Thanks to Yuria's unbelievable slip of the tongue, the air grew tense yet again.
Come on, Yuria! Why did you have to let it slip now of all times!?
"Manga? Yuria, do you even read manga?" Airi asked.
"Uh, well... you see..."
In response to Airi’s question, Yuria waved her hands around frantically, her eyes darting everywhere—just like Airi had done moments ago.
Good grief, not now...!
Pull yourself together, Yuria!
Then again, Yuria had her reasons. Back in middle school, her otaku hobbies had been exposed to her gyaru friends, which led to her being ostracized. After becoming a loner, she had thrown herself into her studies, which was how she eventually passed the entrance exam for Natsuhama Central.
Considering that background, having her otaku side exposed was a massive landmine.
I’d known that for a while, of course, but thinking back on it now, Yuria’s secret really was quite heavy.
Then again, stories about a loner saving a lonely gyaru are always popular.
So today, I would coolly step in and save Yuria—
"Oh? Sensei wants to go to the Manga Museum too!"
Just as I was about to extend a helping hand, Hiyori-sensei spoke up first again.
"Wait, Sensei, you like manga?"
"Yeah, I love manga! The Manga Museum has everything, and I bet they have plenty of shoujo manga that you can't find in bookstores anymore. Right, Ichinose-san?"
"Ah, uh... yeah! I wanted to re-read some of the shoujo manga I used to love, and I figured they might have some out-of-print ones there."
"Heh, I didn't know you were so into that kind of stuff, Yuria."
And just like that, Yuria managed to escape the situation unscathed... wait, hey.
These girls keep getting saved by Hiyori-sensei!
Wh-what is this... this feeling of having the beautiful girls' secrets NTR'd by Anju-onee-chan?
That’s usually my job... Damn, this is bad.
Hiyori-sensei—or rather, Anju-onee-chan—and her "Savior" act were gradually eroding my very reason for being here...
"Anyway, we should probably finalize the route. We need to decide where we’re heading first."
Rui took the lead as the facilitator again, pushing the conversation forward.
Rui won't be the one to let something slip next, will she...?
I’d had a vague feeling about this for a while, but honestly, Rui’s "secret" of being a perfectionist was pretty much public knowledge.
If anything, the perverted reality of her sending me suggestive selfies every single day was the only thing that actually functioned as a secret...
Well, speaking of "slips," Rui’s belly slipped out into view every time anyway.
"Um, Ryouta-kun? Why have you been staring at my lower abdomen for the last few minutes?"
"Wh-huh!? I was—I mean, I wasn't!"
"What kind of defense is that? You clearly were."
"Ryouta, you're the worst."
Ugh, the atmosphere made me look like a total pervert again (for the nth time).
Sigh... this meeting is just one disaster after another.
Still, I can't help but wonder how Hiyori-sensei manages to provide such perfect cover for them.
Does she actually know everything about Airi and Yuria?
If so, does she also know about... the perverted selfie relationship between me and Rui...?
N-no way.