115. A winter without snow arrived in silence.

Following the school festival, Jinguji Yue’s campus life underwent certain changes.

First of all, as he walked through the school, the number of people who recognized him increased significantly. Thanks to his keen hearing, the whispers that once sounded like, “Ugh, it’s Jinguji,” filled with disgust, gradually shifted into a tone of slight delight: “Oh, look, it’s Jinguji.”

Naturally, this change was limited to the girls. As for the boys, their assessment remained largely unchanged: “Tch! What’s so great about being handsome?” It was quite consistent.

Although Hoshinomori Hoshino had made remarks as if the grand finale of their time together was approaching, for a long time, she remained the first person to arrive at the student council room every day. In her own words, she enjoyed the time spent alone in the room after school, waiting for the other members to arrive. During this period, the workload of the student council became noticeably lighter. While it wouldn’t be accurate to say they had nothing to do, compared to before the festival, there was indeed little to occupy them, and they often spent their time simply drinking tea. Most of the time, Hoshinomori Hoshino took on the role of a maid, responsible only for pouring tea, while the tasks that originally belonged to her were all handed over to Jinguji Yue.

In mid-November, as Hoshinomori Hoshino’s term neared its end, the school held an election for the student council president. There were only two candidates: Jinguji Yue and a second-year girl. Although that girl was cute and had excellent grades, she seemed to be a loner, somewhat like the Jinguji Yue of the past. In the end, thanks to his active role in the school festival, Jinguji Yue won the support of a large number of first-year students as well as some girls from other grades, securing a landslide victory.

It seems that in collective activities like voting, women are always more united and organized than men. Jinguji Yue couldn’t say whether this was a good or bad thing; recalling his past life as a scoundrel, it made him feel as if he were walking on thin ice. Thus, just two and a half months after joining the student council, Jinguji Yue inexplicably rose from vice-president to president.

In all honesty, this was an incredibly surreal turn of events, especially considering he had been suspended just last year for misconduct with a teacher. Consequently, there was still a considerable portion of the student body that held objections to Jinguji’s election. Ever since he took office, Hoshinomori Hoshino gradually reduced her visits to the student council room, coming only two or three times a week, and even then, she would just drink tea without doing any work.

...

As time passed, winter arrived quietly. In late December, in Tokyo’s Meguro District, the gentle winter sun shone upon the earth. A biting wind blew across the slope in front of the school, and the sports clubs were still holding their activities on the field. The members’ hands were flushed red from the cold, and their breath turned into white mist, yet these high school students continued to sing the praises of their youth with undiminished enthusiasm.

In the classroom at the very end of the fourth floor of the old school building, Jinguji Yue stood before the window, silently watching the students below.

“Senior, I’ve put all the documents here.”

“Mm, thank you for your hard work.”

The little creature slumped lazily onto the sofa, letting out a contented sound: “Senior, I’m thirsty~~”

Jinguji Yue glanced at her, opened the cupboard, took out the tea leaves, and began to boil water. Yogimiya Yo swung her legs happily, humming an unrecognizable anime song.

“Where is Yamada?”

“She’s already gone home.”

“I see.”

Jinguji Yue stood in the spot where Hoshinomori Hoshino used to stand, looking down at the bubbling electric kettle.

“Yogimiya.”

“What is it?”

“Is black tea okay?”

“I refuse.”

“Only children add milk.”

“I am a child, to begin with.”

What a difficult person to deal with, Jinguji Yue thought.

After the water was boiled, Jinguji Yue handed a cup of milk tea to Yogimiya Yo, only to be dissed with a comment that it was “not as good as Senior Hoshinomori’s.” After Jinguji told her she didn’t have to drink it if she didn’t want to, the little creature downed it in one gulp, licked the milk foam from her lips, and asked for another cup with a smile. There was truly no helping her.

“Hey, Senior.”

“What?”

“Do you have any plans for tomorrow?”

Jinguji Yue brewed a cup of black tea for himself, tasting it while secretly comparing it to hers in his heart. It was the exact same tea, yet the flavor was not quite the same; it was truly intriguing.

“Painting,” he said.

“And the day after?”

“Painting.”

“How boring. You aren’t going to keep painting until next year, are you?”

“That is the plan.”

“Hmph, is it because nobody invited you out to play—ow, ow, ow!”

Jinguji Yue released his grip on the girl’s head and said flatly, “Don’t lump me in with you.”

The little creature pouted and said indignantly, “I’m not being lazy. I’ve finally waited for the holidays, so of course I want to go out and play. Your way of thinking is the real anomaly.”

Incidentally, today was the last day of the term, and winter break would begin tomorrow.

“Don’t tell me you’re going to spend Christmas Eve at home painting too?”

Faced with Yogimiya Yo’s questioning, Jinguji Yue gave her a calm glance before standing up and patting her on the head.

“You ask too many questions.”

“Guh—”

“It’s about time we left. Don’t leave anything behind. Let’s go.”

“Eh? Wait… wait for me, Senior!”

After leaving the student council room and returning the keys, he left the school with Yogimiya Yo. Walking down the slope towards home, Yogimiya Yo, wearing a scarf and warm gloves, skipped along ahead of him.

“Hey! Hey! Senior, does it snow in Tokyo in the winter?”

“Is this your first winter in Tokyo?”

“Yes, it is.”

“If you ask me, it doesn’t really.”

“That’s a pity.”

“Aren’t you going back to your hometown?”

“Most likely, in a few days.”

“I see.”

“If it snows, I’ll take lots of pictures of the snow for you.”

“Mm, just remember not to break any bones.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” the little creature asked, bewildered.

“Just talking to myself. Don’t mind it.”

“I hate idiots who only say half of what they mean!”

“I am not only not an idiot, but I am also the student council president.”

“You’re the worst!”

In short, amidst their pleasant conversation, the two arrived at the station. Yogimiya Yo didn’t have a part-time job today, so their paths diverged, and they exchanged farewells with a “See you next year.”

Returning to Jiyugaoka alone, after exiting the station, he felt something land on his shoulder. Jinguji Yue looked up at the sky as cold droplets fell onto his cheeks. If something had to fall, he would have preferred it to be snow. Fortunately, as a precaution, he had brought an umbrella in his bag. Just as he was about to leave, he spotted Sakurakoji Sakura, who was pressed against the transparent window of a nearby dessert shop, staring intently inside.