I am only one world away from Yukinoshita.

"Heh," Yukinoshita chuckled, it was unclear whether she was laughing at Kiyora's overreaction to the haunted house or at his comical state of being too nervous to move. "After we leave, please ask Tachibana-san to apologize to the classmate from earlier."

"Ah, um..."

Kiyoshi, realizing his own rude behavior, felt a pang of guilt. After all, it wasn't a real ghost, but a person playing the role, a senior from the same school.

Instinctively, Kiyoshi wanted to pull out a handkerchief from his pocket to wipe his hands, but he was extremely disgusted that some kind of liquid, which could give it that kind of feel, would get on his precious handkerchief. So Kiyoshi kept his right hand as far away from the two of them as possible, and used his left hand to help Yukinoshita up from the soft ground.

"Please use mine."

Something was forcefully stuffed into Yukinoshita's hand, still carrying the warmth of her body.

It's a handkerchief under the snow.

"Excuse me," Kiyoyori said, placing the other person's hand on his shoulder. He then used his left hand to wipe the sticky substance off his right hand. "I'll wash it off and return it to you, senpai."

"Ah."

Yukino simply gave a soft reply and said nothing more.

"Let's go outside first."

Holding Yukinoshita's soft hand, Kiyoshiro surprisingly didn't have any romantic thoughts. She always walked ahead of Yukinoshita, one step ahead of her. Even though her right hand, which was placed beside her, trembled like a patient with Parkinson's disease, her left hand, which was holding Yukinoshita's, remained steady and strong.

Kiyoshiro took each step carefully, looking ahead and behind, worrying about whether there would be any other mischievous behavior, while also keeping an eye on Yukinoshita behind him, wondering if she could keep up with him.

Perhaps if the silence continued, the already terrifying environment would only become more frightening, so Kiyoshi took the initiative to speak to the person behind him.

"Congratulations, senior. This cultural festival seems to have been a great success."

Although most of the committee members gathered in the auditorium to prepare for the stage, in fact every activity of each class, including the street food stalls, was inspected and arranged by the committee. All the work, big and small, was done by the committee. It has to be said that Yukino Yukinoshita was a pillar of the committee in achieving such quality after so many unexpected problems.

"There's still an afternoon left, isn't it a bit too early to say 'congratulations' now?"

Yukinoshita remained as composed as ever, saying, "However, it's all thanks to Tachibana-san."

Kiyori turned his head upon hearing this, and Yukinoshita bumped into Kiyori's shoulder without noticing.

Even in extremely dim lighting, at such close range, the two could clearly see each other's eyes.

"Thanks to me for what?"

Qinglai's voice was very soft, like a dandelion that could be blown away.

"The response to the brass band's performance was even better than expected, and visiting tourists gained a new understanding of Sobu High School."

The sound beneath the snow was like melting snow water, slowly flowing through Kiyoyori's heart.

"Just the brass section?"

Qinglai couldn't help but move closer to those clear eyes.

She gently curved the corners of her lips:

"Thank you for your hard work, Tachibana-san."

Immersed in their "world of two," the two were completely unaware of the "female ghost" standing helplessly nearby, unsure how to interrupt them.

P.S.: I don't know if you guys have seen that meme, the one about "You squeezed in like garlic," but I, as an outsider, laughed the first time I saw it. Netizens these days are really funny. Anyway, back to my health, ever since my family discovered I can swallow small, chopped wontons, I've been eating them for almost two weeks straight... It's so heartbreaking. I'm going for a checkup next Monday, hoping to get rid of the fixed dental splint soon. Putting aside the eating problem, I'm always drooling in my sleep, it's so incredibly annoying!

Chapter 44 (Section 267) This is a different price.

The haunted house trip finally ended amidst alternating moments of terror and ambiguity. Kiyora didn't want to relive the terrifying memory of seeing a ghost every time she turned around; perhaps she was going to have nightmares tonight...

After apologizing to the senior he had accidentally hurt, Kiyoyori left Class 2-J. With some time left before the end of lunch break, Kiyoyori remembered Asuka's unusual behavior and decided to go check on Class 3-J.

Aside from the catering-related class activities that remain open during lunchtime, most other classes have free time. Asuka's class happens to be doing a collaborative activity with Kaori's class, and it's unclear whether Asuka is currently on duty.

On his way to the building where the third-year students were located, Kiyoyori happened to run into Kōmae, who was chatting with Hashimoto.

"Ah, Kiyoyori."

Huang Qian spotted Qing Lai first and waved to her.

Hashimoto glanced back at Kiyoyori, then, with a look of utter panic, quickly said goodbye to Huangqian and walked away.

Staring at the departing figure, Kiyora narrowed his eyes. "Did he let something slip to you again?"

"Haha..." Huang Qian laughed awkwardly a few times, scratching his head helplessly, "Actually, it's not really..."

Huang Qian's smile turned forlorn as she looked at Reina, who was talking to Taki no Uta not far away, with several girls in other schools' uniforms standing around them.

"What's that over there...?"

Kiyoyori gestured in the direction where Taki and Reina were.

"It's probably related to the club visit," Huang Qian said uncertainly, putting his hands behind his back and lightly touching the ground with his toes. "However, those girls seem to be fans of Taki-sensei."

When she and Reina arrived, they saw Takigatsu surrounded by girls. He had his usual gentle smile on his face, while the girls were very excited, chattering and asking him questions. This seemed to immediately upset Reina.

“Is that so…” Kiyoshi chuckled lightly, and Huang Qian couldn’t tell whether it was sarcasm or something else. “He’s been popular with girls ever since he was in school.”

"Ah... Mr. Hashimoto just said that too..."

"Humph."

"Um," Huang said, his fingers interlaced, a conflicted expression on his face, "will Kiyoyori tell Reina about Taki-sensei?"

Kiyoshi was stunned for a moment before realizing what the other person was talking about. "Isn't this the question I asked you before?"

"I have no idea……"

Deceiving.

"If I tell Reina, she will be sad."

But isn't this a good thing for you?

Huang Qian was driven mad by the growing thoughts in her heart. On one hand, she did not want Reina to be hurt, and on the other hand, she hoped that Reina could give up on Taki. However, she had made a promise to "support Reina's love", a promise she could not break.

"Huang Qian, you..."

It was a strange feeling. Even though it was something related to the teacher, Kiyotaka no longer felt the heart-wrenching pain he used to.

She really is a cold-hearted person.

Kiyoshi sighed, looking at Kumiko as if she were seeing herself back then.

She did the same, watching her teacher and Takigaki from afar.

"The living can't win against the dead."

Huang Qian looked at Qing Lai in surprise. She found that the other party's tone was unusually calm, or rather, indifferent.

“Because the living will always change, while the departed can only live in other people’s memories, in their most perfect form,” Kiyoshi clenched his hands, his nails digging lightly into his palms. “But, living is not meaningless. Whether living or dead, no one can live in memories forever. The living must move forward, and the dead will gradually be forgotten as memories accumulate.”

Teacher, I can hardly even remember your smile anymore.

"Ching Lai..."

Huang Qian couldn't understand Qing Lai's feelings at this moment, but she did understand the meaning behind his words.

"If you want to pursue him, do it now, while he still can't let go of her."

“Reina is a very stubborn person, but she’s not unchanging. If it’s you, Oumae…” Kiyoyori smiled, “you are a special person to Reina.”

"As for whether I will tell Reina," Kiyoyori patted Huang's shoulder, "I will tell Reina after the National Tournament."

"At least for now, let's not let this affect her."

Kiyoshi had a gut feeling that this matter might not be able to be kept secret for much longer. Even though she had kept it from the other person for many years, perhaps it was time to put an end to this matter, whether it was keeping it from Reina or her feelings for her teacher.

Unable to strike up a conversation with Reina, Kiyoyori headed straight for Class 3-J.

The number of visitors during lunch break is much less than in the morning, but it's not completely deserted. Many students' families bring lunchboxes to eat with their children, but—

I remembered the embarrassing video that Yuanzi had uploaded to our family group chat on my phone the moment it was posted.

She didn't really want to talk to him.

From afar, one could see a person sitting at the entrance of Class 3J, dressed in an exaggerated wizard outfit, with a wizard hat on her head that almost covered her entire face.

Although he couldn't see her face clearly, Kiyoshi subconsciously felt that it was Asuka.

The man sat listlessly in the chair, propping his cheek up with one hand, staring blankly out the window, rhythmically kicking the indoor shoes hanging on his toes, and humming a broken melody softly.

She didn't even notice Kiyoshi walking up to her.

"Asuka."

"Ugh!" Caught off guard by her name being called, Asuka reflexively straightened her back and subconsciously looked in the direction of the voice, but relaxed again after seeing that it was Kiyori.

"what happened?"

Kiyoshi frowned slightly, sensing that Asuka seemed to have something on her mind, but before she could ask, Asuka interrupted her with an exaggerated gesture.

"Ha! Lost little lamb!" Asuka quickly turned on the switch of the crystal ball on the table, and the previously dim crystal ball immediately lit up with a cloud-like light. "Come and tell your older sister, what do you want to ask?"

Asuka winked at Kiyoyori as if to make it clear that she was a gossip.

"Uh……"

Kiyoyori momentarily forgot what he originally wanted to say.

"I can see Kiyora's future love life!" Asuka held her hands around the crystal ball, fiddling with it with great seriousness. "Oh my! This is—!"

"Asuka!"

Kiyoshi placed his hands on the edge of the desk, leaned forward, and brought his face close to the other person's.

"Is something on Asuka's mind lately?"

"Hmm~" Asuka made a troubled expression, "Is this what Kiyori wants to ask?"

"Ah."

"But that's a different price~"

"what……?"

P.S.: I don't know if you guys have seen Detective Chinatown, but the "other prices" joke was hilarious back then. By the way, next month will be busy, with all sorts of things to do—year-end work at the office, exam preparation, etc. So... with the recent resurgence of the pandemic, those of us in the medical unit will definitely be very busy. Please be careful when going out!