I am only one world away from Yukinoshita.

"Eiri Riri?"

"Or... never mind..."

Eriri seemed to be trying her best to make her voice sound indifferent, but Kiyoshi still keenly caught the tremor hidden in her voice.

"what happens?"

She was perfectly fine before, and was happy because she had drawn an illustration that was a breakthrough for her, and attributed this breakthrough to the companionship of Aki Tomoya.

"nothing……"

Eriri clearly didn't want to talk about this topic. "Anyway, I won't be giving Tomoya chocolates this year."

"I see."

Although he cared a lot, Kiyoyori wouldn't force Eriri to say things she didn't want to talk about, so he sent a message to Kasumigaoka after hanging up the phone.

The reply came quickly, but it was just a phone call.

Hearing the familiar ringtone, Kiyoshi was a little stunned.

"Good evening, Shimizu-kun."

"Ah, good evening, Shiyu-senpai."

It had been a long time since I'd heard Kasumigaoka's voice. Perhaps because of what had happened before, Kiyotaka seemed a little nervous.

Kasumigaoka suddenly chuckled softly, "Are you nervous, Shimizu-kun?"

“No…” Kiyora stood up awkwardly and paced back and forth in the room, “It’s just…”

"You just didn't expect me to call, did you?" Kasumigaoka's voice was as usual, but it sounded a bit noisy on her end, not like she was at home.

“Yeah, I really didn’t expect that,” Kiyotaka tried to ignore it, but couldn’t help asking, “Is it inconvenient for you right now, Shiwa-senpai? You could have replied to me later.”

"I'm out right now, but it's not inconvenient."

A gust of wind seemed to blow in from the other end of the phone, swallowing Kasumigaoka's words, "It's about Sawamura-kun..."

"Senior Shiyu? I can't quite hear you."

"...Is it convenient for Shimizu-kun to go out now?"

"Huh?"

"There are some things that I think are better said face to face."

“But it’s getting late now…” Kiyoyori checked the time and realized it wasn’t a good time to go out, even though tomorrow was the weekend.

Kasumigaoka was silent for a moment, then she sighed, her voice unusually melancholy, "But I want to see you, is that alright? Kiyori."

Kiyoyori held the phone in silence for a long while, and just as Kasumigaoka was about to give up waiting, she heard a low response:

"it is good."

..................................................................

The address given by Kasumigaoka is a park suitable for an evening stroll. The park is right next to a river, where cruise ships are on the water and people are strolling along the riverbank. No wonder the background noise on the phone was a bit noisy.

Amidst a sea of ​​neon lights, Kiyoyori found Kasumigaoka, where the wind was blowing by the river.

"Senior Shiyu".

Hearing the call, Kasumigaoka turned around and saw Kiyoyori panting, her nose and cheeks flushed, clearly having just run from the station.

"There's no need to rush over here. I'll stay right here and won't run away."

Seeing the girl's hurried appearance, Kasumigaoka couldn't help but smile. She took out a tissue from her pocket and handed it to Kiyoyori, saying, "You're all sweaty."

Kiyoyori was suddenly stunned as he watched Kasumigaoka hand her the tissue and then back away.

Even if it wasn't obvious, their relationship had changed.

Qinglai wiped his forehead haphazardly, taking the opportunity to adjust his mood.

"Senior Shiyu, did something happen that you asked me to come out so late?"

“Meeting… well, I guess so,” Kasumigaoka continued, gazing at the other side of the river. “What does Kiyori think of me? I mean, as a fan of my books.”

Kiyoshi walked to the railing, put her arms up to it, but her gaze fell on the person beside her. "Kasumi Shiko is an author I admire. I really like her writing style, the characters she creates, and the stories she tells."

"Really? That's wonderful..."

This must be the first time I've seen Kasumigaoka so lacking in confidence.

"what happens?"

Kiyoshi suppressed his urge to get closer and simply stood still.

"Actually, both Sawamura and I received invitations from Akasaka Akane to participate in her next project."

Kasumigaoka's voice was low, and the wind scattered her words, but Kiyori still caught them.

"Isn't that a good thing?"

Compared to staying in a fledgling group like Aki Tomoya's, the team of Akasaka Akane, which has always been regarded as the benchmark in the industry, is obviously more conducive to improvement, which is a rare opportunity for all creators.

"But joining Akasaka's team means leaving Aki-san's club."

Kasumigaoka looked at Kiyoyori with a half-smile, "Shimizu-kun should know Sawamura-san's feelings better than anyone, right? Do you think she can let go?"

Kiyoshi lowered his head and remained silent.

After a moment, "Eri is free to make whatever choice she wants, and I have no right to interfere. Whether she joins Akane-nee's team or continues to stay by Aki-senpai's side, but—"

"Why is Shiwa-senpai making that expression?"

Why do you have to look so sad?

It makes you want to go up and hug it.

“Because,” Kasumigaoka took a deep breath, “I joined as an accessory. In other words, if Sawamura refuses, I will also be refused. In Akasaka Akane’s eyes, I am just an insurance policy for Sawamura.”

Kiyoshi opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but then pursed his lips again.

"Not reconciled."

"I'm so unwilling to accept this!"

"I felt looked down upon, as if I were just an insignificant presence, and my value as a creator was not recognized at all. How can anyone accept this!"

Kasumigaoka is a proud person. She loves her work and her creations, which is why she was so angry with Akasaka Akane.

It was precisely because she was a proud person that she chose to let go of Kiyoyori's hand.

“Even so, in my heart, Ms. Kasumi Shiko is still my favorite author, and Ms. Shiwa is also a senior I admire,” Kiyoyori said, looking at the other side of the river. “At least, I will always support my seniors.”

There was no hug, not even a word of comfort.

They were separated by a distance that was neither too close nor too far, seemingly close yet distant.

The wind carried away the last trace of ambiguity, leaving behind only a final murmur:

"Thank you."

as well as--

Goodbye.

Chapter 63 Clear Intentions

Regarding Eriri's matter, Kasumigaoka said she had a way, so Kiyoyori didn't interfere. If this could make Eriri completely give up on Aki, Kiyoyori didn't think it would be a bad thing.

Taking advantage of the weekend, Kiyoyori planned to go shopping for materials for Valentine's Day, but unexpectedly ran into Yukinoshita and her group.

This is the purchasing department for this Valentine's Day event.

"Is Tachibana here to shop too?"

Yukino looked at the ingredients in Kiyora's basket. "Chocolate cake?"

The basket contained a generous amount of ingredients, suggesting it was made for several people. When planning to give Valentine's Day gifts to multiple people, making a chocolate cake and then dividing it equally is a convenient option.

“Yes,” Kiyoshi nodded, “because there might be a lot of people to give gifts to this year, and in previous years we’ve always made traditional chocolates, so this year we wanted to try something different.”

Kiyoshi's eyes darted around a little. She withdrew her hand from the shelf and fiddled with the things in the basket somewhat awkwardly. "If you don't mind, you can have a piece to try after the cake is made."

Yukinoshita didn't speak, but just stared at Kiyori quietly for a while before letting out a soft hum, "Hmm."

Although he didn't know why, Kiyoshiro felt that Yukinoshita seemed unhappy, but seeing her back as she started to select materials as if nothing had happened, Kiyoshiro didn't know what to say.

"Senior, are you purchasing materials for the event with the student council members?"

Yukinoshita nodded, carefully reading the instructions on the packaging and comparing similar ingredients. "I don't usually bake desserts, but luckily one of the student council members knows the way, so I asked her to show me around. I didn't expect..."

She glanced at Kiyoyori and said, "I can't believe I ran into Tachibana-san here."

“The stuff here is really good. Many shops that sell Valentine’s Day desserts also get their raw materials from here, so the taste is guaranteed,” Kiyotaka said, taking a bar of white chocolate from the shelf and putting it at the bottom of the basket when Yukinoshita wasn’t looking. “As long as the craftsmanship is up to par.”

"Yuhihama-san will be sad."

"With my senior and I watching over her tomorrow, there shouldn't be any problems, right?"

Having witnessed the horror of Yuihama's cooking, Kiyoyori believes that it was because Yuihama herself made a mistake during the preparation process. If Yukinoshita had been there to supervise the completion of the dish, there shouldn't have been any problems.

However, Yukinoshita, who had taken over Yuigahama's commission, knew very well that this was not such a simple matter.

Yukino smiled. "I hope Tachibana-san can maintain this confidence on that day."

The atmosphere between the two finally became a little more relaxed and pleasant.

"Speaking of which, how did the choice of the event venue go?"

“It’s all set. Today, the student council members will split up. Some will go to set up the venue, and others will come with me to buy the materials,” Yukino finally selected the materials and put them into the cart. “The publicity campaign is also coming to an end, and I’ve already prepared the registration forms.”

Overall, the preparations for this event went relatively smoothly.

That's wonderful.

Before they knew it, the distance between them had closed again.

"Thank you for your hard work last time, so please enjoy yourself this time."

Snow tilts her head slightly, her eyes filled with a deep blue.

Kiyotomi saw her own reflection in her eyes.