It was already noon on Wednesday when Eiri learned about Shinjoka from Yu Serizawa.

The other party still did not come to school today, and it was said that he would have to rest at home for an extra day.

She hurriedly sent a condolence message on her mobile phone and chatted with Shinjoka on LINE for a while before running to the cafeteria for lunch.

Since she arrived late, the restaurant was already overcrowded.

Fortunately, the school has an exclusive table for student council members, so there is no need to worry about not having a seat.

Eiri ordered a piece of tempura udon and enjoyed it by herself.

Because she attracts so much attention in school and is known as Miss Toyosaki, she rarely comes to the student cafeteria and usually eats lunches prepared by her mother or the maid.

However, she went out in a hurry this morning and forgot to put her lunch box in her schoolbag, and the competition at the canteen was extremely fierce, so the cafeteria became the best choice.

In addition, she actually held a trace of luck in her heart - maybe she could meet that person here.

——It’s a pity that things went counterproductive.

The person you wanted to wait for did not wait, but you waited for an unexpected person.

"...Oh, it's really strange that you would come to the cafeteria."

"Huh?"

Ying Lili raised her head following the sound and found that the person sitting opposite was An Yilun.

The other party held a tray in his hand, with a "Salmon Set" on it. The dishes included grilled salmon, stir-fried vegetables, clam soup, a small plate of pickled vegetables and rice. It was a simple and delicious combination.

Yinglili was stunned for a second, and then said seriously:

"I'm talking about you, this is a seat reserved for the student union? Ordinary students are prohibited from using it."

"Even if you say that, you can't find any vacancies elsewhere. If someone comes later, I will naturally make room for you. You don't have to worry."

"Thank you for being able to speak so calmly. How thick-skinned are you? Besides, I sat down here first. Even if you want to sit down, you should ask others for their permission first!"

"Wow, Eiri, you guy, I have lent you countless anime and games, but you can say such heartless words, isn't it too much?"

"--Well!"

Yinglili was speechless for a moment, and then immediately said:

"No! It should be said that I didn't ask you to do that kind of thing. Most of the time, you took the initiative to give me Amway works, right?

Although I did ask to borrow things from you a few times... Anyway, I will bring them to school and return them to you tomorrow!"

After such an interruption, she no longer had to worry about the seat and acquiesced to An Yilun to sit down as well.

"You, I didn't tell you to return it right away, why did you interpret it that way? Anyway, I have extra reserves for most of the works I borrowed from you, so returning them a day or two late won't have any impact on me."

An Yilun also picked up the salmon with chopsticks and took a bite. He asked calmly: "By the way...why did you come to the restaurant to eat alone? Where are the other people in the student union?"

"have no idea."

"What--?"

"We didn't make an appointment to have dinner together. Everyone should have brought their own lunch boxes. As for Shinjou-san...she didn't come to school because she was sick."

"Oh! It seems that I haven't seen her for two days. No wonder the group of students who are in charge of discipline have become a lot more lazy. They don't even search for contraband seriously anymore, which makes me a little uncomfortable."

Yinglili asked in confusion: "Not used to it?"

"yes."

An Yilun also nodded in affirmation.

"Because of Shinjo's absence, the comics I brought to school have successfully passed the ethics inspection, which is a good thing for me."

He showed an unhappy expression and continued speaking through gritted teeth.

"After all, what's going on with that guy Shinjo? Is there something wrong with her head? Ever since I quarreled with Kato, she seems to have been eyeing me, and she's always looking for trouble for me."

Eiri took a sip of udon and pointed out the flaw in his words angrily.

"That's not because you secretly brought comics to school! Shinjou-san just did what he should do."

"Well... although it is indeed my fault to bring comics to school, that guy Shinjo is definitely targeting me on purpose! I can clearly feel this.

Even when Yamaguchi and others from Class E brought manga magazines to school, she pretended not to see it. Why can such a person be a disciplinary committee member? Should we say that she is Kato's follower? It's really unbearable."

Faced with An Yilunye's complaint, Yinglili stopped moving her hands for a moment, lowered her eyes sadly, and muttered to herself.

"...Shinjo-san, she is not just Yusuke's follower."

"Huh? Did you say something? Your voice was so soft, I didn't hear it."

"I didn't say anything. This has nothing to do with you, Renya! Also... Shinjou-san is not a bad person. Please don't say such sarcastic words next time."

An Yilun looked at her unconvinced, took another bite of salmon, and asked casually: "... By the way, how are you doing with your recent games?"

"Um--?"

Yinglili immediately became alert, "What do you mean? Do you want me to leak the studio's information to you? Give up, I won't do that kind of thing."

"Hey, I didn't think so! It's just... I have something I want to talk to you about."

"...Talk to me? What is it?"

An Yilun also hesitated, "Well... are you free later? Otherwise, I'll buy you a drink and let's go to the atrium to talk."

Before Ying Lili could ask her questions carefully, he added another sentence.

"After all, there are many people here, and you don't want to be seen with me, a nerd, and there are any scandals, right? So if you have any questions, we can wait until later."

Yinglili looked around, but after all she didn't speak.

…

In this way, the two of them came to the atrium after lunch.

An Yilun also bought two bottles of drinks from the vending machine and handed one over.

"Here, here is the black tea for you. Do you like this brand?"

"Thank you, I'll give you the money."

"No, I told you to buy you a drink, you can just take it."

"Huh? What are your intentions...?"

"Don't think so badly of people! It's just a bottle of black tea, and the drink hasn't been opened. What can I do?"

Ying Lili frowned and thought for a while, then reached out to take the black tea.

In order to prevent the other party from taking the opportunity to make some excessive requests, she took precautions in advance.

"Then what? What do you want to talk to me about? You have agreed in advance. If you want me to help you convince everyone to allow you to return to the studio... I can't do that kind of thing, so I won't talk about it."

"Who wants to go back? I have never thought about such a thing! I have made my words very clear before, didn't Kano-chan convey it to you?"

Yinglili asked suspiciously: "If it's not this, then what do you want to see me for?"

"About this..."

An Yilun also leaned against the vending machine, pulled open the soda ring with a "Puff~" sound, and took a few sips.

"I want to ask, Yinglili, are you happy at Kato's place?"

"Huh?" Yinglili was stunned, "What do you mean?"

"That is to say...how are you doing at drawing now? Has Kato forced you to do anything random again? Are you happy? Are you tired..."

"Aha--?"

Countless question marks popped up in Yinglili's head. She was a little confused by this series of questions. She thought for a moment and gave her answer.

"Well... there will be times when I feel tired, but painting is my favorite job, so how can it be possible to relax? I had this in mind when I entered the industry."

"As for you asking me if I'm happy...

If I wasn't happy, I wouldn't have chosen this job in the first place. And I get along well with everyone. We even went to a campground together last weekend, and I had a great time."

As if a chat box had been opened, the girl kept talking.

"Although Yusuke can be very strict sometimes, he is really powerful. I have never seen anyone as talented as him.

It may be difficult for laymen like you to understand, but his level is actually enough to make all the painters in the industry feel ashamed or even despair?"

"I remember that you seem to be a fan of Akane Kurisaka, right? You know how much that person values ​​Yusuke, and you should be able to understand the value of it, right?"

"Also, even my mother likes him very much. Not only for her younger generations, but also for his creations -"

"--enough!"

"Wow!!"

The suddenly louder voice made Yinglili, who was speaking enthusiastically, tremble. Then she opened her round blue eyes angrily and stared at him.

"Why did you shout so loudly all of a sudden!? You scared me."

An Yilun also said with a cold face: "That's not what I want to tell you."

"……Huh?"
To be continued...