Kobayashi Rinae’s Class

Monday was a complementary holiday and Shouichi spent the entire morning helping with the demolition of Yoko's stall. In the afternoon, he crammed as much material into his brain as possible, fully aware that he only had one week to prepare for the midterms.

The next day, the school resumed as usual...

Shouichi kicked off his day by doing his routines from brushing his teeth, washing his face with lukewarm water, and preparing his own lunchbox. It wouldn't take long for him to complete his dressing into the school uniform, topped with a black blazer.

"I look peak in this!' He exclaimed, staring at his reflection in the mirror. His graphite-black hair framed his fair, healthy skin, which seemed to brighten his entire appearance. Cinnamon-brown eyes, dazzling and almost femininely attractive, were complemented by elegant long lashes and perfectly shaped double eyelids.

The charming young man slightly adjusted his jacket and collar to stay in place. Despite the long sleeves, one could easily catch a glimpse of his muscular arms underneath. 

"Hmm? I must've gained some muscles from the club practice." He analysed inwardly, twisting his arms around to compliment his biceps and triceps. 

For the finishing touch, Shouichi slid a sweatband onto his left wrist, concealing the nasty scar beneath. He had no memory of how he got it, but his father once told him it was from an injury he'd suffered when he was five years old.

"Shou-senpai!" A familiar voice resonated as he emerged from the house. As it turned out it was the most beautiful girl in Shouichi's entire world.

Shouichi found himself grinning like an idiot, "Misa-chan. Good morning! Fancy seeing you here." Shouichi greeted his girlfriend, who was standing in front of the gate. 

"Good morning! I've missed you sooooooo much!" Misaki greeted, her trademark twin tails bouncing with every step. She never failed to captivate him, and her unwavering smile could only be described as 'extremely cute.'

"Hahaha, already? It's only been one day!" 

"~Senpai, you didn't say it back!" Misaki cut him mid-sentence as she approached and grasped his blazer tight, "Don't you miss Misa-chan too?" She asked in a baby voice, an octave higher to pleading for his attention.

"Of course, I miss you a whole lot!" Shouichi replied, patting softly on her dark purple hair. 

"So… Misa-chan, why did you drop by today? Did you come to walk to school with me?" Shouichi asked flatly as they both began to walk.

"Um, um! I wanna walk to school with my boyfriend," Misaki said, her arm slipping around his as her fingers intertwined with his. He felt a soft, bouncy sensation as her chest pressed gently against his side.

"I see!... This will be our first time, right?" 

"Right? Fufufu!" Misaki chuckled sweetly. 

"Would you like to hang out with me at Yoko Sweet Shop afterwards?" Shouichi asked.

"Umm…" Her face darkened all of a sudden, "Sorry senpai. I have a tutor at home, my carer, Wendy-san..." She explained, bitter in her tone.

"Oh? Wendy-san is not just your driver?" Shouichi inquired, raising his brows in a mixture of intrigue and puzzlement. 

"Fufufu... Nope!" Misaki giggled, shaking her head. "She was originally my dad's secretary after she graduated with her master's degree, but somehow, he ended up assigning her to be my carer instead," she clarified.

"Oh… That's Wendy-san's lore," 

"Hahaha, I agree." The girl giggled, "Don't worry, I would never cheat on you, senpai!" She slipped erratically.

"That's quite a curveball…" Shouichi's thought lingered.

"Look, look! Shou-senpai!" Misaki urged, each hand lifting her twin tails, showing her delicate neck with a rose-gold necklace dangling elegantly. 

"Huh? You're wearing it to school?" Shouichi asked, astounded, "It looks really nice, Misa-chan." He praised, her cheeks dusted with pink. 

"Of course, it is the most valuable gift from my beloved boyfriend, I'd cherish it until the day I die!" Misaki vowed with genuine determination in her obsidian eyes.

"That's Misaki for you, she's as honest and candid as ever." He observed internally.

Ding! Ding! Ding!

Abruptly, Shouichi's smartphone buzzed. Meanwhile, his curious girlfriend clung to his arm, her eyes fixed on the screen. "Akiyama Suzuki," It read.

"~Sorry, I need to take this one real quick," Shouichi told his girlfriend. And Misaki puffed her cheeks into a fuzzy pout.

"Hello! Akiyama-san." Shouichi answered his phone.

"H~Hi! How are you doing, Seito-kun?" Suzuki greeted him, a hint of nervousness in her tone. 

"I'm good, actually," Shouichi replied. 

"What are you doing?" Suzuki asked, oddly casual in her tone. "What is she even on about?" He thought. 

"I'm, um, I'm walking to school right now..." Shouichi replied politely, noticing Misaki poking his cheek with her pointer, "W~with my girlfriend!" He added after interpreting the signal. Misaki approved with a nod. 

"Oh… Do you have a girlfriend already? Hahaha, that's pretty common for the high schoolers, right?" Suzuki asked nervously before letting out a hollow laugh. 

"I guess so…" Shouichi replied, keeping it short.

Realising she was holding him up, he felt his patience wearing thin. "Um... Akiyama-san." 

"Hmm? Seito-kun?" Suzuki responded unhurriedly. 

"Why are you calling me?" Shouichi eventually asked, cutting straight to the point. 

"Oh, my bad… Umm… You see, I was thinking." Suzuki began to fumble with her words. 

"Akiyama-san, deep breath, please. You're starting to worry me." 

"R~Right. I already talked to Ayane-chan about the monks dumping the cadaver pouches into the bonfire during the festival. She said the same thing!" Suzuki explained, seemingly back to her normal self. 

"Oh, that's good to hear, I guess," Shouichi replied, slightly irritated. "And?" He pressed. 

"That's all, Seito-kun. Thank you for your statement!" Suzuki said abruptly. 

"Glad I could be of any help. See you, Akiyama-san." 

"Eh?" 

Shouichi hung up before Suzuki could say another word. "She's so awkward and weird on the phone," He remarked inwardly. "She does act normal in person, though."

Misaki's eyebrows furrowed into a frown, "Shou-senpai! Who is this hag?" She interrogated bluntly.

"Officer Akiyama, you got me in trouble!" He cried in his mind. 

"Well, I met her yesterday when I was helping out at the stall~" Shouichi explained calmly but soon interrupted mid-sentence, "~Is this old hag your new mistress? Did you cheat on me, senpai?" Misaki's fingers gripped onto his blazers tight.

"Listen, Misa-chan. Let me explain, she's a cop!" Shouichi raised his voice, louder than he intended. That seemed to work as Misaki calmed down to a degree.

"Ahem... Yesterday, the police found skeletons in the ashe piles. As a result, Officer Akiyama has been investigating that ever since. I guess, she was just asking around for more clues." He explained, his hands clasping on Misaki's in reassurance.

"Oh, that's what it is… Why didn't you say so?!" Misaki smiled, satisfied. 

"Ugh... That's what I've been trying to say..." Shouichi grumbled to himself. Misaki abruptly froze to process. "Wait?! So the cadaver pouches were real?!" She lashed out loudly in realisation.

"It appeared so," Shouichi replied nonchalantly. 

"Hehehe, my eyes are pretty sharp, eh?" Misaki smirked, almost prideful. The boy nodded several times in response.

"I thought she would be terrified, but instead, she was intrigued… Misaki was indeed a scary movie geek underneath that pretty shell," He analysed.

"Still! Don't, don't talk to her again! This Akiyama hag is all over you, senpai!" Misaki ordered sternly, her expression serious as she jabbed her index finger at his face.

"Huh? But isn't that illegal? Ignoring an officer's inquiry?" Shouichi countered, raising an eyebrow.

"I know! But you have to be careful! Don't fall for an old lady like her, do you understand?!" Misaki warned, her tone growing darker. She must have had a sixth sense, Shouichi thought.

"Understood, hahaha," He replied, brushing it off with a laugh.

***

After their short stroll, Shouichi and Misaki parted ways at the main building entrance. Her classroom was on the first floor, while his was on the second.

"See you, Senpai!" Misaki called out with a cheerful farewell. The girl eagerly waved her hand at him before disappearing into her class.

Shouichi climbed the stairs to the second floor and entered through the backdoor on the left. His back was slightly hunched as he already felt drained from the morning stroll with Ishikawa Misaki.

"Hey, why so gloomy, bro!?" His best friend Shinji shouted. Shouichi turned to see his grinning face.

"Hey, Shinji!" Shouichi replied, perking up a little.

"Shouichi-kun, good morning," Ayane greeted warmly, turning toward him with a gentle smile.

The renowned Aphrodite trio was now reunited in perfect harmony.

***

Before long, the homeroom teacher entered the classroom and the lively chatter died down almost instantly. Takeshi-sensei, a thin and short man in his 40s, was accompanied by a mature, busty woman. Her alluring presence was more than enough to leave the male students slack-jawed.

"Good morning, students of class 2-1. I hope you all enjoyed the last event before the midterm," He began, his voice slow but stern. "I'm aware that something sinister occurred, rumours and all, but that's no excuse to slack off. The test is less than a week away."

"For the midterm, we'll tackle two main subjects each day, consecutively for three days: starting with Mathematics, English, Social Studies, Science, and Japanese. So, it's your responsibility to organise your preparation accordingly…" Takashi-sensei continued his lecture, murmuring on.

However, he completely failed to address the elephant in the room — or more accurately, the crane standing elegantly beside him, a true symbol of beauty.

"...And this is your new Mathematics teacher from Osaka. Please introduce yourself to the class."

At last, the long-awaited words captured everyone's attention.

"Good morning, class. I'm Kobayashi Rinae and I'm your maths teacher from now on. Please to meet you!" Her voice was gentle but yet firm. She bowed to the class and the gap between the shirt collar showed the white and alluring upper chests. "Another boobs monster… Sadly this isn't Hentai." Shouichi thought. 

The siren teacher dressed in her tight, white shirt and short pencil skirt like a sexy secretary, complemented by black leggings. Her outfit exaggerated her figure, especially her oversized hips and chests. Red Boston-style glasses perched on her prominent nose. Her large, dark eyes and well-styled black hair, gathered neatly into a flower bun, added to her distinctive look. A charming mole on her left cheek further maximised her overall allure. 

"Besides, the next session should start now, may I begin my first lesson, Takeshi-sensei?" She gracefully turned to ask her colleague, clasping her hands together. He nodded a few times and left the room. 

"All right! Class... Phew... Enough with the formality, please call me Rinae or something," Rinae-sensei said, switching to her casual demeanour. She casually sat in the chair, crossing her legs enticingly. Her relaxed gesture shifted the tension in the air, and the class seemed to relax along with her.

"Wow… I didn't know she's chill like that." 

"She's so beautiful."

"Man, maths class oughta be fun, now."

Excited male students started to gossip quietly. 

"That's how I like it." She swept her gaze across students, familiarising herself with their faces.

Rinae began by reviewing the recent curriculum and lessons with the students.

She explained that the upcoming test would be in a multiple-choice format, then proceeded to summarise all the key topics that could appear on the midterm next week.