Gloomy and Cold

Initially, Haruto was an ordinary person who enjoyed a peaceful life. Even if one day he gained superpowers, he wouldn't have any grand ideas about saving the world.

Except for chuunibyou.

If he didn't cause any trouble, Haruto would think of himself as great.

He only defeated monsters to test his abilities.

Until the Void Demon appeared and completely shattered him.

During that time, the cracks in the sky began to widen, and Haruto learned about the oddities invading the world and the terrible consequences they could bring.

Haruto wasn't alone. He had parents. Even though they had peacefully divorced and each formed new families, he also had two troublesome sisters.

But their care and love for him didn't diminish.

Therefore, for whatever reason, he couldn't just sit by and do nothing!

Back in class, Haruto sat down.

The class ended quickly.

He planned to buy a drink.

The energy that activated his superpowers didn't just appear out of nowhere but consumed his physical strength.

Although he had just defeated a horde, there was no denying that he felt a bit hungry, and his condition had slightly declined. If he encountered any problems during this time, it could lead to accidents.

Often, some accidents could be avoided, like during high tides when the authorities repeatedly warned people to leave, yet there were always those who didn't take it seriously, only to wake up and regret it.

However, some tragedies could not be undone.

"So, I must always be at my peak."

Haruto stood, and at that moment, a gust of wind blew through the window, causing the math test paper on the table to fly away.

Then, Itsuki reached out and caught the paper.

She handed the math test paper to Haruto and said, "Kuromori-kun, here's your test paper…"

After saying this, Itsuki subconsciously glanced at his score, and her eyes widened suddenly.

"A perfect 100?"

Itsuki was shocked and looked at Haruto in disbelief. Her mischievous neighbor was actually the top student?

This score was clearly beyond reach, something that could only happen in dreams!

"Thank you, Nakano-san."

Haruto took the test paper and politely expressed his thanks.

"No, no need."

Itsuki muttered something unconsciously, then suddenly realized. Her eyes opened wide, sparkling with hope: "Kuromori-kun is really amazing. You actually scored a perfect 100 on such a difficult test."

Since the girl was so close, Haruto noticed that her eyes seemed to twinkle like stars, and she was very beautiful.

A pleasant fragrance filled the air, and it smelled really nice.

Itsuki clasped her hands in front of her chest, looking a bit shy: "Even though I really don't want to admit it, I'm really bad at math…"

'Not good at it? You actually managed to score in single digits on such simple questions. Clearly, you just can't study!'

Haruto was speechless and could only hold back, intending to listen to what Itsuki had to say.

Coincidentally, he could take this opportunity to reach out to her.

Itsuki stated her goal with a face full of hope: "After school, can Kuromori-kun help me with my homework?"

Haruto thought about it. Now, he went to the library every day to read. There was no issue in teaching Itsuki, and besides, he could use this chance to ask her some things and investigate the abnormal phenomena.

He agreed: "Sure, let's go to the library this afternoon!"

Itsuki showed surprise and quickly thanked him: "Thank you, Kuromori-kun."

'He actually agreed so easily. Kuromori-kun isn't as difficult as the rumors say. Even though he looks like a delinquent, that's only how he appears. He's actually a good person.'

At this moment, Itsuki suddenly realized that Haruto had sat back down and couldn't help but ask curiously: "Kuromori-kun, aren't you going to the bathroom?"

"No."

Haruto glanced at her: "I was going to buy something to eat, but there's not enough time now."

"Eh?" Itsuki's ahoge on her head twitched slightly. After hesitating for a moment, she pulled out a bag from her school bag: "Kuromori-kun, are you hungry? Do you want a meat bun?"

A meat bun?

Haruto's eyes lit up, and he said without hesitation: "Thank you, Nakano-san."

"Kuromori-kun is helping me with my studies. If it's not enough, I'll give you more…"

Her voice faltered slightly, her pretty face turned a little red, and she quickly tucked the meat bun into her school bag as if nothing had happened.

Haruto: "😐"

'Stop hiding it. I already know you have more meat buns in your school bag.'

Itsuki's meat bun was so large that it could barely be held with one hand, and Haruto took a big bite.

It was filled with pork.

Seeing Haruto's satisfied expression, Itsuki let out a sigh of relief, a smile appearing on her face as she started looking forward to their study session in the afternoon.

The morning passed quietly.

❀❀❀

Lunchtime.

After class, Itsuki got up and hurriedly left.

Haruto had napped all morning, so he stayed behind. He left the classroom and planned to go to the cafeteria to eat.

As he passed the neighboring classroom, a girl slowly walked out.

Something was off.

But everything around her emitted a gloomy and unpleasant atmosphere.

Haruto was surprised and hesitated: "Nakano-san...? Why did you change your hairstyle?"

At some point, 'Itsuki' was now wearing Audio-Technica headphones around her neck, and her hairstyle had changed, becoming shoulder-length with long bangs slightly covering her right eye.

She also had a cold expression, transforming from a serious girl into a gloomy and cold one in an instant.

Haruto even doubted whether this girl was actually Itsuki.

The new semester had started for a week, and Haruto had been late or absent every day. Combined with his bad aura, he was a complete loner at Sobu High School.

Thus, he didn't know about the quintuplet transfer students.

Miku glanced at him and immediately recalled who he was.

Some people are hard to forget after just one glance.

Haruto was like that.

He wasn't particularly handsome. But his reputation was quite impressive!

His grades were excellent, ranking second in the entire class.

Still bad.

He was often seen injured after fights.

This morning, while passing by, Miku saw him fighting people outside the school.

Moreover, every day when she passed by Itsuki, she occasionally glanced at him. That guy was always gazing out the window with a sidelong glance...

Lonely, strong, and indifferent.

A combination of factors that inevitably worried Miku.