Lunchtime.
Yoru sat at his desk, eating the latest version of his calorie-conscious meal.
Not tasty, but not terrible either—he'd gotten used to it.
After eating, he checked Megumi's reply, then stood up.
"Nice weather," he muttered, stepping out through the rear door of the classroom and looking up at the bright blue sky.
Heading downstairs, he passed by the neighboring class and subconsciously glanced toward the window.
Eriri was sitting there.
So his suspicion had been wrong.
The mysterious golden treasure chest had nothing to do with that "bad girl" theory.
Otherwise, Eriri would've been the prime suspect.
But Megumi also had a golden chest above her head. There's no way she was a "bad girl."
Same for Hayasaka, who once played a prank confessing to him. She had one too.
He had zero real connection with Hayasaka.
Of course, Yoru didn't yet know—
Hayasaka was Kaguya's personal maid, closely connected to her, and had once tailed him and thoroughly investigated all his personal information.
"What's up with him, walking with a blonde girl…"
Eriri had spotted Yoru too and secretly watched him leave, her chin resting in her palm, face full of conflicted emotions.
As usual, Yoru walked over to the vending machines and bought a black coffee.
Click—
With a soft click, Yoru pulled open the ring tab and took a sip, his face expressionless.
The smooth, bitter black coffee slid down his throat.
"Doesn't seem like bitter coffee sells very well," he muttered, glancing at the vending machine where the same brand was still well-stocked.
After checking his phone, he thought for a moment, then bought a sweet, fruity juice more suited to the average taste and stuffed it into his pocket.
As he was leaving, he ran into two familiar faces—at least, familiar to him.
The girls didn't recognize him.
But Yoru remembered them very clearly.
The one with twin ponytails tied in red ribbons—her name was also San-san, same as his cat.
"Yeah, San-san, let's go check it out this weekend, okay?"
"No thanks. After what happened, I'm just not in the mood."
"It's all my fault for not keeping a better eye on it…"
As he passed them, Yoru could faintly hear their conversation.
Before long, he arrived at the top of the school building, a little excited.
"Yoru-kun," Megumi Kato greeted him, holding a small lunch bag. She pointed at the rooftop door's broken lock.
"This lock's busted. You can just pull it open," Yoru said, watching the faint glow of a golden treasure chest shimmer above her head.
Judging by the progress bar, it was at about ten percent.
Almost there—just a little more.
"Is that so…?"
Megumi looked a bit surprised and tugged on the door. With a creak, it came open easily with just a little effort.
"Huh..."
She was quietly amazed.
As Yoru approached, he noticed her lunch bag and asked a little awkwardly, "Kato-san, am I interrupting your lunch?"
"Not at all. I was planning to eat up here anyway."
Megumi stepped onto the rooftop, gazing down at the prestigious campus of Shuchiin Academy.
It was the most elite private school in the entire country—without peer or rival.
"Sorry, I didn't realize you hadn't eaten yet when I asked to meet here," Yoru said, nudging the door closed and pointing to a nearby bench.
Good thing he'd found this quiet little hideaway earlier.
"It's fine. Eating with someone else is nice for a change."
Megumi wasn't particularly fond of the noisy classroom.
"Hm? You don't usually eat with anyone?"
Yoru blinked, a little puzzled.
"Yeah. I always eat alone," she replied matter-of-factly.
"Really? I figured someone like you would be really popular."
He sat beside her, genuinely surprised.
"Well..."
Megumi tilted her head, quietly facing Yoru. Then she suddenly remembered how he'd once called her cute and felt a little embarrassed, turning her face away.
"I'm just an ordinary girl. Even my name's common. I kind of fade into the background, so I'm not really popular."
"And… I don't really have any friends..."
She opened her lunch as she spoke, voice calm.
"I do kind of envy someone like Kasumigaoka-senpai. She always stands out and draws attention wherever she goes..."
She stopped herself before adding what she really thought.
She knew Yoru didn't like Utaha, so she didn't want to mention her more than necessary.
If this were Yoru's first time meeting Megumi and he could hear her thoughts, he might even suspect she was the thief.
"I... see?"
Yoru blinked again, not quite convinced.
But wasn't that good news for him?
If no one was close to her, that made things easier for him.
"Then... Ka...Kato-san, would it be okay if we became friends?"
He asked tentatively.
That's all he hoped for.
He wasn't delusional enough to believe a girl would actually like someone like him, a fat otaku.
Maybe he was destined to be alone forever...
"Sure," Megumi answered with a pleasant smile, without hesitation.
Spending time with Yoru was actually rather enjoyable for her.
Despite his bad reputation at school, she knew all the rumors were false.
Speaking of which...
Megumi's brows furrowed as she recalled something from the spring trip.
Her sudden shift in expression left Yoru stunned.
"What's wrong?" he asked, curious.
"It's... it's nothing. I was just distracted," Megumi quickly shook her head.
"Then… about this weekend, do you still want to go out?"
He took the juice from his pocket as he asked.
Megumi, still chewing a bite of food, gave him a gentle nod.
Meanwhile, back in the classroom—
The popular kids' group had gathered for lunch again.
"Where's Kitakami anyway? Kinda weird," Yumiko commented casually while eyeing her best friend, Yuigahama.
Yumiko always worried about her. Yui could be too soft. If someone bullied her—unless it was really extreme—she'd probably just endure it quietly.
Yesterday, she'd seen Yui talking to Yoru from a distance, and ever since, she'd had a bad feeling.
"Why bring him up all of a sudden?" Hayato replied.
"Just curious," Yumiko said, still scanning Yui's expression.
"Whoa, Yumiko, don't tell me you're actually paying attention to that fat loser..." Tobe joked loudly.
"Seriously. Sitting next to a thief like that is bad luck."
"If it were me, I'd ask the teacher to switch seats right away..."
Ooka and Yamato joined in the laughter.
As the laughter grew, Yui's gaze turned conflicted.
Honestly, aside from the rumors about him stealing Utaha's things…
Yoru didn't seem like a bad person at all.
Besides, no one had ever confirmed he was the culprit…
The school never officially announced anything—just gossip spread by students on the spring trip. No real proof.
"Um, actually..."
Yui hesitantly raised her hand, thinking about Yukino.
She deeply admired Yukino's strength—the way she spoke her mind without worrying what others thought. She wished she could be like that too.