What a twist! The loser heroine!

"Here, freshly brewed tea."

Wen Shui placed a cup of freshly brewed tea in front of Xiao Ju, then took away her bowl and chopsticks.

"Uh... I... I'll take care of it!" She tried to get up and help.

"No way, Senior Xiaoju is a guest, how can I let you do it?"

Yoshiki brought over cookies and snacks and placed them on the table, then gently pressed Koko's shoulder: "Okay~ Please sit down here and have some snacks, Koko-senpai."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Ju had no choice but to sit obediently in the chair, her obedient demeanor completely different from how Wen Shui had seen her at school. Quietly watching Wen Shui wash the dishes in the kitchen, she reached out and picked up a cookie.

"It smells so good..." she murmured as she savored the taste of the biscuit.

"Hehe, Senior Xiaoju always eats very slowly." Jia Shu looked at Xiaoju with a smile: "You were also the last to finish lunch just now."

"Hmm... After all, we have to deliberately save the best dishes for the little ones." Xiao Ju said softly, "Over time, it just became like this."

Yoshiki paused for a moment while washing the dishes with warm water, slightly moved by Koko's words.

"Is that so..." Yoshiki pursed his lips, trying to lighten the mood with a joke: "So, what did you think of the food just now, Senior Koko?"

"It's delicious." Xiao Ju nodded. "Jia Shu's cooking is really good..."

"Huh? But this time, it was my older brother who made lunch?"

"Huh!" Xiao Ju exclaimed, her face slightly flushed as she looked at Wen Shui: "W-Wen Shui made this food?!"

Wen Shui turned her head: "Of course, when Mom and Dad aren't home, I usually cook lunch on weekends. By the way, Xiao Ju, weren't you sitting on the sofa the whole time? How come you didn't know?"

Xiao Ju silently looked away.

I was so nervous about being suddenly invited that I wasn't prepared at all. I even forgot everything I remembered. So, I just sat on the sofa and stupidly read a light novel I had just bought, and in the end, I didn't remember a single word. How can I possibly admit that?!

Before Xiaoju could answer, Jiashu smiled and said, "Speaking of which, Xiaoju-senpai, do I have a moment to chat with you?"

As he said this, Yoshiki pulled out a voice recorder and a notebook from who-knows-where.

Wait a minute, what is my sister trying to do?

Xiao Ju looked at the fully armed Yoshiki with some timidity: "Um... I, I have no objection."

"Okay, first of all, please tell me your date of birth, blood type, family situation, interests and specialties, and how you met your older brother..."

Seeing that her younger sister had switched to a strange mode, Wen Shui quickly said, "Ah, um—"

Before he could interrupt Yoshiki's spellcasting, Komari quickly said, "Okay, okay, my birthday is March 29th, and I live at—"

So there was someone here who had absolutely no concept of protecting personal information.

"Alright, alright, Senior Ju has a book club to attend today, so let's not disturb her study session."

"But, but there's still some time before the book club..." Yoshiki said anxiously, "And Senior Koko didn't refuse just now—"

"Alright, alright, Yoshiki, go back to your room now. We can talk about these things next time."

"Woo~"

Seeing that Jia Shu was unwilling, Wen Shui had no choice but to gently lift her sister's shoulders and, with great effort, help her up the stairs to the second floor.

Before he could even breathe a sigh of relief, he turned around to find Komari Chika completely blushing and slumped over the table.

"Sigh... There's... there'll be a next time..."

What's wrong with this guy today?

Wen Shui, who came to the rescue, never expected that she would once again put Xiao Ju in a state of confusion.

After finally calming her down by talking about fruit and light novels, he sat down opposite Xiaoju.

"Sorry, Jia Shu sometimes acts like that." Wen Shui smiled awkwardly. "Xiao Ju, you'd better be careful with your personal information too, so you don't get scammed by people with ulterior motives."

"No, it's okay. If it's your sister, I can tell you."

Seeing that they were alone together, Xiao Ju said somewhat awkwardly and uneasyly.

"So obedient...when exactly did my sister hypnotize you?"

"Well, she's really cute after all." Xiaoju glanced at the second floor and spoke highly of Yoshiki.

"I would not deny that at all."

"Ha, you, you siscon."

"Delusion and reality are two different things. Attacking me with such labels won't hurt me."

Wen Shui put a biscuit in her mouth and then started a new conversation: "You're going to a book club soon, how's your revision going?"

"It's...it's alright," Xiao Ju said softly. "I've looked at a little bit."

"Don't give up on your studies just because you're a bestselling author now. You haven't been able to catch up on your schoolwork much lately because of the manuscript for the third volume, have you?"

Wen Shui began to speak earnestly like an old woman, after all, the person in front of him was his friend, and he did not want Xiao Ju to give up her studies.

"If... if it really doesn't work, you can come and teach me this afternoon."

"My grades aren't outstanding, you might as well go find a good student in the special class."

"Hmph, those who are qualified to be on the bulletin board shouldn't be so modest here—"

"The bulletin board?" Wen Shui looked at Xiao Ju with a puzzled expression. Although Shi Lu would indeed post the list of the top fifty on the bulletin board as an example, how did Xiao Ju know that he could make it?

"Uh, it's nothing." Xiao Ju realized her slip of the tongue and quickly tried to cover it up: "Well, after all, you still go to tutoring classes, so getting into the top fifty should be a piece of cake."

"If getting into a cram school guarantees a spot in the top 50, then those cram schools would be packed with people."

Wen Shui complained helplessly.

【Both Komari and Hanami are so confident in my grades!】

He sighed, "To be honest, I'm a little unsure myself. Although the first semester of high school is generally not too difficult, Ishibuki is, after all, the best high school in Toyohashi for college entrance exams..."

Wen Shui paused here, and Xiao Ju didn't interrupt, quietly waiting for Wen Shui to finish speaking.

"Those who can get into Shilu are all extraordinary people, so it will be very difficult to climb the rankings. My father also takes this exam very seriously, so the pressure is actually quite high."

"Don't worry too much," Xiao Ju said with concern. "Actually, some people's grades suddenly drop after they enter high school."

"Although I know you're trying to comfort me, it's still a bit inappropriate to start by cursing others."

Wen Shui pouted in annoyance.

"I'm serious! You'll definitely get good grades."

"First, I need to apologize to everyone in Shilu who studied hard for the exam. I'm serious about that too."

Wen Shui and Xiao Ju exchanged a helpless glance. Suddenly, Xiao Ju burst into laughter for no apparent reason.

"Huh? What are you laughing at?"

"Warm water, that's where your problem lies."

Komari Chika smiled as she picked up a cookie and put it in her mouth, looking very happy.

What exactly is the problem...?

He shook his head and decided to give up thinking about it.

◇

Time passed quickly in casual conversation, and the clock slowly pointed to around one o'clock in the afternoon.

If they didn't leave soon, they would be late, so the Wenshui siblings took Xiaoju to the bus stop leading to Shilu.

"Then I'll be going now. I'll be back early tonight. Be careful on your way home."

"Okay, Yoshiki understands. Brother, and Senior Komari, have a safe journey."

Yoshiki stood on the platform with a smile, quietly watching the bus drive away. Then, she took out her notebook from her pocket, scribbled and drew in it, and then closed it with satisfaction.

"As expected, my elder brother can't do without a good tree," she said with a smile.

On the other side, on the bus.

Wen Shui looked at the empty carriage and Xiao Ju, who was sitting silently with her head down next to her.

Based on his understanding of Xiao Ju, someone like her, who tends to be reserved, would usually find a quiet, secluded corner and sit quietly for the entire journey. But today's situation was truly beyond his expectations.

Her long bangs covered her eyes, so Wen Shui couldn't see her expression.

[She's probably asleep. Taking care of the kids at home is really tiring.]

With this in mind, Wen Shui also tried to be mindful of her actions to avoid making too much noise and disturbing Xiao Ju.

The journey from Wen Shui's home to Shi Lu wasn't far, and soon familiar street scenes appeared outside the bus window.

Wen Shui glanced at Xiao Ju and gently shook her shoulder.

"Hey~ Xiao Ju, we've arrived at the station, wake up!"

"I...I wasn't asleep."

She looked up, her face flushed with a faint blush.

Surprisingly, Xiao Ju didn't react strangely to the physical contact. However, for her own safety, Wen Shui quickly withdrew her hand.

"Then why are you looking down? You haven't said a word the whole way."

"N-nothing, hurry up and get off the bus."

"I know, don't push me."

Not many people visited Shilu on Saturday. This book club didn't attract much attention, or perhaps it was because I arrived too early and everyone else hadn't arrived yet.

Since school uniforms were not specifically required for this book club meeting, Wen Shui wore only a plain blue T-shirt and jacket, which contrasted sharply with Xiao Ju, who was wearing a school uniform next to her.

The school's iron gates were open, and the two arrived at the library without any problems.

The book committee member was still behind the counter on the first floor. I don't know if she attended the book club. If she didn't, it's a bit too much trouble for her to come over.

Upon arriving at the second-floor study area, the sound of pages turning could be heard even before entering; a large group of third-year students had already taken their seats. After all, Shilu is a high school that prepares students for higher education, and the academic pressure in the final year is quite significant.

On the other hand, fewer people came to the first-grade students' few tables.

Among the acquaintances Wen Shui knew, it seemed that only one student council member, Tian Aixing, was present. She was deep in thought, staring intently at the diagram on the exercise, appearing very serious.

Tian Aixing spent all her lunch break this week reviewing, and she even arrived early for Saturday's book club. She's really hardworking when it comes to studying.

With that sigh, Wen Shui and Xiao Ju walked to the table where Tian Aixing was and sat down.

Since Tian Aixing seemed to be working very hard, Wen Shui was worried that she would disturb her, so she didn't say hello.

Take out the physics problem set you left behind at the tutoring class and do a couple of problems before everyone else arrives.

As she wrote on the paper, Wen Shui nodded to herself. The first-grade workbook wasn't too difficult, but the questions from the tutoring class might be a bit beyond the curriculum.

Some so-called experts on the internet have said that the first exam in Japanese high schools is not particularly difficult, and to put it more bluntly, it can be seen as a tool to build students' confidence. But even so, we should not take it lightly.

After writing down the answers to two medium-difficulty exercises, Wen Shui didn't rush to check them. Instead, he looked up and glanced around.

Nonomura-san had arrived at some point and was flipping through her Japanese textbook without making a sound. That's so typical of her.

Xiao Ju was struggling with a math problem, while Tian Aixing was deep in thought, staring intently at the diagram on the problem.

Wait, didn't this just happen?

He glanced at the exercise in front of Tian Aixing; it was a chemistry problem, and the diagram seemed exactly the same as the previous ones, so it was most likely the same question.

"No way, I've already finished two questions. Is this question really that difficult?"

Thinking this, he stood up from his seat and pretended to look for a book on the bookshelf, slowly approaching Tian Aixing's seat.

After glancing at the question, Wen Shui immediately understood. It was a key point that the tutor often mentioned, and it was something that Chao Yun and Ayano had explained many times in group discussions.

His gaze slowly moved down to Tian Aixing's solution steps.

Yes, her handwriting is beautiful, even the English letters, which matches my previous impression of her. Wait, that's not the point.

This guy got the covalent bonds wrong...

Wen Shui was a little speechless; the question clearly wasn't that difficult.

He pulled a workbook for first graders that the school board had bought from the bookshelf, then walked back to his seat and sat down.

Recalling Tian Aixing's question in his mind, he let the pen tip dance on the paper for a moment, wrote down what might be the correct solution, and then marked the important parts with symbols.

He coughed lightly, pushed the papers across the table in front of Tian Aixing, and then said:

"For this question, pay attention to the use of covalent bonds. Let's try it again."