I Will Do Everything In My Power To Bring Happiness To The Enchanting Beauty Who Can No Longer Smile.

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I’ll try my best.

Hearing Tsubame’s story, I couldn’t help but feel my cheek twitch.

She’s definitely Shirao’s girlfriend—but hasn’t everything gotten a bit worse in the short time I haven’t seen her?

Instinctively, I glanced at Shirao, only to find him banging his head against the wall while classmates worriedly tried to stop him.

Maybe we should’ve introduced her earlier… Not that it helps now. I didn’t even know she was a fan of Tsubame.

Well, then again, it’s often said that over half the population in Japan is a fan of Tsubame. It’s a figure of speech, of course, but her influence really is that powerful.

I was a fan too, though I never mentioned it to Shirao or the others. I doubt I’m the only one.

“By the way, Tsubame.”

“Yes?”

“That girl… I know her.”

I’d already suspected it from the way she acted, but hearing her name confirmed it.

There’s only one girl I know who uses “Se-chan” as first-person pronouns. That awkward way she closes the distance with people, and the way she immediately regrets it from embarrassment—it was all too familiar.

…Though, to be fair, that odd closeness is something she only shows to a very small number of people. Like my friend, currently being held in a full nelson by another boy to stop him from bashing his head again.

Still, I never thought she’d actually unleash it on Tsubame.

“Really?”

“Yeah. She’s shy around strangers, but once she opens up, she’s got a pretty intense personality… and weirdly bold. But it’s not like she’s like that with everyone. Most of the time, her voice is barely audible.”

“Oh, now that you mention it, her voice did get quiet halfway through.”

“Right? She even does that with me sometimes. …But if she’s already shown her true self once, I think she’ll keep doing it.”

She probably didn’t even realize it herself—it just came out naturally.

As I said that, I gave it a little thought… I really hadn’t expected Tsubame to come into contact with her—Se-chan—here of all places.

“So… what do you think of her, Tsubame?”

“…I’m not sure. That’s something I wanted to talk to you about, Shigure-kun.”

After a pause, Tsubame answered. The response was better than I expected, and I almost let out a quiet “oh.”

“What do you mean, talk?”

“She called me Sakakibara Tsubame-hyan.”

“Hm. Full name with a ‘-hyan’ suffix? That’s actually kind of rare, huh?”

“Yeah. Especially in recent years… I haven’t heard that since I started modeling. But more than that, she looked me in the eye when she spoke. Her gaze wandered a few times, but she always came back.”

As Tsubame spoke, I nodded along, thinking back on her.

…It’s been a while since we last met, but she hasn’t really changed at her core.

“Other than you, Shigure-kun, she’s the first person my age who’s like that.”

“…Do you think you could get along with her?”

“…”

Tsubame looked down and closed her eyes for a moment, considering it.

“I don’t know.”

But in her eyes—turned toward me now—I saw a faint glimmer of light.

“…But I’m curious. I want to talk to her again.”

“…I see.”

Her words took me by surprise, and before I knew it, I was smiling.

In that case, there’s only one thing I need to do.

“Alright. I’ll go ask—”

“Ah.”

Before I could finish, a surprised voice rang out from the front of the classroom.

It was familiar, and I instinctively looked toward it… Shirao was staring out into the hallway. Following his gaze, I caught a brief glimpse of braided hair before it quickly vanished out of sight, as if fleeing from attention.

Shirao quickly made his way out of the classroom. As he passed, he glanced at me for a split second.

“…Hey, Tsubame. Would you be okay talking to her now? My guy friend might be with her too, but if it’s too much, we can do it another time.”

“It’s fine. If it’s your friend, Shigure-kun… it’ll be fine. I’ll try my best.”

“Thanks. Sorry, just hang on a minute.”

Tsubame nodded quietly. I closed my lunchbox and stood up—then stopped.

“Tsubame.”

“…? What is it?”

“You did great.”

That, I had to say.

After everything she’s been through—after all that’s happened at school—she still tried to help another student.

It must’ve taken a lot of courage. Honestly, I think it’s amazing. I was really proud of her.

At my words, Tsubame’s eyes widened—and just slightly, the corners of her lips lifted.

“Yeah. When we get home, spoil me a lot, okay?”

“…Of course. As much as you want.”

The stares piercing into me felt far sharper, even though the number of students hadn’t changed. When I looked up, all eyes were on us—wide open in shock.

…Yeah. That moment—those expressions and those words—no one was letting that slip by.

Ignoring the murmuring in the classroom, I stepped out.

Just outside, the two of them were there.

“So, so, like, the real Tsubame-hyan is seriously the perfect mix of beautiful and cute, and just looking at her made me go all fluffy inside, and her skin was super clear and her hair was sooo shiny, I lost count of how many times I almost screamed ‘SHE’S SO CUTE!’ And then, and then, she said ‘I’ll help’ in this voice that was like a clear blue summer sky, and I was so stunned, I got all awkward again, but she didn’t freak out or anything, she actually talked to me straight on! Even though I, like, totally butchered her name—which, like, in some eras might’ve gotten me executed for blasphemy or something—but she didn’t mind at all! And then she, she called me Se-chan and—wait, ah! S-sorry! I just remembered it and made a weird sound… but it made me really happy, you know? And then—”

“Okay, okay. Deep breaths, Se-chan. Want some chocolate?”

“Yes!”

…Maybe I shouldn’t have seen this.

That crossed my mind for a second. Yep—her passion for the things she loves is still as intense as ever.

Se-chan was now being fed a chocolate bar by Shirao. People were staring, but she didn’t seem to notice—or more likely, didn’t care. Shirao, on the other hand, looked visibly embarrassed.

That girl was Kito Seri—Shirao’s girlfriend.

As I approached, her round, animal-like eyes turned toward me.

“Ah! Itsh been a whiwe, Shiguwe-kun!”

“Let’s finish chewing before we talk, Se-chan.”

“Mm! …gulp. Long time no see, Shigure-kun!”

“…Yeah. Long time no see, Se-chan.”

With the chocolate finally swallowed, she greeted me again. In her haste, some chocolate had smeared near her lips, but Shirao quickly wiped it away with a pocket tissue. “Th-thanks,” she said with a blush, then cleared her throat.

“…I’ve got a lot to talk to you about—and a lot of questions too.”

“M-me too… Shirao-kun told me a little, but I didn’t expect you two to be that close… I’m kind of jealous.”

Her words caught me off guard.

—Jealous.

It was both surprising and not.

At the very least, it wasn’t something any of the students in our classroom would say. No—if anything…

I closed my eyes for a long blink, and immediately recalled the kinds of conversations I’d heard all too often.

—Hey, you’re in the same class as that national beauty, right? Don’t you talk to her?

—Don’t be stupid. Sure, she’s pretty, but girls like that are best admired from a distance. I bet she’s boring to talk to anyway.

—Oh, totally. Just going by the vibe, but she doesn’t seem like someone you could hold a real conversation with. Bet she doesn’t even know any trendy cafés.

—Really? But hey, you like sexy girls too, don’t you? I heard her figure’s insane.

—That’s exactly why I’m saying she’s not on that level. I mean it. I’ve never even thought of her as sexy. It’s strange, really.

Those were just a few examples—I’d heard that kind of exchange more times than I could count.

Whenever I passed by those conversations on purpose and made eye contact… they’d fall awkwardly silent, since I was standing next to Tsubame. I did it every time I caught them whispering.

Part of it was simple irritation. But more than that, I didn’t want those kinds of conversations happening at school in the first place.

You’re free to think what you want. But once you speak it aloud, it becomes something else. At the very least, I didn’t want Tsubame to hear any of it. That’s why I made a point of walking by the kinds of people who had these inconsiderate discussions—especially when she might be nearby.

That ended up being a long explanation, but… that’s exactly why what Se-chan said earlier was both surprising—and not.

I kind of expected her to say something like that. It was a hunch, or maybe more than that.

…No, I guess even hunches come from experience. If I had to put it into words—based on everything I’d seen before, I knew that Se-chan was someone who judged people with her own eyes.

And I also knew… that Se-chan had a soft spot for genuinely good people. That’s probably why she got along so well with Shirao—the quiet, sweet boy who looked like he might be a bit of a troublemaker on the outside.

“Hey. You didn’t just think something rude about me, did you?”

“…Must be your imagination.”

Avoiding the gaze of my unusually perceptive friend, I turned to the other one.

“Se-chan, would you meet with Tsubame again?”

I found myself asking it without realizing. I had planned to ask eventually, but the words came out ahead of the thought.

“…A-Are you sure? I mean, someone like me… meeting her again… It just feels too overwhelming, like I’d be overstepping.”

“Come on. You wanted to see her, didn’t you?”

“For the record, if you’re introducing Se-chan, you’d better introduce Shirao too.”

“Eh?”

“Don’t ‘eh’ me. It’s about time. I won’t force you to talk to her. I already got Tsubame’s okay.”

It’s time they at least met face to face. If I’m ever not around, Tsubame might rely on Shirao. And knowing Shirao’s personality, even if he struggles, he wouldn’t be able to ignore someone in need.

“Shirao. I’m counting on you.”

“Hmm……………………”

“Y-Yeah! Shirao-kun! I-I’d be too nervous on my own!”

“…If Se-chan goes off the rails again, I might be able to stop her.”

“A-Alright. I’ll do it.”

“That’s the spirit, Shirao.”

His voice was barely a whisper, but I heard him. Honestly, if Se-chan does get carried away, Shirao is probably better at reining her in than I am.

“Alright, let’s head back. I haven’t finished my lunch yet.”

“Shi–Shigure-kun, w-wait… um, if you wouldn’t mind, could this humble monk beg for a brief reprieve?”

“Class resumes in under an hour.”

“Th–Then how about a full day…?”

“You do know Golden Week starts tomorrow, right? You’re not getting out of this.”

“Oh no, he’s flipped the switch!”

“There’s no escaping Shigure-kun once he’s like this… This is the same determination that made even the ‘Demonic Student Council President’ cry!”

“You mean when I asked him for relationship advice and he told me to just push through? I actually tried it, bawling my eyes out the whole time, and it worked. Legendary case: Even a Demon Has Tears.”

“Digging up ancient history now, huh? And that wasn’t a ‘case.’ Anyway, let’s go.”

Back in middle school, there was a time when I acted like a one-man advice bureau. Sure, I stirred up plenty of incidents myself, but a lot of students came to me with their problems too.

Once, the student council president came asking for help because he had feelings for the vice president. To be honest, it was obvious to everyone they were into each other, so I told him to just go for it. He hesitated, but I kept pushing him until he finally made his move—through tears. And it worked. One of the happier endings among the many requests I handled.

…But that only worked because I could tell he just needed a push. That kind of advice doesn’t apply to everyone.

“Although… when it comes to boldness, you two don’t fall short either.”

“Well, our style’s kinda influenced by yours, y’know. Guess you rubbed off on us.”

“Y-Yeah, we realized that if we just charge forward with enough enthusiasm, things might actually work out…”

…Whether they actually work out is a discussion for another time.

“Alright, let’s go.”

“………………Okay.”

“I-I hope I can talk to her. All I might be able to do is gush about how cool Shirao-kun is.”

“Please don’t. I might die.”

With those two bickering beside me, we returned to the classroom. And as expected…

“…Yeah, figured this would happen.”

The others were now keeping a bit more distance from Tsubame, but their eyes were still glued to her. Probably because her expression had changed—ever so slightly—just before. No way they missed that.

Ignoring all of them for the moment, I walked into the room with Shirao and the others. Her eyes, only half-open a moment ago, locked onto us.

“Tsubame, I know you’ve met them before, but let me formally introduce them.”

“Okay.”

Then I turned to the two slowly shuffling forward like turtles.

“This is one of my friends from middle school—Haiguchi Shirao.”

“…Hey.”

“As you can probably tell, he’s really shy. Especially around girls.”

“Mm. Nice to meet you.”

He barely moved his lips, but it looked like he tried to say it. Honestly, that was a big effort from him.

“And this one… well, she’s also a friend from middle school. Is it okay to say?”

“Y-Yeah. I’m not the same as I was back then.”

“Alright then… This is my friend, and Shirao’s girlfriend—Kito Seri. Or as we call her, Se-chan.”

Stiff as a board, Se-chan stepped forward. Her eyes were darting around wildly before finally settling on Tsubame.

“It… it’s an honor to meet you, Your Majesty.”

“Your Majesty?”

“A-About earlier, I’m truly sorry for my countless transgressions… I—I shall commit seppuku. Please, allow Shirao to deliver the final blow. At least let my end come at the hands of the one I love.”

“Calm down, Se-chan. Here, have some chocolate.”

“Yaaay.”

Just as she was about to commit seppuku, Shirao—her executioner—fed her chocolate and she instantly returned to normal. Tsubame looked utterly stunned. Seeing that, Se-chan snapped to her senses.

“S-So sorry! S-Sakaki… Sakakibara Tsubame-hyan! I-I look forward to working with youh!”

“Uh… nice to meet you too, Se-chan?”

“Hyaaaaaaa! Se-cchan is so moved that I’m doing side-to-side jumps right on the border between heaven and hell!”

“Don’t try to do the kind of thing middle schoolers do at prefectural borders in the afterlife.”

“That’s a big subject to tackle, Shirao. I’m pretty sure the people who actually do that are the minority.”

Even amidst that banter, Se-chan’s eyes never left Tsubame’s, locked on her unwaveringly. Though they might dart around, they never once wavered.

“…F-from now on, please let’s get along! P-please be my friend, Tsubame-hyan!”

Tsubame returned the steady gaze and gave a gentle nod.

“Yes, nice to meet you. Let’s talk about all kinds of things, Se-chan.”

“…! Yes! Tsubame-hyan!”

Se-chan nodded happily in response, grinning broadly. Then, after a brief moment of thought, she began searching for something to say.

“Uh, um, talking, talking… Oh, I know! How about the story of when I found that pitch-black notebook in Shirao-kun’s room?”