Chapter 255: Biri Biri
Saturday, the cultural festival of Shuchiin Academy's junior high school officially began. Since it only lasted one day, perhaps there would not be enough time to experience everything.
Because the junior high and senior high divisions were not far apart, Shirogane Miyuki had arranged to meet at the senior high school gate, using it as the gathering point.
On Saturday morning, after finishing his jog, Sakurai Saki went home to shower, then changed clothes and rode his bicycle toward school.
For an Esper like him, training hardly improved his physical strength, but persevering in doing things he disliked was a way to prove the strength of his willpower. Whether in studying or jogging, the reason Sakurai Saki could keep at it for so long also lay in this point.
Even if he had to live like an ordinary monkey, he had to become the best among them. Self-discipline was one of the traits proving excellence.
It seemed it had been a long time since his abilities were mentioned. Besides the always-active "Future Diary," his second ability each day was still random. But for some reason, the side effects of his power had greatly diminished, almost no longer producing serious negative effects.
[Today's superpower: Railgun]
[Effect: Electricity discharge, can freely adjust intensity]
[Side effect: Unable to use certain electronic devices]
So which devices would be affected?
Sakurai Saki stood in front of the vending machine at the school gate, arms crossed, face full of displeasure.
Sakurai: ( ｡ •̀ ᴖ •́ ｡ )
"Could it be that I have a grudge with vending machines?"—he couldn't help but think.
Because, this wasn't the first time.
Just now, he had another 1000 yen bill swallowed. Though the money wasn't much, the feeling was extremely unpleasant!
Sakurai Saki sighed.
Then took a deep breath.
The very next second, he delivered a straight kick to the vending machine!
"Boom——!"
After the loud noise, came a thud.
Along with the vending machine's miserable cry, a can of coffee fell out, and besides the coffee, change also dropped from the change slot.
Just as Sakurai Saki was rejoicing, the vending machine's jackpot sound effect also rang.
It could be called double happiness arriving!
"Ding ding ding~~"
An Esper will not stumble twice in the same place!
One minute later.
Shirogane Miyuki saw Sakurai Saki squatting in front of the vending machine, holding a coffee can, his whole body emanating Jojo-like aura.
Sakurai: <(￣^￣)>
"What's this?"
"I want to expel vending machines from Japan! Not leaving a single one in this country!"
"Come on. Do you know how many vending machines there are in Japan? No less than 4 million."
"Yare yare daze." Sakurai Saki sighed.
"Hm? This jackpot button, why don't you press it? Sakurai, you're really lucky."
Sakurai Saki very much wanted to say, he had already pressed it dozens of times, but it hadn't worked at all!
"Haven't decided what to drink yet, consider it a gift to you."
…That was a lie!
"You're really generous, but I heard sharing luck with others will decrease your own fortune." Though Shirogane Miyuki said that, he still stepped in front of the vending machine, choosing a canned coffee, the same type as Sakurai Saki's.
"This black coffee, though the taste isn't very good, its awakening effect is quite strong." Shirogane Miyuki picked up the can that fell from the slot, looking puzzled at Sakurai Saki's displeased face: "What's wrong? You look like you just got beaten up by the vending machine."
"Sometimes people just cannot help but believe in strange things." Sakurai Saki stood up.
An Esper had never picked a fight with a vending machine, let alone could he win.
It seemed today he would not be able to buy drinks.
૮(˶╥︿╥)ა
...
The two finished drinking their coffee, then headed toward the junior high division.
Today, Secretary Fujiwara went with her younger sister to the junior high, so she didn't have to accompany the two of them, but they would probably meet later. Fujiwara Chika, with her pink hair and black ribbon, was very easy to recognize—one glance in the crowd and she stood out right away, like a husky strayed into a pack of wolves, completely out of place.
Chika: ૮₍´｡ᵔ ꈊ ᵔ｡`₎ა
"Shirogane, your outfit looks pretty good today."
"Kei-chan bought it for me, she said the clothes I usually wear are too old-fashioned."
"Tell me about it."
"Forget it, no need, they were just clothes I bought back in junior high, outdated already."
"You mean those long-sleeved shirts with weird foreign letters and skulls on them?"
"..."
"Looks like Kei-chan stopped your self-destructive behavior, I can truly feel relieved now." Sakurai Saki gently placed his hand on his chest, slowly exhaling.
If Shirogane Miyuki wore his junior high clothes, looking like some chuunibyou kid, and came with him to the junior high cultural festival, Sakurai Saki would definitely have died of embarrassment.
He suffered from secondhand embarrassment—and in a severe way too!
"Don't go feeling relieved over someone else's sister!" Shirogane Miyuki spat back sarcastically.
"I also see Kei-chan as my little sister, don't go stripping away my 'foster brother' title so casually, alright?"
"Feels like you're going to make a move on my sister."
"You're overthinking, Hayasaka and I are passionately in love."
"…Did you tell her you were going out today?"
Sakurai Saki paused to think for a moment, then caught up a few seconds later, "You think once a boy and girl fall in love, they have to report every single schedule to each other?"
"Isn't that so?"
"Of course not, sometimes you have to leave a bit of personal space."
"So this time, did you tell her or not?"
"Yes. This morning while I was in bed I mentioned it, but she was still asleep, not sure if she heard it clearly."
Sakurai: (˵ ¬ᴗ¬˵)
Shirogane: (눈_눈)
"Stop, stop! I told you to stop!" Shirogane Miyuki was truly speechless; this guy could twist any topic into showing off his love life. That must be some kind of talent too, right?
"Weren't you the one who asked first?"
"Enough already, we're here at the junior high."
Sakurai Saki fell silent, still wearing that radiant, sunshine-like smile as usual.
Shirogane Miyuki glanced at his face several times, inwardly sighing at Sakurai Saki's overwhelming ability to conceal his true expressions.
"Sakurai-senpai!!! Welcome to the cultural festival!" A girl handing out flyers at the gate recognized Sakurai Saki.
"Thanks." Sakurai Saki took the flyer from her.
The two of them stepped into the school grounds together.
The junior high campus was by no means small, no less than the senior high.
Along the way, the chatter didn't cease.
"The student council president Shirogane of the high school division and General Affairs Sakurai!! Wow, it really is the two of them!"
"The two people I admire the most are walking around the cultural festival together!"
"I'm finished."
'Finished with what?' Sakurai Saki wanted to spit out that line inside, but outwardly he kept smiling.
Only when they reached a less crowded spot did he finally retract that smile.
"Smiling too much, my mouth's getting a bit stiff."
"…Then stop wearing that social mask, Sakurai, aren't you just tormenting yourself?" Shirogane Miyuki said.
"We're so popular here in the junior high, of course we have to maintain a good image. After all, Kei-chan is a member of the student council here too."
His words made Shirogane Miyuki break out in cold sweat inside.
As an older brother, to care less about his own sister than an outsider—what an extreme failure.
"Alright, over there is Kei-chan's class shop with her friends, I see it." Sakurai Saki pointed toward the nearby food stall street.
A row of mock food stands: takoyaki, taiyaki, fried chicken…
"Yeah, let's head over."