Chapter 408: A Different Shirogane Miyuki

"…That was seriously scary."

"Really? I thought it was okay."

After leaving Atenbo's tent, Rinji took Kei to explore the festival.

First stop: the haunted house.

When the staff member—Iino Miko—saw Rinji standing next to Kei in her middle school uniform, she looked at him like he'd committed a terrible crime.

Seeing this, Rinji sternly explained that Kei was the president's sister and that he was fulfilling a duty with great responsibility and care by accompanying her to the festival.

Knowing her own thoughts were straying, Iino quickly blushed and apologized.

Inside the haunted house, Kei was scared out of her wits and clung to Rinji's arm the whole way.

Seeing her trying hard not to cry, Rinji didn't say anything comforting—he just patted her head.

"Let's check out other spots or grab something to eat. That might cheer you up."

"No, today's actually been really fun," Kei said quietly. "I don't get to go out with you very often."

Rarely, indeed. This was the first time she'd ever been out alone with Rinji.

From her perspective, the person who spent the most time with Rinji was her brother, Shirogane. Aside from visits to their home, most of Rinji's free time was spent in the student council room.

In total, Shirogane spent the most time with Rinji.

Even more than Karura.

Of course, it couldn't be helped. Rinji and Shirogane went to the same school and worked in the same student council. It was only natural.

But if you counted who spent the most one-on-one time with him, it would definitely be Hayasaka.

She was with him every weekend as his personal maid.

In short, Kei had very few chances to be alone with Rinji. This might be the only one.

"Rinji-nii…"

"Yeah?"

"Can I go out with you again sometime?"

"Of course. Any time you ask, I'm in," Rinji said with a smile.

"What if it conflicts with your date with your girlfriend?"

"Oh, then Karura takes priority."

"…"

"Kei, try to understand me a little. It's not easy for your big brother Rinji to get a girlfriend," Rinji sighed. "I've been busy lately and haven't even had time to go out with Karura. Thinking back, we've only had maybe five real dates at most."

"Eh? That few?" Kei blinked. "I heard she goes to your house every week."

"Well, yeah, technically…"

But every time she came over, Fusui always tagged along. That was the biggest headache for Rinji. Then when Hayasaka started working as his maid, weekends turned into a four-person gathering.

Karura seemed to enjoy the lively atmosphere, so Rinji didn't interfere, but it meant private time with her kept shrinking.

"Whatever, I'll just spend Christmas at her place. There's plenty of time over winter break to make it up to her." Rinji smiled again.

Meanwhile, Kei kept her head down, clearly lost in thought.

After a while, she spoke.

"Rinji-nii… there's a bonfire event tonight at the high school section, right?"

"Yeah."

"Can…" Kei's voice grew softer, "Can we go together?"

"I'd love to, but I have other duties tonight," Rinji said. "You know the regulations have tightened. Technically, the school isn't allowed to hold bonfire events. We only got approval after the disciplinary committee and festival committee negotiated with the fire department. One condition is strict safety supervision—and I'm the one assigned to that role. Plus…"

Rinji lifted his head and glanced toward the student council office.

"There's something I have to do."

"I see…"

"Sorry, Kei. If there's a bonfire again at next year's festival, I'll go with you."

"No, there's nothing to apologize for," Kei shook her head. "You have things you need to do. So just focus on that."

"Thanks." Rinji smiled warmly.

But inside, he was getting serious.

'President… the rest of this festival is in your hands. Don't mess it up.'

---

Kaguya had no duties today.

After playing poster girl all afternoon yesterday, today was her rest day. In the morning, she'd casually gone to Shirogane's class—Year 2, Class B—under the guise of bumping into him, and quietly began her plan.

Shirogane's job at the time was making balloon animals. Having heard the legend of the Hoshin Festival, Kaguya really wanted him to make a heart-shaped balloon for her.

That would basically be a confession from him.

But things weren't that simple. Normally, balloons cost 100 yen each. Heart-shaped ones were made by twisting two balloons together, so logically they'd cost 200 yen.

However, because many students were aware of the legend, Class 2-B's balloon shop had a special rule: "The price of a heart-shaped balloon is one heart." In other words, to get a heart-shaped balloon, you had to pay with a heart-shaped object—not money.

This aligned with the legend's spirit: if you want someone to confess to you, you must first confess yourself. It was also a way to protect their classmates from awkward situations.

Because of that rule, Kaguya's plan fell apart.

'So that won't work either… I need another idea.'

She walked through the hallway, face full of frustration.

'This is the Hoshin Festival, the time when romantic feelings peak. If I don't make my move now, it'll be hard to find another chance later…'

"Shinomiya."

"Eh? President?"

Just as she was spiraling, Shirogane appeared behind her.

"What a coincidence, meeting you here," Kaguya smiled.

"It's not a coincidence."

His expression wasn't the usual flustered one she was used to. Today, he looked unusually serious.

"I was looking for you."

"…Huh?"

"My work is done, and you're free too. How about we go enjoy the festival together?"

"…"

Kaguya was stunned.

Shirogane seemed different today.

But that didn't matter. This was the first time he'd invited her out. It was the perfect opportunity.

"I think that's a great idea."

She smiled, stealing glances at him.

"But won't people think we're on a date if we go out like this…"

"I don't mind. Let's just call it a date."

"…"

She froze.

Shirogane really was different today.