Let's do it again, Yukino.

Who taught you that?

"It's Junko. She introduced me to alcohol a long time ago. Don't let my appearance as a herbivore high school student fool you; my alcohol tolerance is actually comparable to that of you adults."

On this holiday night, Hiratsuka Shizuka shed her strict and rigid teacher demeanor and did not stop the other person from raising their glass. She simply clicked her tongue and also moved her glass closer.

The crisp sound of glasses clinking together.

"Your mother is really something. If I were your mother, with your arrogant attitude, I might not be able to resist stuffing you into my belly and reshaping you."

"Master, you skipped too many steps!!"

……

"Can the student council president really represent the entire school?"

After a few rounds of drinks, the two men's already fair skin was flushed. The boy, whose mind was a little hazy from drinking, looked at Hiratsuka Shizuka and suddenly remembered something: a request that a certain silly girl from Shinomiya had made to him not long ago.

Hiratsuka Shizuka glared at Haruhi, who was eating meat without any manners, with her slightly reddened eyes.

"Well, that's how it is. As long as you get good grades, aren't disliked by your classmates and teachers, have a good personality, good looks, and get a little publicity during the election, the chances of becoming the student council president are quite easy. Don't look at me like this, I was the student council president of Soubu High School back in the day!"

She raised her glass, and before she could finish recounting her glorious past, Hiratsuka Shizuka suddenly realized that the topic was getting a bit off.

"But why did you suddenly ask this, you silly boy? Could it be that Shiromaru has offended you in some way? But that doesn't make sense. Shiromaru is the gentlest student council president among all the recent ones. Even if it were Haruhi in the past, she wouldn't have bothered with you. Could it be that you bullied her?"

Shizuka Hiratsuka's Shiromaru is a senior student at Soubu High School, and also the student council president of Soubu High School this year.

Springtime had seen the senior with two braids at the opening ceremony. Although she was pretty, she was too simple and serious. So simple that even though there was only a one-year age difference between them, in Springtime's eyes there was an insurmountable distance between them.

To put it simply, it's just too generic! I didn't feel anything for it at all.

"No, don't always think of me as a bad guy who likes to bully women. If other people hear this, my life will be in danger."

Chunri shook her head, gazing at the yellow sediment in the glass of wine in her hand.

"...Um, Master, if I were to become the student council president, would I have a chance?"

"Pfft—"

He spat out a mouthful of beer, the icy liquid almost splashing all over the boy's face.

"Cough...cough...you...cough...you did it on purpose, didn't you? You told this kind of joke on purpose while I was drinking."

Hiratsuka Shizuka quickly grabbed a clean wet wipe and threw it directly onto the boy's face, which she had wet.

"It's not exactly a joke, I just wanted to know the possibilities."

I hastily wiped it twice in the spring.

Since Hiratsuka Shizuka, as his mentor, was once the student council president, and even his junior, Korumi, was once the student council president, then by that logic, Kasuga herself could also become the student council president.

I can't expect this pattern to skip generations.

"Ahem... While I'm happy to hear about the positive side of my students, the position of student council president, at least for now, is not quite suitable for you, silly boy."

"Is it that difficult?"

"Then tell me first, what are your reasons for wanting to become the student council president?"

"I promised someone I would do my best, but I can't just do nothing."

"Who is it? Could it be Yukinoshita-kun?"

Upon hearing what Hiratsuka Shizuka said, Haruhi slammed her hand on the table in anguish: "No way! Why do you always associate me with that devil Yukinoshita?! Do you think I'm the kind of person who would stop moving forward if Yukinoshita held me back?"

"..."

Hiratsuka Shizuka's lips twitched, and the numbing effect of alcohol on her brain caused her stomach to convulse.

The acting was so convincing. If I hadn't seen this bastard flirting with Yukinoshita in my car more than once, I might have really thought that his relationship with Yukinoshita was just a misunderstanding.

"If you really want to be the student council president of Soubu High for a year and a half, then start now to rebuild your image in the hearts of your classmates. At least don't let people think of Gian from Doraemon as the first thing that comes to mind when they think of Soubu High's Haruharu. That would be really embarrassing."

"This is too difficult!!!"

As the alcohol hit him hard, he could almost picture himself in other people's minds. He shook his head violently, stuffed large mouthfuls of meat into his mouth, and roared helplessly in spring.

"I used to think it was pretty honorable and proud to call myself Kasuga Gian!! But after your bluntness, Master, it's just too hard!!!"

Don't expose my struggles, Ms. Hiratsuka.

"Are you already planning to give up before even starting? Or are your promises to others really that unreliable?"

Hiratsuka Shizuka's lips curled up. Unlike her usual gentle demeanor at school, the young woman, a gardener of the motherland, couldn't help but sneer at her student.

"Are you trying to provoke me? Are you deliberately making things difficult for me?"

Springtime is filled with resentment.

So what if I provoke you? So what if I make things difficult for you?

Looking at the night view outside the window, perhaps because she had drunk too much, Hiratsuka Shizuka's slightly tipsy face showed a cold expression she never usually had.

"Let me tell you, I'm really going to take your provocation. I'm not going to be Gian!! Master, you just wait. So what if I'm the student council president? Don't think I can't do it. Next semester is almost here, and I'll show you what I can do then."

Haruhi was somewhat agitated, her eyes, already clouded by intoxication, gazing at Hiratsuka Shizuka with a slightly impassioned voice.

"Let's save our drunken talk for when we're really drunk!"

"I'm not drunk, I mean it."

"Ha...what a silly boy."

Looking at Haruhi's drunken state, Hiratsuka Shizuka, who was muttering to herself, suddenly touched her head and laughed.

The laughter seemed inexplicable.

Chapter Thirty-Nine: Xiaoxue, Let's Go Back Together

"vomit----"

On a sweltering night, a gust of cold wind blew by.

Springtime was staggering along the sparsely populated roadside.

"The sky is so dark, my heart is so restless... I sway left, I sway right... Ahahahaha..."

"Are you sure you don't need me to take you home?"

Behind her, Hiratsuka Shizuka had a flushed face and looked at the swaying boy walking ahead with a slightly muddled mind.

"Don't drink and drive, no need!! We have to wait outside until the alcohol has completely evaporated before we can go back."

In the hazy springtime, I turned around and squinted at the figure whose outline I could only make out.

"Master, you should go back first. It's so late, I won't keep you any longer... No, I misspoke. It's so late, I won't go home with you... No... no, what was I trying to say?"

"Anyway, Master, you should go back first. I'll sit outside for a while longer..."

……

………………

The teacher and his students drank until the very last moment before the barbecue restaurant closed.

And on that messy barbecue table,

Kasugano, who was willing to risk his life to accompany a gentleman, couldn't quite remember how many drinks he had shared with him.

"No, it's too dangerous to leave you here alone, you idiot. It's dangerous for both you and any strangers passing by."

Although drowsy, hazy thoughts kept flooding her mind, Hiratsuka Shizuka, still worried about Haruhi who was staggering and seemingly lost somewhere, stood by the roadside and hailed a taxi.

"Master, wait a moment, I'm going to help someone over..."

After speaking with a smile, Hiratsuka Shizuka, dressed in a black tuxedo, hurriedly caught up with Haruhi, who had almost run into the middle of the road.

"Come here, which world do you want to go to?"

Although her sprained ankle had not fully healed, Hiratsuka Shizuka, who could already walk normally, gently helped Haruhi and placed him in the back seat of the taxi.

After hesitating for a moment, Hiratsuka Shizuka still gave the driver the address of the apartment where Yukinoshita lived.

"Thank you, Master. If you get there, please call this number. A woman will answer the guy."

The taxi driver was a middle-aged man in his thirties.

He first glanced at the boy, who was lying on the back seat, almost unconscious from drunkenness, then at the equally intoxicated woman leaning against the window, giving him instructions. He seemed to understand something, silently remembering the woman's words, and nodded in promise.

"Don't worry, I will take this gentleman to his destination."

After receiving an affirmative answer from the driver, Hiratsuka Shizuka nudged Haruhi, who was snoring in the back, and raised her voice to warn him.

"When you get home, if anyone asks who took you drinking, just say it's Hachiman. Don't betray your master!!"

"??... Um, Yuki... What brings you here? Let me make this clear, I didn't drink a single drop, it was all Hachiman who drank it."

The boy, with his dazed eyes, stared at Hiratsuka Shizuka in front of him and chuckled foolishly.

"This stupid apprentice... I dare not bring you out drinking again next time."

Hiratsuka sighed speechlessly as she looked at the boy who was calling out a girl's name while looking at her.

"Let go. When you open your eyes again, your Xiaoxue will appear before you."

He pried the guy's fingers off his body one by one.

Just as Hiratsuka Shizuka was about to leave the carriage,

In that instant,

A slight tremor, and everything seemed to go black.

And then,

General Manager Ping felt his body weight lighten, and a pulling force came from inside the carriage.

Hiratsuka Shizuka, who had been half-hanging outside the car, found herself lying face down on the other clean seat when she came to her senses.

The boy casually closed the car door, closed his eyes, and lay down on that warm, soft spot, the smell of alcohol slowly wafting out from him.

"Let's go back together, Xiaoxue."

Looking at the woman in his arms who seemed stunned, Chunri's lips curled into an exceptionally bright smile. Fueled by the alcohol, he spoke softly.