"You're messing with me, right? There's no way a human could do something !"
"Are you an alien or something? One with a supercomputer for a brain!"
Eriri felt as if her entire worldview was being rewritten.
Her small head was struggling to process the shock.
Girl, you were so close.
Not an alien, but a transmigrator.
Not a supercomputer, just a lousy little system.
"I get perfect scores in science and math at school," Hojou Kyousuke said calmly, glancing at the blonde-haired girl clutching her head in frustration.
'Perfect scores... in science?!'
"Then that means you must be terrible at everything else, right?!" Eriri grabbed Kyousuke's arm as if it were the last pillar holding up her crumbling worldview.
"No, my other grades aren't perfect, but I'm still in the top ten of my year."
"...Thanks, but you don't need to walk me out. I'll crawl to the roadside and get a taxi myself. Let's never meet again."
Retracting her hands, Eriri pulled her beret down over her head, not even bothering to hide her blonde hair anymore.
"Hahaha." Kyousuke couldn't help but laugh.
For a moment, he thought she was genuinely angry.
But now he understood—this was just her way of being cute.
It wasn't real anger.
"You're still laughing?! Are you seriously finding it funny that the daughter of a British diplomat is bad at English?!"
Even when her grades weren't great, she could always rely on her artistic talent and good looks to maintain her pride.
But now? Facing Kyousuke—who was just as good-looking, could draw with insane precision, and had ridiculously high grades—she felt like her pride had been shattered into a million pieces.
Falling silent, Eriri stared intently at Kyousuke's face—the face that would soon become the main character in her next doujin.
"What?" Kyousuke tilted his head.
"I had no idea about your family or your English skills until you just mentioned them. Why would I make fun of you for that?"
Her blue eyes were beautiful, but... why were her cheeks puffed out like that? And was she... grinding her teeth?
"Come here. Try drawing this the way I tell you."
Eriri pulled out her phone and quickly sketched a humanoid figure—one that looked about as bad as the whiteboard stick figure Kyousuke had drawn earlier.
"Oh." Kyousuke obediently moved closer.
A free art lesson? He might as well see if he could learn a thing or two.
"The mouth should curve a little more."
"Idiot, not that round! Not everyone looks like you—some kind of robotic alien!"
"Even if they're a weirdo, their features shouldn't be that symmetrical!"
Hearing that, Kyousuke snapped out of his careful approach and let loose his natural drawing skills.
"Huh?! What the hell are you doing?! No one's mouth looks like instant noodles! Are you trying to mess with me?!"
"...Where did that shy, polite girl I just met go? Bring her back. I demand a personality reset."
"What are you hesitating for? When you draw, you need to put the lines down confidently. Any hesitation will make the strokes weak and lifeless!"
As they spent more time together, the awkwardness between them faded.
With Kyousuke constantly challenging her pride, Eriri's true nature was starting to show.
"Make him smirk! Not some dumb grin! And why are the eyes so round?!"
After a barrage of "idiot, idiot, idiot," the short lesson finally ended.
Sweat beaded on her forehead, but Eriri was grinning with satisfaction.
Hojou Kyousuke wasn't some prodigy at drawing.
He really was just doing something completely new.
'Hahaha! Just as I thought! No one can surpass my artistic talent!'
"You might be an idiot, but with my teaching, I'll turn you into a proper artist!"
Looking at the messy sketch on Kyousuke's phone, Eriri's confidence soared.
'Sure, you're smart. Sure, you're good-looking. But I, Sawamura Spencer Eriri, have something you don't! At least in the realm of art!'
"Well then, thank you, Eriri-sensei."
Unlike Eriri, who was beaming with pride, Kyousuke felt like he had just barely survived the ordeal.
Every time he picked up the stylus, she called him an idiot.
Sure, her guidance was spot-on, but still...
...That being said, hearing a cute voice call him an idiot over and over again was kinda nice.
I wonder what it would sound like if Shouko called me an idiot...
"Ew, what's with that creepy face? Gross."
Snapped back to reality by her disgusted tone, Kyousuke cleared his thoughts.
"Let's exchange contact info. Even if we can't meet up in person, I can still tutor you online."
Before Kyousuke could respond, Eriri snatched his phone, opened Line, and added herself.
"Alright, let's go. Walk me to the roadside so I can get a taxi."
So this is what she's really like when she gets comfortable with someone? The difference between before and after was huge.
She had gone from a polite, well-mannered girl to someone who didn't even bother saying "please" anymore.
"No need for a taxi. I'll take you home."
"What, do you even have a driver's license?" Eriri asked, surprised.
"No, I'm still in middle school. I came on a motorbike."
"You're in middle school? So am I! What grade?" Her tone suddenly perked up.
"Hah! I'm a second-year. That means you have to call me senpai." Eriri grinned smugly.
"Yes, yes, Eriri-senpai."
"No, wait, calling me 'sensei' sounds even better."
"Hurry up. If we leave now, you'll make it home just in time for another ice pack."
Kyousuke didn't argue.
Instead, he gathered up the scattered manga magazines and light novels, then picked up the half-melted ice pack and wet towel, intending to toss them in the trash.
"Wait, don't throw that towel away."
Eriri quickly grabbed it, stuffed it into a plastic bag, and shoved it into the pocket of her overalls.
'...Right. You'll need it for another ice pack session when you get home.'
Without giving it much thought, Kyousuke crouched down in front of her, waiting.
This was the second time today, but for Eriri, this was the first time she had ever let a man other than her father carry her.
Blushing slightly, she slowly climbed onto his back, using his shoulders for support.
Despite her weight, Kyousuke remained perfectly steady, as solid as a breakwater against the tide.
"...Yeah." Discover more novels at novęlfire.net
Hearing her soft response, Kyousuke stood up, while Eriri held onto the bag of manga and novels.
Since the bill had already been paid, Kyousuke carried her out of the store without hesitation.