Time passed from dusk into night.
Only after Utaha Kasumigaoka collapsed onto the sofa did she truly understand what it meant to feel completely exhausted.
She let out a soft groan and tried to sit up.
But even after using all her strength, she couldn’t manage it.
In the end, she simply gave up and changed positions, finding a more comfortable way to lean against the sofa.
After Xia Chuan finished cleaning up the dishes and putting everything away, Utaha raised a hand and motioned for him to sit down.
As soon as he did, she naturally leaned forward and rested against him.
Looking at Utaha, who had completely lost the confidence she had displayed earlier, Xia Chuan couldn’t help laughing.
Hearing his laughter, Utaha immediately realized how pleased with himself he was.
She pushed him away and stared at him with a mixture of dissatisfaction and embarrassment.
After all, the result was right there in front of her.
There was no way she could argue against it.
Perhaps she would simply have to prepare better next time.
For now, however…
She needed to rest.
Once she had recovered somewhat, Utaha suddenly spoke.
“Let’s rest a little longer.”
“After that, I should probably go home.”
“Go home?”
Xia Chuan was surprised.
Earlier, when Utaha had taken out the change of clothes she had brought with her, he had assumed she intended to stay the night.
After thinking for a moment, Xia Chuan said,
“Utaha, my house is actually pretty big.”
“You don’t have to worry about there not being enough room.”
Hearing that, Utaha opened her mouth and lightly bit his hand.
After a moment, she released it.
“The fact that I was able to come here today is already quite a lot.”
“Even if my parents are very open-minded, tomorrow starts a normal school week, Xia-kun.”
After saying that, she noticed Xia Chuan had fallen silent.
She laughed and buried her face against his chest.
“But I’ll make it up to you over the weekend.”
Xia Chuan, who had been silent a moment earlier, lifted her chin and smiled.
“You said it, Utaha.”
“Mm!”
Utaha surprisingly nodded obediently.
Xia Chuan couldn’t help finding it amusing.
During their earlier exchanges, he had already noticed something.
Whenever he occasionally took a more assertive attitude, Utaha seemed particularly receptive to it.
After spending a little more time together, Xia Chuan walked Utaha to the door.
He had originally planned to take her home himself.
But she refused.
“You’ve had a long day too.”
“Get some rest.”
“Besides, if you come with me, I’m afraid I won’t want to leave.”
Those words moved Xia Chuan somewhat.
As expected of a romance novelist.
Even though she had politely rejected his offer, Xia Chuan still insisted on accompanying her to the car.
Before she left, he also gave her something for protection.
After the Sharingan had evolved into the Mangekyo Sharingan, his control over cursed energy had improved considerably.
He could even separate and store portions of his cursed energy.
That allowed him to create a special protective charm for Utaha.
It contained a small amount of his cursed energy, which was enough to deter ordinary cursed spirits from approaching her.
If she encountered danger, Xia Chuan would also be able to sense it immediately.
After saying goodbye to Utaha, Xia Chuan stood at the entrance and watched the taxi carrying her disappear into the distance.
Only then did he turn around and return inside.
Phew.
Today had been surprisingly tiring.
Not only had he traveled to the Time Vessel Association, but after returning home, he had cooked, cleaned up, and dealt with Utaha’s constant teasing.
Although a jujutsu sorcerer’s physical constitution was far superior to that of an ordinary person, fatigue was still fatigue.
He yawned.
He decided to go back to his room and lie down.
After receiving a message from Utaha confirming that she had arrived home safely, the two chatted for a little while.
Eventually, Xia Chuan gradually fell asleep.
The next morning.
Students streamed through the entrance of High Sobu Academy.
But unlike usual, almost every student who entered couldn’t help looking toward the beautiful black-haired girl standing nearby.
“Hey, isn’t that Utaha Kasumigaoka-senpai?”
“She’s so beautiful.”
“She’s one of the most famous beauties in the school.”
“Not just that.”
“I heard she’s also the top student among the second-years.
She’s basically one of High Sobu’s prides.”
“Seriously?
That’s impressive.”
“But isn’t she waiting for someone?”
“Don’t tell me she already has a boyfriend…”
“How could that be?”
“Do you know how many people have confessed to her?”
“She rejected every single one.”
“That’s exactly why people call her the Flower of High Sobu.”
“…”
Utaha’s appearance naturally caused a wave of discussion among the students.
She could sense the attention surrounding her.
But she didn’t care.
Compared to all those irrelevant passersby, her attention was focused entirely on her phone.
She looked at the contact with the heart beside Xia Chuan’s name.
It was the good-morning message he had sent her after waking up and leaving home.
After receiving it, Utaha had deliberately decided to wait for him at the school entrance.
But quite some time had already passed.
Why isn’t Xia-kun here yet?
Just as she was silently complaining about him in her heart, a voice suddenly caught her attention.
“Kasumigaoka-senpai.”
Utaha looked over.
It was Tomoya Aki, whom she had met once before.
Before she could say anything, he excitedly spoke.
“I never expected to run into you here, Senpai!”
“I’ve read your work several more times over the past few days.”
“It’s really the kind of novel you can read again and again!”
Under normal circumstances, Utaha might have been pleased by the words of such a devoted fan.
But right now, her thoughts were occupied by Xia Chuan.
To her, Aki was merely a familiar stranger.
“Thank you for your support.”
“But could you please avoid approaching me without permission?”
Utaha gave him a small nod.
“I don’t want to end up involved in any unpleasant rumors.”
“Eh?”
Aki froze awkwardly.
At the autograph event, Utaha had been much friendlier toward him.
Because she had responded positively to his support, and because she was both beautiful and talented, Aki’s admiration had grown even stronger.
Over the past few days, he had also heard that The Metronome in Love wasn’t performing particularly well.
Using his moderately popular blog, he had enthusiastically promoted Utako Kasumi’s work.
After two days, he felt that he had contributed something meaningful.
He had originally planned to approach Utaha only after his efforts had produced clear results.
But when he unexpectedly encountered her that morning, he couldn’t resist approaching her and hoping to receive some recognition.
Before he could say anything, however, Utaha’s cold attitude completely stopped him.
“If you understand what I’m saying, then please leave.”
“You haven’t noticed that you’re already attracting attention?”
Only then did Aki realize that quite a few students were looking in their direction.
He could even hear some of them talking.
“See?
Another guy trying to confess to her and getting rejected.”
“Look at him.”
“He looks like a complete otaku.”
“And he’s so ordinary-looking.”
“Where does he get the confidence?”
“Hey, isn’t that one of the school’s weirdos?”
“The anime otaku who once went to the principal asking for manga to be broadcast at school?”
“Whoa…”
“So it’s that guy.”
Under the pressure of all those public comments, even Aki’s usually thick skin couldn’t completely protect him from embarrassment.
He hurried away.
But just as he turned toward the school building, a sudden commotion erupted behind him.
Aki instinctively looked back.
His pupils immediately contracted.
The same Utaha Kasumigaoka who had been as cold as an iceberg moments earlier…
Was now smiling brightly while holding Xia Chuan’s arm.