Miyako Amane already thought it was odd that Chabashira-sensei wanted to see both of them.
But what came next was even stranger.
In a rather mysterious manner, Chabashira-sensei first had Horikita enter the tea room for a private conversation.
Then she told Amane to wait outside.
Was there something Chabashira-sensei needed to discuss alone with Horikita?
Or perhaps there were matters that required Amane's absence.
But those questions could wait for now.
The most urgent matter at hand was…
"Huh? What a cute girl! Were you called here by Sae-chan too?"
Just as Amane started pondering what to have for dinner, a lively, adorable voice sounded from behind her.
"I was asked to come by Chabashira-sensei. May I ask who you are…?"
"I'm Hoshinomiya Chie, the homeroom teacher for Class B!"
Homeroom teacher?
Looking at Hoshinomiya's appearance, then thinking about Chabashira-sensei—Hoshinomiya looked more like a student than anything!
"It's nice to meet you, Hoshinomiya-sensei. I'm Miyako Amane from Class D, first year. Pleased to make your acquaintance…"
As soon as Amane finished speaking, she noticed Hoshinomiya scrutinizing her closely.
She even circled around Amane once.
"Sae-chan's taste is getting more and more particular. First a handsome boy, and now a cute girl? Your face is just adorable~ Poke, poke~ So soft, and such a wonderful texture!!! Your figure is great too. I'm really jealous of Sae-chan~"
Hoshinomiya-sensei spoke with an envious expression.
Wait.
What exactly are you jealous of?!
"Um… Hoshinomiya-sensei, do you happen to know why Chabashira-sensei called us here for separate talks?"
How could the homeroom teacher of Class B know about Class D's affairs?
So Amane didn't really expect an answer from Hoshinomiya. She just wanted to steer the conversation away from this topic.
This teacher was a bit too overly familiar—even more so than Amane herself, which was saying something.
"Don't worry, Sae-chan wouldn't do anything inappropriate to her students. But this time, she's going after both boys and girls? Has Sae-chan been lonely for too long?"
Hoshinomiya-sensei rested her chin in her hands and sighed with emotion.
Amane's eyes widened instantly.
She hadn't reacted much to the first part of Hoshinomiya's words, but when she heard the second half—she immediately lost her composure.
What did she mean by "going after both boys and girls"?!
Bam bam bam!!!
Amane began frantically pounding on the tea room door.
"H-Hey, Miyako-san, if you do that, Sae-chan will get angry!" Hoshinomiya-sensei seemed somewhat afraid of an angry Chabashira and hurriedly tried to persuade Amane.
But Amane's mind was already flooded with images that would get censored.
Instead, she only intensified her efforts, doubling her knocking speed.
"Open up, open up! Chabashira-sensei, open the door!!! Give me back my Suzune!!!"
"What's all the noise? We're almost done here, wait quietly!"
An angry command came from inside the tea room.
Almost done?
How could that be?
Amane grabbed the doorknob and tried to twist it open.
"What the—why is it locked?! You're definitely… doing that to a student, aren't you? You're going down the path of a corrupt teacher with no return!!!"
Amane took two steps back, crouching slightly.
"M-Miyako-san, you couldn't possibly be planning to—dame! You can't kick the door down!"
"Hoshinomiya-sensei, I can't worry about that right now. Also, if you're going to try to hold me back, could you please hold me in the right place?"
Amane pointed at the two hands on her chest.
"Sorry, I was trying to hold you by the waist earlier, but I panicked and grabbed the wrong spot. Please, you have to forgive me!"
Hoshinomiya-sensei clasped her hands together and playfully stuck out her tongue.
So cute.
Wait.
Horikita was still in there.
"Please step aside, Hoshinomiya-sensei."
Seeing that Amane was determined to kick the door, Hoshinomiya thought for a moment, then leaned in and whispered in Amane's ear, "This door is custom-made, you know. I heard it's quite expensive."
"Kicking the door would be against school rules anyway. I'll just knock a bit more."
Amane's attitude did a complete 180.
Just as she was about to start knocking again, everything went dark before her eyes.
Then something soft pressed against her head, pushing her back several steps.
"You're too loud. Now it's your turn. Come with me." Chabashira-sensei glared fiercely at Amane.
Inside, Horikita had been on the verge of agreeing to her request, but Amane's perfectly timed shouting had thrown Horikita back into indecision.
Left with no choice, Chabashira could only tell Horikita to think it over and called the noisy idiot inside for a talk.
"Huh? Where's Suzune?"
The moment she entered the room and saw Horikita wasn't there, Amane immediately asked anxiously.
"Relax, she's not lost. Horikita is in the back, thinking things over. Right now, you just need to answer my questions normally."
"Sae-chan, can I join in too?"
"What do you think?"
"Of course you can!"
Slam.
The tea room door shut abruptly, leaving Hoshinomiya-sensei alone and bewildered outside.
"That awful Sae-chan!!! Hmph, I won't take you to the next mixer!" Hoshinomiya-sensei stormed back to the staff room in a huff.
"Now then, let's talk about you, Miyako-san…"
"Can I have some tea?"
"…"
Chabashira-sensei stared speechlessly as Amane picked up the teapot and poured herself a cup.
Weren't you already helping yourself?
"Would you like some tea, Chabashira-sensei?"
"Thank you."
Just as Chabashira picked up her teacup, she saw Amane set the teapot down.
The two looked at each other.
Amane blinked a few times, then her face turned slightly flushed.
"Hehe, don't look at me like that, Chabashira-sensei~"
"…"
Chabashira was truly at a loss for words with Amane.
Her original target had been Horikita. Amane, this person whose depths she couldn't fathom, wasn't part of the plan.
But she was also curious about Amane's interview evaluation, so she had called her in as well.
The problem was, Chabashira couldn't see even the slightest resemblance between the girl in front of her and the nearly perfect, outstanding abilities described on the interview record.
Were these even the same person?
Chabashira was starting to suspect that the Amane before her was someone who had taken another's place to enroll.
"Miyako-san, let's discuss your pre-enrollment interview, shall we?"
At the mention of this, Amane's gaze shifted uneasily.
"Of course, Chabashira-sensei. Please go ahead."
Chabashira noticed that Amane's tone, pitch, and even her aura were shifting—to an almost unbelievable degree.
"During your entrance interview, the interviewer rated you exceptionally highly. In fact, your comprehensive abilities were ranked first among all first-year students. So why, Miyako-san, were you placed in Class D?"
Chabashira-sensei's question cut straight to the heart.
She wanted to see how Amane felt about being labeled defective despite such outstanding evaluations.
"Because I'm trash, of course. Isn't it only natural for trash students to gather under a trash teacher? Right, Chabashira-sensei?"
Amane smiled, her gaze teasing as she watched Chabashira Sae's face turn bright red with anger.
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.