Nymph walked out of Jhin's bedroom the next morning, her face glowing with a ruddy flush, whereas Jhin hadn't been seen coming out of his room for the entire two days of the weekend.
It was a new week. Eriri had already informed Jhin via [momotalk] that the doujinshi they collaborated on had received a great response at the convention, even requiring two reprints midway through.
At the same time, many fans left comments under the "Kashiwagi Eri" account. They were all very curious about who the other author, "Jhin," was, as they had never heard of this name before.
This was the name Jhin had provided at Eriri's insistence. Initially, he wanted to use the goofy handle "Not Updating in the Morning," but unfortunately, Eriri vetoed it, claiming it was completely unsuitable for an author's name. Jhin, too lazy to come up with another online handle, simply told her to use the character "Jhin" directly.
"Good morning, Jhin." Eriri pushed open the classroom door and proactively greeted Jhin.
"Good morning, Eriri."
"Why didn't you come out at all during the weekend?"
Faced with Eriri's question, Jhin felt a dull ache in his kidneys, yet he kept a nonchalant expression on his face. "It's rare that I just wanted to lie in bed and do nothing, so I spent two days like that."
"How rare. To think you'd have times like that too."
"Hey, hey. I'm a normal person after all; of course I get lazy."
"Pity. I wanted to chat with you about this week's anime."
"Let's talk about that after I go back and watch it. Don't spoil it for me."
"I wouldn't do something that wicked."
Kato Megumi had just walked into the classroom when the sharp-eyed Jhin spotted her. He immediately waved his hand to greet her. "Morning, Megumi."
"Good morning, Jhin." Kato Megumi wasn't quite used to this form of address yet and reacted half a beat slower, but she still addressed him as they had previously agreed.
"Since when are you and Kato-san on such good terms?" Eriri's curious gaze darted back and forth between the two.
"Megumi, can I talk about your situation?"
"No problem."
Having obtained Kato Megumi's consent, Jhin roughly explained that he was adopting a method to make Kato Megumi more conspicuous to solve her problem of sparse presence.
"I wasn't wrong, was I? Eriri noticed you immediately."
"Mn." Kato Megumi nodded, her emotions unreadable, and walked back to her seat.
Strange. Shouldn't she be happy that the method worked? Why does she look a bit angry?
Jhin looked Kato Megumi up and down, and only then did he realize she was wearing a pink butterfly hair clip on her head.
So it was because I didn't notice that change of hers...
Jhin: "Megumi, the hair clip. It's very cute."
Kato Megumi: "Thank you. 「^o^」"
She even sent a kaomoji. She shouldn't be angry anymore, right?
Among girls, the hardest person to read emotions from was undoubtedly Kato Megumi. Jhin couldn't guarantee he could guess what kind of mood she was in right now.
Kasumigaoka Utaha witnessed the relationship between Kato Megumi, Eriri, and Jhin suddenly take a giant leap forward. She secretly marveled in her heart: As expected of a two-timing scumbag; he can get on good terms with girls so quickly.
Jhin-san... no, Scum-kun's relationship with Eriri has improved, probably because he helped her finish the doujinshi. According to news on the internet, it seems "Kashiwagi Eri's" book this time was exceptionally outstanding. Even the plot issues that were constantly criticized have seen great improvement, and the visual impact is much stronger.
These changes must have... definitely been done by Scum-kun. That author named "Jhin" is undoubtedly him. As expected of me; I saw his talent in writing long ago. Pity he's a piece of scum.
"Achoo!" Jhin rubbed his itchy nose, completely unaware that Kasumigaoka Utaha was calling him "Scum-kun" in her heart.
The girls walking into the classroom one after another looked with astonishment at Eriri, who was chatting happily with Jhin. After spending some time together, they all knew that Eriri wasn't a "fake tsundere" like Michiru Matsushima; she was one hundred percent pure tsundere. For her to be chatting openly with Jhin meant that what happened over the past few days was definitely not as simple as just helping out.
Kasumigaoka Utaha couldn't suppress her curiosity and proactively messaged Eriri after class.
Kasumigaoka Utaha: "Sawamura-san, I heard your book was a huge success this time."
Eriri: "Heh heh, now you know how amazing I am. Hurry up and give me your autograph."
Kasumigaoka Utaha: "So Kashiwagi Eri-sensei wants the autograph of a popular author like me that much? Couldn't you just tell me directly that you wanted it?"
Eriri: "Popular author? More like an infuriating author!"
Kasumigaoka Utaha: "Wasn't it only because you had Jhin-san's help that the book sold well this time? Don't mistake someone else's ability for your own."
Eriri: "I don't need you to remind me. I know that very well. Do you have anything else? You didn't just come to pick a fight, did you?"
Kasumigaoka Utaha: "I'm just curious what exactly Jhin-san did during these four days to make your relationship become so good."
Eriri: "Why? You want to get on good terms with Jhin too?"
Kasumigaoka Utaha: "Why don't you take a guess?"
Eriri: "Tch. So mysterious. I can't be bothered to talk too much with a black-hearted woman like you."
After their relationship had thawed, and as old rivals who knew each other inside out, there was no need to hide this sort of thing. Eriri roughly recounted the events of the past few days, deliberately omitting the parts that embarrassed her, such as being rejected by Jhin when asking to learn painting, or being carried to bed by him.
Kasumigaoka Utaha: "So that's how it is."
Kasumigaoka Utaha asked herself honestly: if she were in Eriri's shoes and received such unsparing help from Jhin, she would probably have the same attitude towards him.
In any case, Sawamura-san and I are alumni from two schools. Out of concern for a fellow alumna, I should remind her. Let her stay away from Scum-kun so she doesn't get ruined by him.
Directly saying Jhin was a cheating scumbag definitely wouldn't work. Kasumigaoka Utaha could only choose a more euphemistic approach.
Kasumigaoka Utaha: "Sawamura-san, I must remind you. It is certainly a good thing to have a fellow enthusiast help you like this, but don't forget that he has a girlfriend. You and Jhin-san are a bit too close; don't let her think you're trying to steal him away."
Eriri: "Naggy. Of course I know that kind of thing."
Is my interaction with Jhin that intimate?
Eriri felt she was just purely looking for him to chat about anime, which wasn't much different from before. The only difference was that before, Jhin looked for her to chat, and now she proactively looked for Jhin.
But since that Kasumigaoka Utaha said so, it means it looks about the same to others, right? I'd better keep a little distance from Jhin. Don't let Komine-san misunderstand.
____
New Story: ZZZ: Mr. Ethereal Does Not Want to See a Tragedy
🔥We're handing out that '30% bonus' that makes your wallet smile. 😄
✅ Get immediate access to 40 early chapters for all stories.
✅ Enjoy exclusive material and special announcements!
Help us unlock these community rewards:
🎯 100 Powerstones = +1 Bonus Chapter for everyone
🚀 140 MEMBERS = +5 extra chapters across ALL STORIES!
👻 P - Walnutchan