Will They Start a Love War Too?

Toyomi displayed a pure smile, indifferent to the world: "Roasted sugar-coated chestnuts are delicious. Would you like to eat them together sometime?"

"Is this..." Surprisingly, Chika chuckled.

"If there's a chance..."

"What is it?" Toyomi tilted her head in confusion. Seeing Chika hesitating to speak, she sat upright, hiding her smile, and asked seriously.

"Chika, you and Otouto-kun aren't actually dating, right?"

Chika said weakly, "Actually, no..."

"Did you do it then?"

The straightforward question left Chika momentarily confused, and she fell silent.

Thinking she didn't understand, Toyomi raised her hand with a serious expression, forming a circle with one hand, and the fingers of the other hand swayed back and forth within the circle.

"Doing that."

"..."

Chika stared blankly for a long time. When her brain finally fully understood the meaning of that explicit gesture, her face flushed, and she pressed her hands in panic and embarrassment.

"We didn't do that! We didn't even have the first step of hugging, holding hands, or kissing. How could we jump to that point? This is not just love or dating! Onee-chan's mind is so erotic!"

(You're not that innocent either...)

"Huh, I'm an adult woman; of course, I'll be curious about things like this." Toyomi protested her younger sister's accusations.

"So... Like Otouto-kun said, do you really have a normal and pure friendship?"

Chika dropped her shoulders like a deflating balloon.

"Actually, that's true..."

"Did you take the initiative to confess your love?"

Chika buried her head in the blanket and continued to kick the bed as if throwing a tantrum. "Don't mention that again~~~"

Toyomi tilted her head and thought for a while, still looking confused.

"So, what did both of you do in the room for that long? Play games? Or awkwardly chat after failing to confess your love?"

A muffled sound was heard. "Why do you think I failed..."

Toyomi said without beating around the bush, "Because you cried."

"..."

She stopped talking.

Since she didn't speak, Toyomi looked at her butt and legs stretched out on the bed, waiting for her to speak.

The room fell silent for a moment.

After an unknown amount of time, Chika lifted her blanket, sat silently, combed her messy red hair with her fingers, and spoke gently.

"No, Asada-kun likes me."

Therefore, those tears surely weren't shed due to a breakup.

"We're falling in love, why can't we have a simple romantic relationship?"

Chika lifted her gaze and looked towards the neon light.

Her clear blue eyes radiated determination.

"Indeed, as a love expert, I must undergo an unusual and challenging first love test to align with my strength and greatness."

"I know that only cold and cruel storms can make my flowers bloom more beautifully!"

"Ah, fate is a naughty child who likes to tease others..."

"..."

Toyomi squinted her eyes and smiled gently.

She knew that the usual Chika had returned.

Until she couldn't think of any more sentences to say, Chika stopped her excessive behavior and happily looked at the framed picture surrounded by dolls in the cabinet next to the door.

Since no one entered the room without her permission, the glass photo frame reflected light, making the photo look a bit blurry.

But Chika knew, or remembered better than anyone.

It was a scene from a game that felt like a different world, where a certain knight carried herself and escaped from the brink of death.

"Asada-kun..."

She lowered her head and stretched out her palms, and the name label "Asada Shinichi" lay calmly on it.

It had only been half a year, but the precious memories accumulated with him were too numerous to count.

Should she give up just like that? Because She was too carefree... Would she discard all these memories one day?

[You must bravely confess your love, but you still have to admit defeat in your first love?]

"...This is wrong."

Chika shook her head and clenched her fists with a serious expression.

She jumped off the bed.

"I'm Fujiwara Chika, one of the seven strongest gamers in the world—"

"There is absolutely no term 'admit defeat' in my dictionary!"

With hands on her hips, Chika lifted her head and puffed her chest, showing a scornful look at the guy in the photo.

"Excellent! Asada-kun, the agreement you mentioned... Wrong. I should have said this game and this war. I, Fujiwara Chika, accept it!"

"No matter how ridiculous your dream is, no matter how hard you try to achieve it."

"In the end, I will definitely let you say it yourself, Asada-kun only likes Chika-sama."

"Hmm hum hum hum... hum ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

Chika couldn't help but laugh, opening her hands wide and releasing her chuunibyou-like energy into the empty space.

Beside her, Toyomi sipped her black tea slowly and sighed as usual.

"This is youth~"

△

Shinichi at the moment.

"Chika's side should be fine... I'll call her later."

On the way home, he took out his phone and browsed through the address book. After thinking about it, he decided to call Hayasaka.

After roughly telling her what happened today, all he got was a nonchalant response that showed no concern.

"Don't worry, I never doubted your ability to pick up girls."

"...It's really bad to speak like that."

Shinichi was almost accustomed to this level of pain.

Of course, considering the other party's mood, Shinichi didn't give Hayasaka detailed information about the agreement he made with Chika.

Hayasaka seemed uninterested and said she could roughly guess the methods Shinichi used.

"If you want Secretary-chan to stop caring about perverted things and continue to like bastards, of course, you have to divert her attention with things she's most interested in and arouse her unreasonable competitiveness. With both of these methods, you can easily lead her."

Shinichi felt a chill after hearing this because he didn't expect it to go so deep; he just felt that he had to do it from the bottom of his heart.

When Hayasaka found out, she was even more surprised; she gritted her teeth and scolded him, "You're a super bastard with exceptional talent, relying on instincts to conquer women!"

"However, Secretary-chan is easy to talk to because she knows me and has a connection with Ojou-sama, and I rarely dress up like a woman to tempt her..."

The topic changed midway, and Hayasaka's cold voice sounded slightly worried.

"What about the others? If we use a war metaphor, the quintuplets are one country, the art and science duo is another, and Secretary-chan is an extraterrestrial creature. Excluding me, once they form the Shuraba, it'll be like World War III. Bastard, you have to shed your skin even if you don't die."

Shinichi smiled somewhat reluctantly, "Then, let me worry about it in the future..."

"Maybe the president's little sister can join the war too?" Hayasaka suddenly remembered something, then chuckled mockingly.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk, a group of pretty girls openly and secretly fighting for you, sparks flying. Suddenly, I'm looking forward to seeing that scene... But don't worry, even if you're captured by many girls, I won't take the opportunity to stab you in the back."

"Thank you very much..."

"You're welcome. Anyway, I'm a faithful and well-behaved maid."

Hayasaka stopped joking and became a bit more serious.

"If you don't want your future to be unprepared in the big Shuraba, I suggest you start thinking now about how to give an acceptable ending to everyone... No, maybe you can't wait either. Ultimately, before the conflict breaks out completely due to various factors."

"Suppose tomorrow is Valentine's Day, and you receive chocolates from the quintuplets, Furuhashi-san, and others also give you chocolates after knowing about it. Everyone says it's your fate, and then Secretary-chan happily gives you chocolates that are supposedly your fate..."

"At that moment, those seven people will stare at you and say, 'Why is there another girl?' and then find out that your ability to seduce women is more extreme than you imagine, forcing you to make a choice right away."

"What would you do if a situation like this happened?"

Hayasaka rarely spoke for a long time, and although her tone didn't fluctuate much, Shinichi broke into a cold sweat.

After a few moments of silence, Shinichi spoke cautiously.

"...I know. I will think about various precautions when I return."

"Very good."

Hayasaka laughed contentedly, looking pleased with his words.

"Valentine's Day is still about half a year away, so there's no need to rush... But if you think about it like this, the nearest festival that could trigger the biggest Shuraba is—"

"Yes..."

They both looked serious as they uttered the word simultaneously.

"Sacrifice hearts."

Today is known as a day when students are most likely to experience a romantic spark within a year and have the most unique love legends. Countless people declare their love, go on dates, and take their relationships to the next level on this day. It could be called a special festival with an atmosphere even more romantic than Valentine's Day.

In late December, before the winter break begins, Shuchi'in Academy will hold its own cultural festival, commonly known as...

Heart Sacrifice.