[Buzz— Buzz, buzz—!]
The phone in her pocket buzzed, causing the still somewhat dazed Wada Saki to snap wide awake.
Saki pulled out her phone, and on the screen was an urgent message from "Shining Moment Photography."
Shining Moment Studio: [Miss Wada Saki, may we ask where you are? There are many interviewees today, and this is a rare opportunity. If you are late, we may not be able to hold your interview slot for you~ We look forward to your arrival!]
"Ah! Oh no! I almost forgot the important business!"
Although she didn't know why she had collapsed in the alleyway, the HR department's verbal offensive immediately perked her up.
After all, it was a high-paying job, so it was only natural that there would be many people interviewing; with her limited work experience, she took this for granted.
In her eyes, the most important thing was not to miss this once-in-a-lifetime part-time opportunity!
Thinking of this, Saki quickly stood up, patted the dust off her skirt, and tidied her somewhat messy hair and collar.
She then took out a small pocket mirror to do a quick grooming, took a deep breath, and put on a high-spirited smile once again.
Satisfied, she nodded at herself in the mirror. She was very confident in her looks and believed she could definitely stand out among the crowd of competitors.
"Go for it, Wada Saki, you're the best!"
After cheering herself up, Saki set off and walked resolutely out of the alley.
——————
[Crap, crap, crap! Why did she come out so fast? If I get caught, won't the fact that I was following her be completely exposed?!]
Natsuhi had just reached the entrance, and a casual glance was enough to scare her out of her wits.
That blonde, energetic figure—wasn't that Wada Saki?
[I don't know why, but I feel like it would be bad to be discovered.]
Was it because of the bad thing she had just secretly done?
In any case, that was her thought right now; since she didn't know what to say if they met, she simply decided not to meet at all.
Natsuhi's body moved faster than her brain, and with exceptional speed, she crouched down under the display window near the entrance, wishing she could turn invisible on the spot.
"What's wrong? Student Ito."
Nikaido Rinka, who was seeing Natsuhi off, saw her suddenly drop down and thought her old injury had flared up. Not daring to be negligent, she hurried over.
"Classmate... Classmate Wada?"
Rinka also saw Classmate Wada outside the window and instantly understood the reason for Natsuhi's strange behavior.
Although she didn't know the specific reason, it was clear that Ito Natsuhi did not want Wada Saki to find her here.
Natsuhi, crouching under the window, glanced at Rinka, hurriedly looked up, pressed her hands together, and silently pleaded with her lips:
"Please, whatever you do, don't tell her I'm here!"
[I remember they were best friends, weren't they? Why is Natsuhi reacting like this to seeing Classmate Wada? She couldn't be doing something bad behind her back, could she?]
[It seems Student Ito isn't as honest as I thought.]
Thinking of this, a smile played at the corners of Rinka's mouth.
"Ding-a-ling—!"
The wind chime gave a crisp ring as the shop door was pushed open.
"Welcome—" the clerk called out habitually.
The person who walked in was indeed Wada Saki.
Saki looked around as if searching for something, and when she saw the beautiful girl with highlighted hair standing nearby wearing a formal dress, a look of surprise appeared on her face.
Saki's gaze lingered on Rinka's sophisticated dress, a hint of admiration flashing in her eyes. It had to be said that while her usual image in a school uniform was quite sharp,
Rinka, who already had somewhat androgynous features, appeared even more dashing after changing into formal attire. For a moment, Saki even felt herself blushing a little.
[If only Student Nikaido were a guy. Just looking at her face, none of the boys in the academy can compare to her.]
"Are you okay?"
Waving her hand to wake the blankly staring Saki, Rinka's tone carried a hint of concern, which inevitably made Saki's cheeks turn even redder.
Partly out of shyness and partly because she felt it was too embarrassing, she hurriedly changed the subject:
"Student Nikaido? What a coincidence. Do you work here?"
"That's right. This is my mother's shop, and I occasionally come to help out when I have free time."
Nikaido maintained her composure and gave a professional smile, but her body subtly shifted half a step, perfectly hiding Natsuhi, who was curled into a ball beneath her.
It was hard to tell if it was intentional or accidental.
"Oh! I see. This outfit really suits you!"
"No, it's not just suitable—it's incredibly cool! You look just like a protagonist who walked out of a shoujo manga."
Saki seemed to feel that a simple compliment wasn't enough to express her feelings, so she spoke her true thoughts.
Rinka: "The female lead?"
"No, the male lead. The kind of very cool male lead who makes your heart race and makes you want to keep staring at him."
"I feel like any second now you're going to ask me, 'My lady, what would you like to drink tonight?' or something like that."
"If the boys in our academy had even half of your taste and class, I wouldn't be single until now."
She decided to shift the topic away from herself, lest this enthusiastic gyaru classmate throw out even more face-reddening comments.
She was afraid she wouldn't be able to handle it.
Coughing once, Rinka pretentiously straightened her bowtie (which was actually perfectly straight already); the slight curl at the corner of her mouth betrayed that she was actually enjoying this.
"Thanks. I'm glad to hear you say that."
"It's rare to see you leaving school right after classes. Do you have something special going on today?"
Speaking of which, Saki seemed to remember something and asked casually:
"By the way, did you see Natsuhi when you came in? Ito Natsuhi, my best friend with glasses. I thought I just... caught a glimpse of someone who looked like her..."
!!!
Suddenly hearing her own name, Natsuhi, who was under the table, froze. She covered her mouth with both hands and held her breath.
[It's over, was I spotted after all? Student Nikaido, please, you have to hold the line!]
She prayed in her heart that Rinka wouldn't expose her.
At the mention of Natsuhi, Rinka subconsciously glanced down. The person the other was looking for was separated from her by only a wooden board.
Natsuhi was currently curled up under the narrow wooden cabinet, her face flushed red. Even without physical contact, Rinka could feel her tension as she huddled piteously into a ball.
Sensing that pathetic gaze looking up at her, Rinka felt a surge of excitement. After all, this was the first time she had seen the usually quiet Student Ito show such a cute expression.
[Ah... Student Ito like this... is really...]
This strong contrast gave Rinka an unprecedented sense of novelty and a flutter in her heart.
How should she put it?
She couldn't help but want to see her like this a little longer.
"Student Ito..."
Rinka deliberately drew out the words. Her voice was clear, and her gaze lingered pointlessly on the area below as if she were thinking seriously.
She was likely contemplating whether she should say it.
In Saki's eyes, however, she thought Rinka was searching her memory to help her.
To Natsuhi, this brief pause felt like an entire century. Her heart was nearly pounding out of her chest.
Seeing Natsuhi shrinking and trembling because of her hesitation, Rinka felt her heart melting.
The absurd thought of "I really want to take her home and keep her" flashed through her mind.
However, jokes aside, Rinka decided to side with Natsuhi. After all, the two of them had just had some intimate physical contact.
Besides, this would mean Natsuhi owed her two favors. How should she use them... it was hard to decide.
"Is there something down there?"
Just as doubt began to surface on Saki's face and she moved to come over and check the situation,
Rinka retracted her gaze at just the right moment, a slightly apologetic smile appearing on her face as she explained naturally:
"I think I accidentally dropped something just now, so I looked down instinctively."
As she spoke, she also symbolically tapped the wooden board of the display stand with the tip of her shoe.
"As for Student Ito... I didn't really notice. Maybe you saw wrong?"
This explanation was perfectly reasonable, and her expression management was top-notch, successfully dispelling the trace of doubt that had just arisen in Saki.
"I see..."
Saki blinked and accepted the explanation. After all, Student Nikaido was a famously reliable honor student; there was really no reason for her to lie about such a small matter.
"Then I really must have seen wrong! I won't disturb your work then. I have things to do, so I'll head out first!"
"Okay, be careful on the road."
"Oh, right."
However, just as Saki's hand was about to touch the doorknob, she suddenly turned back to Rinka, making Natsuhi—who had just breathed a sigh of relief under the cabinet—have her heart in her throat again.
"What is it? Is there something else?"
"If you see Natsuhi, please pass a message to her for me. Just say... not to worry about me, I'll be fine going on my own."
She thought Natsuhi had secretly followed her out of worry because it was her first part-time job interview, but was too embarrassed to show her face.
"Okay, if I run into her, I'll definitely pass it on for you."
"By the way, our shop recently got a batch of very interesting accessories and a few nice outfits. You'd probably like the style. If you have time next time, feel free to drop by."
"Really? That's great!"
Saki's eyes immediately lit up. She was always full of interest in anything fashion-related.
"I'll definitely come! You have to give me a discount then, Student Nikaido!"
"No problem."
Rinka agreed with a smile.
"It's a promise then! Bye-bye, Student Nikaido!"
"Goodbye, Classmate Wada."
This time, Saki really did wave and push the door open to leave with a light step, the crisp sound of the door chime seemingly putting a full stop to this little unexpected interlude.
The shop returned to silence.
"Phew~ That scared me to death. Luckily you were here, Student Nikaido. Thank you so much."
"Ow, my—!"
Natsuhi let out a long sigh of relief. Just as she tried to crawl out, she accidentally bumped into the edge of the wooden cabinet. It hurt so much that she quickly covered her head with her hand, tears almost coming out.
The clumsy 'little kitten' before her put Rinka in a great mood, and she couldn't help but reach out to rub Natsuhi's head.
Natsuhi felt a bit uncomfortable being patted on the head like a child. She was about to pull away but then remembered that the other person had just done her a huge favor; if she acted like that, it might hurt Rinka's feelings.
After a brief internal struggle, she decided to let her rub. It wasn't like she'd lose a piece of her skin anyway.
"Good girl~"
[Wait, why does it feel like she's petting a puppy?]
Looking at Rinka's giggling, doting expression, Natsuhi felt something was definitely off.
"I feel like you're treating me like an idiot. Being rubbed like this is so embarrassing."
"Eh~? Not at all. I just think you're very cute."
"What nonsense are you talking about?!"
Natsuhi really couldn't do anything with the woman before her. She felt like she was being completely played by her, and she couldn't even get angry.
"Alright, alright, I'll stop teasing you. Can you tell me what's actually going on? From what Classmate Wada said, it sounds like she's going to do something dangerous, which makes me a bit worried."
"I can't reveal that, but you don't need to worry. I can handle this."
At those words, Natsuhi immediately put on a serious face. There was no wavering in her gaze as she looked at Rinka, only deep determination.
Although Rinka was curious, she didn't dig deeper. Since the person involved said it was inconvenient, she couldn't force her, but she added one more line out of concern.
"Do you really not need my help?"
"Just leave it to me."
Responding with a steady gaze that carried an air of refusal, Natsuhi had already walked to the door.
"You were a huge help today. I'll repay you later."
Leaving those words behind, Natsuhi chased after the direction Saki had gone without looking back.
"Be safe."
"I know!"
Watching the figure hurry away into the distance, Rinka's eyes darkened.
[I feel like Student Ito has changed a lot... Just what kind of secret is she hiding?]
——————
Natsuhi poked half a head out from the wall. Seeing Wada Saki in the distance, she slapped her forehead; her head felt like it was going to explode!
[This plot momentum must follow Newton's First Law. She just crawled out of one pit and is already running toward an even bigger fire pit.]
[You're really my 'dear old dad.' Truly worthy of an eroge world—usually looks like a smart person, but as soon as the plot starts, her IQ becomes inversely proportional to her chest size.]
She had just finished dealing with that Blonde-haired Upperclassman at great risk, and now she had to go settle things with an even more difficult group of scammers.
Since Natsuhi transmigrated into this world, she hadn't had a moment's rest. It was a good thing she hadn't run into any groups of street thugs; otherwise, with her current strength, things would be really hard to handle.