Chapter 385: The Great Asuna
"Is that so?"
Asagiri nodded with a smile, then reached out his hand to Kaguya Shinomiya.
"Let's go. Haven't you always wanted to go to the Fireworks Festival? Let's not waste any more time."
"Mm..."
Kaguya Shinomiya nodded, then gently took the hand Asagiri extended to her.
A heartfelt smile bloomed on her face, one that seemed to be the first of its kind in her life.
"Let's go."
After Kaguya Shinomiya followed Asagiri downstairs, she saw that in addition to Yuuki Asuna and the others, who had already changed into kimonos, there was also a woman wearing a dark blue kimono.
Her skin was sickly pale, and she carried a kind of frail, mysterious beauty as she stood there quietly.
"Ms. Sakurakawa?"
Seeing Kaguya Shinomiya and Asagiri walk down, Sakurakawa Rikka slowly walked over and nodded slightly in greeting.
"Yes. He invited me."
"I see."
Kaguya Shinomiya simply nodded upon hearing this and did not say much more.
After all, Sakurakawa Rikka was also a teammate belonging to the Ashikaga Budo Association, just like everyone else.
Furthermore, in the previous fourth stage difficulty Dungeon, Sakurakawa Rikka had temporarily joined the team of Kaguya Shinomiya, Fujiwara Chika, and Hayasaka Ai, clearing the Dungeon together with the three of them.
Although they were not particularly close, they had indeed faced a death game together and could trust each other.
Since it was only attending the Fireworks Festival together, Kaguya Shinomiya naturally had no objections.
"Hmph."
Iwanaga Kotoko appeared beside Asagiri like a ghost and immediately hugged his arm.
Her violet eyes revealed intense hostility as she swept her gaze over everyone present, firmly declaring word by word,
"The first one to unlock a CG with Asagiri at the Fireworks Festival can only be me!"
"The first one?"
Asagiri raised an eyebrow with interest.
"Does that mean everyone has to unlock a CG?"
"Of course."
Iwanaga Kotoko lifted her fair chin, revealed a sweet smile, and boasted,
"I, the God of Wisdom, am a fair deity. Although the priority is mine, you can still unlock CGs with them. I don't mind~"
Asagiri could not help retorting,
"Including you, there are eight people in total. I have to unlock CGs with all eight? Even if it only takes one hour per person, that's a full eight hours. I'm taking you all to see the Fireworks Festival, not to complete some high intensity pile driver training."
"High intensity? I think you'd be fine. But if you want to watch the fireworks, it doesn't matter. You only need to pile drive me..."
"Thump!"
The evil, dirty joke-making lewd loli was met with a righteous forehead flick sanction from the Flash Swordsman.
"Stop saying such lewd things here. Let's go, the car is waiting for us."
"Tch... fake prude..."
Seeing Iwanaga Kotoko, who was clearly unconvinced after being sanctioned but could only mutter softly due to Yuuki Asuna's aura, looking like a brat, the atmosphere in the room suddenly became joyful.
Twenty minutes later.
"Is this... the Fireworks Festival..."
Kaguya Shinomiya looked at the bustling street in front of her.
There was an endless stream of people, with all kinds of stalls lining both sides of the road.
A bright light flickered in her beautiful red eyes, like a child who had finally bought the toy they had always wanted.
Asagiri noticed Kaguya Shinomiya's expression and teased her with a smile.
"Madam Vice President, you are much cuter today than usual."
"Cu... cute!?"
Seeing Kaguya Shinomiya's body tremble slightly, and a blush immediately appear on her face, Asagiri could not help laughing.
"Did I trigger some underlying logic code of yours? Why do you suddenly have a stress reaction every time you hear the word cute?"
"No... nothing."
Kaguya Shinomiya tried hard to use a calm tone to hide her shyness, but anyone could hear that her voice was beginning to tremble slightly.
She was clearly flustered.
"It's just... you're the first person who has ever complimented me like that."
Yuuki Asuna could not help asking curiously upon hearing this.
"Eh? Has no one ever complimented you on being cute before?"
"Yeah."
A hint of sadness appeared in Kaguya Shinomiya's eyes as she spoke softly.
"Elegant, dignified, composed. These are the compliments that I, as the eldest daughter of the Shinomiya Family, should receive. Before... no one had ever called me cute."
"But you are cute, Kaguya."
"Eh..."
While Kaguya Shinomiya was still stunned, Yuuki Asuna had already taken the initiative to link arms with her and flashed a gentle smile.
"Now I'm the second person to call you cute."
Looking at the gentle, sweet smile blooming on Yuuki Asuna's exquisite face, everyone, including Kaguya Shinomiya, felt as if they had been baptized by holy light at that moment.
Along with it came a strong sense of pressure, like facing an immovable mountain.
So powerful.
Such a great personality.
This girl, Yuuki Asuna, was completely flawless.
Even when facing Kaguya Shinomiya, who was something like a rival, she could still act with such gentleness.
In a sense...
She, like Asagiri, was also the strongest.
"There are a lot of people."
Hearing this sudden voice, the four girls, Kaguya Shinomiya, Hayasaka Ai, Fujiwara Chika, and Sakurakawa Rikka, could not help being startled.
"Eh? Kei Kato? So you were here too?"
Kato Megumi, wearing a kimono, sighed softly.
She raised her hand to tuck her long black hair behind her ear and expressed her dissatisfaction in a gentle tone.
"We came in the same car, after all. Only noticing my presence now is a bit too much."
Actually, one could not blame Kaguya Shinomiya and the others.
After all, including Asagiri, there were nine people present today.
Even without the effect of her exclusive talent, Kato Megumi's natural presence was very low.
It was fine when there were only a few people, but once there were many, combined with her quiet and reserved personality, it became very easy for her to be overlooked.
"There are many people."
Kato Megumi raised her hand and pointed at the street, where the crowd seemed endless, then spoke softly.
"And with so many of us, it will be a bit difficult if we all act together."
"Eh, that's where you're wrong."
Hearing this dangerous statement from Kato Megumi, Asagiri immediately waved his hand in denial.
"You want to suggest splitting up? That won't do. At the very least, for the first round, everyone must act together."
Was he kidding?
The so-called shuraba, in the final analysis, was a dispute caused by inequality rather than scarcity.
This was Asagiri's first time attending the Fireworks Festival, and it was the same for Yuuki Asuna and the others.
If they split up, it would inevitably lead to one thought-provoking question.
Who got to walk with him first?
This problem was completely impossible to handle, and there was no perfect answer.
The only solution was to avoid the dispute caused by order of precedence and have everyone act together.
Otherwise, what was supposed to be a wonderful Fireworks Festival to enjoy youth might potentially turn into a war of jealousy, followed by a superpower brawl.
A shuraba was extremely dangerous.
"My power exists for this very moment."
A flame-like golden light erupted in Asagiri's eyes.
Although the reason was very abstract, for some inexplicable reason, he had suddenly become fired up.
"I will use my power to create a beautiful world without shuraba disputes! Unrestrained Tyrant aura, activate!"
The moment his voice fell, a chilling wave of power emanated from Asagiri.
He deliberately controlled the effect of his aura so that Yuuki Asuna and the others would not be affected, but the crowd that had originally been clogging the street subconsciously parted to both sides, clearing a path.
"What exactly are you getting fired up about..."
Yuuki Asuna showed a slightly helpless smile, then called out to the others.
"Alright, let's follow him."
...
After strolling around the stalls at the Fireworks Festival for a while, the group chose the best viewing spot.
Kato Megumi took out the picnic blanket she had prepared in advance and gently spread it on the grass.
"Woohoo~ Ready to watch the fireworks~"
Iwanaga Kotoko sat down without hesitation.
Kato Megumi glanced at Yamauchi Sakura, who was standing there, with a thoughtful look in her eyes.
Then she looked at Asagiri, smiled, and acted spoiled in a rare, cute tone.
"I just saw someone selling candy apples. Could you please buy some for me?"
"No problem."
Just as Asagiri was about to go buy the candy apples, Kato Megumi grabbed his sleeve, covered her mouth, and chuckled softly.
"How do you intend to carry nine candy apples by yourself? Let Sakura Yamauchi go with you."
Yamauchi Sakura, who had been in a daze and seemed a bit absent-minded, only came back to her senses after hearing this.
She asked with a blank, cute expression,
"Eh? Me?"
"Yes, you."
Kato Megumi gently pushed Yamauchi Sakura to Asagiri's side and smiled.
"We always protect you in the Dungeon, so letting you help buy some candy apples can be considered returning the favor. Go on, Miss Logistics Priest."
"Oh..."
Yamauchi Sakura stole a glance at Asagiri beside her, a subtle blush appearing on her cheeks.
Then she agreed with a generous smile.
"Alright, we'll be back soon."
After Yamauchi Sakura and Asagiri left, Yuuki Asuna wore an expression that seemed to understand everything but chose not to say it.
She simply tucked her flaxen hair behind her ear, looked at the quiet and empty area around them, felt the fresh night air carrying a slight chill, and let out a long sigh.
"I didn't expect such a good spot wouldn't be taken by anyone else. There's no one around, it's quiet and comfortable. This is just great."
"That's not it."
Kaguya Shinomiya shook her head upon hearing this and spoke in a matter of fact tone.
"It's not that no one else wanted to sit here. I just booked this area with the Fireworks Festival organizers in advance."
"There... there's such a move?"
"Of course."
Kaguya Shinomiya nodded slightly and calmly said,
"It was merely a trivial amount of sponsorship money in exchange for such a good spot. I think it's a very cost effective deal."
.....
https://discord.gg/KvMN2CFsMR
[If you don't want to wait for the next update, read 50 chapters ahead on P@treon.]
[[email protected]/FanficLord03]