I really don't want to have a girlfriend.

"Okay, okay, I'll be gentler next time."

He said it casually and continued eating his own bento, showing no intention of sharing a second bite with her.

Forcing herself to withdraw her longing gaze, Natsukawa Masuzu took out her notebook again, wrote a paragraph, and then touched her cheek, frowning in a mournful manner:

"Ugh, do you want to do this again? Do you really enjoy violating my mouth?"

Without looking up, Tenkuji Yu replied, "If you can't make dirty jokes, don't. It has no artistry whatsoever and only ruins your image. If you really want to say something like that, please refer to how the student council makes dirty jokes."

"A student council that tells dirty jokes? Soubu High has such an organization?" Natsukawa Masaki asked in confusion, then shrugged indifferently.

"Well, since you've put it that way, I'll just have to suppress this part of my nature in order not to be disliked."

"Very good, I like it when you're obedient like this, so cool."

"It's such an obvious lie... and it's completely unoriginal."

The girl with blue eyes and silver hair rolled her eyes at him, too lazy to say anything more. She propped her cheek up with one hand and lightly poked at the empty jelly drink packaging with her finger.

I just watched him, head down, eating, and slowly waited for lunchtime to pass by.

In her plan, after this opening show, she could simply walk home from school with him at a fixed time and escape the torment of confession hell, so that others would not doubt their relationship.

Of course, there's no need to have lunch with him every day and do those mushy things that only friends or lovers do.

So, this is probably the last time I'll see it?

The last thing I saw was Ayou eating... (sobs)

—Just kidding~

Regardless of the outcome, what they say and what they think are mostly lies; they won't reveal much truth to others or themselves.

So, who exactly is this absolutely invincible beautiful girl with an extreme personality, annoying personality, and destined to be lonely for life?

That's right, it's me—Natsukawa Masaki.

"Hey, you've finally spoken your mind."

Yuu Tenkuji was forced to stop eating, and glared helplessly at her as she recited her lines with a solemn expression.

She shook her head, continued to look up at the sky, her tone filled with sorrow:

"Please don't mind me, just keep eating!"

"You're my girlfriend, how can you expect me to ignore you?"

"Oh dear, it's just a fake product. Why interfere in each other's private lives... that's against the rules."

"Ha, you really dare to say that. The lady who's interfering with my private dining time?"

"No, it's our date time now... Ugh, saying that out loud is so cheesy it's nauseating."

As he said this, for some reason, Natsukawa Masaki smiled contentedly.

The autumn sun shines brightly, casting dappled shadows on the trees, as if woven together in summer.

Chapter Twenty-Two: The Sudden Standoff

After school.

In the bustling F-class classroom, Tenkuji Yu was leisurely packing his schoolbag, seemingly in no hurry to go home.

Totsuka Saika, carrying a bag containing her schoolbag and tennis racket, arrived at her seat before leaving the classroom.

"Yu, are you waiting for Natsukawa-kun?"

"Congratulations, you guessed right." Glancing sideways at the students near his seat who were frequently looking at him with curiosity in their eyes, Tenkuji Yu gave a helpless reply with a smirk.

“Starting today, I’ll probably have to walk home with her from school every day.”

Totsuka Ayaka blinked.

"Why do you seem so unwilling..."

Yuu Tenkuji immediately smiled brightly.

"How could that be? I'm so happy! Woohoo~ I'm so excited I feel like I'm going to shove a dragon drill into my temple!"

"Hahaha..."

That smile was an undisguised fake, and Totsuka Saika could only respond with a wry smile.

He noticed that Tenkuji Yu didn't seem to be looking forward to walking home from school with his girlfriend. Although he found it strange, he didn't intend to ask any further questions.

Unless it concerns the safety of a friend, excessive curiosity will only bother the other person.

"Then I wish you good luck. I'll be going now." With a comforting look in her eyes, Totsuka Ayaka smiled gently, waved her fair hand, and turned halfway around.

Yuu Tenkuji stopped forcing a smile: "Yeah, see you tomorrow."

After the two said goodbye, as if they had found the right opportunity, Yui Yuigahama's voice rang out from behind them.

"Um, Xiaoyou."

"what happened?"

Tenkuji Yu turned around and saw the pink-clad girl biting her lip slightly, gripping the backpack strap with a bit more force, seemingly hesitant.

"I have something to say, may I come to the hallway for a moment?"

After speaking in a volume that no one else could hear, Yui Yuigahama turned and fled the classroom as if running away, her thighs under her skirt looking soft and supple.

Yuu Tenkuji rubbed his face, put his backpack on the seat, and went out.

……

Although the crowds of students were flowing through the corridors after school, Yui Yuigahama found a place where she could talk without being noticed by too many people and faced Yuu Tenkuji.

A brief silence descended.

"...How's the 'commission' going? Is there anything I can help you with?"

After holding it in for a long time, she finally managed to squeeze out those words, a blush rising on her fair face, her gaze shifting uncertainly.

The word "entrust" was emphasized, indicating that she wasn't concerned about whether he needed her help, but rather about how far things had progressed between him and his "fake girlfriend."

Having witnessed yesterday's events, Tenkuji Yu was fully aware of her thoughts, and answered calmly:

"It went pretty smoothly so far. As long as we go home together after school and no one keeps bothering her to confess to him, this request should be over."

"……That's good."

Even so, Yui Yuigahama didn't seem relieved; instead, a hint of worry appeared in her eyes: "But if the request ends, it means you two will 'break up,' right? What if someone else starts bothering Natsukawa-san after that? You can't possibly be her fake boyfriend until graduation, can you?"

Those seemed to be the targeted questions she had come up with for this commission after spending an entire night.

"As long as Xia Chuan doesn't change herself, no matter when or where she goes, there will always be people who like her and try to pursue her... just like Xiao You, there's no way to stop that, right?"

"...That's true."

Tenkuji Yu touched his chin.

To be honest, he had considered that as well.

If the system hadn't altered the timeline, he wouldn't have so easily become someone else's fake boyfriend—unless he genuinely didn't plan to date during his three years of high school.

Yui Yuigahama's words reflect the thoughts of a normal person. Yukino Yukinoshita probably thought of this as well, but she was too angry to say it at the time.

Unfortunately, no one knows that such a bug-like existence as a "system" exists in this world.

Given the different premises, his views naturally differed from theirs—there was no need to be so hesitant; to him, the 'future' was nothing more than a little bitch that the system would play with at will after the mission was over.

However, since Yui Yuigahama asked this question from the perspective of a member of the Service Club, he really had to give her and that cold-blooded Yuki-onna club president a proper reason.

In order not to ruin his image of being a master strategist and composed, Yuu Tenkuji is currently trying hard to figure out how to fool the two people.

"and……"

Seeing that her words made him thoughtful, Yui Yuigahama seemed to feel a surge of hope rising from the bottom of her heart. She decisively cast aside her timidity and the slight guilt of speaking ill of someone behind their back, and mustered her courage to say:

"If Yu falls for someone else during this period... wouldn't Natsukawa-san's request be considered an obstacle to Yu's freedom to date?"

Yuu Tenkuji stopped thinking and looked up at her serious expression.

When their eyes met, that soft strength seemed to melt away under the sun, collapsing into a helpless and lonely bitter smile.

"...I know that I may not have a chance, and it's too late to say these things now."

Her voice was soft, and her eyes were fixed on Tenkuji Yu.

Then gradually, his soft gaze brightened, and his tone became more and more firm.

"But even from a friend's perspective, I don't want to see Xiaoyou bound by a false relationship!"

"Whether it's despicable or has ulterior motives, and whether people misunderstand me, I don't care. I just want to say this—"

Yui Yuigahama clenched her fists, no longer cowering and bowing her head as she had yesterday, but instead facing Tenkuji Yu head-on, and spoke slowly and deliberately:

"As expected, this kind of request to become a fake couple is too weird! It's not good at all!"

"Even if you agreed to her request for the sake of the Service Club, you don't have to stick with someone you don't like every day and be looked at strangely by teachers and classmates, right? It's just a club activity, there's no need to sacrifice your school life!"

"So, we must be able to think of another way! As long as—"

Just as she made this declaration, her face flushed and her emotions running high.

A soft yet icy voice drifted out from behind her.

"Excuse me, Yuihama-san."

"What kind of discordant whispers were you saying to her boyfriend?"

Yui Yuigahama froze, then suddenly turned around.

Natsukawa Masaki crossed his arms and looked at her with a gentle smile, but his eyes flashed with a cold, unhappy light.

"I……"

Yui Yuigahama opened her mouth, but then became speechless with guilt, as if she had been caught doing something wrong, and even reflexively looked away.

But a long-suppressed emotion suddenly surged up in her heart, becoming her spine, supporting her to straighten her chest and raise her head.

He slowly loosened his clenched fists and let his hands hang down at his sides.

Yui Yuigahama's gaze was filled with determination as she looked straight at the girl in front of her, whose beauty shone like a jewel.