Cute Mafuyu

"Taught by a student..." 

Mafuyu mumbled in a daze. 

"Why can't students teach teachers?" Homura asked while chuckling. "Knowledge knows no hierarchy, right? Let's go. I'll walk you home." 

With that, Homura turned to walk but suddenly stopped, as if remembering something, and turned back to Mafuyu.

"By the way, Kirisu-sensei, after going through all that, are you sure you're okay on your own? I mean, you live alone, right?"

"Don't underestimate a teacher! Probably..." Mafuyu replied firmly but then wavered.

'Probably? As I thought, she's still scared, huh?' Homura smiled wryly. "Alright, just follow me for now. We'll figure out what to do later."

Homura returned the metal pipe to its original form before leading the way, while Mafuyu followed him subconsciously.

"…"

Mafuyu remained silent for a while before speaking up.

"Question... Where are we going?"

"My place."

"Huh?"

"Anyway, you were probably planning to order takeout for dinner, right? Might as well have dinner at my place. Afterward, we can discuss your problem with Furuhashi-san and the others."

Mafuyu felt like she had heard something very bizarre.

"Furuhashi-san... and the others?"

"Yeah, they are hanging out at my place today," Homura nodded. "We had a small gathering since the game of my circle was finally completed."

"Oh... congratulations..."

"...Thank you."

Homura was surprised for a moment before replying, not expecting to receive Mafuyu's congratulations.

"But if Furuhashi-san and the others are at your place, Minamiya-kun, why are you out here alone?" Mafuyu asked with a hint of confusion.

At this question, Homura raised his eyebrows and began to ponder.

If he told Mafuyu the truth, what he had done probably wouldn't be considered acceptable behavior in her eyes, even though he and the girls thought it was justified.

Considering Mafuyu's earnest nature, what would her response be?

"I was walking a friend home, and then I ran into you on my way back," Homura answered honestly but didn't go into detail.

"Walking a friend home..."

Mafuyu muttered while looking at the sky, then at the backpack on Homura's back. Her eyes filled with confusion, but she felt it might not be appropriate to ask since it was none of her business after all.

"Ah, this?"

Homura gestured to the backpack on his back as he noticed Mafuyu's confused gaze.

"Well, since the road is a bit challenging, I brought some tools for assistance." Homura explained with a smile, swaying the backpack slightly.

At this explanation, Mafuyu's confusion only deepened.

'Why did you walk someone home early when Furuhashi-san and the others were still at your place? Just how bad is the road that you'd need those tools? In the first place, are there really challenging roads in this city? And what's up with that pipe...?'

Questions after questions emerged in Mafuyu's mind, but she still didn't intend to ask. Somehow, she felt that if she asked more, she would only grow more confused.

*King called me to patrol the mountain~*

Hearing his phone ring, Homura quickly took it out and looked at the caller's name. As he had anticipated, Saori really called him.

"Homura-shi, is everything okay?"

"Yeah, don't worry."

===

"I'm back! I also brought a guest, by the way!"

Finally home, Homura shouted to the inside as he prepared a pair of slippers for Mafuyu.

"Confirmed... It seems like the rumor on the internet is true." Mafuyu couldn't help but comment.

"Hmm? What rumor?"

Homura asked curiously while patting Haru's little head, who had already sneaked up to him.

"Minamiya-sensei is from the Minamiya family." Mafuyu replied while glancing at Haru.

"Oh..." Homura came to understand.

"Nii-san! Who's the guest—"

Sagiri ran out and immediately stopped her sentence halfway as she spotted a beautiful woman next to her brother.

""Really Kirisu-sensei...""

Fumino and Rizu also came and spoke in unison when they saw Mafuyu.

"Sorry for the disturbance..." Mafuyu apologized, bowing her head slightly.

"Alright, let's come inside. I'll explain." Homura nodded and walked to the living room.

As Mafuyu came to the living room, she was surprised to see many girls gathered together, chatting with each other.

'All girls? Are there really so many talented girls these days?' Mafuyu couldn't help but marvel.

Regardless, she didn't think too much about it in a strange way because she knew most of them. For the ones she didn't know, Homura introduced them to her, so she was quite familiar with all of them now.

Besides her own students and one of their friends, the rest were all people with some fame.

In other words, these girls had extraordinary abilities.

"By the way, where's Chika?" Homura asked the girls as he looked around and didn't see Chika anywhere.

"Fujiwara family's curfew." Eriri answered briefly.

"I see..." Homura nodded in understanding.

Honestly, given their close relationship, saying goodbye wasn't really necessary.

"Hmm..."

Homura was lost in thought for a moment before lifting Haru and placing her in Mafuyu's arms.

Mafuyu subconsciously stroked the small cat in her arms, instantly feeling relaxed.

"Let's start from when Homura-kun hung up Sagiri's call." Utaha said, getting straight to the point.

Somehow, she sensed a strong threat from Mafuyu.

Although she had initially thought of Mafuyu as just a stubborn, serious teacher, as mentioned by Homura and Rizu, her appearance and demeanor were just too perfect, weren't they?

"Well... Sagiri was right..." Homura explained simply.

"..."

"???"

Everyone was confused by Homura's simple explanation.

"What do you mean? What did Sagiri get right? Seriously, your explanation is so random."

Unable to understand, Eriri spoke with a frown.

"Wait... Could it be... Stalker...?" Sagiri asked in surprise, her small mouth opening slightly.

Homura nodded.

Seeing him nod to Sagiri's question, there was no need to say more—everyone could guess what had happened.

Truthfully, they didn't find it strange, thinking it was perfectly normal for someone as beautiful as Mafuyu to encounter a stalker. If it weren't for the fact that they were all girls, even they might have been captivated by her.

"That's why I brought Kirisu-sensei here to discuss something with the three of you. I thought Kirisu-sensei could stay at your home for the night."

Homura looked at Fumino, Rizu, and Uruka, explaining his idea to the three.

"Is that really necessary?!" Mafuyu asked in surprise.

"You dare stay alone tonight, Kirisu-sensei?" Homura asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Don't underestimate a teacher! Probably..."

Just like before, Mafuyu replied firmly but then wavered.

Seeing Mafuyu's behavior, Homura and the others couldn't help but smile slightly.

Mafuyu, who was trying to act tough, didn't seem much different from a stubborn little girl, making her look cute.

They understood that, even though she was a teacher, she was, in the end, still a woman. Being followed by a stalker all the way—if it hadn't been for meeting Homura, who knew what accident could have occurred?

Needless to say, the inner turmoil after experiencing such a thing must have been unimaginable.

Being alone after that incident, any woman in her shoes couldn't guarantee she wouldn't feel anxious. It was understandable for her to feel scared, but since she was a teacher, she had no choice but to act tough in front of students.

"I'm not underestimating you. I'm just worried, that's all..." Homura explained, sighing slightly. "So, to put my mind at ease, don't push yourself too hard."

At this, Mafuyu's expression softened a bit, as if she had silently agreed with Homura's explanation.