"Huh? Are you inviting me?"
Akira was stunned. Such a proactive invitation was uncommon.
After all, he usually just quietly read books at his seat or left the academy after school, at most chatting with Wakana and Marin.
They were university students, after all.
But being invited by classmates was still a rare occurrence.
Akira wasn't being coy. He lightly patted Murakami's shoulder and said, "Then let's go."
"Akira-kun, you're much easier to talk to than usual."
Murakami Kouki said this, feeling that Akira wasn't awkward and was easy to get along with.
"Ah, I'm usually just studying, that's all," Akira explained. "I'm really sorry if I've given everyone the impression of being a loner."
Akira smiled, bowed slightly, and joked, "Murakami-kun, you absolutely have to explain for me in class."
Murakami Kouki laughed heartily, feeling even more at ease with Akira.
"Kashiwagi!"
Murakami arrived at the convenience store and waved to the two people waiting there.
"Oh, it's Akira-kun."
Kashiwagi Shiki said this with curiosity, not showing any dislike toward an unfamiliar person.
"I ran into Akira-kun on my way out, so I invited him over."
Murakami Kouki didn't hide anything and said it directly.
"Kashiwagi and Morita won't be angry, will they?"
"Not at all."
Kashiwagi lightly adjusted his glasses, looked at Akira, and greeted him.
"Hello, Akira-kun."
"Hello, Kashiwagi-kun, Morita-kun."
Left: Kashiwagi Right: Morita
Looking at the two people leaning against the railing, Akira asked curiously, "What are you two doing?"
"Watching beautiful young girls, of course!"
Morita said openly and honestly, with no intention of hiding it.
"But we're not peeping Toms. We're just normally appreciating pretty classmates."
Akira nodded, indicating that he believed them.
"I'm going to buy some things."
Murakami Kouki said this and headed into the convenience store.
Kashiwagi Shiki interrupted Akira's attempt to speak, and only after Murakami had left did he say to Akira, "You don't need to pay. Murakami is just that enthusiastic of a person."
As if understanding Akira's concern, he added, "But we'll all make it up to him in other ways. After all, we're friends."
Akira felt that this was true university life.
It wasn't necessary to have campus bullying or campus romance to be considered a standard Japanese anime plot.
It wasn't necessary to have love triangles, mutual envy, and jealousy to advance the plot.
A world like this, even without cosplay, with a good campus environment and various kind-hearted people, was in itself something worth exploring.
"Let's be friends," Akira said.
The other two burst into laughter.
"Who asks to be friends so directly, Akira-kun?"
"Besides, being friends isn't something that can be achieved with just a promise."
"We're friends because we enjoy each other's company. Otherwise, we'd just be strangers wearing the skin of friends."
Morita said with a smile, "But I do think Akira-kun is very suitable to be a friend."
Akira also smiled and said, "I think so too."
Murakami ran back with four drinks. Akira walked over, took the drinks from him, and handed them to the two who were waiting.
"Thank you, Murakami-kun."
"You're welcome."
The four of them leaned against the railing, watching the girls exercising on the sports field.
"There's a youthful charm to them."
"They're all pretty girls."
"I wish I could date one of them."
Murakami said a completely different line at the end.
"Don't ruin the mood, Murakami!" Morita said angrily. "That makes it sound like we're up to no good."
"Saying something like that takes away from the pure appreciation."
Kashiwagi Shiki turned to Akira and asked, "Akira, aren't you going to offer an opinion?"
Akira felt that the girls on the field were indeed full of youthful energy and charm.
However, because of Sajuna's existence, he had no other thoughts beyond pure appreciation.
"There's a youthful charm to them."
"They're all pretty girls."
Akira replied.
"Don't repeat what we said!"
Akira hesitated, then had to say, "I feel like… they're not as pretty as my girlfriend."
The three people next to him instantly turned to stone.
"Akira, you have a girlfriend!"
The three of them looked as if their world had collapsed.
"Hey, hey, hey, I'm clearly a little bit more handsome than you guys, okay?" Akira emphasized. "Why can't I have a girlfriend?"
"The three of us don't have girlfriends, though."
They were disheartened, not expecting that their newly met friend already had a girlfriend. They had thought he was a single handsome guy like them.
Darn normie.
"With your looks, you should easily have girlfriends," Akira complained.
"That's true, hahaha. It's just that I haven't met anyone I have feelings for yet."
Morita laughed as he said this, clearly having faked his previous look of despair.
The other two also recovered and stopped messing around.
"I didn't expect Akira, with his previous personality, to have a girlfriend. That girl must be very gentle."
They were clearly praising Sajuna, but why did it sound so awkward?
What was wrong with his previous personality? His previous personality…
His previous personality probably really wouldn't have allowed him to have a girlfriend.
Otherwise, if a guy with that kind of personality had a girlfriend, he'd probably be a manga protagonist.
Akira no longer had any intention of arguing. After all, it wasn't his fault that the original owner was so unmotivated.
The four of them finished the red bean tea they bought, threw the cans into a nearby trash can, and prepared to return to the classroom together.
"Murakami, what clubs have you all joined?" Akira asked. He still wanted to recruit a few members for his club.
"I haven't joined a club. I have to go home and be with my sister."
Murakami rubbed the back of his head, speaking relaxedly.
"What about you, Morita?"
"The soccer club, of course, but I haven't become a regular yet."
Morita replied. As first-year university students, they had indeed only recently joined clubs.
"I haven't joined a club either."
Kashiwagi answered directly, then asked curiously, "Why are you suddenly asking about this?"
Akira lightly stroked his chin and told his newly met friends about his plans.
"I plan to start a club."
The three of them didn't mock him after hearing this. Instead, they seriously asked, "What kind?"
"A general type, I guess, where we'll do a bit of everything, mainly helping others."
"Is it a volunteer-type club?"
Universities all had these kinds of clubs.
Kashiwagi Shiki pondered with a frown.
"Something like that, but we'll be helping students solve problems. For example, tutoring students who want to get high scores, or helping socially anxious students make friends."
"Sounds interesting!" Morita said enthusiastically. "But will the teacher approve?"
"I've already gotten Teacher Nakamura's approval. Now I just need to recruit enough members."
Akira's eyes fixed on Kashiwagi Shiki and Murakami Kouki.