"We'll be in the same group for the exam, but the subjects we're good at and not good at overlap, don't they? Because of that it feels kind of troublesome, so I thought I'd ask for your opinions." Miyake spoke up.
Although the two of them had successfully been paired, in reality there wasn't much difference in their academic level.
And because the subjects they were good at and bad at overlapped so much, neither of them could really help the other.
If they wanted to raise everyone's scores, then their study group would have to expand the range of subjects covered in the lessons.
But if they increased the range of review, the workload of the study group would grow enormously. And since there were quite a lot of people, the efficiency would definitely take a hit.
"Also, can I not take part in the study group?"
At that moment, Hasebe Haruka suddenly spoke up.
"I probably shouldn't join, right? I don't really get along with Ichihashi-san and the others either."
'Ichihashi? Who's that? Do we actually have someone like that in our class?'
Right then, Saiki was racking his brain to match the name Ichihashi to some face, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't.
"Besides, a study group with a whole bunch of people doesn't really suit me."
"But the parts you two aren't good at are really similar. If you just go into the finals like this, even if your total score passes, you might end up below the required minimum of sixty in some subjects."
Suzune immediately said this with a very serious expression.
"That's true, but even so, this method still doesn't suit me. Sorry, Miya-chan."
The way Hasebe said it, "Miya-chan" sounded like her own special nickname for Miyake. Then she just turned on her heel and left.
"Sorry, but if I'm surrounded only by girls, I can't focus on studying either. I won't be joining the study group."
Seeing his partner leave, Miyake also expressed his own thoughts to Suzune and Hirata Yousuke.
If only Yamauchi had half as much awareness as he does.
[What do we do now? If only there were someone else who could tutor just the two of them separately.]
Suzune's mind was spinning rapidly as she recalled which subjects Miyake and Hasebe were weak in.
Suddenly, Saiki felt an ominous premonition. He quickly turned, wanting to get out of there.
But right then, Suzune's eyes shifted to his back.
"Saiki-kun, if I remember right, you were pretty good at this subject before, weren't you?"
Back when she organized the last study group, Horikita had personally prepared practice questions. And Saiki, due to various accidents, had ended up solving several of the really difficult ones. Because of that, Horikita had always assumed he was especially good at those subjects.
And as luck would have it, those were exactly the subjects Miyake and Hasebe struggled with.
'Damn it, I really got caught after all?!'
Saiki complained silently, but in the end could only turn back around.
"Average."
"But I remember you solved those ultra-hard problems before. If I leave the two of them with you, it should be more than enough, right?"
"Eh? Saiki, you're actually that amazing?"
Karuizawa, who was standing nearby, blinked her eyes wide in surprise.
"I never agreed to this…"
"Then it's settled, Saiki-kun. I'll leave them to you, thank you for your hard work."
Horikita gave him no chance to refuse and simply declared it.
"Conveniently, the two of them are also strong in the subjects you're not so great at. You'll complement each other."
"..."
Saiki was exasperated. High school material was child's play for him. He always intentionally kept certain subjects at lower scores just to make sure his overall grades landed squarely in the middle of the class.
Yet somehow, that precaution ended up dragging him into this mess.
"Is that so? If it's Saiki-kun, then I'm fine with it too. I'll trouble you for a while then. I'll let Hasebe-san know later."
Miyake earnestly told Saiki this.
'Hey, hey, hey! I never agreed to anything from the start!' Saiki screamed in his heart, but it was already pointless. Miyake had left the classroom.
"Also, it seems like both Miyake-kun and Hasebe-san are the solitary type. I'm not very reassured, and Saiki-kun, you're not exactly the social kind either."
As Horikita spoke, she rubbed her chin with her finger, as though thinking, before shifting her gaze to Ayanokoji beside her.
"Ayanokoji, can I trouble you to assist Saiki-kun?"
"Assist?"
"You and Saiki have a pretty good relationship, right? Negotiating with Miyake-kun or Hasebe-san might be difficult, but if you're in between, communication with us should go more smoothly." Horikita said this very seriously.
'You're seriously asking this guy to handle communication? Really? And why can't I ever get away from him?!'
Saiki glanced sideways at Ayanokoji. The latter also glanced back at him.
"Yeah."
———
The next day after school, Saiki went to the school café, just as he and the others had agreed.
Hasebe, Miyake, and Ayanokoji were already there ahead of him.
Setting aside the ever-pretending Ayanokoji, both Hasebe and Miyake weren't very talkative types. Actually, their compatibility with Saiki wasn't bad, and they didn't really cause any problems.
But the problem wasn't with them.
At that moment, there were some uninvited guests in the café.
"Saiki! I ordered your favorite coffee pudding in advance!" Karuizawa waved happily when she saw him arrive.
"Why are you here?" Saiki looked at her in confusion. At this table, the only open seat left was next to her. Whether she left it empty on purpose, or everyone else just assumed he'd sit there, he couldn't tell.
But according to the original plan, today's study group should've been just him, Ayanokoji, Miyake, and Hasebe.
'Guess I have no choice but to sit there.'
Saiki sighed inwardly, his gaze drawn to the pudding, and eventually sat down beside Karuizawa.
'It's not that I let myself be bought off so easily by pudding, okay? There just weren't any other seats!'
"Come on! We're in the same group, right? And my grades are bad too, so I want to do extra study!"
Karuizawa smiled brightly at him.
Saiki, a little helpless, shifted his gaze across the table, Sato Maya was sitting right there.
"Why are you here too?"
"Because I'm partnered with Ayanokoji-kun! Yesterday I overheard that he was going to have a study group with you, Saiki-kun, so as his partner of course I had to come too!" Sato Maya beamed as she said this.
"Please take care of me!"
Even as she said that, her eyes flicked toward Karuizawa.
Karuizawa smiled right back at her.
[Obviously, I only came here because of Saiki!]
[Obviously, I only joined because of Saiki!]
Their inner voices were practically identical.
Saiki sighed. He knew already, this study group was going to be nothing but trouble for him.
And to make matters worse, the unexpected guests didn't end there.
[Saiki-kun… is having a study group…]
[I didn't expect Karuizawa-san and Sato-san… they both came today too… Did Saiki-kun invite them? …No… it must've been their own idea…]
[I want to join too… but I don't have the courage to say it directly to Saiki-kun… so I can only follow along…]
That voice belonged to Sakura Airi.
Right then, she was sitting at the next table over from Saiki and the others.
Even without telepathy, Saiki would have noticed her, since she kept glancing over at them again and again.
[That's Sakura, right? Has she been trailing us all this time?]
Not only Saiki, but Ayanokoji with his razor-sharp perception had also noticed her.
Previously, Sakura had been tormented by a stalker. And now, in a way, she herself had turned into something not so different.
[I want to join the study group with Saiki-kun… but I don't have the guts to say it…]
Saiki kept hearing Sakura's inner voice. After hesitating for a moment, he sighed, stood up from his seat, and walked over to where she was.
"So you're here, Sakura."
"Eh… eh?"
Sakura jumped, looking up at him nervously. She never imagined he would notice her right away.
"W-what a coincidence, Saiki-kun…"
"Really just a coincidence?" Saiki looked at her.
"It really is a coincidence!" Sakura nodded frantically.
"But I saw you keep turning your head this way…"
"Um… sorry…" Her lie exposed, Sakura scratched her head awkwardly.
"You want to join our study group, don't you?" Saiki asked her directly.
'If I don't say it outright, she'll probably just keep trailing after us. Better to make it clear now, instead of her tagging along behind and causing even more trouble.'
"I… why would Saiki-kun ask that?"
"Because you're carrying your school bag and brought books. You must've come here for study, right?"
"Ah…"
Sakura hugged her bag tightly, embarrassed.
[Of course I want to… I definitely want to join… but I've never even spoken to the others…]
Her every movement screamed that she wanted to join, but she still couldn't bring herself to say it aloud.
After all, besides Saiki, she hadn't really spoken a single word to anyone else.
She opened her mouth slightly, as though to say something, but no sound came out.
"Aside from Sato and Karuizawa, the others in the group are also the solitary type. It should be fine."
Luckily, with telepathy, Saiki knew exactly what Sakura was thinking.
He also had to admit, she had changed quite a bit from before. The old Sakura would never have had the nerve to even come to such a crowded place.
But here she was now, actually showing up.
In a sense… it was a huge step forward.
[T/N: I am concluding it here because someone else is already translating it, and they started before me. When I checked that story it was abandoned but they continued it recently. Well, no problem, I will be back with a new series. It will either be a Honkai or Naruto(with gender-bent Sasuke as single Female Lead. {Because I am curious.}) fanfic. Let me know if you want any one in particular. Have a great read~]
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