The crisp sound of leather shoes echoed through the corridor.
Although the first afternoon class was about to begin, Kyousuke walked with unhurried elegance.
After all, today's theme was "grace," not "John Wick on a rampage." The last thing he needed was to terrify a student into hitting the emergency evacuation alarm.
When he reached the shoe lockers and swapped into his indoor shoes, the sharp clack of his heels finally faded.
He was starting to understand why indoor shoes were necessary—not just for cleanliness, but also for peace and quiet.
Even if someone sprinted down the hallway and cracked their head open, at least it wouldn't disturb the classrooms.
Stepping out from the storage area's entranceway, Kyousuke found the hallways and staircases empty.
Most students had already gone to class, which made him breathe a little easier.
Sure, even if he were spotted, his composure would hold—he could flash a flawless smile and wave confidently, probably even better than a certain dictator climbing out of a tank.
But deep down, he was still shy. He didn't particularly enjoy the spotlight.
As he climbed the stairs, he caught a glimpse of his own reflection in the polished handrail—his tailored suit making him look like some aloof CEO filming a school drama.
He paused, turned slightly, and gave an order.
"Kisaki, when we enter the classroom, stay behind me."
"Huh?" Kisaki blinked.
His boss's seat was surrounded entirely by girls.
His own was in the middle of the classroom.
What was the point of following behind? To fan him from the rear?
"…Yes, understood." Although still confused, he nodded with a serious expression.
As they reached the second floor and neared Class 1-F, the noise was already leaking through the walls.
Amid the chatter, he could make out Zaimokuza's voice—either passionately explaining a math problem or shouting lines from a voice-controlled card battle game.
A few students loitered in the corridor—those from other classes.
They instinctively prepared to return to their rooms upon seeing someone approach, but once they saw Kyousuke's face, their eyes widened in disbelief.
Some even smacked their friends' arms to make sure they weren't seeing things.
Kyousuke ignored the gawking.
Without hesitation, he strode to the back door of the classroom and slid it open.
The first to notice him was Yuigahama Yui, who was chatting with Miura Yumiko, her body angled toward the door.
Her pink eyes widened as she instinctively reached out—without even looking—to grab Shouko's shoulder and shake her excitedly.
"Shou-chan, Shou-chan! Look, look!!"
Shouko looked confused at first, but once her eyes met Kyousuke's, her chubby cheeks relaxed into a soft smile.
Her eyes curved like crescents.
Sakura, who had been looking at her phone, glanced up.
The moment her gaze landed on Kyousuke, her whole face lit up with a radiant smile.
The cherry blossoms outside were nearly gone—but somehow, spring had yet to leave.
Kyousuke froze mid-step at the sight of those two smiles, nearly causing Kisaki, who was closely trailing him, to bump into his back.
His carefully maintained serious expression nearly cracked.
Sakura's joy was infectious—it took real effort not to smile back.
'Ahem. Focus! Serious face on!'
Striding confidently to Sakura's desk under the full attention of the class, Kyousuke gave a sharp fifteen-degree bow, then held out a bag full of dorayaki.
"Sakura-sama. Shouko-san. There's no time for idle chatter—the world is on the brink of destruction! If you don't act now, everything will be lost!"
His voice was low and commanding. His already sharp jawline took on an even more intimidating edge when he got serious.
At least from Kisaki's perspective, Yuigahama's expression was already turning to fear, and Zaimokuza had stood up and was loosening his gravity wrist weights, clearly preparing for battle.
The rest of the class looked confused—but no one dared interrupt, not with that look on their leader's face.
Except for two girls who seemed to be playing along perfectly.
"Oh-ho-ho-ho~ So the day has finally come," Yamauchi Sakura cackled like a cartoon villain.
She rose slowly from her seat, dramatically tearing open the paper bag and biting into a dorayaki.
Without missing a beat, Kyousuke whipped off his jacket and draped it over her shoulders like a cloak.
The effect was instant—she looked every bit the commander ready to face the end of the world.
"Yes, the situation is urgent!"
Shy and reserved as he was, Kyousuke only ever let go of his inhibitions like this when playing along with Sakura and the others.
"I understand," Sakura said, swallowing her bite of dorayaki. Then, coolly, she added:
"But!"
"But?" Kyousuke echoed on cue, voice tense, brows furrowed just the right amount.
"No."
"What?! Why not?!"
"Because…" Sakura turned toward the blackboard, her golden eyes sparkling with profound insight. "Math class is about to start."
"Math class? But… the world is ending!"
"Shouko," Sakura turned to her, "which do you think is more important—saving the world, or math class?"
"Hmm~" Shouko tilted her head thoughtfully. "I think… the most important thing is to eat Kyousuke-kun's snacks before class starts."
"You're right!" ×2
Special Agent A and Lady Yamauchi Sakura nodded in unison, absolutely convinced.
By this point, the rest of the class realized the world wasn't actually ending. After all, a world where dorayaki ranked higher than global destruction clearly wasn't worth saving.
Yuigahama's earlier panic faded, and she led the applause.
'Clap clap clap clap—'
Other students joined in, giving a round of applause for the delightful performance.
Sakura's cheeks were still stuffed with dorayaki, but she forced a modest smile as best she could.
With her left hand, she held Kyousuke's; with her right, she pulled Shouko into a bow of thanks. Kisaki, now in the background, had fulfilled his role as a loyal extra.
Just as Kyousuke was about to take his seat, Hatake Gorou shouted:
"Boss! Is this the plot of your next manga?!"
The room, already lively, burst into even more chaos.
To borrow a line Kyousuke had once heard:
'I could hear you all the way from the principal's office! Anyone would think Japan made it to the World Cup!'
Though honestly, he'd be happier with a signed volume of Kyousuke's next manga.
"My next manga?" Kyousuke turned, raising an eyebrow at Kisaki, half-suspecting he'd cooked up this whole scene as a PR stunt with their editor, Shimomura.
"Nope," Kisaki replied. "The next one's about an elementary school kid and…"
Tch. He was going to say "a love story between an elementary schooler and a high school girl," but that didn't sound right.
There were also female scientists, and elementary kids… no, that was just wrong. Kids shouldn't be in love stories anyway.
After a brief pause, Kyousuke declared:
"It's about an elementary school kid teaming up with a grim reaper to purify the world."
Yes. When the moonlight plays its requiem, both heroes and villains alike will vanish from this world.
Well—if he were drawing it, he'd probably tweak the story a bit.
Upon hearing that, Background Extra B's expression twisted into something complicated—after all, no one knew better than him what Hojou's next manga was really about.
"Sugoi!" cried the clueless Goro Hata, while the guys around him echoed with admiration, "So cool!"
"Eh? Isn't it about a grim reaper falling in love with an elementary schooler, then giving her eternal life so he can watch her slowly grow up?" muttered Ebina Hina in disappointment.
Now it was Kyousuke's turn to look weirded out.
Seriously, just because your name is the same as the biggest highway rest stop in Japan, does that mean you automatically know more about everything?
After casually joining in the nonsense chatter with his classmates, Kyousuke successfully diverted everyone's attention from the question of why he was wearing a suit to school.
"Hojou-kun, why are you wearing a suit to school anyway?"
Yuigahama tilted her head curiously as she noticed the jacket Sakura was holding in her arms.
A few girls nearby turned to look too.
Girls always paid more attention to fashion than guys did—especially when it involved a good-looking guy like Hojou.
"I know! Kyousuke wore it so you could all feel the award ceremony vibes. Remember how curious you were about the reception this morning?" Sakura beamed, shaking the dorayaki in her hand like a trophy.
"Ohhh, that makes sense!" Yuigahama nodded in realization.
"Sakura, you really are a genius," Kyousuke said with a grin.
"Well, duh! I did just ace the math quiz, remember?" Sakura declared proudly, pulling out two perfect-score answer sheets—hers and Kyousuke's—and promptly smudging them with greasy fingerprints from her snack.
At that moment, the sliding door at the front of the classroom opened silently.
In walked the math teacher, dressed in the standard-issue gray suit worn by high school math teachers across Japan.
His name was Kazuma Ide.
When he spotted Kisaki Tetta standing in the back of the room like a telephone pole with a solemn expression, he instinctively nodded in greeting.
Kisaki nodded back, expressionless, then calmly walked to his seat.
Ide blinked, a little thrown off, but made his way to the podium.
As usual, his eyes drifted to the bottom-right corner of the classroom—a habit he'd picked up this school year.
After all, whoever sat there used to be the type of student who gave him headaches with just one glance.
But things had changed.
Now, the student in that seat was a god—someone who brought him honor, recognition, and even bonus pay.
Kyousuke hadn't shown up for the morning class, so Ide had even rearranged the schedule, moving the quiz review to the afternoon.
Just as he opened his mouth to speak, the bell rang.
Meanwhile, Hikigaya Hachiman, who had been absentmindedly staring at Hojou and wondering how his new manga would depict such a wild concept, snapped back to reality.
He jumped to his feet.
"Stand up!" he called out. It was his turn to be the class monitor today.
Everyone stood. Ide nodded with a small bow in return, then gestured for them to sit.
Unlike most students, who found being on duty a hassle, Hachiman actually enjoyed it.
This was the only time he felt like he mattered in class—his one moment of authority. With a single command, even Hojou-san had to stand up.
That… was the power of rules!
Sure, Hachiman often believed it wasn't him that was wrong, but the world.
But even he sometimes enjoyed getting lost in this twisted little world.
Think about it—if you randomly yelled in class at any other time, people would think you were some weirdo like Zaimokuza.
But this? This was an officially sanctioned scream.
A rare outlet of expression, right before a long class began.
Students needed to shout to vent.
Teachers needed to remember that moment of obedient silence just to survive the next 50 minutes without throwing the math textbook at someone like, say, Hikigaya Hachiman—the guy who only got two answers right on the entire quiz.
In short, this system was genius.
Anyone calling for the abolition of such rituals could go jump in a lake.
Hachiman smiled modestly and lowered his head, trying to fade into the background and avoid disrupting the math teacher's good mood.
Though honestly, with someone like Hojou in the room, no teacher could possibly be in a bad mood.
Well… except when they looked at Hachiman and couldn't help but say: "Why don't you try being more like Hojou-kun?"
So yeah. Let's just get this math class over with.
Even Hiratsuka-sensei, who looked like a mad scientist half the time, was better than this.
Just get me to my Japanese language class where I'm proudly ranked fourth in the year.
But no—this was math, the subject more important than life itself. And life didn't bend to your personal will.
Ide opened his lesson plan, then turned toward Hojou Kyousuke with a big smile.
It was the same smile he always wore when talking about Hojou in the teacher's office.
He could barely contain himself when he finished grading Hojou's test.
"I see Hojou's already suited up," Ide said cheerfully. "You must've guessed I'd ask you to share your problem-solving method with the class. Come on up. Everyone, give him a hand."
No hesitation.
No pause.
Just stepped aside.
Kyousuke gave a resigned sigh. He was only here to get praised—not to steal the spotlight like this.
Shouko, who had been quietly decorating Kyousuke's test paper with cartoon puppy stickers, looked up in surprise and hurriedly handed the sheet back, now full of cute, wagging dogs.
Kyousuke took it, stood up.
"Hojou! Put on your jacket!" Sakura whispered urgently, holding it out to him.
He looked at her, saw the hope in her eyes, and with a sigh, took the jacket and slipped it on.
As he moved, the swish of the hem stirred the air, causing the hair of the girl beside him to flutter.
Kawasaki Saki, who had been gazing out the window with her chin propped on her hand, turned her head.
She watched him—the tall, confident figure—as he strode toward the front of the room.
She had no intention of paying attention during this class… until now.
Her eyes didn't blink.
Her posture subtly shifted.
Her slim waist straightened, her chest—already quite prominent—seemed ready to pop from the top two undone buttons of her uniform.
'If only our math teacher were someone like Hojou-san… maybe math wouldn't be such a nightmare.'
Hikigaya Hachiman silently prayed the principal could hear his thoughts.
He was sure he wasn't the only one thinking the same thing right now.
At the very least, judging by the odd blush creeping onto the faces of girls like Yuigahama Yui and Kawasaki Saki… yeah.
They were probably thinking it too.
This realization hit Hachiman like a gut punch.
'Damn it! Even as a teacher, good-looking guys have all the advantages! What is this, some kind of forbidden romance drama?!'
Wait a second—if we follow this logic, then if Hojou-san became a stay-at-home husband, everyone would just say he gave up his career for love and praise him as the perfect man!
Watching Hojou stand proudly at the podium, Hachiman thought of his own ultimate dream—becoming a househusband.
Even though he was 100% straight, he couldn't deny it: if a guy like Hojou-san made him breakfast every morning, he'd probably start each day bursting with energy.
But him? If he actually did become a househusband, the neighborhood aunties would probably gossip nonstop about how he just couldn't function in society, which is why his poor wife had to work herself to the bone.
But being a stay-at-home husband is just as valid a role as being a stay-at-home wife! Have you all forgotten about the women's liberation movement?
Did the equality that our female predecessors fought so hard for just evaporate from your minds?
Clearly, the problem isn't with me—it's the world that's messed up. The evidence?
The sheer gap between reality and the fantasy of being like Hojou-san.
With that comforting delusion, Hikigaya refocused and listened seriously to Kyousuke's explanation from the front of the class.
"…Factoring is actually pretty simple. Aside from memorizing the formulas, it's really about finding the right method."
"Some problems are designed specifically to train the cross-multiplication technique, so if you try to use common factoring instead, it'll feel awkward. That's something you pick up through practice…"
Kyousuke held the test paper in one hand and wrote on the board with the other, his handwriting as neat as printed text.
His tone was calm and gentle, with a soft smile on his face, and he spoke at just the right volume—especially comfortable for Shouko.
"Did you all catch that?" the teacher, Ide Kazuma, chimed in. "Even Hojou has to practice a lot to build up experience. If you don't want to flunk the next quiz and end up in after-school tutoring, start putting in more work!"
Then he turned back to Hojou and asked, "Hojou, would you mind sharing with the class about how many problems you did to reach this level?"
Kyousuke's smile twitched slightly.
"…I did a lot," he replied, evading the question.
Sakura couldn't help letting out a quiet giggle, and even Shouko had a strange look on her face.
Honestly, what could he say? Admit that he offloaded his homework onto Sakura and let her treat it like bonus practice?
"So how many is 'a lot'?" Ide pressed again.
The warmth in Kyousuke's smile began to crack.
The truth was, after his first year of junior high, he'd barely done any STEM practice at all.
His natural talent had already developed to the point where he could breeze through any exam up to college-level without breaking a sweat.
And given his lazy nature, since he had no intention of contributing to the advancement of human civilization, and was already helping Sakura with her own academic image… why would he waste time doing repetitive exercises?
"…Just a lot," he said again, this time a little louder.
"…" Ide Kazuma fell into silence.
Those four forced-out words pulled the math teacher back to his college days.
He remembered a classmate—a guy who spent all his time gaming and still won top scholarships every year.
When asked how much effort he put into studying, he had the exact same expression and gave the exact same four-word answer.
Translation: I didn't even try. I'm just a genius.
"Ahem… anyway, everyone, let's try to learn from Hojou!" Ide announced with forced enthusiasm.
At that, Sakura—who did two sets of homework every day—finally couldn't hold it in.
She collapsed on her desk, laughing.
Thankfully, the applause that followed helped cover the sound.
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