Nino Injured

The girl with short black hair beside her pulled out a piece of white paper resembling a rule book and shouted:

"Second-year students, current student council president, this is an extraordinary BOSS! But it's sealed, so there's no need to enter the battle phase for now; just pass the exam."

"Fujiwara-chan, come here." Another girl with long hair smiled gently and handed two dice the size of basketballs to Chika.

"Let's go! Pass this exam!"

Shinichi furrowed his brows. Despite wanting to pretend not to notice and walk away, many students around him were paying attention. Outside the responsibilities and duties of the student council president, he reluctantly asked:

"Are you... from the TG (Table Game) club? What are you doing?"

"Let's play a big table game!" Holding the dice, Chika smiled brightly, appearing happy and enjoying herself.

Shinichi felt his helplessness and the sigh in his heart disappeared instantly with this smile.

His tone softened a bit.

"Wanna play in the afternoon? Why not after school..."

Before he could start talking, the girl with short black hair next to him interrupted:

"A score of 6 or more is considered a success. If you fail, the equivalent exchange magic circle will be triggered, and the round will end! Can Fujiwara-chan succeed in the 2d6 test?"

"Okay, count me in!" Despite Shinichi's stiff expression, Chika became serious and threw two dice high into the air, shining brightly under the cafeteria lights.

Shinichi stepped back, and the dice landed right where he stood, rolling against his shin and then rolling back.

"..."

Shinichi closed his eyes and took a deep breath to maintain his composure.

Yes, there was no need to get upset. This was Chika's idea of fun. They weren't doing anything too extreme. It was just a matter of him standing there without moving.

He was the student council president. Faced with a young and energetic girl, he shouldn't be narrow-minded. He had to learn to appreciate and handle beautiful things properly.

Lu Xun once said, pause for a moment and take a step back to open up the world.

Okay, let's start thinking about how to eliminate the table game club.

"Ah, darn, it's a four!"

Chika's frustrated voice sounded, and two people lying on the ground seemed to be mocking her. The girl with black hair immediately performed her duties.

"The test failed! Fujiwara-chan triggers the exchange with an equivalent value. Please exchange items with BOSS president!"

Chika clenched her fists on her temples and gently rubbed her forehead, saying, "Hmm~ What should I replace it with..."

"...If nothing happens, let me eat first."

With a polite smile on his face, Shinichi walked forward nonchalantly, prepared to avoid them.

However, Chika's hand grabbed his, and he heard her speaking anxiously.

"Asada-kun, wait a moment! If BOSS escapes from here, there will be a huge explosion in the equivalent exchange circle, and all important figures in this school will ascend to the sky!"

Shinichi turned around with a friendly smile. "Why don't you explode on the spot and spin into the sky?"

Chika put on an expression of pride, as if saying, "Asada-kun, you're clueless."

"Well, that's because I got a death-avoiding item in the last round~ Even if the big BOSS Asada-kun self-destructs, I won't die."

A loud explosion sounded, and Shinichi flicked his forehead, causing Chika to crouch down, crying.

"Scared my brain..."

The girl with short hair said seriously to the side, "BOSS, the rule book says you're sealed, and you can't attack us..."

For this one-time supporting role, Shinichi always didn't care. He looked at Chika expressionlessly, took out his glasses from his pocket, put them on, and pushed up the frame.

A fatal light flashed, and he spoke coldly, "Fujiwara Senpai, do you want to play a more fun game with me? As for fingers or heads, which one is harder?"

"No, I don't want..." Chika covered her forehead obediently.

"Excellent." Shinichi took off his glasses, and a spring-like smile reappeared on his face. "So, is there anything else, Chika Senpai?"

Chika's eyes sparkled with joy, she stood up straight with her petite body, and spoke lively.

"Do you have something extra or unused that you can exchange with me? Even one piece is fine, even used toilet paper balls!"

"How can I give you something like that..." Shinichi rubbed his forehead helplessly. After hearing what he said, he remembered that he still had a can of matcha soda in his hand.

Shinichi hadn't lost his sanity to the point where a drink given by Miku was a sign of love, and he had to drink it, except for environmentally friendly items like pillows.

He immediately handed the matcha soda to Chika and said casually, "Here. Needs to be exchanged at an equivalent value, right? One hundred and fifty yen for a can, either cash or goods."

"Really!" Despite her complaints, Chika still accepted the drink with a happy face. "What can I exchange... ah, I've thought of it!"

She waved to the girl with long hair. After the two of them whispered to each other, the long-haired girl handed her a bag. She placed the bag in Shinichi's hands and patted his shoulder earnestly.

"The items inside should have the same value; please treat them well! That's it, let's go now!"

Shinichi grabbed the bag's handle, his face still a bit confused. Under the curious gaze of the surrounding students, he lowered his head to inspect the bag's contents, inserted his fingers, and stirred it slightly.

No one knew exactly what he saw. They only knew that at that moment, the current student council president's face became extremely ugly, and his tone was very complicated, as if he were sighing.

"Curses."

△

"Asada-kun, what's with that bag?"

After eating and returning to class, Fumino looked at him and asked curiously.

Shinichi answered with a deadpan expression, "It's nothing. It's just something I got after being selected by the TG club."

"What?" Fumino understood every word he said, but when combined, she didn't understand what was happening.

But Shinichi's mood seemed to be bad, so Fumino didn't ask. She suppressed her curiosity and didn't pay attention to the contents of his bag. Instead, she took a cup of hot water from the kettle and handed him black tea.

"I added some new ingredients to it; drink it and see what it is."

Shinichi took it and sipped, then looked at her in surprise. "Yuzu and ginger jam?"

Fumino puffed up her chest proudly.

"That's right! I added a bit of ginger powder for the cold weather. It's perfect for drinking in winter! It'll warm you up from your stomach to your heart and help you spend the winter in good health!"

Shinichi listened, breathed in the hot air, and took a few sips of black tea again. His expression gradually softened, and he gave her a faint smile.

"Though it tastes a bit subtle, it does indeed warm the stomach... Thank you, Fumino."

Fumino's face blushed slightly, and she touched her hair, unable to suppress a gentle smile.

"Um, as long as you like it."

With Fumino's smile and the warmth of the black tea, Shinichi spent the first afternoon class feeling physically and mentally warm.

After the supervisor finished shouting the thank-you orders, he said, "I'll be right back," and left the classroom carrying the bag given by Chika.

The items inside couldn't be kept for a long time, but they also couldn't be easily discarded. If someone saw it, his reputation would be damaged, and he might even lose his position as the student council president.

Shinichi didn't intend to blame Chika; she might have exchanged these items for him unintentionally or just out of mischief.

Honestly, the contents of the bag could probably buy several bottles of matcha soda, which was not worth it at all.

Shinichi wanted to take it to the recycling bin behind the teaching building and dispose of it without anyone noticing.

The entire school's trash would be recycled, taken there, and eventually sent to the incineration plant for disposal. At this time, there shouldn't be any talented individuals there.

To ease his mind earlier, Shinichi quickened his pace and headed towards the back of the teaching building. However, when passing the health room, he heard a familiar voice from the half-open door.

"Really, I would have brought a spare if I knew... But how can normal people bring spares to school? This isn't a sports club..."

After this complaint, Shinichi turned around and entered the health room.

Inside, the frog-faced doctor seemed to be leaving for business. There was only a slender and well-endowed girl with long pinkish-red hair sprawled on the bed. Bathed in sunlight from the window, she looked like a beautiful and charming girl.

She lifted her leg, her eyebrows slightly furrowed, and she looked at her calf with a hint of annoyance.

The edge of her skirt rolled up following the movement, but it seemed to be covered by dark curtains, making it difficult to see what was inside.

To prevent it from being seen accidentally by passing students, Shinichi closed the door and spoke hesitantly.

"Nino, are you injured somewhere?"

"Hm?"

Nino pulled back her leg and lifted her head in surprise.

She glanced at the closed door, then looked at the guy who seemed unaware and had a natural expression on his face as he slowly approached, sitting on the bed in the secluded room.

Turning her eyes away, Nino spoke calmly.

"It's just a minor injury, nothing serious. But why are you here?"

"I was going to the trash disposal area. I heard your voice when I passed by, so I came in to check the situation."

"Is that so?" Nino seemed not too concerned about his reason. After replying casually, her eyes focused on the bag in his hand. "What's that?"

"Items to be disposed of," Shinichi placed his bag and walked towards her, crouching down and examining what was referred to as a small wound on her calf covered by white stockings.

It was probably scratched by a sharp object, the wound was very shallow, the skin just peeled a bit, almost no bleeding, but there was an ugly tear in her white stockings.

"How did you get injured?"