On the way back, Sakurajima Mai was also seriously thinking about what Yukino Yukinoshita had just said.
Although she didn't know if the 'observation theory' she mentioned was correct, at this point, they could only treat a dead horse as if it were alive.
If there was a chance, they still had to try.
However, there was nothing she could do now.
She could only rely on Mochizuki in front of her.
Fortunately, the person in front of her intended to help her.
Passing through the park, they arrived at the apartment where Mochizuki lived.
Sakurajima Mai secretly thought to herself that living here was indeed nice.
Not only was the environment beautiful, and the surrounding infrastructure complete, but it was also only a ten-minute walk from the school.
Just as Mochizuki opened the door, a sweet voice came from within.
"Welcome home."
Sakurajima Mai looked at Mochizuki with a suspicious expression, her face seeming to say, 'Didn't you say you were the only one?'.
What was with this girl's voice?
Seeing this, Mochizuki also hadn't expected Shiina Mahiru to come so early to prepare dinner today.
Before they went in, he lowered his head and quietly explained the situation of 'sharing meals' with Shiina Mahiru.
Hearing "sharing meals," Sakurajima Mai's expression was strange, but she still entered the room.
Since she was already here.
Sakurajima Mai looked around, not expecting the room to be much cleaner and tidier than she had imagined.
She had originally prepared herself mentally, expecting to see a messy high school boy's room.
This was somewhat unexpected.
Presumably, all of this was thanks to the girl who was preparing dinner!
Sakurajima Mai finally turned her gaze to Shiina Mahiru, who was wearing an apron.
Thanks to Mochizuki, she had seen many rarely seen beauties today.
Hmm... another girl whose appearance was no less than her own.
Moreover, she didn't have the same fatal flaw as Yukinoshita just now.
At the dining table.
Mochizuki and Shiina Mahiru were talking about their test results...
Shiina Mahiru regretted being tied for first place again, and Mochizuki encouraged her to keep up the good work and defeat Yukinoshita next time.
On the other side, Sakurajima Mai, propping her face with one hand, was staring at the food in front of her, wondering what she was thinking.
This feeling of others not being able to see her, yet her being able to clearly hear their conversation, was strange.
The two of them seemed very familiar with each other.
Well, of course, otherwise, they wouldn't be at his home having dinner together.
Sakurajima Mai once again labeled Mochizuki as a scumbag and reminded herself to be more vigilant.
Mochizuki ate faster than usual today, seemingly worried that Sakurajima Mai had been waiting for too long.
Although she had eaten bread, it wasn't filling.
After dinner, Mochizuki said he was going back to his room to log into a new game.
Shiina Mahiru, on the other hand, still wanted to help with the dishes.
But she was stopped.
"Mahiru, you should go back and rest quickly."
"Bye-bye!"
"Huh..."
Just like that, Mochizuki pressed Shiina Mahiru's shoulder and escorted her to the door.
Shiina Mahiru at the door was clearly stunned for a moment, blinking her eyes twice.
Was she being politely shown out?
She felt as if Mochizuki was hiding some secret from her.
Hmm...
Shiina Mahiru puffed out her cheeks unhappily.
Hmph! It was all that new game's fault.
What was it called?
Oh right, a game called "Sword Art Online"!
It caused the time they spent together to become shorter again.
After returning home, she was going to see just how fun this game was.
...
Now, only Mochizuki and Sakurajima Mai were left in the room.
Turning around, Mochizuki saw Sakurajima Mai hugging her shoulders defensively.
"Hey, hey, what do you mean by this, Senpai? I won't do anything to you."
Sakurajima Mai pouted: "That's hard to say."
"You've waited a long time. I can only trouble you to eat the leftovers."
"That's fine."
Mochizuki got clean bowls and chopsticks and handed them to Sakurajima Mai.
"Thank you."
Sakurajima Mai took the chopsticks and began tasting the food in front of her with anticipation.
Although she wasn't very hungry yet.
But just watching others eat didn't feel good.
The fragrant food had been tempting her.
When Sakurajima Mai put the food into her mouth, she instantly understood why Mochizuki wanted to share meals with that girl.
"So... delicious."
As a celebrity, she had tasted many delicacies from various places.
Her standards for ordinary home cooking were quite high.
"How is it? Mahiru's cooking is good, right?"
Seeing Sakurajima Mai's expression, Mochizuki spoke proudly.
Sakurajima Mai nodded, then suddenly realized that she must have been stared at while she was eating just now.
"Yes, it's very delicious, much better than the dry bread from the vending machine, it's just...""What is it?"
"It's just, could you please not keep watching me eat..."
Sakurajima Mai turned her head and spoke shyly.
Having dinner together at the home of a boy younger than herself, she always felt a strange feeling in her heart.
"...What's there to be shy about?"
After that, Sakurajima Mai also became more ladylike while eating.
While Sakurajima Mai was eating, Mochizuki also told her the method he had thought of.
That was, when the new book was published in a few days, he would promote the new book using his own account while also mentioning Sakurajima Mai.
To see if this could awaken people's awareness of Sakurajima Mai.
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