Watching the intimate interaction between Hayasaka Ai and Natsukawa Kanade, Shinomiya Kaguya felt deeply conflicted.
On one hand, she hoped her maid could get the president to tell her who he really liked and if he truly loved her.
On the other hand, she also wished the president would be immune to Hayasaka Ai's "honey trap" and not reveal his true feelings so easily in front of people he didn't know well.
The first expectation was motivated by her own selfish desires and was part of her plan. The second, however, was born from a deeper unease: if the president revealed so easily that he liked someone, wouldn't it mean all her previous efforts were in vain?
The answer could be obtained if others simply asked, but she has been trying to find it for so long and still hasn't... She definitely can't take a blow like that!
And most importantly, although she has a lot of confidence in the president, what if...? What if the president falls in love with such a small Ai...?
How, how is it possible! Haha, how is it possible! I'm just an idiot like Hayasaka. The president will never fall in love with another! Of course!
I really should have more confidence in the president!
After secretly cheering herself up, Kaguya Shinomiya continued to secretly observe Natsukawa Kanade, for fear of missing any detail.
Kaguya, who has never been in love, has completely lost her judgment under Hayasaka Ai's verbal offensive these days.
Now she firmly believed what Hayasaka had said: "The president actually likes the young lady, but he is too embarrassed to confess," and she didn't consider any other possibility.
At most, I was a little worried about Natsukawa Kanade falling in love with someone else and the pretentious Hayasaka... just a little!
As for the two people she was spying on...
—I'm sorry, President, I asked you to stay with me for a while...
—Nothing, it's just that I'm a bit free.
Natsukawa Kanade shook his head and replied reluctantly. If the other party hadn't used the forbidden action "President, please help me!", he would have simply left. Unfortunately, the so-called student council president is sometimes a helpless existence.
—That's great. The president is truly a kind person.
Kanade's brows furrowed at this. He felt like he was being mocked, but he couldn't present any proof.
—The truth is that I've always wanted to have a computer, but I've had doubts because I don't know much about the subject.
Hayasaka Ai showed an expression of distress and then smiled.
—But luckily I met the president. I heard that boys would know more about this, so I thought about asking the president for a recommendation.
—Then you've got the wrong person. I don't know anything about this.
Kanade shook his head and replied truthfully. After almost 18 years in this world, he rarely uses his phone to surf the internet, let alone the computer. In his previous life, he studied until death, but never had a phone of his own. The discipline in his family was strict, his daily life was full of courses, and his parents prevented him from making friends. He had no freedom.
One day, by chance, he heard his classmates talking about anime and they got very excited, so he thought about learning about it so he could have topics in common. Every weekend he used his only hour of entertainment to watch anime. At first it was just to fit in, but then he began to long for that relaxed and happy daily life.
In short, he knew nothing about electronic equipment, so he didn't intend to pretend to know. If he didn't understand something, he simply admitted it. He preferred to acknowledge his flaws rather than pretend.
—Uh...
Hayasaka Ai was stunned. Why wasn't he following the rules? A normal boy wouldn't react like that. Even if he didn't know anything, shouldn't he at least try to look interested in front of a cute girl?
—Well, okay. It's just a matter of choosing a computer. I trust the president's intuition.
—I'm sorry, I can't do it. Based on my intuition...
—Anyway, I can't help you. Sorry, I'll go back first.
—Wait, wait a minute! President!
Hayasaka Ai chased after him in a hurry.
—Actually, I have another thing I'd like to ask you for help with.
Kanade stopped and looked at her again.
—What is that?
The girl in front of him seemed too stubborn. She refused to give up despite being rejected so many times.
—I want to ask the president to give me a lesson! To be honest, my grades are terrible. No matter how much I study, I can't improve...
After discarding the expected topics, Hayasaka Ai was lost. Games? No. Sports? It didn't fit. Romance? Too soon. All that was left was to appeal to what he excelled at.
As someone who can defeat Shinomiya Kaguya in this area, Natsukawa Kanade must be proud of his learning ability. So, using that to satisfy his desire to teach was the most sensible thing.
—Do it here?
—No way?
—Okay.
After hesitating for a long time, Kanade finally nodded. The employee nearby was already watching them uncomfortably, so continuing to refuse would be problematic. Judging by the girl's persistence, she wouldn't give up easily.
Is this what they call a love brain? The desire to attack is really strong.
Kanade sighed. If any of the girls he liked were like this, he wouldn't be single anymore. Well... maybe... could he consider dating a random girl like this? At least she seemed to be a little in love with him, right? If not, she wouldn't approach with such determination.
Since he can't be with the girl he likes, then he looks for someone who loves him. Perhaps the feelings aren't sincere, but he was willing to take responsibility until he really fell in love.
However, he couldn't be sure what the other party thought, so he had to observe more.
Thinking of this, his attitude became softer.
—Then let's go to the cafe.
—Okay!
Hayasaka Ai nodded obediently. The trick worked like a charm, and the president's attitude toward her visibly improved.
After both of them sat down, Hayasaka Ai took out the math problems she had prepared long ago and pushed them in front of Kanade.
He nodded and started scanning the marks.
Just as he expected, the subjects these girls weren't good at were math. If you couldn't do it, you couldn't do it. There was nothing to be done.
—As for this question, your steps are correct, but you used an incorrect formula in the middle.
Kanade transformed into a teacher and started pointing.
—Actually, there's an easier way to solve this problem. Just plug it into this formula... Look, just like that, the answer comes straight out.
Although there are rumors that he is a genius who can defeat Shinomiya Kaguya in all fields, only he knows that this is achieved by his tireless efforts and his insignificant talent. It was mainly thanks to his experience of "studying and studying" in his previous life that he remembered many things and was skilled at learning.
—So incredible...
Hayasaka Ai blinked and sighed. It wasn't that she couldn't solve that kind of problem. She had made a mistake on purpose, but she was still surprised at how Kanade got the answer just by applying a formula.
—What about this question?
—This is almost the same, but first we have to find out one of its conditions, like this...
Kanade continued explaining.
—Ah, right...
Then the two started studying seriously and talking to each other.
This left Shinomiya Kaguya stunned, who was cautiously hiding in the corner.
Excuse me?
A little love? Hayasaka?
What the hell are you doing? Hurry up and follow the president's lead! Don't you even think about starting to study, you idiot!
She couldn't just rush in and interrupt them, so she could only grit her teeth and watch the two grow closer through the discussion, secretly swearing:
I'll dock Hayasaka's pay when she gets back! A lot!
I don't know how long it took, but just as Kaguya was about to burst from jealousy, the "good catch smell" that kept coming from her finally dissipated.
—Mmm! I'm so tired. So studying is that exhausting?
Hayasaka Ai yawned and seemed unable to help feeling sleepy.
—This shows that you really use your brain, which is good.
Kanade nodded.
Seeing that the other person seemed sleepy, he didn't feel any dissatisfaction, but rather approved of her attitude.
—Do you want to continue? Or take a break...
After reviewing the exercise questions, he found that there was still a lot to say, so he asked the other party for advice.
However, upon turning around, he found the girl lying on the table, looking exhausted. Her breathing was regular, and she whispered:
—I can't study anymore...
—…Hayasaka?
He pushed her gently, but found that she didn't move at all and didn't seem to wake up.
—She actually fell asleep...
Kanade was stunned.
He frowned, looked around, then got up and walked slowly toward the employee.
Kaguya, who was hiding in the corner, quickly hid, fearing being discovered.
Not much later, Kanade returned with a small blanket.
He approached slowly, carefully covered the girl with the blanket and then sat down softly beside her.
He couldn't leave the sleeping girl alone, so he returned, but he didn't sit idly by. He picked up the pen again and started writing down the exercises for her one by one.
…
One is a girl sleeping soundly.
One is a young man writing annotations seriously.
Both were focused on their own things and didn't communicate during the whole process.
However, even in such a touching scene, someone could barely stand to watch it anymore: it was Shinomiya Kaguya, who was so anxious that she wanted to go up and play for him.
—How can a mere Hayasaka…?
How is it possible for the president to treat me so delicately?
Obviously she also wants the president to take care of her like that!
She let the president cover her with the little blanket, and then she fell asleep peacefully with the smell emanating from his body. The president then, secretly, played a joke on her face, kissing her... kissing her, kissing her...
I'm so envious!
Stupid Ai! You try to deceive the president, but I think you're just fascinated by his beauty! I trusted you wrongly!
What followed was another long and agonizing wait. Kaguya watched her maid with indifference the whole time, occasionally glancing at Kanade's behavior, thinking in her heart that she might as well dock her entire salary for this month.
…
—Um... eh? Did I fall asleep...?
Hayasaka Ai opened her sleepy eyes and looked at the watch on her hand.
You must be joking! It's been three hours!
—Do you feel better? Do you need to rest for a while?
—No need! I'm much better now...
Her face turned red from the long sleep.
—Thank you for your concern...
—Has the president been sitting here the whole time?
—Not really...
—Is that so...
What a liar! He was clearly sitting next to me writing comments...
—It's getting late. Now that you're awake...
—Hey, President...
The girl raised her head and looked at him with a very complicated look.
—Is there someone the president likes?
Kanade was stunned.
Hayasaka... could it be that she really likes him?
Despite the fact that he treated her coldly, she didn't get discouraged; despite the fact that she was repeatedly rejected, she still leaned toward him; coupled with this ambiguous atmosphere and longing eyes...
There was really no way he couldn't think more!
—Why, why do you ask this all of a sudden?
—Of course, it's because I care a lot...
Kanade was silent.
It was certain, 100% certain, that the girl in front of him really liked him, so the choice now was in his hands.
Should I agree with the other party or cruelly reject her?
He didn't really like the other person enough, and today was even the first time they met, but now he felt something for her. Thinking about how he had been after every failed relationship... he finally decided.
We must never let such a good girl get hurt!
—Hayasaka!
—Eh? Yes!
—Actually...
Kanade took a deep breath and calmed his mind.
—It's a bit presumptuous to ask this like this, but I still want to ask... can you... can you go out with me?
Hayasaka Ai's eyes widened, her pupils shrank slightly, and a huge wave rose in her heart.
Confession? Who? Her?
It's not Kaguya-sama but her!
Is it true? The president confessed his love to a mere maid, a young lady's servant!
No, this is impossible, right? Unless... unless the president's attitude toward the young lady was fake!
So she had been the target of the "strategy" from the beginning?
…
The more Hayasaka Ai thought about it, the more she felt it was possible. She couldn't help but think that Kanade was too terrifying. He had been hiding his true feelings until now and had even done something like this.
But after putting aside her original prejudice, she began to admire him for being able to do so much for a mere servant like her...
—Hayasaka? Are you okay?
—…
—Hayasaka?
Seeing that she wasn't reacting, Kanade reached out and wanted to pat her on the shoulder.
—…
—No, it's not like that...
Seeing that Kanade looked very bad, Hayasaka Ai quickly wanted to explain.
—You don't need to explain, Hayasaka-san. I understand. I got it wrong. Sorry for startling you. I'll go back.
Then, silently, he packed his things and turned to leave.
—President...
Hayasaka Ai reached out, as if wanting to stop him, but found she wasn't qualified.
After Kanade completely disappeared from view, Shinomiya Kaguya, who was hiding in the corner, finally ran out.
—What happened, Hayasaka? Why did the president leave all of a sudden...? Hayasaka, what happened to you?
—No... it's nothing.