5 Chapter 5

After the class,

Ai, who had been holding back all through the class, immediately wanted to talk to Rei,

But she was blocked by a crowd of girls and boys from the class.

"Student Hoshino looks so cute. Are those colored contacts, or are they natural? They look so good."

"Like an idol in a magazine. Could it be that she's doing idol work part-time?"

With such good looks, both boys and girls were eager to make friends with her. Even the two guys, Iori and Motohama, who were unpopular in the girls' group in the class, were surrounding Ai.

Ai, who had always longed for love, naturally wouldn't refuse these good intentions.

"They're not colored contacts, they're natural."

"As for being an idol... who knows?"

And besides, Rei wouldn't run away.

There would be opportunities.

Riko rushed all the way and screeched to a halt in front of Rei, panting, and said, "Rei, I've been thinking for the whole class, and I just can't let it go. With your talent, it's really a waste not to play basketball! You're simply wasting all this muscle."

The faces of Iori and Motohama beside them instantly turned white.

A woman actually came to find Rei!

There's a saying: "Fearing that your brother won't do well in life, and fearing that your brother will pave the way."

Rei scratched his head. Being entangled by a beautiful girl was something he quite liked personally. In addition to being pleasing to the eye, dressing up a bit and putting on light makeup at home would make Riko, who was already attractive, even more charming and sweet.

She was just slightly inferior to the dazzling Ai.

Ai's face changed imperceptibly, but her outstanding acting skills and ability to control her expressions kept her from expressing any dissatisfaction. Besides, after all, this was Rei. Others just didn't understand him. If they did, they'd know how gentle he really was.

Snap, the person who could stand by Rei in the future, is only me!

Ai thought confidently.

Looking at Riko's persistent look, Rei glanced over and pointed to Baki, who was looking out the window in the front row. He said to Riko, "If you're talking about muscles, this guy is even more impressive. Instead of inviting me, it's better to invite him to try out for the basketball team."

Following Rei's finger, Riko's gaze turned to Baki Hanma.

Noble Phantasm: Data Eye activated!

With his left hand in a cast, Baki Hanma couldn't wear a normal school uniform jacket. He was only in a short-sleeved summer school uniform, his strong arms exposed to the air, covered in scars large and small.

"Muscle... is also off the charts!"

Although Riko hadn't completely seen all of Baki Hanma's muscles, she still came to the same conclusion as when she observed Rei—this guy, just in terms of arm muscles, surpassed any athlete she had seen from childhood to adulthood.

"So, compared to my resolute attitude, it's better to try with this guy." Rei spoke up.

Riko, pinching her chin, looked Baki up and down, somewhat regretfully saying, "No, there's a huge gap between you and him."

Baki, who had just won the championship at the Tokyo Dome, stood tall and proud, and couldn't help but perk up his ears, wanting to hear the enormous gap this woman was talking about.

"What?"

"He's a head shorter than you."

Baki: ...

Rei: ...

Baki felt the malice from the world, and his eyes seemed to lose their shine as he looked out the window.

"Classmate, I didn't mean to say you're short. It's just that if you're going to play basketball, it might not be enough." Realizing how hurtful her words were, Riko joined her hands together and quickly apologized to Baki.

"N-No problem." Baki responded with a hint of shyness. After dealing with guys who all wanted to fight each other for so long, Baki became more reserved when dealing with ordinary people.

"Being one meter sixty isn't considered short in Tokyo City. Don't worry about it. You're only eighteen now, there's still a chance to grow in the future." Riko, who wanted to comfort Baki , patted his shoulder very familiarly.

"...I'm one meter seventy."

"Ding Ling Ling!"

The bell rang for class again.

"I won't give up! Student Rei! I will make you feel its charm! I'll come find you this afternoon." Riko said as she walked out of the classroom.

When the people around returned to their seats, Ai, who had put on a whole class worth of smiles, immediately plopped down on her desk, resting her head in her hands. Rei didn't expect that those starry eyes could make such a dead-fish expression.

Just looking at her was enough.

[Math Proficiency: 1%]

Endure for a moment, the more you think, the angrier you get; step back, the more you think, the more you feel at a disadvantage.

Ai tore off another piece of paper.

She wrote on it swiftly.

Hoshino Ai: Rei kun, you're really popular. Girls from other classes all came to find you after class (-_-).

Rei: Love, you're also very popular now. Compared to before, you're even more outstanding... it's just your handwriting, why does it still look as ugly as before.

[Throwing Proficiency: 1%]

Seeing the first half of Rei's sentence, Ai felt incredibly satisfied. This guy, Rei kun, still has me in his heart. But when she saw the latter part, she puffed up her cheeks, making an expression that was both angry and cute.

She drew a fierce expression on the paper, glanced at Rei, and only then carefully folded the white paper and put it in her bag.

Turning her head, she focused on the podium.

"Ding Ling Ling!"

Soon, the last class of the morning also ended.

At lunchtime, the classmates in the class formed small groups of three or five and walked out of the classroom, those with packed lunches found places everywhere to eat, and those without went to the school cafeteria to buy food.

In the past, Rei was one of the packed lunch crew because packed lunches were cheaper than the cafeteria. But after mastering photosynthesis, basking in the sun on the rooftop with a water cup could make him feel full.

Of course, this doesn't mean that Rei has given up on the need to eat.

Being one of the greatest pleasures of being human, how could Rei possibly give it up.

Iori and Motohama, the two teasing friends, walked to the doorway. Motohama shouted at Rei, "Rei, today there are octopus meatballs personally made by my mom in my lunchbox!"

"I brought fried rice.." Iori picked up the lunchbox and gave a thumbs-up with one hand.

"Isn't that just white rice?" Matsuda Motohama didn't give face at all, and a Fist directly hit Iori's waist, making the already weak Kitahara Iori even weaker.

Barely managing not to spew out water, Iori stood up straight again, saying righteously, "What's the big deal, anyway, you can't finish that many dishes, and besides, I also brought Oolong tea."

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