it great? Girls can do image changes easily.

Because you’re a guy, in order to change your image, you have to
become a skinhead. You should feel jealous.”

“You seem to really like skinheads. Also, didn’t you say I wasn’t
really a guy?”

“Yup, I’m biting you. Don’t move.”

“No, wa—ow ow!”

Kyouya tried to escape Mao chasing him with her ponytail swinging
about.

“Oh Mao! …what are you doing?”

The room quieted when Shion entered, asking her question as she
put books on the table.

“Hehe, I’m trying to change my image. I’ve heard it looks nice.”

120
 Mao stood straight with an arrogant smile. Even thought she was
going into a familiar pose, she still looked like a completely different
person.

“Oh.”

Shion responded without much interest as she sat on the chair.

Kyouya put the books that Shion had returned to him back on the
shelf in the corner of the room. Shion recently began conquer the
“Forbidden Catalogue” bookshelf, starting from the top and going
down one book at a time.

“Shuuji Ninomiya has already stopped writing. But he also wrote

under a different name…”

As Kyouya turned his head to look back while putting a book back
on the shelf, he was surprised at the current scene.

“What are you doing right now Shion-san?”

“Ah, I’m doing an image change… I think.”

Shion changed her hairstyle by taking two ribbons and tying her
long hair up into a left and right portion.

Girls in light novels and manga often did this kind of hairstyle.
However, in reality, they rarely tied their hair in this fashion. It’s
become a representative hairstyle of the fictitious world.

“H-how is it?”

Doing up a twintail hairstyle, Shion smiled stiffly.

“Good mooorning.”

“Kirara. Arrived.”

“Ah, Shion-san, that’s cute!”

121
 Megumi jumped at Shion.

“What, even I could do something like twintails. See?”

Mao turned her ponytail in twintails.

“I’ll go borrow some wigs and hair extensions! Be right back!”

Megumi bowed and energetically walked away with a club token

tight in her grasp.

The club then became hectic. Kyouya simply gazed at the girls’
“transformations” in front of him.

Shion in a bob-cut looked like a young girl.

Kirara in long, silky black hair looked like a quiet ojou-sama.

Megumi in a pouf hairstyle, saying the lines of a queen like, “If they
don’t have bread, let them eat cake!” and sending people to the
guillotine, strangely fit her well.

And then Mao became a young girl with braids. She became a quiet
young girl, completely different from her usual self.

To think that a simple hairstyle change could lead to such a huge

transformation in image!

Within that one day, Kyouya met 48 different girls.

122
123
 Mao: Let’s do an image change. Kyoro too. He should become a
skinhead or shave all his hair.
Kyoro: Why do you like Skinheads so much?
Mao: Takochu~1

124
125
 Translator’s Notes:

1. Noun for making an octopus face. Similar to a duck face. I

honestly don’t know how to translate this.

126
 “I’m the president!”

At the usual clubroom after school.

Mao suddenly said that in a loud voice.

Kyouya continued reading his light novel, his eyes never leaving the
book.

Shion, Megumi, and Kirara were also in the room, but the carefree
atmosphere was the same as always.

Kyoro felt a sudden wave of boredom wash over him, and just as it
began to subside…

“I’m the president! The most important person!”

Mao shouted again.

“Yeah yeah…”

Kyouya immediately replied.

“You just ignored what I said.”

“No, it’s not like that. I really think so.”

Kyouya added on as he kept reading.

“Liar. You’ve been saying stuff like ‘It’s pretty hot, right~?’ and
‘Yeah, that’s right~’ and acting like you don’t care at all! You’re not
even interested in listening!”

“Yeah, it is pretty hot…”

“See?!”

127
 Sticking a bookmark to the page he was reading, Kyouya finally
turned his eyes away from his book and turned to look at Mao.

“I really think so…”

“Do you really think so? Really?”

“Yes, really.”

Kyouya nodded.

What was it? What was it that she said again?

“Do you really think that I, the president, am the most important
person here?”

“Uhh….”

Oh crap. She was talking about that.

“Then, right now, lick the bottom of my shoes. President’s orders.”

“No thanks, I’ll get sick from it.”

Kyouya responded immediately. In any case, everything Mao said

was always weird in some strange way.

“See?!”

Mao looked proud of herself.

“You were lying, weren’t you? You really don’t think so at all!”

She sat there as she replied smugly.

“Well then, is there a point to all this?”

“You’re a failure to your name.”

Mao wasn’t making sense.

128
 “You’re lower than ‘Kyoro’. No, you’re not enough to be a ‘Kyoro’.
You’re no more than a ‘Kyo’ or a ‘Yoro’.”

She really wasn’t making sense.

Kyouya was used to hearing about Mao’s nonsensical reasoning,

but hearing her say that he wasn’t worth his name slightly irked him.

He at least wanted to be a “Kyoro”. Although for the most part the

nickname given to him by everyone sounded somewhat lame, he’s
grown to like it.

To the Mao who was satisfied that she had quenched her
boredom, Kyouya purposefully asked:

“Then, if I say I’ll lick your foot, would you actually let me?”

“Eh?”

“I asked you if you’ll actually let me lick your foot.”

“O-okay. Presidents never go back on my word.”

Kyouya turned to an option only a peaceful defeatist could possibly

do.

“I’m really going to do it.”

“Y-yeah…”

Mao’s confidence completely disappeared. Now she was

hesitating.

“Then, please lift your leg.”

“O-o-okay.”

Pressing down on the rear part of her skirt, Mao lifted one of her
legs.

129
 Kyouya got off his chair and kneeled in front of Mao’s shoe.

“Y-you know what? Let’s stop this… okay? Y-you’ll get sick…”

Mao said weakly.

“Weren’t you the one who suggested this?”

“Let’s stop this… okay? Please stop…”

“Alright, we’ll stop. Because President’s orders are absolute.”

Kyouya stood straight up and returned to his chair. He then opened

back to his previous page and began reading.

“…Huh?”

Mao sat curled up in her chair with her head tilted in confusion for
quite a while after that.

Megumi the Negotiator

Megumi is the one who goes and gets items from other clubs.
Those items are often exchanged with club tokens. Club tokens are
tickets used to exchange for original goods during festivals. Because
Megumi’s hand-knit items are very popular, the GJ dollar’s rate is
very high.

130
131
Kyouya: I can do it now~

132
 "There's no way I can do that!"

As usual, afterschool in the clubroom.

But, unusually, Kyouya was undergoing a strange training regimen.

The goal was to make a sign with one's fingers, but this was no
ordinary sign.

The sign was to be made with one hand held straight in the air,
forming the shape of a V. However, this was no ordinary V sign, for
the middle and the ring finger were to be separated to form the
shape of the V, and the ring finger had to stay firmly pressed against
the pinky.

Was this even possible? Kyouya thought.

"It's easy!"

Said the president.

Easy to say, maybe, but difficult to accomplish.

Kyouya had tried multiple times, but his fingers felt as if they were
going to cramp, so he had given up already.

"It's impossible; no human could do it."

"It's not impossible, see?"

And so, the president began to effortlessly demonstrate. Her

middle finger and ring finger were parted neatly, a splendid display
of a V sign.

"That's because you're the Prez."

133
 "What are you implying?"

"I mean I'm not talented like you."

"Is that so?"

The president looked over her shoulder.

As she looked toward the round table, then the sofa, and finally
toward the black tea station in front of the furnace, she was greeted
with three "GJ-Bu salutes".

Shion-san raised her hand without even looking up from her

paperback.

Kirara-san raised one hand while she ate her meat.

Megumi-chan was busy pouring the tea and raised her free hand.

Somehow, it made the sign look like child's play.

"See? Everyone can do it."

The president was triumphant.

"Just how much have you guys trained?"

"If you can't do it, then you'll never be a proper man. You'll just be
Kyoro."

"Is Kyoro supposed to be a derogatory term?"

"If you don't learn, then you'll be in trouble."

"I don't think I'll ever be bothered by that in my entire life."

Kyouya's ideal was to never involve himself in meaningless conflict.

Kyouya had no intention to learn, and perhaps because of that

attitude—

134
 "Alright, fine."

The president narrowed her eyes.

"You're out of the club if you can't do it. Don't come tomorrow."

She said without a hint of warmth in her voice.

"Eh?"

Kyouya thought he had misheard.

"...Um... uh... just now..."

"Like I said."

The president sat down in her chair with only those words.

A cold air of rejection was emanating from her back.

Kyouya looked toward everyone else in turn. Shion-san and Kirara-

san gazed back with worried looks on their faces, and Megumi-chan
held her two hands up in a "you can do it!" pose.

Kyouya worked hard.

He sat in his chair and practiced without any lapse in his focus,
making the sign as his fingers trembled and seemed as if they would
cramp.

At some point, the cup that was left on the table had been filled
with black tea. In fact, it was already cold.

Kyouya continued with his practice, even ignoring the black tea
that Megumi-chan had poured for him.

Finally, the end of school broadcast started. The Beetles'

melancholic tune echoed through the hallway speakers. Stunned,
Kyouya listened to the broadcast with growing anxiety.

135
 In the end... he still couldn't do it.

It was a little better than when he started, but he still couldn't

make the crisp and clear GJ-Bu salute that everyone else could. No
matter how he tried, his hand trembled with every passing second.

"Am I out of the club?"

Kyouya asked with unease.

The president slammed close the manga she was reading with a
loud thud.

"Did you think I was being serious?"

She said casually.

"Well, with this, you just have to give it a week and anyone can do
it, even you, Kyoro. It's good to let your fingers get some flexibility,
you know."

"Y... yes."

Kyouya picked up his bags and followed the president out of the
classroom.

He was just happy that he could come here again tomorrow.

136
137
 Kyouya: Looks like I can do it now—

Megumi the Negotiator:

Obtaining the items from other clubs is Megumi's job. Resources in

the school are usually exchanged with club tokens, and these club
tokens can be used during the school festival for original goods from
each of the clubs. Megumi's handknit items are very popular, and the
GJ$'s exchange rate is skyrocketing.

138
 "Ah~~~~~~"

Kyouya spoke while holding an old electric fan in his arms.

He wasn't sure why, but when you spoke into an old electric fan
like this, your voice would vibrate and change into something else
entirely.

It became something almost alien-like.

"Since the blades are spinning, some of the sound waves hit the
blades and bounce off while others pass right through, creating a
vibrato... is what I read in a book once."

Once again, Shion-san answered Kyouya's question, as if she knew

what he was thinking. He hadn't even asked yet.

"Stop slacking off! Practice properly. If you can't do it by the end of

the day, then I'm kicking you out of the club."

The president leaned back in her chair arrogantly as she spoke.

She was leaning back so much that she was almost lying on her
back.

139
 With her small stature, lying down on the chair was a special move
of the president's that no one could copy.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm practicing."

Kyouya replied casually. It was already the second day of the

pronunciation practice. The president had said the same thing
yesterday, but she hadn't kicked him out of the club. Just one more
day would probably be ok.

Kyouya faced the fan, and started speaking–

"WE. ARE. THE. GJ-BU–"

His voice became the voice of an alien as he said such things.

"No. Do it again."

The president muttered while filing her nails.

"What am I supposed to be practicing in the first place?"

"It's a greeting. The GJ-Bu greeting."

140
 "In what kind of situation would I use this weird greeting in?"

"When we have club activities, obviously."

Kyouya had been told that there were club activities for everyone
else that happened secretly without his knowledge. He was told that
he couldn't come along since he was still not a full member.

"Why am I using a fan, anyway? Am I going to be dragging the fan

back and forth everywhere when I have to do it for real?"

"It's because you're still in training. If you can't do the vibrato

yourself, then you have to at least know the feel of it. The real thing
is, of course, like this."

And so, the president raised the palm of her hand up to her mouth.
She began vibrating it back and forth as she began vocalizing with an
"AH. WA. WA. WA.", creating her own vibrato.

"Why do we need the vibrato?"

"What are you talking about? That's the most important part."

"Then at least give me some examples. Prez, up until now you were
just criticizing me without even giving me a demonstration."

141
 "Don't think, feel."

"I have no clue what that means."

"I've reflected on my actions. I was too soft on you last time. I said
you could take a week for the salute, but I didn't think you would
actually use up the whole week."

"Ah, sorry. Actually, it was a week and two days. You counted the
days wrong so I just went with it."

"You little brat–"

The president deepened the tone of her voice.

Being called a "little brat" was also a menacing change.

"If you have no motivation, then get out of my sight right now."

"I'll do it."

Kyouya felt that he had almost pushed his luck too far, so he
immediately returned to practice.

142
 He sat on the floor and repeated the meaningless exercise over
and over again.

"WE. ARE. THE. GJ-BU–"

"Not good enough."

"WE. ARE. THE–GJ-BU!"

"Not even close."

Kyouya couldn't understand what was not good enough. Was it the
accents? The intonation? He tried lots of different things, but in the
end, none were considered good enough.

"Good luck, Shinomiya-kun."

Megumi-chan left a cup of black tea beside Kyouya. Kirara-san and

Shion-san were also watching over him.

Kyouya tried his hardest. He wanted to be in the same club as

Megumi-chan. With Shion-san. With Kirara-san. And, of course, also
with the president.

143
 After dozens of attempts, as he was worn down from fatigue–

"WE. ARE. THE... GJ-BU..."

Kyouya was already too tired; the words he spoke were only out of
inertia. It was a voice without any hint of enthusiasm. As he cringed,
ready to be yelled at again–

"That's it!"

The president yelled.

Huh? That certainly was anticlimactic.

So this is how you're supposed to do it? This feebleness was the

correct answer?

In any case, it seemed like Kyouya had begun to grasp the meaning
of the "GJ-Bu spirit".

144
145
 The fan has to work hard during the summer.

Kyouya: Prez. Please get an air conditioner. It's the president's job.

Mao: I understand how you feel, but I can't do that. Summer is

boring if it isn't hot.

Kyouya: It doesn't matter if it's interesting or not, let's just be

comfortable instead.

146
 "No matter when, and no matter who it is, girls always believe that
there's a prince on a white horse ready to take her away."

Unusually, Megumi-chan was the first one to present an opinion

today.

With her hands raised in front of her ample chest, she spoke after
clearing her throat.

Hmm—Huh—Ahh—

Kyouya nodded.

Those words sounded so confident that he was ready to believe

them immediately.

But somewhere in Kyouya's heart was a voice telling him to hold on

for just a second.

Kyouya was often teased in the GJ-Bu.

The president even said he was easy to tease.

147
 Shion-san didn't say anything about it, but she showed her
thoughts on the subject through action.

The teasing Kyouya received from these two older girls had almost
become a form of communication for them.

Kyouya knew Megumi-chan wasn't the type of girl who teased

people, but just in case—

"Is that so?"

Kyouya threw out a line to test the waters.

First towards the president.

"......"

The president stayed silent.

Of course, he wasn't expecting a reply in the first place.

He looked her in the eyes to try to determine the truth.

148
 The president was someone who wore her heart on her sleeve,
after all.

And so—

The president quickly turned to look away. Although the

movement looked completely natural, it was definitely on purpose. It
was as if she hadn't heard him at all.

Hmm?

Kyouya turned to face Shion-san next.

"Well, if you include every single girl, then that's a very difficult
question. I learned this from my seventh brother, but according to
Freud, the source of all urges and conflicts lies in the libido. I wonder
if it would take the form of a prince on a white horse in dreams and
even conscious desires, and also be consistent across all cultures?
There's no way to confirm that claim right now, but that's not to say
it's necessarily false. Personally, I usually weigh logic and knowledge
heavily, but at the same time, I cannot deny that I am a walking,
breathing human being with human desires—"

An abnormally long speech.

In other words, she was being shy.

Kyouya couldn't understand a thing Shion-san said, but that, he

could understand.

149
 Shion-san was that kind of person. Instead of showing it all on her
face like the president, she demonstrated her feelings with her
words, and once she started, she couldn't stop.

Understanding that much was more than enough.

Looking away from Shion-san, who still had more to say, Kyouya
turned toward the last older girl in the room: Kirara-san.

"Kirara, too?"

"Hey!"

The president, who had been facing the other way, suddenly
turned her head.

"What do you mean 'too'? Who's that supposed to mean? That's

like saying we're—"

"You weren't listening to me before, were you? I neither confirmed

nor denied that statement. It's just the general opinion on the
matter—"

The president and Shion-san tried to speak over one another as

their heads bobbed back and forth.

Meanwhile, Kyouya simply watched Kirara carefully.

150
 Today was a spare rib day. There was always a mountain of meat in
front of Kirara-san.

Kirara-san raised a piece of meat to her mouth, then stopped and

looked at the ceiling while deep in thought.

After a short while, she looked back at Kyouya.

"Riding on. A white horse... Meat?"

She had an expression of expectation, an expression of hunger?

Maybe that wasn't exactly right, but Kyouya had gotten the idea.

The results of the survey were out.

So that's how it is.

Kyouya had finally understood.

No matter when, and no matter who it is, even the president, even
Shion-san, even Kirara-san, everyone was the same, without an
exception.

151
 They all believed that a prince on a white horse was going to show
up to carry them in a princess carry and take them away.

Hmm—Huh—Ahh—

"See?"

Megumi-chan puffed out her chest proudly.

152
153
 Santa is Real:

Santa came to the Amatsuka household every year. Mao still

believes in Santa. He comes every year, after all.

Sign: To be continued

Megumi: My prince on a white horse exists!

Mao: That's not true. Santa exists though.

154
 A few days later, in the clubroom after school.

"Is it true that no matter where, no matter who, and no matter

what, guys never suspect their own popularity?"

Said the president.

Kyouya was taken by surprise.

Immediately, the survival instincts that all weaklings possess had

told Kyouya that this was revenge for the earlier "Prince on White
Horse Incident" where he had teased the president.

What cruel and unusual punishment was to befall him?

Kyouya's body stiffened from imagining such a thing.

Would he be bitten, gnawed, or chewed?

For some reason, the president had begun to twirl her fingers in
front of herself, and her vision was darting around back and forth.
She was surrounded by a peculiar atmosphere.

155
 She didn't feel like the usual president.

She felt more like a normal girl.

"You know, I—"

The president started speaking while playing with her hair.

"Since the day you came here, I've always been glad that you're
here with us."

"W-what's going on, Prez? Suddenly—"

"Oh, just listen to me, ok? Hear me out."

"I'm listening."

The president smiled and then quickly put on a serious face once
more, looking nervous all over.

Kyouya was at a loss.

156
 For now, he sat up straight in his chair and put on an earnest
expression of his own.

"I tease you, kick you, and bite you a lot, but it's not because I don't
like you or anything, you know? Do you understand?"

"Umm, yes. I understand."

"Yeah, it's good that you understand."

The president nodded with satisfaction.

"Really. I'll tell you this now. It's you, after all. You're a nice guy,
everyone thinks so. Right, Megu?"

"Yes, that's right. Kyouya-san is a good person."

"You like him too, right?"

"Yes, I like him."

Kyouya knew that Megumi-chan's "like" meant the kind where she
"likes" everyone in the world, but—

157
 Hmm? Did the president just say "too"?

Surprised, Kyouya turned to look at the president.

The president averted her gaze by looking at the floor, and a hint of
redness was creeping into her face.

Had he misheard?

No, this was reality.

As he stared at her, the president continuously twirled her finger

on the desk, and gazed at Kyouya with upturned eyes.

"Stupid. Don't make me say it."

Ehh? There's no way this is happening. Is this real?

Why?... Ah, so that's it!

Kyouya suddenly understood, his brain working in overdrive.

The president's goal in bringing up a topic like that, ostensibly to

tease him, was really to attempt to hide her shyness!

158
 All the stuff the president said before that seemed like she was
taking revenge was really just her feminine side shining through!

Kyouya began to think rapidly.

Yes, this is quite a predicament. Biting people is a bit of a problem,

but would she stop if he asked her to? The president was cute when
she didn't bite.

But what about the thirty-some centimetre height difference?

Kyouya didn't want to be called a lolicon by his classmates. Well, this
is actually a big problem. He hadn't even thought about this
possibility before. After all, she was the club president. Still, he had
to think about this carefully. No matter what his reply, he had to be
sincere.

Ah.

Kyouya had finally noticed. He'd been had.

Everyone's gaze was resting on him.

"Is it true that no matter where, no matter who, and no matter

what, guys never suspect their own popularity?"

Said the president.

159
 "For example, even after I told you I was going to trick you, would
you still not suspect anything?"

The president continued.

Her gaze was cold as ice. The lovestruck girl from earlier had
disappeared entirely.

"Ahh, it really is true."

160
161
 No matter what, guys—:

The phrase "No matter what, guys—" is something Mao heard

from her classmate, her precocious neighbour.

Sign: To be continued

Mao: Stupid. Don't make me say it.

162
 A few more days later.

"Is it true that no matter where, no matter who, and no matter

what, guys never suspect their own popularity?"

The president uttered an ominous phrase.

A few days earlier, Kyouya had teased the president and received a
terrible teasing in revenge.

Kyouya thought that that would be the end of it, but it seems he
was too naive.

It looks like the president had still not forgiven him.

"Um... please give me a break. I'm really sorry for what I did. I
promise not to do it again."

Kyouya said to the president.

The president slid her chair with a clatter, taking up a position right
next to Kyouya.

163
 "Do what?"

"Like I said, the thing from before. Prez, didn't you just say it?"

"Ehh? All I said was 'good job as always'."

"Huh?"

Kyouya tilted his head.

But just now, didn't she—

"You're really a huge help, having a guy around is super useful.

Look, everyone else here is a girl."

The president paused here to look around the room at all the other
girls. Megumi-chan, Shion-san, and Kirara-san. Other than Kyouya,
the GJ-Bu had only female members.

"Not at all. I haven't done anything. I haven't really helped with

anything."

Coming to the clubroom everyday to chat with everyone, reading

manga and light novels, and drinking the black tea Megumi-chan
brewed was all Kyouya had ever done.

164
 "Nonono, it's completely different having you around."

"That's right. It's not good to be too humble."

Shion-san joined the conversation.

"Humility may be seen as a virtue in Japan, but that's not the case
in many western countries. In fact, there are some countries that
look badly upon humility."

"Look, even Shii says so. Be more confident in yourself."

"M-maybe you're right."

"Come on, Megu. Don't just stand around. Come give Kyoro a
shoulder massage."

"Ah, yes."

Megumi-chan stood behind Kyouya as instructed and began

massaging his shoulders gently. Kyouya stood still and enjoyed the
sensation, and occasionally, he could almost feel Megumi-chan's
needlessly large chest brush against him.

"Hey, Kirara. Get over here, go ahead and give him a good sniff."

165
 Kirara looked over with the meat she was nibbling on still in her
hands.

As soon as the president gave the word, Kirara put down her meat
and stood up. As she licked the oil off of her fingers, she wrapped her
arm around Kyouya's head with a practiced motion.

Sniff sniff, sniff sniff. Kirara continued smelling the scent of

Kyouya's hair.

"Ahh, I can't massage his shoulders like this."

Megumi-chan said with a sweet voice.

"That's unfair. You two are monopolising Kyoro-kun for

yourselves!"

"Make that three!"

The president pressed her back up against Kyouya.

"Then let's make that four."

Even Shion-san joined in beside Kyouya.

166
 The cool beauty that was Shion-san didn't offer any direct skinship,
but she dragged her chair close enough for Kyouya to feel her body
heat.

Kyouya was sandwiched between Shion-san and the president on

either side, with Kirara around his neck and Megumi-chan behind his
shoulders.

Wow, wow, wow!

Kyouya was almost panicking.

He couldn't understand why he had suddenly become so popular.

But this wasn't so bad, his charm and charisma was being
recognized at last. He was the only one that the president would
bite. He was Shion-san's common sense knight, and Kirara-san
seemed to like him as well. Kyouya wasn't arrogant enough to think
Megumi-chan treated him as someone special, but at the very least,
she didn't seem to dislike him.

He had finally been recognized for all of his efforts.

This could be his chance. Has the legendary "popular period" come
for him at last?

167
 "Is it true that no matter where, no matter who, and no matter
what, guys never suspect their own popularity?"

Said the president.

"For example, would they not suspect anything about their

popularity even when they've just been deceived?"

The president continued.

Her gaze was as cold as ice.

"Ahh. This is too cruel."

168
169
Popular period:

A special time that comes once in a lifetime no matter who you are

Sign: To be continued

Classmate: Guys are always...

Mao: Nod nod

170
 "Look, I said I was sorry; I went too far, ok?"

Kyouya was in the usual clubroom at the usual time after school,
but today he had an unusual attitude.

Kyouya would not speak to anyone today.

Megumi-chan's freshly brewed tea was also getting cold.

"Hey, say something—"

He wouldn't react to anything the president said, either.

This was a lingering result of what had happened recently,

specifically, the bullying. It was made all the worse by his momentary
fantasy of being popular for once being shattered. Kyouya thought
himself to be a peaceful defeatist; he wouldn't get involved in
conflict if it could be avoided. After all, it was impossible to defeat
someone who had already given up in the first place, and he could
cut his losses.

But this time he must resist.

171
 More specifically, giving the silent treatment.

"Really, I'm sorry. I was the one who came up with the scenario.
Mao wouldn't stop asking me about it."

Of course, Shion-san didn't receive a reply either.

Women were frightening creatures.

Kyouya had become untrusting of girls.

"You—, Shii, this is my fault, huh? Are you saying it's all my fault?"

"That's not what I said. No, I'm sorry. I was probably subconsciously
hoping to be spared of responsibility by bringing attention to Mao's
large role in this.

In the middle of this strange atmosphere, even Kirara-san, who was

eating meat in the middle of it all, kept looking from side to side with
her ears raised in anxiety.

"Kyoro, eat?"

"Look, Kirara's giving you her meat, isn't that great?"

172
 Of course, Kirara's offering of meat wasn't taken, either.

"Look, I told you I'm sorry—"

The president grabbed Kyouya's arm and waved it around.

Of course, Kyouya made no effort to follow along as his arm was

being waved around.

"Come on, you'd do anything we said if we just flattered you a bit,

it was too funny—"

"Mao, that's not how you apologize."

"Um..."

Megumi-chan raised her hand slowly.

"Shinomiya-kun... are you mad, by any chance? Could you tell me

what you're angry about?

She looked around at everyone's faces, searching for an answer.

The president lied down on the floor, exhausted. Shion-san

collapsed onto the table, her elbow somehow supporting her entire
body weight. Kirara, meanwhile, just ate her meat silently.

173
 Megumi-chan's "Angelic Vision" could not reveal any conflict or
bullying to her.

Even the other day, Megumi-chan, who was giving Kyouya a

shoulder massage, probably didn't have any malicious intent. Kirara-
san should be the same.

"Kyoro. Feeling. Down? Bad?"

Kirara-san looked at Kyouya with a worried face.

Now it felt almost as if Kyouya was doing something bad to

everyone else.

Besides, it was taking all of his willpower to maintain his silence.

"Why... why are you so angry... what the hell?"

The president, who was being ignored on the side, started

speaking.

"You're just Kyoro, you can't get mad. You're always laughing and
smiling even when you get bitten or made fun of. Don't get ahead of
yourself."

174
 Something ridiculous was coming out of her mouth.

Honestly, that annoyed Kyouya.

They had finally gotten to a point where they could start making
up, too.

In the end, he would have to continue his silent protest.

"What the hell... that's... not allowed... you're not allowed to be..."

The president let out a sniffle.

Huh? Kyouya was caught off guard.

"Prez...?"

That was the first time Kyouya had spoken today, he turned to look
at the president.

He could only see her back.

"Shut up! Don't look at me!"

175
 The president said, with her back still turned and her shoulders
trembling slightly.

"Um..."

Kyouya looked around at everyone while scratching the tip of his

nose and received three nods in return.

Gathering up his determination, he directed his voice toward the

tiny shoulders in front of him.

"Prez, I'm not mad, I was just pouting. Please don't tease me so
much. I won't pout if you do that.

"Y... yeah. Got it, but give me a few minutes."

The president said without turning her head.

Girls weren't so scary after all.

176
177
Kyouya: Girls are scary.

Kirara: Meat. Eat?

Kyouya: Also, meat buns are scary.

Kyouya: Prez, are you done yet?

Mao: Give me one more box.

178
 One afternoon, a few days into summer break.

Suddenly, as Kyouya was passing in front of the park—

He saw Kirara-san sitting on a bench in the park.

He had already walked past, so Kyouya did a double take and

turned around. Covering the blinding sunlight with his hand and
trying to look away from the scorching rays, he stared at the figure in
the distance.

"That's... Kirara-san over there... right...?

She was wearing casual clothes, so Kyouya couldn't quite be sure.

But still, it was probably Kirara-san, Kyouya's upperclassman in the

GJ-Bu. That was what Kyouya thought as he looked at the well-
dressed girl sitting on the bench.

It was the first time he had seen Kirara-san in her casual clothes.

She was wearing denim shorts and a long vest. She was covered in
denim from top to bottom, a fashion style that suited her well. Her

179
black tank top could be seen barely peeking out from her vest, and
the choker she wore around her neck looked more like a collar.

The reason Kyouya was able to confirm that this beautiful girl was
Kirara-san with a single glance was simple.

At the side of the bench, a plastic bag had been filled with chicken
feet. In the time it took Kyouya to notice the bag, Kirara-san had
already taken another piece and began happily gnawing into it.

"Kirara!"

Kyouya tried calling out to her, but the cry of the cicadas had
drowned out his voice, so she probably couldn't hear him.

Kyouya crossed the entrance of the park, beyond the gate at the
parking lot and onto the cool grass from the scorching asphalt he was
standing on a second ago. As he crossed the park's open field,
Kyouya suddenly noticed a single cat sitting on the bench beside
Kirara-san.

Kyouya thought at first that perhaps the stray cat was there for
Kirara-san's meat, but as he got closer he realized that something
different was going on.

"Meow—"

180
 The cat cried. Its coat was striped like a tiger's, and its cry carried a
certain sense of dignity. Perhaps this was the boss cat around these
parts.

"Meow—"

A voice replied. This time it was Kirara-san's voice.

Kyouya hid behind the trunk of a nearby tree. He stealthily listened

in on the conversation between human and beast.

"Mew—, mewmewmew, nya— nya—, go—aaahhnn"

"Nya—, na—, mewmew, meowwwwn—"

"Nyaoohn— Nyaaaa Nyu—, Nyun—, Nyanya Pyaaah—"

"Nya—Nya—, Nyan, Nyanya—, Nya—nya—nya—, Ru— Rurururu"

On one side were the cries of the cat, although some of the sounds
were not ones you'd usually hear from cats.

Kyouya had never raised a cat, so he wasn't sure on the details. It

might just be that he didn't know about those sounds.

Maybe cats really could make sounds that would make someone
think they were having a conversation.

181
 But on the other side, Kirara-san was making sounds that could be
mistaken for the cries of an actual feline. She was responding in
exactly the same way.

"There's no way..."

Kyouya shook his head.

He had almost begun to think that Kirara-san was actually talking

to the cat.

No, he had to make sure.

Were they finished talking? No, was the cat finished playing with
Kirara-san? The cat stood up to leave, and looked back only once on
the way out of the park.

Kirara-san watched the cat leave until after it was out of sight, and
then—

She suddenly turned toward Kyouya.

"Hm. Kyoro."

182
 Kyouya came out from behind the tree. There was no point hiding
if he had already been seen.

"You noticed...? Since when?"

"Hm. From the beginning?"

When exactly was the beginning? In any case, Kyouya had other
questions he wanted answered.

"Do you know that cat?"

"Hm. Kirara's kid."

"Ehhh!?"

Kirara-san has a child? Wait, no, it's just a cat!

"Found it. Raised it. So...Kirara's the mama?"

"Ahh, that's what you mean?"

183
 Kyouya nodded as he tried to calm his randomly spiking heart rate.
For some reason, his pulse always began to race whenever he talked
to Kirara-san.

"What were you two talking about?"

For some reason, Kyouya asked the question as if he had already

decided that they really were having a conversation.

"Hm. Today. Normal. Nothing to report."

Kirara-san, too, answered as if she really had a conversation with

the cat. So the cat was reporting the results of its patrol. That was
the gist of what Kirara-san was saying. Deciphering Kirara-san's
sentences was always a difficult task.

"Kirara, you're better at cat speak than you are at Japanese."

Kirara-san beamed back a smile. Kyouya had been joking, but she
had taken it seriously. What an awkward atmosphere, he thought.

184
185
 Character Profile

Kirara ②

Strong subjects: English, Phys Ed

Weak subjects: Japanese

Full name: Kirara Bernstein

(Her adopted father is a Canadian scholar. She's currently a

transfer student in Japan)

Kyouya: You pull the popsicle sticks with prizes on them a lot here.

Kirara: Hm.

186
 In the usual clubroom, the same old faces gathered. Everyone was
doing whatever they pleased.

But what was unusual was that this was not during the usual time
afterschool. Instead, it was at the height of summer.

"Hey, stop doing your homework over there. It's pissing me off."

Complained the president.

"Let's go hunt, help me get that Tigrex. I can't do it by myself, it's

too strong."

"Please don't tempt the person who's working hard while fooling
around yourself."

"Why are you doing your homework at the start of August anyway?
There's still more than half of summer break to go. I don't get it."

"I'm the one who doesn't understand your way of thinking, Prez.
Do you want to be drowning in your own tears on the last day that
badly?"

187
 "Look, isn't there that old fable about the grasshopper and the ant?
You know, the one where the ant overworked himself to death and
the grasshopper got to live a long and comfortable life?"

"Exactly what version would that be?"

The president was busily gaming away on her portable console. She
had her hands full with gathering ingredients and leveling up.
Meanwhile, Kyouya was diligently doing his homework beside her.

"Homework is all about the thrill of just barely making it in time.

You can get people to help that way too."

So the president said, with her feet rolling around on the tabletop.

In the corner of the room, Shion-san cleared her throat loudly with
a cough. It seemed like Shion-san was the one who was always in
charge of that job.

But still, Kyouya couldn't help but find his gaze drifting toward the
president.

The president was casually sitting with her feet right on the table,
not minding her manners at all. She had taken off her kneesocks as
well, and Kyouya could see her happily wiggling her bare feet and
toes back and forth. The president didn't seem like one to care about

188
makeup, and so her nails were unpainted; their healthy skin-
coloured form on full display.

This troubled Kyouya greatly.

It was fine since Kyouya was sitting right next to the president, but
this would be unacceptable had he been sitting across from her.
Kyouya really wished the president wouldn't do such a thing while
wearing a skirt. As a guy, this was a deathly serious matter to him.

The president would often say that Megumi-chan wasn't even

mildly aware of the male gaze and was unprepared and defenseless,
but she was the same way herself. They really are sisters, Kyouya
thought.

Or perhaps the president just simply didn't see him as a man.

"By the way, why are we all gathered here in the middle of summer
break!?"

Kyouya sluggishly loosened his tie as he tried to change the subject.

He wasn't really too hot to be honest. In fact, right up until the
setting sun could have a direct line of attack in the evening, the
clubroom was comparatively cool. This was the charm of wooden
buildings.

"Because it's our school visit day."

189
 "Isn't it because you said to come, Prez? And usually there's only
one of those, and we already had one last week."

[TL Note: In Japan it's a tradition to have one school day in the
middle of summer vacation to see your friends and report back on
summer homework.]

"It's the GJ-Bu's school visit day."

"What's that supposed to be?"

Kyouya replied without much enthusiasm while doing his

homework with a mechanical pencil.

Just then, Megumi-chan walked over with a teapot full of black tea.

"Onee-chan kept saying she was so bored at home, that she

wanted it to be more lively."

"So basically, we were all called to the clubroom due to personal

reasons on Prez's part."

"Whatever. You were just going to do your homework at home

anyway, what's the difference between that and doing it here?"

190
 "Although you were telling me not to do my homework earlier."

"Hey. What homework are you doing?"

The president put her game into sleep mode. She took her feet off
of the table and scooted closer in her chair.

Kyouya replied, feeling slightly relieved.

"It's a self study project. I'm writing an animal observation diary."

"If it's animals, then we've got lots of them. Look,

Homo kirara.

Kirara-san tilted her head in confusion in reaction to being singled

out.

"Sorry, this is self study, not some elementary school homework,

how could I possibly write something like that? Please don't mess
around and name your friends as new species of animals, and don't
point at people, either. None of this is ok."

"Shut up. And I decided to help you for once, too."

191
 "Prez, I think you're the one who needs help."

"Shut up!"

The president's bare foot cleanly impacted Kyouya's face with a

thud.

After kicking Kyouya in the face, the president pointed her finger at
Kyouya, and started speaking indignantly.

"In any case!"

She put her hands on her hips and stuck out her tiny chest.

"Pay attention to me! If you don't, then I'm going to bite you!"

"Ah, yeah yeah. Tigrex right, Tigrex."

Kyouya dug out his console from his backpack, and started it up
with the flick of a switch.

"I need two of them, ok?"

"Ok already, I'll help you. Two of them or even twenty of them."

192
 Even in the middle of summer, the scene in the GJ-Bu didn't change
much at all.

193
194
 Character Profile

Shinomiya Kyouya ② - Dark Past

In his second year of middle school, Kyouya named his bike the
"Red Rose Chariot". Red Rose being the protagonist of a manga
Kyouya was obsessed with at the time. He was an invincible and
immortal demon king, and Kyouya was his reincarnated self... is the
setting Kyouya had thought up.

[TL Note: The name of Kyouya's bike was written with characters
that approximately mean "Raging Metal Head", but pronounced
"Red Rose". It's an impossible pun to translate, as you can see.]

A certain day - We roasted that Tigrex until it was nice and brown.

195
 On the day the calendar first flipped over to August—

Kyouya stood by the gate in the train station by himself.

At his feet stood a large bag. It was a luggage bag, packed tightly to
the brim with several changes of clothes and swimwear.

It was already long past the meeting time, but Kyouya couldn't
even catch a glimpse of anyone.

Kyouya had thought of himself as rather patient.

He thought he was rather calm.

But now, even Kyouya was beginning to run out of patience.

It was quickly approaching two hours after the meeting time, and
no one was here. Isn't that a little... no, it was definitely too much,
not just a little bit.

Kyouya had been gripping his phone tightly for a while now.

196
 He had checked his email countless times.

He looked up "Prez" from the "friends" category of his address

book and hovered his hand over the button.

He had done nothing but repeat the same meaningless motion

again and again.

Today was the day they were supposed to leave on their "training
camp".

Although, being a cultural club instead of a sports club, he wasn't

sure exactly what kind of training camp they would even be having.

In the first place, he wasn't sure why the GJ-Bu even had these
activities in the first place. Even though he had recently received a
club badge and was promoted from "provisional member" to
"apprentice member", he was still at a loss when it came to all of the
club activities.

"I wasn't even told where we were going..."

Kyouya murmured under his breath.

197
 All he was told was to meet at the station at seven, to bring
changes of clothes since they'll be staying for a few days, and not to
worry about the ticket.

Kyouya had a good feeling about this. Since it was Megumi-chan

and Prez's family, as well as Shion's family of geniuses, maybe one of
them even owned a villa. Perhaps that's where they were headed.
That thought had Kyouya all kinds of excited.

"You guys are all late..."

Kyouya gazed up at the station's clock.

The longer minute hand had already moved quite a big since he
last looked. It was now 3 minutes before nine in the morning.

It had been an hour and fifty seven minutes since the meeting
time, almost two whole hours.

Predictably, even the ever patient Kyouya couldn't wait any longer,
and pulled out his cell phone. Just as he was beginning to dial—

"Whoa, made it! Barely safe!"

Kyouya heard the president's voice from behind him.

198
 He didn't turn to face her right away.

"No you didn't! You're super late!"

But instead, took time to change the expression on his smiling face
into a grimace, and then slowly and deliberately turned backwards.

Standing there in a line were Megumi-chan and the president.

Megumi-chan, holding a straw hat, nodded at Kyouya, while the
president stood with her arms crossed as usual.

"You're the worst, Prez. How can you be so late?"

Kyouya protested sharply, all the while thinking that the president
looked quite dazzling in her casual clothes.

"What are you talking about? We just made it. We're safe. Three
minutes early, in fact."

"How are you safe!? You're clearly out. It's already nine."

At this point, Kyouya wasn't just acting, he was genuinely mad.

"Ahh, just made it."

199
 Shion-san appeared from behind Kyouya's shoulder.

"And to think I used to believe Shion-san was the one person who
did things properly."

Kyouya complained as he turned to face her.

"Hm? What are you so upset about, Kyoro-kun?"

"This guy's been acting weird for a while now. Keeps saying we're
late."

"Why?"

"Beats me. We're right on time, according to GJ-Bu time."

"What are you talking about? What's this GJ-Bu time thing?

Kyouya asked. Shion-san was the one who answered his inquiry.

"Taking the agreed upon meeting time plus/minus two hours,

that's what we call 'GJ-Bu time'."

"What the heck is that supposed to be?"

"This should be common knowledge in today's world."

200
 "Which world are you from where that's common knowledge?"

"Ah, Kirara, you're late! One minute late!"

Megumi-chan pointed her finger toward Kirara-san, who was

carrying a luggage case about as large as a refrigerator on her back.

"I'm fining you♪ Pay your fine♪"

The president started singing to herself like a little kid.

"Kirara. No good."

Kirara pointed to her own face, which was locked in a guilty

expression.

"These people are beyond saving," thought Kyouya.

201
202
 Mini Knowledge

Training Camp: The GJ-Bu holds a training camp even though it's a
cultural club. "Because it seems like fun!" being the reason.

Sign: To be continued

203
 The five club members lined up side by side and headed through
the ticket gate.

"We're finally back..."

Kyouya had reached his limit after passing through the gates. He
dropped his bags and collapsed into a sitting position on the ground.

Kyouya breathed in the midsummer night air. Though it was

already quite a familiar scent to him, it made him truly feel like he
was back in the city.

It was an extremely tiring camp, spanning 6 days and 5 nights, and

it had finally come to an end.

"Damn, it's over already?"

"You sure don't sound tired, Prez..."

Kyouya was stunned to see that the president still wanted to play
around some more.

204
 After only riding local non-express trains for 12 hours straight,
Kyouya couldn't have possibly imagined that the training camp
would be taking place in a location like that...

"We can still use this special youth ticket until the end of today, so
let's go somewhere else. How about Shinjuku?"

The special youth ticket the president was talking about was a one
day pass that was limited to local trains. They had taken the same
route back, another 12 hour ride, so Kyouya really didn't want to ride
any more trains for a while, but the president seemed to be eager for
another round.

"Prez, you're way too enthusiastic."

Kyouya sighed, not having the strength to even stand.

'My butt hurts. I want to go home and sleep.' was all Kyouya could
think.

"Yes, that's right. We'll be ok, don't worry. Onee-chan's here too,
and it's not just us girls, we have a guy with us too. Alright, see you
there then. Bye!"

Megumi-chan finished her conversation with whoever she was

talking to and put away her phone into her bag with one hand while
giving a thumbs up with the other.

205
 "We're all set, Onee-chan. We can stay out till the next morning.
I've arranged for Mori-san to come pick us up."

Megumi-chan was full of energy as well.

"Good job, Megu! Let's get going then!"

"You're not even going to ask how I feel about this, huh?"

"But we should probably eat first. Come on, Kyoro, stand up. Let's
go to our usual spot."

"You're not even listening to me in the first place!"

Kyouya gave up and rose to his feet. The huge piece of luggage he
had dropped on the ground earlier had been carried away by Kirara-
san, so he had no choice but to follow.

He walked with everyone to the usual ramen shop near the station.

"Sorry about that, Kyoro-kun. It was my idea to keep the location

secret as a surprise."

206
 "Yeah, I was surprised all right. I couldn't imagine that we would
end up somewhere like that after that 12 hour train ride and then on
the way back take the same 12 hour train ride again."

Really, Kyouya couldn't have guessed where they were going in a

million years.

"Oh yeah, you were talking about vacation villas and stuff with
sparkles in your eyes."

"I don't know about the sparkles in my eyes, but I was definitely
looking forward to it."

"But vacation villas are so boring. There's nothing interesting

around them anyway."

"Vacation homes are just relics from an era without air

conditioning."

"Yeah, yeah. You bourgeoisie may feel that way, but I am but a
common man."

"But ours is really nice. It's got that huge pool!"

Kyouya jumped a little at Megumi-chan's words.

207
 He couldn't help but think of everyone's swimsuit figures. The
slender and elegant Shion-san, the stylish and glam Kirara-san, and of
course, you couldn't tell normally tell with her clothes covering, but
Megumi-chan's huge...

"Fine, fine, we'll go to the villa next year. And the beach. Actually,
let's just go now, how about we just extend the camp for another 5
days?"

"Please spare me."

Kyouya sighed.

"It was fun, right? Exciting, right?"

"Well you're not wrong about the exciting part. The fear of getting
caught at any moment kept me on edge all the time."

The place they held the camp was an off limits area.

"Right? I didn't think we'd catch a thief though."

"Kirara. Caught the thief."

Kirara-san stuck out her chest proudly.

208
 During the camp, a thief appeared on the property, which
everyone pitched in to help catch, the bulk of the work being done
by Kirara-san.

"Good thing the thief came back a second time, or else we were
gonna get blamed for it."

When they were discovered trespassing, they were chewed out

and also under suspicion for stealing, but after catching the real
culprit, the trespassing was forgiven.

"So? You had fun, right?"

"Yeah. I had fun."

Kyouya replied.

Kyouya continued to walk towards their usual store, on their usual

path, all the while reminiscing about that incredibly tiring, incredibly
fun summer camp.

209
210
 Mini Knowledge

Mori-san: The one who manages everything in the Amatsuka

household. She's more like a head steward than a maid. Usually she
wears men's clothing and dresses plainly, but she'll wear maid outfits
if there are guests in the Amatsuka home. Since she has been dealing
with Mao and Megumi since they were kids, she cares quite a bit for
them and will occasionally scold them as well. Hasn't changed at all
since Mao and Megumi were kids, age unknown.

Mori: Everything in moderation, including staying out at night.

Bubble: Mori-san

Megumi & Mao: Yes ma'am.

211
 One day in the middle of summer vacation.

Kyouya had gone out to the local shopping mall, but he had no
plans to buy anything in particular. As he was going from store to
store window-shopping...

Suddenly, Kyouya heard a girl's voice calling out to him.

"Hey! Is that you over there, Shinomiya-kun?"

Turning around, Kyouya found a mountain of boxes standing

before him.

No, it was someone who was carrying a mountain of boxes taller

than their own body. A girl.

"Megumi-chan?"

Kyouya could tell from her voice. It was his fellow GJ-Bu member,
fellow first year student, and fellow comrade made to suffer under
the president's hands. It was the girl he felt the closest to, Amatsuka
Megumi-chan.

212
 With her last name meaning "angel", it was truly a fitting name for
the angelic girl. She was too pure, the type who wouldn't harm a fly.

"Ah, what a coincidence! I don't even know what to say. Let's see,
it's like finding help from a police station in the middle of a desert!"

Said Megumi-chan from the beyond the mountain of boxes, her

face completely blocked from view.

The boxes piled higher than her head were all clothes and shoes
and things of that nature. Her elbows that were sticking out from
either side were also laden with bags. Kyouya had seen this in manga
and anime before, but it was the first time he had witnessed such a
scene in real life.

"You sure bought a lot."

Kyouya said, half stunned.

"Yeah. It's the first time I've been to a place like this, and I didn't
think there would be so many shops, so I ended up buying way too
much."

Kyouya wondered whether she was beaming with her usual smile
right now, but he couldn't see anything at all.

213
 "By the way, I'm in a bit of a tough situation. Could you help me
with this?"

"Ah, sorry. I'll hold some for you."

Kyouya surprised himself with how inconsiderate he was being.

After taking about half of the boxes, about 1 metre tall, he could
finally see Megumi-chan's face.

Megumi-chan wearing something other than her school uniform

was a sight Kyouya wasn't used to seeing.

Her lemon yellow one piece dress and simple straw hat that clearly
conveyed the fact that she had no intent to dress up fit her naive
charm perfectly. On her feet, she wore sandals decorated with
flower shapes, or were these called mules instead? Although he had
been studying his sister's magazines, Kyouya still couldn't understand
the difference between mules and sandals. He was sure they were
mules.

"Sorry for being so inconsiderate."

As an aspiring gentleman, the first thing Kyouya had to do was

apologize.

214
 "Hm? Ah, not at all."

Megumi-chan blinked her eyes a few times then turned to Kyouya.

"Um... do you know where the exit is?"

"Huh?"

"I'm a little lost, so I was feeling kind of down."

Said Megumi-chan. Kyouya had felt something off about her since a
while ago, but now he finally understood that she was just
embarrassed.

"Um..."

Kyouya spun around, looking here and there. He had been

wandering without a goal himself, so he wasn't immediately sure
where they were. Still, there was an information board right there,
so it shouldn't be possible to get lost that easily.

"I think it's this way."

Kyouya started walking, leading the way.

"That's amazing, Shinomiya-kun! You're as reliable as my sister!"

215
 Kyouya wasn't sure whether to take that as a compliment. What an
awkward situation.

"Usually Yodogawa-san or Mori-san would be accompanying me,

but everyone was busy today so I tried coming here myself, and as
expected, got completely lost. Shinomiya-kun, if I didn't run into you
here, I might've become dried fish in this desert."

"That's a little too dramatic."

Kyouya laughed. He was curious about the Yodogawa-san and

Mori-san mentioned earlier, but he held off on his questions. He
wasn't sure what Megumi-chan would think if he asked about
something as abnormal as butlers and maids. He had always been
aware of the Amatsukas being rich, but this was outrageous.

"Ah! That store looks nice!"

As they were walking side by side, in an instant, Megumi-chan

walked into a store they were passing by. It was a movement that
was as natural as water flowing from high to low.

"Do you think my sister would look good in this? What do you
think?"

A difficult question for a guy to answer.

216
 In the end, it took them all day to get to the exit. Kyouya followed
while Megumi-chan was shopping, and helped carry everything she
bought, to the point where he could no longer see in front of him
while carrying two mountains of boxes.

Not only that, but Megumi-chan didn't buy a single thing for
herself. There were gifts for her sister Mao, for her younger sister
Seira, who Kyouya had only ever heard the name of, and for her
mother and father. Everything was a gift for someone else.

Kyouya learned two things from being with Megumi-chan the

entire day.

This girl was truly angelic, and her sense of direction was truly
terrible.

217
218
 Character Profile

Amatsuka Megumi ② - How She Spends Her Days Off

Gardening: Taking care of things like bananas.

Taking care of Onee-chan and Seira: Brushing their hair and

washing them in the bath.

Making snacks: It's a hobby but also really useful. I have to make a
whole week's worth at a time.

219
 One day during summer vacation, the president invited Kyouya
out.

"Hey, were you waiting for a long time?"

A voice came from behind Kyouya. It was the president calling out
to him, right on time.

"No, not at all. I made sure to come 2 hours after the time we
agreed on this time, so— whoa, what the heck is that?"

Kyouya spoke without thinking as he saw the president's outfit.

He wasn't quite sure how to describe the president today. Her

outfit looked quite similar to an elementary schooler's. She was
wearing a sailor style blouse with puffy sleeves, and ribbons were
blooming like flowers everywhere you looked on her outfit. On her
collar, near her hips on her shorts, and on her shoes. Her hair was
tied into twintails held together by small, round, puffs of fur. To
finish it all off, her purse was cat themed.

"What are you talking about?"

220
 The president stood in her usual commanding pose with her hands
on her hips. Appearances aside, she was still the same president as
ever.

"No... um... never mind..."

Kyouya decided to stay quiet. He thought it would be rude to

comment on someone else's fashion sense.

"Come on, I'll treat you to lunch."

The president led the way, walking in her usual confident stride.

Kyouya was left scratching his head in confusion. He thought he

had figured out a pattern in the president's fashion tastes during the
training camp, but this childish outfit shouldn't be part of that. At
least, that's what Kyouya had thought.

Pretty soon, Kyouya was pouring sweat from walking in direct

sunlight.

With the asphalt road beneath them reflecting the midsummer

sun's heat back at them, Kyouya felt like he was being roasted in an
oven.

221
 The president walked on ahead. Where were they heading to?
Kyouya didn't even know what today's plans were in the first place.

"Hm? Prez, what did you just say back there?"

Kyouya was preoccupied with thinking about the president's outfit

earlier, but he had a feeling he heard the president say something.

"I said I'll treat you to lunch."

"Really? You will?"

Kyouya was touched. This was rare, coming from the president,
who was usually a proponent of splitting the bill.

The president headed towards the shopping district while pulling

Kyouya along by the hand. Kyouya couldn't help but be conscious of
the gazes of the people they passed by. From their perspective, did
they look like a couple on a date? He didn't think that was too likely.
They probably looked more like an elementary school age kid out
with her older brother.

"We're here."

Said the president.

It was an unremarkable family restaurant.

222
 They entered the restaurant and sat down. It was not quite noon
yet, so the restaurant was nearly empty.

"Pick whatever you like, it's my treat."

Kyouya opened the menu and browsed through it. Before long,
they were approached by the waitress.

"Ah... um..."

Kyouya tensed up slightly as he was a bit caught up in the minor

luxury of having so much choice only to be interrupted unexpectedly.

"Um... uh..."

"Onii-chan, come on! If you don't decide soon, you're going to

make trouble for the nice waitress lady!"

Said the president.

"Excuse me?"

Kyouya lifted his eyes from the menu and gazed at the elementary
schooler-like girl sitting across from him.

223
 "Did you just call me Onii-chan?"

The moment the words left his mouth, Kyouya received a violent
kick in the shin from under the table.

"Um... I want, I want this one!"

With her tiny finger, the president pointed to the kids' meal. It
looked to be ketchup rice with a tiny flag standing in it. That was
quite a rare sight.

"Um, then... I'll have the daily special."

After the waitress had left, the president quickly returned to her
usual self.

"You could've ordered something more expensive, you know. Like

steak or something. I told you I'd pay for it."

"No, um... Prez?"

Kyouya thought about what he should ask about, what he should

ask first. The most pressing question had to be...

"Why am I your brother?"

224
 "Because you can't order the kids' meal as an adult. And because I
can't get in by myself without a guardian if I'm dressed like this."

"Why me? Just come with Megumi-chan or Shion-san..."

"Because it's embarrassing."

"It's not embarrassing if it's with me?"

"Because you're just Kyoro."

"Why the kids' meal?"

That last question seemed to have flipped a switch in the

president. After that, Kyouya had to endure a heated speech on the
greatness of the kids' meal, about how it makes the heart pound,
and about the importance of the tiny flag standing in the rice.

It lasted until the waitress brought over the kids' meal.

Looking at the president, who was entirely focused on gobbling

down her meal, holding her spoon like a little kid, Kyouya thought:

What a strange date.

225
That is, on the off chance that this could be considered a date.

226
227
 Character Profile

Amatsuka Mao ② - Liked Foods/Disliked Foods

Likes: Carrots (the sweet ones)

Dislikes: Broccoli (The pieces are all tiny and crumbly, there's no
way!)

[note] The kids' meal is not listed in the likes section because it's a
holy food that transcends "like".

228
 One day during summer break, Kyouya came to the library.

It wasn't the tiny library nearby, but instead the large one he had
gotten to by riding his bike.

He parked his beloved bicycle and went inside.

The excellent air conditioning dried up his sweat in an instant.

Seeing the bookshelves lined up with no end in sight, Kyouya had

to admire the magnificence of the prefectural library.

Although he was here to do research for his homework, if that

were all then the local library or the school library would've been
sufficient.

Kyouya's true motive was out of print novels. As one walked

further down the road of light novels, they would find themself
following specific authors. Bookstores would usually not stock the
books most authors debuted with and even ordering out of print
works was usually a futile effort.

There were light novels that Shion-san enjoyed on the club room's
bookshelf as well. This author had written some science fiction
novels under a different penname, Ninomiya Shuuji. Kyouya had

229
found through the library's online catalog that the library possessed
some of these books.

As Kyouya started walking towards his destination, he suddenly

came across an older girl with long black hair, stopping him in his
tracks.

The girl's glossy black hair swayed left and right as she walked.
Although there were lots of girls who had long hair, it was truly rare
to see one whose hair reached down to their waist.

He could tell that she took very good care of her hair. It was truly a
magnificent sight.

For some reason he thought of Shion-san, and as he took a

glance—

"Huh?"

Kyouya recognized her face as she disappeared between the

bookshelves.

"Shion-san?"

He chased after her while calling her name. The girl turned around.

"Oh. Is that you, Kyoro-kun?"

230
 So it was Shion-san.

At first, Kyouya had thought it was someone else since she looked
much older than him.

Shion-san wasn't wearing a skirt today, but long pants instead. It fit
her perfectly along with the cut & sewn shirt and knitted cardigan
she was wearing. Her blouse could be seen peeking through near her
chest area, which excited Kyouya slightly.

Shion-san already looked older than her actual age normally, but
now in her casual clothes, no matter how you looked at it, she
looked like a college student.

"Are you here to study as well?"

"Ah, no, um..."

Being questioned by the glasses wearing Shion-san with her

intellectualist aura,

Kyouya was at a loss for words.

He should just say clearly that he was here for science fiction
novels. Kyouya didn't like that timid part of himself very much.

231
 Shion-san didn't seem to be bothered. She pulled a book off the
shelves, quickly flipped through the pages, and then returned it to
the shelf.

Kyouya gazed at her spectacled face absentmindedly. He had heard

that she was farsighted, meaning she could see distant objects
clearly but objects close to her became blurry. With her self
proclaimed 20/5 vision, Shion-san only transformed into her
spectacled form while reading or using the computer.

After a short while, Kyouya finally realized.

Trying not to disturb those around them, Kyouya whispered,

"Shion-san, are you here to check out some books?"

"Hmm? No, I'm just here to read."

"Ah, is that so? What kind of books are you looking for?"

"What kind...?"

Shion-san pulled down her glasses and gazed back with an

incredulous look. Seeing her confusion, Kyouya tried desperately to
remember if he had said something strange to cause the genius girl's
look of bewilderment.

232
 Shion-san returned the book in her hands to the shelves, and then
reached for the next one over. She could reach books that Kyouya
couldn't, even without standing on her toes. It was thanks to her tall,
model-like figure.

This volume, too, stayed in Shion-san's hands for no more than 10

seconds. After she flipped through it quickly, it was put back on the
shelf immediately.

"Are you looking for something specific? I can help you if you
want."

This time, Kyouya was sure he didn't say anything weird.

From what he's observed so far, Shion-san was no doubt looking

for some specific book. And so, he should be able to be of help if it
were just looking for a book.

"I'm not really looking for anything. I'm just reading."

Shion-san grabbed another volume. She flipped through the pages

in a mere 10 seconds, and returned it to the shelves.

That was reading? The reading speed of a genius really was

different from common folk.

233
 "Could you wait a little bit? I'm almost done with this shelf. Since
we're both here, let's talk for a bit in the cafe area."

"T-that's right, it's been a few weeks since we've seen each other."

"More precisely, it's been 12 days 20 hours and 53 minutes."

Kyouya was at a loss for words.

That day, Shion-san treated Kyouya to a can of coffee, and they

had a nice long conversation.

234
235
 Character Profile

Shion ② - How She Spends Her Days Off

Reading. If it's educational books, then she can easily finish a

hundred volumes by noon. But just one volume of a novel tires her
out. Aside from that, playing the piano and being pampered by her
brothers.

Shion: Sorry about this.

Kyouya: I don't mind.

236
 One evening at the entrance to the shrine.

Kyouya stood beside the stone lanterns, still having not quite
gotten used to wearing his yukata.

"It is ok now?"

"Not yet."

Immediately, a reply came from the president's voice behind him,

but this time Kyouya could not turn to face her voice.

The president had been standing behind Kyouya for some time
already, but today Kyouya had not yet seen her face with his own
eyes. He had only been coldly told to face the other way, and it had
already been half an hour. Kyouya felt like a puppy that was being
trained to "stay".

Kyouya could hear the buzz of the crowd from inside the shrine.

The road in front of the shrine continued in a straight line. Stalls

lined both sides of the road with barely a gap in-between, and the
joyful warmth of the lights drew Kyouya's gaze toward them.

237
 The music of the taiko could be heard carried on the wind. It
seemed the Bon dance had already started.

Kyouya was growing impatient, and decided to ask once again.

"What about now?"

"I told you not yet! I'll bite you."

"Kirara-san sure is late."

"Did anyone call her?"

"Mao, I don't think Kirara has her phone with her."

"Oh."

As far as Kyouya could tell from the others' conversation behind

him, he wasn't allowed to turn around as long as they were missing a
member. That was the rule.

What kind of rule is that supposed to be?

"Ah, she's here!"

238
 The president's voice ringed out. Kyouya, who was still "being
trained to 'stay'", felt a sense of relief wash over him.

"Kirara! You're late!"

"We were supposed to meet. When it smelled like 6 o'clock."

"Worry about the time instead of the smell!"

Kyouya wondered what 6 o'clock was supposed to smell like. Was

it the smell of dinner beginning to be cooked? Kyouya, who was still
not allowed to turn around, could only amuse himself with such
trivial thoughts.

"All right. Kyoro!"

The president called out.

"Everyone's here, so you can turn around now."

Finally the president granted her permission.

But now that it was finally time, Kyouya started to get nervous. He
realized suddenly how dry his throat was as he slowly rotated his
body.

239
 Four flowers were in full bloom in front of his eyes.

That was the first thought that entered Kyouya's mind as he looked
at the girls' yukatas.

The patterns on each of them differed wildly as the multicolored

designs burst forth in a kaleidoscope of light and hue. The sashes tied
on their backs fluttered like flower petals quivering in the wind. Both
Shion-san and the president tied up their hair, exposing their
normally unseen nape to the cool midsummer night breeze. Kirara,
too, was dressed up neatly, an unusual sight in of itself.

"W-What? What are you staring at!?"

Said the president. She kicked at the ground with her black
slippers.

"Cotton candy."

"Huh?"

"You're the worst. I'm the only one standing facing the other way
and you're here eating cotton candy by yourself."

"If you want some then have some, s-stupid."

240
 The president shoved the cotton candy towards Kyouya. Kyouya
tore off a bite sized piece from the cloud shaped candy that was
already missing a sizable chunk.

It was sweet.

"Sorry for making you wait, Kyoro-kun. Mao said it wouldn't be fair
if everyone weren't here."

Shion-san said as her hands fiddled with her hairpin.

"I did not!"

The president turned the other way.

"It's my first time at a festival like this!"

Megumi-chan smiled happily.

"I didn't ask."

The president berated her sister.

"Meat?"

Kirara-san's eyes locked on to the yakitori and barbeque stalls.

241
 "So, what do you think?"

Shion-san asked while playing with her hair.

"You all look great. The yukatas all fit you perfectly. There's beauty
after beauty after beauty, and even an adorable little girl— Ow ow
ow Prez it hurts!"

Kyouya began walking towards the festival with everyone as he

was being chomped on.

Goldfish scooping, candy apples, okonomiyaki, shaved ice. Lots on

the to-do list today for the GJ-Bu.

242
243
 Mini Knowledge

Things Near the School:

- Train station (About 40% of the students take the train to school,
and the rest either walk or ride their bikes)

- Shrine (The stone stairs are super long, so the sports clubs use it
to train a lot. Nicknamed "The Iron Clog Staircase".)

- Karaoke place (They have student discounts as well as a reward

program based on collecting stamps.)

- Ramen shop (Terrible ramen. Delicious meal combos. Has a secret

menu.)

- Convenience store (Said to have an amazing selection of snacks

and candies.

244
 Ding dong.

The doorbell rang.

"Coming!"

Kyouya drifted lazily toward the front door.

He was wearing shorts and a T-shirt, perfect for summer vacation.

Kyouya was the only person in the house right now; his parents
and little sister had won an overnight stay for three at a hot springs
resort in a raffle, and they were out enjoying their prize. Fearlessly
staying by himself at home, Kyouya was in a position to fully enjoy
his last few days of summer vacation. Kyouya was the type of person
to finish his homework during the first few weeks with no rush and
plenty of time to laze around afterward.

The doorbell had rang just as Kyouya was absentmindedly watching

TV and thinking about what to eat for lunch.

As he shuffled down the hallway, once again came the sound of the
doorbell.

245
 "I'll be right there!"

That second time seemed a lot more hesitant from whoever was
ringing the doorbell. Kyouya opened the door, and...

Standing in the doorway was Shion-san.

"Huh? Shion-san?"

It had been a while since Kyouya had seen the face of the older girl
he so looked up to. He couldn't help but break into a smile.

But that lasted for only for a moment.

Kyouya thought that her usually dazzling visage seemed to be

clouded over with concern.

"Shion... san?"

Kyouya furrowed his eyebrows.

He took a good hard look at her once again.

246
 Kyouya could see from her face that she was greatly troubled by
something.

"Please let me hide here."

"Excuse me?"

Kyouya looked over Shion-san's outfit from head to toe.

Her choice of clothing was unmistakably strange.

In the middle of this scorching 30°C heat, her whole body was
covered by what appeared to be a long winter coat buttoned up all
way.

What's more, she seemed to be wearing indoor sandals on her

feet. It's almost as if she had recently escaped from somewhere.

But the strangest thing of all...

...was the cup of instant noodles she held in her hands.

"Please let me hide here."

247
 Shion-san repeated the same words over and over again with a
desperate look in her eyes.

"Um... Of course I'll help you, but..."

Kyouya promised, before turning to ask.

"... Who are you hiding from?"

Kyouya glanced around outside the house warily, but he didn't see
anyone else other than Shion-san.

"From my brothers."

"Your brothers?"

Shion-san came from a family of geniuses. Like Shion-san, a genius

at games of all kinds, each family member was an expert in their own
field.

Kyouya had heard that Shion-san has a huge family, at least seven
brothers in all.

"My brothers are so mean. They're ganging up on me to take away

my cup ramen."

248
 Shion-san protectively cupped her cup ramen in her arms as she
spoke.

"Umm..."

Kyouya had finally grasped the situation.

Basically, Shion-san had smuggled the cup ramen out of her house.

She must have taken a taxi or something here, and she was
probably wearing what she usually wears at home underneath the
coat.

"C-Can you boil some water for me?"

Said Shion-san.

As Kyouya gazed at Shion-san, standing there with a helpless look

on her face, his expression changed to match hers.

He knew exactly what he should do, just not what reaction he

should be having.

"I won't bother you. I'll leave right after I'm done eating."

249
 Seeing Kyouya not answer, Shion-san's face took on a more
pleading expression.

"Just boiling water is fine."

"You can't eat with just that, can you? You need some chopsticks
too."

Kyouya finally collected himself enough to form a complete

sentence.

Shion-san's face finally displayed the subtle hint of a smile.

250
251
 Mini Knowledge

The Shinomiya Family:

A normal salaryman's family with no abnormalities. The mother

and sister are lauded as beauties within the neighborhood.

Sign: To be continued.

Shion: P-Please let me hide here.

252
 Kyouya let Shion-san into his house and boiled some water for her.

"I'm pretty sure it was around here... Ah, here it is."

Reaching deep into the cupboard, Kyouya pulled out a single

package of cup ramen. Glancing at the expiration date, he could see
that it was just barely expired, completely fine according to
Shinomiya family customs.

Shion-san, on the other hand, was timidly, deliberately, pouring

out the soup and vegetable packets into her own cup. She probably
hasn't had any instant noodles since the first time she tried them, so
her movements were stiff and awkward.

Kyouya focused on making his own instead of reaching out to help

her.

The two of them added their boiling water at the same time,
finished cooking at the same time, and picked up their chopsticks at
the same time.

"Itadakimasu."

The only difference being that Kyouya had started eating a little
before Shion-san, who was saying her pre meal prayers.

253
 Kyouya sat across from Shion-san, who was intently concentrating
on her meal, and began slurping his own noodles.

Ding dong. The doorbell rang once again.

"Coming!"

Kyouya hoped it wasn't just some salesman as he walked toward

the front door.

Before he could even reach the entrance, the doorbell began

ringing over and over.

Ding dong ding dong ding dong ding dong. It was a barrage of
ringing. At the end, it became so fast that the sound blended
together and sounded more like dingdingdingding.

Kyouya didn't know who it was, but they must be very impatient,
just like the president.

"I'm coming! I'm coming!"

He opened the door, and right away—

254
 "We are the GJ-Bu!"

Bam bam bam, a girl crashed in with an intense momentum.

Kyouya would know that voice and that tiny figure anywhere.

It was indeed the president.

"What the heck, is this Kyoro's house?"

The president stood at the entrance, glancing back and forth and
saying strange things.

"If you didn't know that it was my house, then whose house were
you trying to barge into?"

"I dunno. I just followed Kirara's radar."

Kirara-san was here as well. She raised one hand in a GJ-Bu salute.

"What the heck are you doing?"

"Club activities!"

255
 "Ah, you're keeping secrets from me again!"

Kyouya had no idea what the GJ-Bu's club activities consisted of. If
there were someone absent from the clubroom, then usually they
were secretly doing club activities. Kyouya was still a provisional
member, so no one had ever taken him along.

"You're the one keeping something interesting secret from us!"

"No I'm not. All I'm doing is eating ramen."

"Liar. The radar is reacting. There has to be something interesting

happening here."

The president said while pointing to Kirara-san's hair.

Just as she said, Kyouya could see Kirara's ear-shaped cowlicks

twitching. Maybe.

"I'm coming in."

The president kicked off her shoes and ran quickly down the
hallway. Chasing after her, Kyouya asked.

"What do we do during club activities, anyway?"

256
 "You're still a provisional member, so it's a secret."

"Is that seriously what you're going to say while barging into
someone else's house?"

"Ah! I found Shii!"

The president announced in a loud voice while pointing to the

noodle slurping Shion-san who jumped in surprise.

The president did say she was looking for something interesting.

This beautiful girl who was eating instant noodles while wrapping
herself in a long winter coat in the middle of summer could probably
qualify as interesting.

"What is this? A pajama party?"

The president lifted up Shion-san's coat.

"Ah, no, this is..."

Shion-san quickly pulled her coat back, but Kyouya had seen a
glance of the thin, pink fabric underneath. It was probably the hem

257
of a nightgown. So she was wearing her sleepwear underneath the
coat, after all.

"Unbelievable! Call Megu and tell her to bring our pajamas!"

The president stood in a commanding pose and shouted her

orders. Unfortunately, her orders fell on deaf ears with Kirara-san
who stood idly with a blank look in her eyes.

The president cleared her throat with a cough, then took out her
own cell phone and, having no choice, made the call herself.

It looks like Megumi-chan was going to show up as well.

258
259
 Mini Knowledge

The GJ-Bu's Club Activities:

Unknown. Looks like it has something to do with looking for

something with Kirara's radar...?

Sign: To be continued.

Megumi: I brought everything we need for a sleepover!

260
 "I brought everything we need for a sleepover! I have enough for
everyone!"

Megumi-chan stepped off the taxi with more excitement than

usual. In her two hands, she held four duffel bags in all. It seemed
like they really were intent on staying the night. Kyouya's parents
weren't around anyway, and he didn't mind, but it was going to be
four girls alone in the same house as him. Kyouya was worried for a
different reason than what would usually be the case; they really
didn't see him as a guy after all.

Kyouya's room was occupied completely, everyone making

themselves at home.

The clubroom was many tens of tatami mats in size while his
measured a measly six. It was enough to make it feel quite cramped
for the five of them. The distance between Kyouya and the four girls
was also closer than usual, close enough to bump elbows. Kyouya
had to be careful not to let his mind wander.

In order to distract himself, Kyouya frequently found excuses to

leave the room, like serving the drinks and the snacks for everyone.
He worked diligently at the jobs that usually fell to Megumi-chan.

Right now, Kyouya was bringing back a plate with five glasses of
coke, and as he returned to the room—

261
 "Ah! Prez, what are you doing!?"

The president was sneakily rummaging through the drawers in the

corner of Kyouya's room.

"What am I doing? I'm looking through your house, of course.

What else are you supposed to do when you go to someone else's
place?"

Said the president, staying on all fours and turning only her head to
flash a grin.

"Please don't open someone else's drawers without asking. I'm fine
with it, but please ask for permission first."

"What, so you have something that you'd rather not have us see?"

"No, I don't. I said I don't have anything! Ahh, come on, stop
trampling all over people's privacy!"

"Shut up. You've been asking about our personal stuff non-stop
recently, so we have a right to know about you too!"

"Well, whatever."

262
 "This. Smells like photographs."

"Whoa, nice work Kirara! It's a graduation album!"

The president and Kirara raised the album above their heads as if
beholding a great treasure, then spun around in circles and fell to the
ground, beginning to slowly flip through the pages.

Shion-san and Megumi-chan, who hadn't been involved with the

search, also crowded around them, unable to contain their curiosity.

Kyouya sighed as he joined them.

"Whoa, you're so tiny! It would be great if Kyoro were still this size
today."

"You were so cute, Shinomiya-kun!"

"I'm pretty sure everyone's cute when they're in first grade."

"Whoa, in just six years you grew this much, pretty cheeky when
you're just a Kyoro!"

263
 "That's normal. I was always the average height in my class across
all of those years."

That was the end of the elementary school graduation album. Now
they moved to the middle school album.

"Ah, I was getting bullied around this time."

"Huh? Really?"

The president's hand stopped suddenly in the middle of turning the

page. Her expression became awkward and she shut the album with
a thud.

"Well um... Uh, sorry for looking at it without asking."

Kyouya was surprised that the president actually apologized.

He was just trying to give some context. Kyouya didn't think it

would be taken this seriously, so he desperately tried to follow up in
order to lighten the mood.

"No no, I say bullied, but it really wasn't that bad... There were just
some guys in my class that made me run errands and stuff."

264
 "Oh. B-Being an errand boy, huh? Y-Yeah, that does sound like
you."

Kyouya continued, trying to put the still stiff and awkward

president at ease.

"But Yokomizo went and talked to them for me, so it didn't last
long at all."

"Yokomizo? Who's that?"

"Hm? Have I not mentioned him before? He's my friend. We're in

the same class. We're not that close though."

"Ahh! That guy you talked about before! You have friends!?"

"Is that something to be surprised about!? At the very least, I'm

pretty sure I have more friends than you do."

Kyouya ignored the president, who was grinding her teeth, ready
to bite, and turned his attention to the side.

"By the way, what have you been doing over there, Shion-san?"

265
 Shion-san was crouched down near the bed. She had changed into
some casual clothes she borrowed from Megumi-chan, making her
look younger than usual, and she was facing the other way with her
butt sticking out. Shion-san jumped a little in surprise at the sound of
her name.

"Um, well... The average male high school student would be hiding
their secrets here. I read this in a book once."

"That's just a stereotype."

"No, but—"

"If I hide it in a place like that, my mom will find it right away."

"So you do have secrets! Did you hear that Megu? Boys are all
filthy after all!"

"Hmm? Is the floor underneath the bed dirty? Is there a lot of

dust? Should we sweep it up?"

"Prez, please don't corrupt my Megumi-chan. Shion-san, you too."

"I was simply following my academic curiosity and trying to see if I

could find evidence for Freud's theories, that's all."

266
 The location was different, but they all passed the time together
the same as they always have in the clubroom.

Kyouya felt a little overwhelmed by the unusual event of becoming

the topic of conversation, but he was glad that such a day would
come as well.

267
268
 Mini Knowledge

A Guy's Secret:

There is none. It is not hidden. Please don't look for it. At the very
least there's nothing under the bed.

Sign: To be continued.

Mao: It's the holy sword! I found the holy sword!

Kyouya: Ah, that's a souvenir from Kyoto.

269
 Night had fallen.

Kyouya sat restlessly in the living room corner. He crouched on the

sofa while wrapping his arms around his knees. The TV played a show
in the background, but Kyouya couldn't focus on watching it at all.

Everyone else was taking turns bathing.

During this time, Kyouya had to be more than 10 meters away from
the bathroom, not because the president ordered him to be, but as a
voluntary measure. The president was surprisingly unguarded about
these things.

Megumi-chan had proposed that "We should all go in together",

but just how large did she think Kyouya's bathroom was? Of course
that was impossible for the Shinomiyas' working class bathroom.

And so, the girls split up into groups of two.

Shion-san and Kirara-san went first, and now it was Megumi-chan

and the president's turn. The president won't let anyone other than
Megumi-chan wash her hair, so the pairings had to be like this.

During all this time, Kyouya had been waiting patiently while
staying outside of the 10 meter radius from the bathroom, but even

270
though he could now hear everyone's lively chatter from his room
upstairs, no one had come to tell him that they were finished using
the bath.
"Um..."

Kyouya walked upstairs towards his room and tried calling out to
the others from the other side of the closed door.

"What are you guys doing~?"

Kyouya called out in what even he himself thought was a ghostly,

creepy voice.

"If you don't answer, I'm going to cast a curse on you~"

He didn't get any replies, so Kyouya thought he would try

something else. But he could tell from the laughter in the room that
they hadn't noticed him at all.

"Hello? What are you guys doing in there?"

Kyouya opened the door to his own room and stepped inside.

"Ahh! Stupid Kyoro!"

Cried the president, who covered her body with a nearby pillow.

271
 The girls had all changed into their sleepwear. Shion-san was the
only one wearing her one piece nightgown, which was probably what
Kyouya had saw under her coat earlier in the day. The image of the
president's orange colored pajamas, Kirara-san's lemon yellow
pajamas, and Megumi-chan's pink pajamas was burned into Kyouya's
retinas.

"A-Ah, s-sorry!"

Kyouya quickly came to his senses and dashed out the door.

He slumped down to the floor, sitting with his back against the
wall.

"P-Please put something on! If you're dressed like that, then say
something!"

"What!? Knock before you enter, stupid!"

Kyouya held back the urge to protest that it was his own room in
the first place.

In this situation, Kyouya would probably be found guilty under

every conceivable justice system, whether in this world or any other
one.

272
 "We're having a pajama party! Would you like to join us,
Shinomiya-kun?"

It was Megumi-chan, offering an invitation with her angelic voice.

"Hey, Megu!"

The president responded with incredulity.

"This is obviously a no boys allowed situation!"

"But Onee-chan, aren't you always saying that Shinomiya-kun isn't

even a boy?

"Ugh..."

Kyouya wasn't sure how to feel. Which side was he supposed to

cheer for here? Kyouya noticed now how terrible it felt to be left out,
sitting by himself in the living room while hearing the voices of
everyone else happily chatting away.

He didn't want to be left out anymore.

273
 "Um... I guess I've always been, and always will be treated like an
animal then. Is that how it is?"

He spoke in a heartbroken voice.

"Arrrrgh!"

The president crossed her arms, deep in thought.

One more push.

Kyouya stretched out his neck so that his face could be seen
through the crack in the door, and tried his best to look like a
helpless puppy with big, watery eyes.

This step was very important.

After a little while, the president uncrossed her arms.

"Then you have to be in your pajamas too. Then I'll you in."

"I usually sleep in my T-shirt and boxers though."

"Then no way."

274
 "Aahhh! Wait, wait! I-I can get my dad's pajamas! Is that ok!?"

"One more thing."

"Just say the word! I'll do anything!"

"Go take a bath! No stinky sweat allowed!"

Kyouya couldn't contain his excitement. He sprinted to the bath

and washed his body with unparalleled speed.

275
276
 Form of the Chihuahua:

Kyouya's special move. A technique that can only be utilized by

peaceful defeatists that has been passed from generation to
generation. Kyouya learned this technique from his father to become
its rightful heir.

Sign: To be continued.

Mao: Ugh...

Kyouya: Sob sob.

277
 If it's a pajama party, then you've got to have girls' talk.

It was an activity that had a slightly different charm compared to

the usual conversations in the clubroom, where there was
permission to venture deeper into all sorts of topics.

"Hey, Megumi-chan."

Trying to take advantage of the atmosphere, Kyouya tried to

bluntly ask a question that usually wouldn't be accepted.

"What is it?"

"Megumi-chan, you're a first year like me, right? How come it feels
like you've been familiar with everyone in the club from the very
beginning? I know you've been acquainted with Shion-san for a long
time, but you and Kirara-san seemed to be on good terms already as
well."

"Ehehe. Actually, I've been sneaking into the club since I was in
middle school."

Megumi-chan stuck out her tongue with a mischievous expression,

as if she were caught playing a prank on someone.

278
 "Sneaking in...? Wait, from where?"

"The secret entrance at the back of the school. There's a hole in the
fence."

The president explained. She still held the pillow in front of her, the
same as before.

"Is that allowed?"

"What's with your reaction? You're supposed to be impressed

here. All the clubs use t, it's like a public secret we keep hidden from
the teachers. This way we can recruit promising members while
they're still in middle school."

"Now that you mention it, Mao was sneaking in while she was in
middle school, too."

Shion-san chimed in. Kyouya couldn't look her in the eye while she
was wearing her nightgown, so he glanced at her from the edge of
his peripheral vision.

"Oh yeah! That was the worst, that time with Prez. I was so happy
to finally become a full member when I got into high school; I worked
up all my courage and went to apply, and Prez was so surprised! Said

279
they thought I was still a long way from being in high school, told me
they thought I was in elementary school!"

"Um... So, about that Prez then..."

Kyouya inquired, filled with curiosity.

To Kyouya, there had only ever been one "Prez", but that didn't
seem to be the case for everyone else.

"We're talking about the previous club president."

Shion-san answered. It was just as Kyouya had assumed, as there

was occasionally talk of this previous president.

"Ah, that's right. Kyoro's the only one who doesn't know. Prez
graduated last year."

Seeing the president's nostalgic gaze, Kyouya couldn't help but feel
a slight sting inside.

Why did this sight cause him pain? While Kyouya was still
struggling with trying to figure out the reason, he continued asking
questions without putting much thought into them.

280
"What kind of person were they?"

"A very kind person."

Megumi-chan replied.

It must be a girl, Kyouya thought.

"A strong person."

Said the president.

Kyouya had to reconsider. Maybe it was a guy after all.

"Someone with a strong sense of self."

Shion-san added. That one could go either way.

"Smelled good."

It was Kirara-san's turn to contribute.

Kyouya couldn't decipher this description at all.

281
 "What? You wanna know what gender they were?"

Had it been written all over his face? Kyouya relented to the
president's questioning.

"Well, yeah."

Kyouya answered honestly, and stared intently at the president's

face, waiting for a reply. He was trying to extract information from
what kind of reaction she would have.

"You idiot."

After the president had a good, long, melodramatic laugh, she

quickly recovered and proudly proclaimed:

"When someone becomes the president, they have no gender!"

"Excuse me?"

"The president is the president, nothing more, nothing less."

"What the heck does that mean?"

282
 Kyouya continued to interrogate the president, who gave a sudden
string of indecipherable phrases.

"People are not born as the president, they must become the
president."

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Of course not. How could you, not being the president yourself,
ever hope to understand?"

The president stuck out chest proudly.

Kyouya couldn't really wrap his head around her words, but he
could tell that they were likely words of wisdom passed down from
the previous president.

And he could tell very clearly that Amatsuka Mao looked up and
respected the previous president, and that it wasn't about whether
they were a guy or a girl, that she idolized their leadership.

And that was why she tried so hard to be a good "president", even
with her frail body.

283
 But unfortunately, no matter what he still couldn't understand the
previous president's sayings.

"Hmph, for a Kyoro like you, you're a year and two months too
early to understand."

"What is that awkwardly specific and seemingly achievable amount

of time supposed to mean? Normally you'd say a hundred years or a
million years here to make me give up, right?"

"Shut up. I mean you'll understand if you try hard enough."

The president turned to face the other way.

Like the president said, someday he would understand, so Kyouya

decided not to worry about it for the time being.

284
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