"Write whatever you want about everything else, but Yuki Miki is number one in my heart. Please make sure you write that down word for word."
Escaping the annoyingly persistent Journalism Club, Watanabe Tetsu finally made it back to Class Four.
After the lunch break, everyone had stopped crowding around him to tease him. After all, this was an elite private academy—one that valued atmosphere above all else in this island nation.
Every student at Kamikawa Private Academy aimed for the top ten universities in the country: Tokyo Imperial, Kyoto, Keio, Waseda, Nagoya, and others of that tier. Of course, in reality, most ended up getting into schools ranked around the top thirty.
Only the top-performing students could secure guaranteed admission into the nation's Imperial Universities. As for the three members of the Human Observation Club, as long as nothing unexpected happened, they would almost certainly receive recommendation-based admission without needing to sit for the national unified exams or any university-specific secondary tests.
But when a student scored into Kyoto Prefectural University, Miyazaki University, Utsunomiya University—schools ranked below sixtieth—such a result was genuinely mocked at Kamikawa.
Under this atmosphere where no one wanted to be discriminated against, the examinations proceeded smoothly.
On May 30th, at 5:40 p.m., after finishing the final science exam and listening to the homeroom teacher's closing remarks, the entire school began the post-exam deep cleaning.
"Tetsu, come here a second," Kozue Aona called out.
Sitting in the back row had its perks—Watanabe Tetsu had been ready to snatch the cleanest dust cloth, but now he had to surrender that privilege to someone else.
"Supervisor Kozue, what is it?" he asked as he followed her out of the classroom.
Kozue Aona didn't bring him to the office; she started talking right there in the hallway.
"After this round of exams, it's likely that a number of students still won't meet the requirements."
Tetsu thought for a moment. "You mean… you want us to tutor them again?"
"Mm. That's what the teachers are thinking. So I'm here to ask what you all think." She nodded.
At Kamikawa Private Academy, "failing" didn't refer to low scores, but low deviation scores—a ranking value that showed where your score stood within the entire group. It wasn't directly linked to hitting a fixed benchmark like the classic 60-point pass line.
To be honest, Tetsu didn't want to agree. Those students could simply spend money and hire a one-on-one tutor.
But Kozue Aona had always treated him kindly—and yesterday, she had helped defend him during the whole campus confession incident. He had no reason to refuse.
"I'm fine with it. But you'll have to talk to the others yourself," he said with a nod.
Kozue Aona smiled and reached out to ruffle his messy—yet surprisingly charming—hair.
"Sensei, if you like kids that much, why don't you just have one of your own already?" Tetsu grumbled as he gently removed her soft, warm hand from his head.
Kozue Aona sighed. "I'd like to. But I don't even have a boyfriend."
"No way?" Tetsu said, honestly shocked. "Supervisor Kozue is so beautiful and still doesn't have a boyfriend? I always thought you were already married."
"Maybe my standards are too high," she teased.
"What kind of standards?"
She counted on her fingers. "Gentle, manly, considerate, emotionally loyal, kind and intelligent."
Without thinking, Tetsu replied, "Isn't that just me?"
Kozue Aona tapped him on the head with her lesson plan, pouting in a way that made her look like a teenage girl. "Come flirt with me again when you actually become a 'Tokyo Hunk.'"
"Not far off. Give me a year or two."
She didn't continue the topic. Instead she asked, "So… how are things with you and Yuki Miki?"
"You know how it is—no one can resist my charm."
"I don't know that," she replied flatly—and then laughed twice. Then, she reminded him, "I know you're popular with girls, but since you're together now, you can't play around. Yuki Miki's family isn't ordinary. Don't pressure yourself, but if things really don't work… learn when to let go."
Then she added, "A 'Tokyo Hunk' should have confidence in himself—but that doesn't mean he has to succeed at absolutely everything."
"…Yeah. I understand."
"All right, go help with the cleaning. If you stay here any longer, everyone will think I'm letting you slack off on purpose."
"Compared to being scolded by you, I think they'd actually rather be cleaning. Maybe they're laughing at me right now. Well—except the boys."
Kozue Aona gave him a playful glare. "Go. Stop talking nonsense."
"Yes ma'am."
Tetsu returned to the classroom; Kunii Osamu tossed him a cloth. "Tetsu, I snatched this for you."
"My brother!"
After wiping down the windows, the cleaning session was wrapping up. Students shouldered their bags and headed home one after another.
Tetsu looked through the now spotless windows, making sure he could clearly see the feathers on a crow perched on the distant field fence. Satisfied, he stopped cleaning.
Calling out to Kunii Osamu and Saitō Keisuke, who had been killing time by pretending to be rock stars with their brooms, the three slung on their bags and left the school.
On the way home, they stopped by an indoor baseball center for a bit, then grabbed dinner at KFC before finally going their separate ways.
That night, while watching Downton Abbey and doing push-ups, Tetsu's phone rang—his family was calling.
"Tetsu, the exams are finished, right?"
"Yeah. But the results won't come out until next week."
"Are you coming home for the three-day weekend? The lotus roots and plums are ripe."
"Mm…"
Tetsu hesitated. He did miss the scent of home, but the twelve-hour round trip was a pain.
"It's fine if you don't. I'll mail some to you."
"That's great, thanks Mom."
"Oh, and Ayako said she's coming to Tokyo this week. Take good care of her."
"Wait, wait, wait—Mom, let me think—actually, I think I'll go home after all. I haven't seen little Ren in forever."
"I already promised Ayako you'd watch over her."
"Then why did you even ask if I was coming back?"
"I knew you wouldn't come back because it's too much trouble."
"…My phone's dying. Bye."
The drama on TV delivered a perfectly timed line:
"When something bad happens, there's no point in wishing it hadn't. The only option is to minimize the damage."
Tetsu repeated it softly in Japanese:
"Things have already happened. Hoping they didn't is meaningless. What matters now is minimizing the loss."
"Is Downton Abbey really that incredible?"
Tetsu wondered what kind of monster Kiyono Rin must be—she'd already finished this entire series ages ago.
But then he thought:
Kiyono Rin wouldn't be doing push-ups while watching, so even if I'm behind now, in the long run—once our knowledge matches—I'll still be stronger overall.
That thought fired him up. He jotted down the line while switching to one-handed push-ups.
After finishing his workout and showering, Tetsu considered Tamamo Harumi. After the exams, she would definitely want to go out and have fun. She was probably home by now, playing on her phone.
He messaged her on LINE:
"Are you free?"
With earphones in, listening to an English radio station, he gazed outside his window.
In the distance stood a tall luxury apartment building overlooking the city. At 10 p.m., every household's light was glowing warmly. One of those tiny squares of light… might very well be Kiyono Rin's room.
His message remained unread.
Before going to sleep, Tetsu sent another:
"There's something very important I want to talk to you about. Please reply when you see this."
The moment he hit send, he felt exactly like a scumbag.
But with only four days left before the event ended, he had to find a way—any way—to get back together with Tamamo Harumi.