Kael took a deep breath, suppressing his restless thoughts, and began apologizing to Mafuyu.
He explained that what he had just said wasn't sincere, and hoped Kirisu-sensei wouldn't take it to heart.
Mafuyu calmed down as well, realizing she had lost her composure. She had actually been shaken by just a few words from her student. Immature, far too immature.
After reflecting silently, Mafuyu said calmly: "Anyway, a student's primary duty is to study."
"But to avoid you saying I'm jealous, I'll give you a chance."
"If either of you fails the next exam, I absolutely won't allow you to continue dating."
After saying this, Mafuyu forced down her shame and waved them away. "You may leave."
Kael nodded and left the office with the silent Saki.
In the hallway, the two walked toward the cafeteria while talking. Saki sighed, "I didn't expect Kirisu-sensei to have never dated, even though she's so beautiful."
Kael replied calmly: "You heard it too—she's always believed that a student's duty is to study."
"That shows she lived her student years that way. So I think anyone who confessed to her back then would have been rejected with that reason."
"That's why she's grown up without ever dating."
Saki found his words convincing, and thought this might even be the truth. Otherwise, it was hard to explain why someone as beautiful as Kirisu-sensei had never dated.
Soon, the two arrived at the cafeteria. After asking Saki what she wanted to eat, Kael told her to save a seat while he went to get food.
Watching Kael's back, Saki hesitated. At that moment, she faintly realized that having such a boyfriend might not be a bad thing.
Kael carried two trays of food, scanned the cafeteria, and quickly spotted Saki waving at him from a corner. He walked over, only to find two heroines sitting beside her.
One was Kitagawa Marin, the heroine of My Dress-Up Darling. The other was Ogata Rizu, the heroine of We Never Learn.
When Kael saw Mafuyu earlier, he had suspected that the heroines of We Never Learn might also be at Toyogasaki Academy. Rizu's presence confirmed his guess. He just didn't know if the other heroine, Furuhashi Fumino—the Sleeping Beauty of the Literary Forest—was also at this school. Probably she was.
Although several heroines were gathered together, they didn't interact. After all, they weren't in the same class. They didn't know each other, and none of them were socially awkward. So they were simply busy with their own things.
Perhaps among the three, Marin was the only cheerful, enthusiastic girl. But at this moment, all her attention was focused on her phone. She was even eating absentmindedly, let alone talking to those around her.
Rizu ate while memorizing vocabulary. As for Saki, she sat quietly, waiting for Kael. Yet her gaze occasionally swept over Marin and Rizu, as if marveling at something.
Especially Rizu—petite, only 143 cm tall, but with a pair of G-cup breasts that stood out no matter what she wore. A classic case of "baby face, huge bust." It was rare to find such a domineering figure in a student.
Perhaps only Uzaki-chan could compare. Unfortunately, Toyogasaki Academy didn't have Uzaki-chan.
Kael walked over and sat down opposite Saki, right beside Marin, who was still looking at her phone. He glanced at her screen and saw she was browsing cosplay photos.
That was normal. Marin was also a subculture enthusiast, eager to dress like characters from manga, anime, and games. She believed cosplay was the ultimate way to express her love for a character. But since her sewing skills were terrible, she couldn't make proper costumes. For now, she could only look at other people's cosplay photos to satisfy herself.
Kael withdrew his gaze and placed ramen in front of Saki. "Thank you," Saki whispered, blushing.
This girl was fine in every way, except she blushed too easily—probably from shyness.
Kael waved it off, then turned to Marin. "You seem to really like cosplay."
Marin froze, turned to look at him, and pointed at herself. "Are you talking to me?"
Kael nodded.
Kitagawa Marin asked cautiously, "Do you understand cosplay?"
"A little, but not much," Kael gestured with his fingers, showing he knew just a bit.
Before transmigrating, Kael had often seen cosplays by Chiya Mirai, Kawano Hana, and other creators on Bilibili. The quality was excellent. He had even seen people cosplay Marin herself. But honestly, none matched the real person sitting before him. After all, this was the original.
Marin immediately grew interested. "So you like cosplay too."
"I do," Kael nodded. "Who doesn't like beautiful cosplay?"
Kitagawa Marin became excited. She hadn't expected to meet someone with the same interest here. She couldn't help asking: "Which cosplayer do you like?" Without waiting for his answer, she added: "I really love Juju-sama's cosplay. I think her work is amazing—perfectly faithful to the characters."
As she passionately recommended Juju to him, Kael nodded inwardly. Yes, this was exactly Kitagawa Marin. Outgoing, cheerful, enthusiastic, sociable, able to express her feelings openly, and once she mentioned something she loved, she became endlessly talkative.
If Saki wanted to make friends, someone like her was the best choice.
Lunch break passed quickly. When the bell rang, Marin reluctantly said goodbye to Kael. But before leaving, the two exchanged phone numbers.
Kael then pointed to Saki. "This is my girlfriend, Yoshida Saki. She seems interested in cosplay too. Do you want to exchange contacts with her as well?"
Marin paused, then eagerly leaned toward Saki, her pretty face close. "Really? You're interested in cosplayers too?"
Faced with Kitagawa Marin's enthusiasm, Saki was overwhelmed and looked to Kael for help.