"So--"

Himekawa Yoshiko raised the glass and said to everyone in a lively and cheerful tone:

"Thanks to everyone's hard work~! Now please raise a glass together, let's toast to Serizawa-san~~~!"

"""""cheers--!!"""""

Ding-ding-ding-ding-ding~

Twelve glasses formed a circle and collided on the table. Needless to say, the glasses contained various drinks.

Everyone sat next to each other on the two tables that were put together.

Kato Yusuke is sandwiched between Shiha and Eri, and opposite is "Hasumi Kanoko Kei Kako".

Sitting on the main seat are "Motoyama Mina, Serizawa Yuu, and Shinjoka", and the other end of the main seat is occupied by "Aki Aruya and the Mangakus brothers".

Logically speaking, Kato Yusuke's position should have been changed with Shinjoka's, but due to the subsequent impact of the Black Gold War, it eventually evolved into the current situation.

In order to avoid another dispute between Shiyu and Yinglili, he took the initiative to become the great peace buffer.

This is a mature expression of his taking the overall situation into consideration, and it definitely has nothing to do with Hui's unwillingness to sit next to him.

"Gudu, Gudu~"

Serizawa Yu took two sips of the drink, then put down the glass and bowed to everyone.

"Thank you everyone, thank you very much——!"

As she spoke, her delicate little face turned slightly red with excitement, and her expression looked like she was about to cry.

Shinjoka looked at her and handed over a handkerchief, "I told you, don't do this on a day like today, right? Use this to wipe your tears."

"Oh, thank you~ Xiaoxiang, I'm just a little happy...hey."

"Hey, what a surprise! And Shinjou-san is so gentle!"

Yamaguchi, who was watching their interaction, sighed with emotion: "You mean, I used to think that Shinjou-san was a sister-type character, but I didn't expect that he turned out to be a sister-type character~?"

"Thank you for the compliment, Yamaguchi-san, but it's no big deal." Shinjoka smiled lightly.

"I also agree with what Ah Xiao said!"

Takei said: "Besides, Serizawa-san lives in Shinjo-san's house, right? You are so awesome. You are obviously a girl, but how dare you welcome a stranger into your home?"

Regarding matters related to Serizawa Yuu, Kato Yusuke briefly mentioned it when he sent an invitation to them, so people also knew that Serizawa Yui lived at Shinjoka's side.

"Ahaha, it's not as exaggerated as Takei-san said."

Facing Takei's words, Shinjoka smiled and waved her hand in front of her chest.

"I was just asking for help from the president, and I happen to live alone. I would feel more at ease if I had someone to keep me company. It's not as bad as you think."

"Even if you say so, ordinary people would have some concerns when encountering this kind of thing, right? Besides, Shinjo-san is still a high school student."

"Hmm~~~How should I put this? After all, the president always takes good care of me. After Xiao Xi moved in, he even gave me some subsidies, which made the pressure in my life a lot easier."

Shinjoka continued: "Then Xiaoxi always helps me make lunch, so I am the one who receives the care. I don't know how to thank her~"

The scenes were beautifully spoken, presenting the image of a considerate and beautiful girl.

People had mixed reactions to this.

Yamaguchi, Takei, An Yirunya, and Erili all nodded secretly and couldn't help but feel admiration.

Including Himekawa Yoshiko, who was not very fond of Shinjoka, she also had a slight change in view of it.

Although this is not enough for them to become friends, at least she is no longer so resistant to each other, and it is not impossible to be an ordinary classmate.

But for the other people who knew the inside story, that was not the case...

Shiyu showed no emotion about this on the surface, but in fact he was sneering in his heart.

There was no expression on Hui's face, and she looked calm.

Ren saw that Kanoko glanced at someone unconsciously and seemed to be smiling but not smiling.

Serizawa Yuu was also secretly glancing at Kato Yusuke, her eyes twinkling.

Mina Motoyama didn't know the twists and turns, but she was awakened by the words of the Mangkhut brothers, so she turned to face Kato Yusuke.

"Speaking of which, Xiaoyu, what are you going to do with Xiaoxi in the future? It's hard to keep bothering Shinjou-san. Do you want Xiaoxi to move to your place?"

""--no.""

The girls' voices overlapped.

"Uh, Xiaoshi and Eirili...?" Motoyama Mina asked in confusion: "What are you...?"

Shiyu and Yinglili couldn't help but look at each other, and then spoke to each other.

"...I'm sorry, Aunt Mina, I just think that this kind of proposal is inappropriate for both Yuu-chan and Xiao Xi. Can you think about it again?"

"The only thing I can't refute is this. It doesn't matter if they are elementary school students, but they are both high school students, living together... I think it's still not good."

Seemingly inadvertently, Hui also said something.

"Well, I think Yusuke's place is more like his creative space than a place where he lives."

Himekawa Yoshiko reacted instantly, banged her right fist on her left palm, and nodded her head repeatedly.

"So, I heard that many cartoonists seem to be unable to draw anything unless they are in a quiet environment.

Kato-kun can create such interesting comics, so he must be the same~!"

Hearing this, Yamaguchi couldn't help but interject.

"Hey, that's strange. When did you start reading comics, Kako? Why didn't I know?"

"...Well~~~ After all, everyone is watching, so I just followed suit." Yoshiko Himekawa said with a smile, and gave him a "Shut up!" look.

The mountain pass was as silent as a cicada.

The situation appears to be one-sided.

Looking at the people expressing their opinions, Motoyama Mina couldn't help but blinked in confusion, feeling strange in her heart.

Kato Yusuke first looked at Yu Serizawa who had her little head lowered and said nothing, and then looked at Motoyama Mina.

"I will arrange things about Xiao Xi, Aunt Mei Na, you don't have to worry."

"That's it... um~ If you have arrangements, I won't tell you anything." Motoyama Mina nodded lightly, and let the matter pass.

"OK OK--"

As if to prevent the atmosphere from becoming cold, Himekawa Yoshiko saw the opportunity and said: "Now that everything has been said, let's get ready to eat~!"

"Although it is true that we need to eat...but why is it you, Yoshiko, who is responsible for presiding over the situation?" Yamaguchi couldn't help but complain.

"What kind of tone are you talking about! Can't I do it?"

"I'm not looking for trouble with you. The problem is that we are all guests. Shouldn't the host be in charge at this time?"

"What you said is correct, but there's nothing we can do about it. Kato-san can't liven up the atmosphere at all..."

Ah, I’m not talking about your facial paralysis, Kato-san. It’s just that you’ve always been like that after all, hehe.”

Himekawa Yoshiko, who realized her mistake, stuck out her tongue and hit her head with her fist.

Yamaguchi deliberately teased her, "Actually, that's what you were thinking, right? Kako."

After speaking, he said to Kato Yusuke:

"Well, Kato, you are really not suitable for this kind of thing. A real man should be a key figure, so leave it to us to liven up the atmosphere~!"

Kato Yusuke nodded helplessly as a response.

…

Next, everyone picked up their chopsticks and ate happily.

Today’s lunch is sukiyaki, with a variety of meats and vegetables on the table.

This is a somewhat unexpected combination at first glance, but it is very suitable for gatherings with many people, and it has the flavor of eating shabu-shabu in winter.

People were eating and chatting, and the atmosphere was lively.

On the second day after the cultural festival, the topic was naturally inseparable from this aspect.

For example, the commotion caused by Yusuke Kato on the first day, the wonderful performance of the drama department this year, the interesting projects of which class and club, etc...

Everyone had a lot of fun talking about each other's experiences at the cultural festival.

"Speaking of which..."

Takei suddenly said: "Aki-san, you are really amazing. You actually got the second place in our school by yourself. You are so strong."

Upon hearing this, An Yilun, who was still enjoying the food, immediately became energetic and excitedly put down his bowl and chopsticks and said:

"Eh~ Where? I'm not that powerful either."

"Yeah?"

"That's right~! In fact, I was able to win second place thanks to Kato's willingness to lend me the right to use the audio-visual classroom. Otherwise, it would be difficult for a clever woman to make a meal without rice."
To be continued...