As far as Chisato knew, Yukino, as the president of the Service Club, had taken on multiple roles for this event. It really felt like she was the true president of Soubu High School.
She not only coordinated activities between the two school campuses, but all team leaders from different event groups reported to her.
On top of that, she also managed the distribution of the sponsored prizes.
All in all, if there was any sort of unexpected situation on-site or even something a student wasn't sure how to deal with, the natural reflex was to go find her.
Just this morning alone, her name had been mentioned five times through the broadcasting station's external announcements.
Each time began with "Soubu High's Yukino-san…" followed by instructions on where she needed to go to assist.
It was the very definition of "the capable are given more work."
Reportedly, she had arrived at school a little past six in the morning to help the teachers direct students onto the buses and tally attendance.
Honestly, considering how weak her physical stamina was, it was impressive she had taken on so much.
That thought made Chisato sigh inwardly.
By the way, the reason he knew all of that so clearly was thanks to subtle hints he'd picked up during the meeting.
He'd eavesdropped and pieced the information together.
As for why he bothered gathering that intel—it was probably just boredom.
He couldn't just sit silently in a meeting the whole time, so he figured he should speak up now and then to show he was paying attention.
"You've worked hard, Yukinoshita-san. Be sure to rest well after the event."
"Mm. You too."
Their exchange was brief. They locked eyes, nodded politely after speaking, and it all felt very formal and natural.
However, Shiromeguri Meguri watched them with a puzzled frown.
Something felt off, but she couldn't quite pinpoint what it was or where the sense of wrongness came from.
How odd.
Chisato arrived at the campus shop—and true to the fact that this was a university, the store's size was nearly three times that of his high school's.
It looked more like a small supermarket.
In addition to boxed lunches, bread, and snacks, it also sold sanitary pads, masks, laundry detergent, soap, and other daily necessities.
This area even had a row of other shops: a bookstore, a café, and a pool hall, among others.
Given the large number of students who lived in the dorms, all of this seemed perfectly reasonable.
If he were at his own school right now, Chisato would have definitely headed to Kazusa's former territory—the First Music Room—to spend his lunch break with his cute underclassman, Hitori.
But now he was at Minejo University, a place he was visiting for the first time, and wasn't familiar with.
His only male friend in the school, Fukube Satoshi, was currently spending time with his childhood sweetheart girlfriend, so Chisato didn't want to play the third wheel.
After some thought, Chisato decided to return to the broadcasting room.
Of course, he didn't return empty-handed. He carried a mixed sushi set, a pineapple bun, two hot drinks, and some snacks he had just bought from the store.
"Chisato-senpai…"
Seeing Chisato return, Iroha was a bit surprised. But once she noticed what he was carrying and understood his intention, she smiled happily.
"Perfect timing—I really love pineapple buns."
"That's great to hear."
Normally, eating inside a broadcasting or recording studio would be a bad idea.
Food crumbs could fall into the equipment and be hard to clean, and drink spills could cause electrical shorts.
But Minejo University's recording room didn't seem too worried about that.
There was even a trash bin near the entrance, already filled with snack wrappers when they arrived.
With that in mind, Chisato and Iroha felt no hesitation. They moved away from the broadcasting equipment, sat on the sofa nearby, and shared lunch together.
They chatted and laughed, and Chisato found his mood gradually relaxing. It turned out to be a rather peaceful lunch break.
In the afternoon, Yui returned and apologized. Due to a staff shortage at the event site, she'd been temporarily assigned to help out there.
Strictly speaking, the activity committee was under the jurisdiction of the student council.
Considering this was an unprecedented joint-campus event, it wasn't surprising that there'd be last-minute adjustments. It was understandable and unavoidable.
Neither Iroha nor Chisato complained—in fact, they smiled and reassured Yui, easing her mind so she could head off to her new assignment without worry.
"So that means… it's just the two of us now, Senpai."
Iroha tilted her head playfully and said this to Chisato.
In the past, she would probably have already leaned in close, letting her scent waft toward him while using a sweet voice to stir his heart.
But this time, there was no sign of that behavior. She sat properly in her seat.
After saying that line, she didn't make any further gestures, simply smiling as she organized the announcements she was about to read.
"Like the friendship of gentlemen, plain as water"—that might be too old-fashioned a phrase, but that's the kind of vibe she gave off now.
It was obvious that Iroha was only half-joking. To be honest, it greatly relieved the pressure on Chisato.
In a way, it also meant his guard was down.
"Yeah. It's been a while since it's just the two of us, huh."
Chisato stretched his arms behind his head and replied in an equally relaxed tone.
"Hehe, Senpai, your memory's so bad. We were just in a similar situation not long ago—at your house."
"Ah… right."
"Maybe the AC's too warm, huh? You look like you're about to fall asleep."
"The original idea wasn't there, but the backrest on this chair really is comfy."
"There's about half an hour left of the lunch break. You can take a quick nap if you want, I'll wake you up when it's time."
"I appreciate the thought, but since you keep calling me 'Senpai,' I can't just dump everything on you. Let me handle the press release. Go take a break on the sofa."
"Are you sure? I won't hold back then."
"Go on already."
"Thanks a ton."
Iroha took off her headphones, left everything in Chisato's hands, stretched with a catlike yawn, and lounged on the sofa, watching Chisato work with a gaze that bordered on possessive.
But after staring for a short while, she took a deep breath, retracted her gaze, and returned to her harmless, innocent expression, leaning back and closing her eyes slightly.
At least for now, the atmosphere in this small broadcasting room could still be described as peaceful and harmonious.
___
Iroha becomes a tad bit more dangerous here..
_______
50 advanced chapters on p@t re on (.) com/SenatusTheta
_______
If any of you noticed an error, please point it out in comments!