Although the girl tearfully insisted afterward with claims like "You heard wrong..." "I didn't admit to anything..." and "I don't even know anyone by that name..." it was clearly too late for both Asakura and Eriri. Actually, Asakura hadn't been entirely certain of her identity at first, but since she had exposed herself, he didn't mind having another piece of leverage over her.
"Don't worry about it. Even if I didn't know about this, you wouldn't be able to defy me, someone with supernatural powers..." Asakura said, offering a bit of consolation as he saw her miserable state.
"Hegemonism?!"
"Oh? I was just trying to comfort you..."
"It's less like comfort and more like a threat!"
The girl slumped onto the table powerlessly, covering her face with her hands. "I'm in despair!" she said in a dejected voice. "I'm in despair over this futureless world!"
"It's just your identity as a smutty manga artist being exposed; is there really a need to act like it's life or death?" Asakura looked at the girl, finding it difficult to understand.
"Then let me ask you..." Eriri's eyes stared at Asakura through the gaps of her crossed arms, glistening with tears. "What's been your recent 'side dish'?"
"...Tamagoyaki?" Asakura immediately pretended not to understand what she meant and answered nonchalantly.
"For a guy who could identify me by my art style in such a short time, what kind of act of purity are you putting on now?!"
"Ta... Takoyaki..." Asakura continued to try and play dumb.
"Oh? Is it tentacles? I couldn't tell you had such heavy tastes".
"What right does someone who draws corruption and abuse all day have to call others heavy-handed?!"
"So you're not even going to deny the tentacle thing?"
"It's not like that. It's just that I've seen so many snakes that long, thin things... Cough. Anyway, now that I think back, quite a few characters in your doujinshi have body types similar to yours. Could it be that you used a mirror..."
"No, it's not like that! It's just that at the start someone told me 'this is good for practicing anatomy,' and before I knew it... Ugh, you tentacle-loving kinky man!"
"Shut up! Aren't you just a closeted pervert who likes sadism?"
"..." "..."
"A... A temporary truce!" Eriri clutched her chest, seemingly unable to hold out much longer, and held up a flag of surrender.
"Agreed. I feel like if this topic continues, no one will be happy." Asakura also clutched his forehead, looking a bit out of sorts.
Having both taken tons of damage, the two chose to call a temporary ceasefire. For a long time after, they both tacitly remained silent. Eriri packed all her things into her bag while Asakura silently walked her to the school gate. Only when they were about to part did Eriri speak up to stop him.
"Wait... um..." she hesitated for a moment before sheepishly pulling out her phone. "After I 'touch up' your design drafts... well, if I need to find you, I can't keep running over to Sobu High... let's exchange contact info".
"Eh..."
"Why the reluctant face?! Normally, when a beautiful girl like me asks to exchange contact info, shouldn't you be ecstatic?!" Eriri snapped, baring her little fangs in anger.
"A beautiful girl, huh..." Asakura said meaningfully.
"I am a beautiful girl! Even if it sounds like I'm bragging, I'm quite confident in my looks! At Toyogasaki, I have the popularity of a school idol!"
"You're the second person I know who praises their own cuteness".
"Huh, there's actually someone else that shameless?"
"Before you say that, shouldn't you reflect on yourself first?"
"Why should I? I'm just telling the truth".
"..."
It seemed she truly believed she was very cute. Well, by normal aesthetic standards, Eriri was indeed a very cute type. Unlike Asagumo's reserved beauty, Eriri was the kind of girl who made people think "so cute" at first glance. Her golden twin-tails were as dazzling as sunlight, and the slightly upturned ends swayed gently with her movements, making her look lively and playful. Her delicate face was adorned with big, deep blue eyes that seemed to reflect the whole world, and the slight upward tilt at the corners of her eyes revealed a hint of stubbornness and tsundere charm.
Perhaps because she was mixed-race, her features had a bit of European definition, yet her face shape was closer to East Asian, looking soft and pleasing. Her fair, delicate skin and slightly chubby baby-face cheeks added to her youthful charm. Especially when she puffed out her cheeks and showed her fangs in dissatisfaction, she looked like a small animal that people couldn't help but adore. Combined with her slender figure and the way her twin-tails swayed, she felt more vivid than the average person.
"Have you looked long enough?"
Eriri had felt a bit of secret joy when Asakura first started looking at her, but after being stared at for so long, she felt a strange mix of emotions. However, she was the type whose mouth would be the only thing left unburnt after a hundred years in a crematorium, so she pretended to be fierce and bared her teeth.
"Sorry, I spaced out for a second..." Asakura said, coming back to his senses. "Don't worry, I don't like 'Golden Retrievers'".
"I'm not interested in your fetishes..." Eriri said with puffed cheeks, though her annoyed expression and sulky tone suggested she wasn't as indifferent as she claimed.
"I don't like Teddies either".
"Those are dogs! You were talking about dog breeds!" Eriri complained loudly.
"Well, I couldn't have been talking about hair color, could I?" Asakura said, taking it to a matter of principle. "Calling a blonde person a 'Golden Retriever' is a bit rude, isn't it? Humans and animals can't be lumped together!"
"..."
The girl glared at Asakura. She felt like she had been insulted, but she had no evidence. Finally, she could only leave Sobu High in a huff. Asakura watched her figure disappear down the slope before returning to the Service Club room.
"Summer break officially starts tomorrow; I probably won't be coming here for a while..."
He sighed and worked on packing up everything he might need, moving it over to the club hut. Unlike the club room, he could visit the club hut through the back door of the Rabbit House without coming to Sobu High at all. After resting for a bit, Asakura planned to leave before the security guards noticed him.