"Shin, do you want to come watch Kessoku Band practice with me today?"
After school, Megumi Kato turned to Shin with a smile and extended the invitation.
"There's a new dessert at the nearby sweets shop, and we're planning to try it out."
After spending so much time together, Megumi Kato had grown increasingly accustomed to hanging out with Kessoku Band after school.
Her parents probably suspected she had joined some club, given that she came home later than usual every day, as if she were attending club activities.
Of course, their daily tea time was also sponsored by Shin—after all, he had promised to cover the expenses, and now that he wasn't short on money, he naturally didn't go back on his word.
"I'll pass today. I have some things to take care of."
Shin shook his head and glanced at his phone—Hayasaka had sent him a message before school ended.
The gist of it was that a girl named Chika Fujiwara from Shuchi'in Academy, who was a close friend of Kaguya Shinomiya, had heard that Kaguya Shinomiya was being "given away" and wanted to see what kind of person Shin was.
For some reason, Hayasaka had added, "Fujiwara-san doesn't seem to mind rough treatment," which left Shin both amused and exasperated.
What did Hayasaka think he was? Some kind of wolf who pounced on cute girls at first sight? He wasn't that desperate, was he?
Perhaps Shin's ruthless behavior during his first encounter with Hayasaka had left too deep an impression, solidifying his image in her mind.
But there was no helping it. Back then, Hayasaka had approached him with the intention of gathering information, so Shin naturally couldn't afford to be gentle with her.
Although he wasn't sure why Chika Fujiwara wanted to meet him, since she was coming anyway, Shin decided to play along and see what she was up to.
He was somewhat curious about this so-called "Cancer of the Earth" he had seen in the series before his transmigration.
So today, he wouldn't be able to accompany Megumi Kato to watch Kessoku Band practice.
"Alright, maybe next time then... Ijichi-san and Yamada-san have been mentioning you a lot lately. You should visit them sometime."
Megumi Kato's expression remained calm. After all, she and Shin had grown closer today, and she was already satisfied. She wasn't disappointed that Shin couldn't join her after school.
However, she had noticed Shin glancing at his phone earlier, so she seemed to have guessed something. She softly added:
"But Shin, if you're meeting a girl, don't be too hasty. If you do that kind of thing too much, you might lose interest in it eventually."
"That doesn't sound like something you'd say."
Shin raised an eyebrow, looking at Megumi Kato, whose expression remained unchanged—it seemed that after today's events in the clubroom, her personality had shifted slightly.
How to put it... she had become more composed.
If before, Megumi Kato would have been visibly upset when Shin interacted with other girls, now she seemed much calmer.
Probably because she felt more secure after having done *that* with Shin.
...
As school ended, Japanese high school students began their club activities.
The Japanese education system encouraged students to freely choose their extracurricular activities—though, as a result, many students chose to enter the workforce directly after high school.
"The Paranormal Research Club..."
Utaha Kasumigaoka stood at the door of the Paranormal Research Club's room, frowning at the nameplate on the door.
After suspecting that Shin might be the protagonist of the mysterious disappearance incident, she had started gathering information about him from other students.
Today, she heard that Shin had established a new club, so she decided to come and see for herself, hoping to confirm whether he was the person who had vanished with the car that night.
But when she arrived, she found that despite it being club activity time, the clubroom showed no signs of being in use.
The door was tightly shut, and there was no sound coming from inside, as if no one was there at all.
This was strange. What was the point of establishing a club if they didn't hold any activities? Were they just going to leave it like this until someone reported them and the school shut them down?
"Huh? Kasumigaoka-san?"
Just as Utaha Kasumigaoka was pondering this, a puzzled voice came from beside her.
It was Yotsuya Miko, who was holding the key Shin had given her earlier that afternoon—after all, she was officially a member of the Paranormal Research Club.
Utaha Kasumigaoka recognized Yotsuya Miko, as she was one of the well-known beauties at Private Toyosaki High School, and many students liked to gossip about her.
Like the time Akagi invited Shin to karaoke, one of the reasons he gave was that Utaha Kasumigaoka would be there.
Although, in the end, Utaha Kasumigaoka didn't show up—someone had overestimated their ability to invite her and failed.
"I'm Yotsuya Miko, a member of the Paranormal Research Club."
Seeing Utaha Kasumigaoka's puzzled look, Yotsuya Miko introduced herself with a smile, then used the key to open the clubroom door.
"Are you interested in the Paranormal Research Club?"
"Ah... I guess you could say that?"
Utaha Kasumigaoka replied somewhat uncertainly.
Strictly speaking, she wasn't interested in all paranormal events—just the one she had witnessed that night.
But now that she thought about it, Shin had established this Paranormal Research Club... Could he really be the protagonist of the "paranormal incident" she had seen that night?
"That's surprising... but unfortunately, Kasumigaoka-san, even if you joined the Paranormal Research Club, you probably wouldn't find what you're looking for."
Thanks to her Stand, which allowed her to deal with the evil spirits around her, Yotsuya Miko no longer acted as timidly as before.
She walked into the clubroom and said to Utaha Kasumigaoka:
"This club probably won't hold any activities. I'm only here to pick up something a friend left behind, and I likely won't come back after this."
"Aren't you worried the club will get shut down?"
Hearing Yotsuya Miko so casually admit that there were no club activities, Utaha Kasumigaoka couldn't help but voice her confusion.
"Probably not... Our club president is quite capable."
Yotsuya Miko shook her head, picking up a lunchbox left on a chair in the clubroom as she spoke to Utaha Kasumigaoka.
"If it's Shin, he'll definitely find a way to keep the club from being shut down."
Though it sounded unreasonable, Yotsuya Miko truly believed this—after all, Shin had even helped her deal with evil spirits. Keeping a club from being shut down was nothing in comparison.
Her trust in Shin bordered on blind faith.
"Quite capable..."
Utaha Kasumigaoka murmured the name she had been keeping an eye on.
She hesitated for a moment, then turned to Yotsuya Miko and said:
"Yotsuya-san, do you have some time later? Could I treat you to something? There are a few things I'd like to ask you."
To be continued…
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