Mash-Up Anime World: Anything for Money

"Huh? Me?"

Hakuto was already a regular visitor to the faculty office, but this was the first time he had ever been sent there for such a bizarre reason.

Not that he was going to resist—after all, it wasn't like Hiratsuka was going to eat him alive.

Besides, he had already planned to visit her during lunch today.

Well, technically, it wasn't his plan. 

It was Rikka's.

Who do you think "Destruction Fist" referred to? 

And what did you think "Destruction Fist's Domain" meant?

"Alright, let's continue the lesson."

This little episode didn't disrupt the class much. Hiratsuka simply resumed writing on the blackboard, continuing with her lecture.

As for Hachiman and Hakuto, Hachiman still had more he wanted to ask. But when he saw Hiratsuka standing at the front of the class, he wisely kept his mouth shut.

By the time lunch break arrived, Hakuto followed Hiratsuka into the faculty office.

"Sensei, can't you at least let me eat before coming here?"

Hakuto complained. After all, food was essential, and skipping a meal was pure torture.

To his surprise, Hiratsuka, sitting at her desk with her legs crossed, pulled a bread roll out of her drawer and tossed it to him.

"You usually just buy bread from the cafeteria for lunch anyway. This should be enough, right?"

"Sensei, I may be easy to feed, but not this easy."

Despite his complaints, he still caught the bread and obediently found a seat in front of Hiratsuka.

Seeing how well-behaved he was, Hiratsuka raised an eyebrow. "I was expecting you to make up some excuse and slip away."

"Why would I do that?"

Hiratsuka immediately understood. Since Hakuto was sitting here so casually, that meant his usual lunch delivery had already been taken care of this morning.

Still, she played dumb and smirked. "Because your little blonde girlfriend is probably still waiting for you to bring her lunch."

…

At the same time, that so-called little blonde girlfriend was making her way toward Hakuto's classroom, carrying two pink bento boxes in her hands.

The two classrooms weren't exactly close to each other. 

As Eriri walked down the hallway, she couldn't help but imagine Hakuto appearing around the corner at any second, holding a bento just like he always did.

But it never happened.

Even when she reached the classroom door, there was still no sign of him.

Taking a deep breath, Eriri slowly stepped inside.

The school didn't have any rules against students visiting other classes, so what she was doing was perfectly normal.

Yet the moment she entered, she drew the attention of nearly everyone in the room.

Eriri was already an eye-catching beauty, and with her connection to Hakuto, it was impossible for her not to attract attention.

Students who had been eating put down their food. Those who had been chatting went silent.

All eyes turned to the blonde girl who had just walked in.

But the most shocked person of all was Hachiman. He couldn't even remember the last time Eriri had actively come looking for Hakuto.

And why was he so sure she was here for Hakuto?

Come on—who else would she be looking for? Himself?

"Hey, wake up! Wake up!"

Hachiman hurriedly nudged the sleeping Houtarou behind him.

If Eriri was really here to see Hakuto, there was no way he could handle this alone. He was terrified that he might just blurt everything out on the spot.

Houtarou slowly lifted his head from the desk, thinking for a moment that Hakuto had finally brought lunch back.

"What's going on?"

Hachiman gestured toward Eriri, who had just entered the classroom. 

Houtarou wasn't particularly interested in these kinds of things, but he still chose not to go back to sleep.

"Let's slack off during PE later."

It was obvious that she was here to see Hakuto. As his close friend, Houtarou felt it was only right to do his part.

Meanwhile, standing at the entrance, Eriri found herself under the scrutiny of the entire class as she searched for Hakuto.

Only now did she realize that, despite a month having passed since the start of the school year, she didn't even know where his seat was.

Fortunately, since they had attended the same middle school and were connected through Hakuto, she recognized Hachiman. 

As for Houtarou, she had never met him before.

After scanning the classroom and failing to spot Hakuto, Eriri decisively walked up to Hachiman and greeted him politely.

"Long time no see, Hikigaya-kun."

Hachiman nodded. He had already guessed that Eriri would come looking for Hakuto today—that was why he had woken Houtarou up in advance.

Seeing his response, Eriri continued,

"Do you know where he went?"

Hachiman pointed to Hakuto's seat.

"Hiratsuka-sensei called him to the faculty office. That's his seat."

Hachiman wasn't stupid. From the way Eriri had scanned the classroom earlier, it was obvious that she had no idea where Hakuto usually sat.

That realization made Hachiman feel a little sorry for his friend. It wasn't a huge deal, but it spoke volumes about the nature of their relationship.

Between Eriri and Hakuto, there was a clear imbalance. Maybe the only reason she had come today was simply because he hadn't delivered lunch as usual.

Hachiman subtly glanced at Rikka's seat. Luckily, she had left the classroom as soon as the lunch bell rang. 

Otherwise, things might have gotten a little messy.

Hearing Hachiman's answer, Eriri nodded, then placed the bag she was carrying next to Hakuto's desk.

After doing so, she originally intended to leave right away, but for some reason, she hesitated. Looking toward Hachiman, she asked,

"Uh… is he sick or something today?"

"I don't mean anything by it. It's just that he wasn't here, so I wanted to ask."

To outsiders, Eriri always maintained the image of a perfect young lady, never showing any tsundere tendencies.

But personality was something ingrained in one's nature—no matter how well she suppressed it, traces would still slip through.

Hachiman recalled what Hakuto had told him during class earlier. After thinking it over, he decided not to say anything and simply shook his head.

"I don't know. You should ask him yourself when you get the chance."

He wasn't sure if Hakuto had been joking or not. 

And if there was one thing Hachiman understood better than anyone, it was that the less he involved himself in unnecessary trouble, the better.

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