What a twist! The loser heroine!

"Wow, so many photos!" Wen Shui exclaimed in surprise.

Luckily, my sister took my phone away just now, otherwise I probably would have been bombarded with terrifying message notifications.

Wen Shui suddenly thought of something and looked at his sister with a meaningful gaze. He wanted to confirm whether the photos of him being taken backstage had been sent to the group chat.

Having spent many years with her brother, Yoshiki naturally understood him perfectly. She decisively shook her head, putting Wen Shui at ease.

In this case.

Feeling the increasing gazes from the surrounding residents, Wen Shui nodded: "Alright then."

Himegami Karen received a clear answer, and her emotions soared. A distinct smile appeared on her lips.

She picked up her phone, set the perfect filter, and framed the warm water within the screen—

"Ah! Can we take a picture of you and Yoshiki together, Himegami-senpai?"

Yoshiki, standing next to Wenshui, bent down slightly and entered the frame.

She gently put her arms around her brother's neck, and their similarly shaped faces pressed tightly together. The interaction between the siblings made the onlookers smile like doting aunts.

Yoshiki felt the warmth of his elder brother on his cheek, looked up, and smiled at Himegami Karen.

Princess Himeko paused slightly, her hands stopping their movements. Then, with a smile, she said, "Alright! Please stay in this position, both of you~"

With a click, the shutter sounded.

Then, a unique photo of two people appeared in the Line group chat. A handsome guy was smiling wryly, while a cute girl smiled and leaned affectionately against him. Fortunately, everyone already knew that the cute girl in the photo was Wen Shui's biological sister, otherwise the group chat would probably have exploded.

"Alright, Yoshiki, the photos are done. Now it's time to let go of your brother, okay?"

"Warm water," Wen Shui said softly.

"No, brother's cheeks are so warm, Yoshiki doesn't want to let go!"

Although Yoshiki said this, her attention was always on Himegami.

Himegami looked at her phone, nodded slightly with a troubled expression, then looked up at Yoshiki. She smiled and said, "Yoshiki and Nukumi really do look alike."

“After all, they are siblings,” Wen Shui replied naturally.

Himegami Karen nodded, said nothing more, and turned to leave. Only then did Yoshiki release his arm from his elder brother's.

"Brother."

Yoshiki whispered in Awami's ear, "Yoshiki is considering canceling the charm enhancement plan for my older brother."

"That was never going to happen, was it?"

Take the warm water as Yoshiki's joke.

“Originally, yes, Yoshiki wanted his older brother to make more friends.” Yoshiki smiled. “However, it seems now—”

"It seems that my elder brother's charm has gone a bit too far."

◇

After this little incident, it was already 8 o'clock. The president, who had already touched up her makeup, came to the booth, gave a few instructions, and then went to attend the opening ceremony of the autograph session.

Wen Shui didn't stay on the booth to fulfill his duties. He went to the small room where he signed autographs, greeted Xiao Ju, and then sat down to prepare himself mentally.

My first-ever TV interview is coming up, and it would be a lie to say I'm not excited.

Time ticked by, and amidst the cacophony that even soundproofing materials couldn't block out, Wen Shui realized that the autograph session had officially begun.

The thought of the overwhelming influx of readers and television interviews he was about to face filled Wen Shui with trepidation. He glanced worriedly at Xiao Ju beside him.

As a friend, he still asked, "Xiao Ju, the book signing is about to start, is everything alright?"

"No, no problem."

Xiao Ju looks to be in much better shape than him.

Is this guy usually this proactive?

Wen Shui shook her head, calming herself down.

The long-silent black curtain was drawn back, and the first reader walked in. He looked like a college student with a somewhat gloomy expression and dark circles under his eyes. He was probably a loyal reader who had come from out of town overnight.

He glanced at Wen Shui, then at Xiao Ju, and then, without a word, decisively handed the book to Xiao Ju.

Xiao Ju solemnly signed her pen name, and Wen Shui nodded with satisfaction. It seemed that the training was quite successful.

[But that's really great, at least I wasn't mistaken for Mr. Kuonto.]

That was what Wen Shui originally thought, but she was hit hard by her own boomerang several times afterward.

Because Xiao Ju has never publicly revealed her appearance on any social media platform, many readers genuinely mistook Wen Shui for the author of "Yin Jiao Lian" (The Love in the Shadows). After repeatedly explaining to different readers that she was not Jiu Yuan Tu (the author of the novel), Wen Shui felt a bit tired from the mechanical work.

He had intended to move a little further away to give Xiao Ju a central spot on the desk so that readers could better distinguish between the main and secondary information, but Xiao Ju unexpectedly pulled him back.

"Don't, don't go too far away."

Xiao Ju didn't look at Wen Shui; she just carefully signed her pen name while saying this.

So Wen Shui could only obediently sit in place.

Fortunately, the audience for this work is mostly eccentric, and the entry and exit were very orderly. No strange incidents occurred during the signing process, which put Wen Shui at ease.

Just when he thought the book signing was over, a commotion broke out at the entrance of the small booth.

Wen Shui sat inside the shed, unable to see anything outside.

Only fragmented words could be heard from the various voices coming from the obviously panicked crowd that was unable to maintain its formation.

[Fainted] [Comatose]

[First Aid] [Ambulance]

Wen Shui and Xiao Ju frowned simultaneously.

"What happened?"

Wen Shui was about to stand up when someone pressed down on her shoulder.

Looking back, Hibari was standing behind him.

"Don't worry, I'll go check on the situation." The president frowned and said in a deep voice, "You and Xiao Ju stay here."

Intermission: Nonomura's Observation Notes (7k5)

Just call me Nonomura.

Don't worry about me; after all, I'm the least noticed person in the class.

Because of early development and tall stature, he was ridiculed and bullied by some classmates during junior high school.

Having been hurt, I gradually learned to protect myself.

My method of self-preservation comes from a lost manual that taught me how to be inconspicuous.

Never do anything too conspicuous, try to avoid communicating with others, and if you must communicate, try to refine and distill your words. In short, reduce social interaction.

If I had to describe myself in one word, what would it be?

A dark corner? Social anxiety? A ghost?

I think it's probably a "passerby".

Relying on this simple trick of concealing my presence, I got through junior high school unscathed, achieved good results in the entrance exams, and successfully entered the best high school in Toyohashi.

My mother was always worried that I wouldn't be able to make friends, but the bullying and gossip from my junior high school classmates always lingered in my mind, making me afraid to take that step forward.

Being alone is fine; I have no complaints.

On my first day at Shilu, I introduced myself as usual, sat down, answered the curious questions from the students in front of me, declined the girls' invitation to share a table during lunch break, and ignored the awkward expressions on their faces when I was rejected.

That's the kind of person I am, so don't be friends with me.

Several groups naturally formed in the class, with boys and girls chatting in their own groups.

Exploring and adjusting to social distance with strangers, communicating sincerely and genuinely, may be the key to unlocking the door to friendship.

But I'm not even willing to explore it.

No one was talking to me, which made me feel at ease. A hobby I developed in junior high school was making my brain cells work on their own.

I enjoy observing people and understanding their personality and preferences through their behavior.

There are quite a few interesting students in Class C.

Shao Yan is sunny and cheerful, and has a lot of friends. However, she often goes to hang out with a boy in the special college entrance exam class, perhaps because she likes him.

It's quite unusual that she could even notice my presence during PE class.

Hmm... was it because I'm too tall and blocking her view when she shoots? Ever since then, I've deliberately avoided her during indoor PE class.

Sitting not far in front of me was Hanami, a very popular student throughout the first year. She was cute and outgoing, probably someone I could never reach in my lifetime. She often sat with the handsome Hakamada, and according to Hanami herself, they were childhood friends.

Yashio and Hanami are both well-known hot girls in the class. If you want to maintain your faint presence, it's best not to get close to their aura.

You must stay far away from that group of hot girls in your class.

In addition to these, there is one more person who needs attention.

The boy sitting at the back of the class, Wen Shui, is probably the same age as me... Just kidding.

He gave a simple self-introduction, just like me, and sat in his chair, giving perfunctory answers to the questions from the students in front of him.

I didn't pay much attention to him until one day the PE teacher asked me to find someone named Wen Shui, and I suddenly realized that I couldn't remember what this classmate looked like.

That's interesting. Does he also have his own way of minimizing his presence? Is he also someone who seeks solitude?

It gave me a sense of finding kindred spirits, which made me feel much more at ease.

I started paying attention to this classmate, Wen Shui.

He would always disappear from the classroom after class, but would return on time before the bell rang. Even if his seat was taken, he would run to the bulletin board not far behind me and silently read the announcement.

Unlike me, he doesn't pretend to ignore others, nor does he avoid unnecessary conversations. Sometimes, the boy that Shao Yan likes would specifically come over to talk to him, and he would respond with a wry smile.

He likes to drink tap water, which is the complete opposite of me, who prefers boiled water.

He joined a club, and a girl from Class A kept hanging around him. Was she his childhood sweetheart?

During his lunch break, he usually just sits in his seat and eats bread or sandwiches. Sometimes he gets called out by that girl from Class A, who is probably his childhood sweetheart.

Having developed some interest, I decided to observe this fellow human more closely.

◇

A new transfer student named Himegami Karen has joined the class.

I originally thought that a girl like Hanami was already at a level I could never reach in my lifetime, but Himegami is probably even more amazing than Hanami.

Her self-introduction alone exuded a strong leading lady aura, and being around her might make me feel more important, so I decided to try not to have too much contact with this girl.

But what I never expected was that after Himegami sat in the back seat of Nukumizu, she would deliberately try to interact with Nukumizu from time to time.

Although Himegami usually hides it well, careful observation reveals clues. For example, when called on in class, she pretends not to know the answer and asks Nukumi to help her with a note; during PE class, she deliberately throws the ball near Nukumi while she's resting, asking him to pass it back, and then says thank you...

She is very sociable and knows how to maintain appropriate boundaries. But that seems to be a passive skill; she only starts actively seeking something when she's with Wen Shui.

I was surprised.

The pairing of an ultra-high school level beauty with an unremarkable boy in the class who even deliberately hides himself sounds like a setup from some anime.

Although she desires solitude, Wen Shui seems to be surprisingly popular with the opposite sex, creating a peculiar contrast that sounds like the unfolding of some kind of romantic comedy.

It was very interesting, so I decided to observe and record the interactions between Wen Shui and the people around him.

Himegami's arrival seems to have triggered a series of chain reactions.

The girl from Class A started to run into Wenshui more and more frequently, and her classmate, Banami, would also focus her attention on Wenshui more often. Sometimes, an upperclassman could be seen silently watching Wenshui in the courtyard.

By the way, that senior's style of dressing is really bold.

One day after school, I overheard the girl from Class A looking for Wen Shui to go to a club activity.

Xiao Ju... and the Literature Club? Anyway, I'll just jot it down for now.

◇

It has been almost two weeks since Himegami transferred here.

It started raining, probably due to the recent typhoon.