Master.

“Good work. So, how did the fortune-telling go?”

“Did anything interesting come up?”

The moment we stepped out from behind the blackout curtain, everyone gathered around as if they’d been lying in wait.

I get that they’re curious about the results, but things like this really shouldn’t be shared with others… wait.

Isn’t that more of an omikuji thing?

Although omikuji is kind of a form of fortune-telling too…

Well, I’ll leave it to Sara-san.

“Yes, let’s keep that a secret.”

Apparently thinking the same thing, Sara-san winks with one eye and presses a finger to her lips in a playful “shh” gesture.

That mischievous little move is way too cute!!

“I’ve heard you’re not supposed to tell people things like that anyway.”

“Wait, isn’t that specifically for omikuji?”

That debate happened inside my head too, but honestly… I wonder which one it actually is?

Maybe I could look it up online later.

“Kazunari, next time with big sister—”

“Sorry, Hanako-san, we really need to head back to our classroom soon or we’ll run out of time…”

“Muu.”

Hanako-san puffs out her cheeks adorably in protest, making her displeasure crystal clear.

I genuinely feel bad, but we’ve made a reservation, so staying longer would inconvenience the others.

“…Haa… haa… her moe power is off the charts…”

“…She’s shamelessly cute from every angle… perfection!”

By the way, Sara-san does the exact same “puffy cheeks” thing, and whenever she does it to me, the sheer cuteness hits on a completely different level.

Especially Sara-san’s version… it’s, uh… criminally adorable.

To the point where just watching makes me want to writhe in agony.

…Right. If I keep spacing out, Hanako-san’s going to get even more upset.

“If we get another chance like this, let’s do it together next time, okay?”

I swallow the overwhelming urge to poke those puffed cheeks, channel maximum “please forgive me” energy, and try to persuade her while adding an extra layer of apologetic aura for good measure.

“…Muu… fine… promise.”

She nods reluctantly, but she does nod.

Then she extends her right pinky toward me without a word.

…A pinky promise?

Doing this in front of everyone is embarrassing, but… no helping it.

I hook my own pinky around hers in silent agreement.

Thank goodness we didn’t have to sing that song.

“…H-Hey, come on, just tell us already!”

“…Kishiyama-san! Kishiyama-sama!!”

“…Absolutely not!! I mean—I already forgot what she asked about!! It’s completely gone from my memory, so impossible!!”

In one corner, the idiots are swarming Kishiyama-san.

If she showed even the slightest sign of cracking, I was ready to jump in immediately… but it looks like she’s fine.

After pulling off a reading that intense, she clearly has solid professional awareness. Very reassuring.

“Alright then, shall we move on?”

“We’ve been waiting! Tea time!!”

“I’ve never been to a maid café before, so I’m actually kind of excited.”

“Me too! …Wait, by the way, Nishikawa-san, does your family have actual maids at home?”

“We have household help, yes. In Japan it’s usually housekeepers, not maids.”

For the record, I’ve always thought that if a real maid saw the Japanese “maid” stereotype, she’d probably get offended.

Butlers… maybe the closest real equivalent would be a private secretary?

Just my impression, though.

“I see. But wouldn’t most guys be happy if there were maids around?”

“Honestly… the whole maid café vibe is kind of tough for me.”

Yuuji would say exactly that. He’s got that old-school, serious streak—always hated anything too flashy or frivolous.

“Yeah, I don’t hate it, but… I’m not great with it either. For various reasons.”

In Hayato’s case… I can already picture him getting swarmed by maids and the whole thing turning into some late-night hostess club atmosphere…

“Ahaha, Yokokawa-kun would probably cause chaos if he went. And Takanashi-kun…?”

“I’m…”

“First of all, Kazunari-kun has no need for maids or servants of any kind.”

“…Exactly.”

Yes, I knew Sara-san would respond like that.

Even with her actual mother Mayumi-san, Sara-san absolutely refuses to let anyone else handle my personal care or housework… so outsiders are completely out of the question.

“Ah—n-no, that’s not what I meant—”

“Tachikawa-san, that kind of logic doesn’t work on Sara.”

“Indeed.”

“Kazunari, come on.”

Hanako-san tugs lightly on my sleeve with her tiny fingers, urging me forward.

Right—we’re running out of time, and I almost got sidetracked again…

“Okay, let’s go.”

“““Ooooh!”””

We’re still drawing a lot of attention, so this kind of group energy is a little embarrassing.

But being able to hang out with everyone like this… it’s genuinely fun for me too.

***

Slide—

“Welcome home, Master.”

…!?

The moment we pass through the sliding door of the classroom we’ve been using every day, several classmates—no, several maids—are waiting to greet us.

I know exactly who they are just by looking, of course. But once they’re dressed up like this, the impression and atmosphere change completely… it’s honestly kind of shocking how different they seem.

“Oho, Takanashi-kun, are you maybe entranced by us?”

“N-No, that’s not—”

I reacted way too strongly without thinking, but that kind of response basically confirms it.

Still—this is different! I was just genuinely startled for a second…

“Heyyy, Takanashi-kun, stop freezing at the entrance and come in already~”

“Ah, sorry…”

Thankfully, Natsumi-senpai’s voice cuts through the tension.

Right—this is just me being a tiny bit thrown off by my classmates looking so different from usual.

I pull myself together, act like nothing happened, and step inside. Everyone follows in after me, murmuring with interest as they take in the maids standing in front and the decorations around the room.

“Welcome home, Mistress!!”

“Eh—ah, yes… I’m back…”

Sara-san gives a slightly bewildered reaction to the classic maid café greeting.

I know she’s not used to this kind of thing, so the sight is honestly kind of endearing.

“Wow, the maid outfits are so cute!”

“Yeah, seeing them in person… they really are adorable. I kind of want to try one on myself…”

Toudou-san in a maid outfit… that would probably cause devastating levels of destruction.

I can already picture her shyly serving customers while looking embarrassed… yep, adorable.

And Hayato seems to be imagining the same thing—his face is a little flushed as he stares at her.

But that’s only natural. It’s a guy thing…

“Welcome home, Mistress.”

“Good work.”

Hanako-san flicks her twin-tails dramatically and strides toward her seat with an oddly refined air.

…Is she doing an ojou-sama roleplay right now?

“Welcome home, Mistress.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

And Nishikawa-san, the last to enter, casually returns the greeting to the maids as if it’s the most natural thing in the world. She even does it with complete confidence—no hint of awkwardness.

…Is she used to being called “ojou-sama”?

Meanwhile, Yuuji just gave a silent nod and headed straight for his seat.

Hayato, on the other hand, is already being swarmed by multiple maids and looks genuinely troubled.

It’s only a small thing, but the way everyone’s personalities shine through so clearly is honestly kind of funny.

***

At the large table prepared in the back, there’s a plate reading “Reserved for Student Council Party,” and some preparations have already been made.

Even though there are other customers, they went out of their way to accommodate us. I’ll have to thank them properly later.

“…Hey, who’s that person next to Satsukawa-senpai?”

“…Dude, she’s insanely beautiful.”

“…She was in that RAIN group with the upperclassmen, right? Pretty sure that’s Nishikawa-san.”

“…Yeah, I heard that too. Last year they used to call the three of them—Satsukawa-senpai, Yuzuki-senpai, and her—the Three Princesses.”

“…Think Takanashi could introduce us?”

“Master, thank you for your hard work.”

The one addressing me is Kawamura, who somehow manages to look shockingly butler-like.

The formal attire suits him unnervingly well—the atmosphere is textbook “butler.”

I couldn’t help but stare.

“Takanashi, what’s up?”

“Ah—sorry, just surprised. It really suits you.”

Not flattery—this is genuine. His usual slightly stiff demeanor, quick mind, and even the glasses… everything fits perfectly.

“R-Really? I mean, the girls have been saying the same thing nonstop…”

“Yeah, I bet. You don’t even look like you’re cosplaying—you look like the real deal.”

“Not sure if that’s a compliment or not.”

Anyone who actually enjoys cosplay would probably love it, but Kawamura was never the enthusiastic type to begin with.

Still… he doesn’t seem entirely displeased.

“Ah, here’s the menu. Normally the guys handle female customers… but please give this one to Satsukawa-senpai yourself.”

“Got it.”

I don’t think she’d react that strongly even if someone else handed it to her—as long as there’s no ulterior motive, she’d respond normally.

But only if the server acts normal, of course.

By the way, Natsumi-senpai and Toudou-san are being handled by other butlers… wait, speaking of which, where’s Yamakawa? He’s usually the first to jump into situations like this.

“Where’s Yamakawa?”

“He’s on break—went off to play somewhere else. Didn’t want to cause a commotion, so we didn’t tell him.”

“That’s actually considerate. Good job.”

“…Your praise is most gracious?”

Hanako-san, still in full ojou-sama mode (?), bestows a compliment, and Kawamura plays along perfectly.

Rare sight.

“Master, here you are.”

“Ah, thanks.”

The maids who replaced Kawamura begin handing menus to the guys.

That part’s fine, but being called “Master” by my own classmates is… really weird.

At the very least, it doesn’t feel good—so I’m pretty sure I don’t have the “Master” attribute… or rather, no maid fetish at all.

“Kazunari has no attribute?”

“Huh?”

“Master?”

…!?

The second Hanako-san notices I’m thinking about something, she immediately acts.

I reacted on reflex—but this is absolutely not because of the word “Master”!

It’s just that Hanako-san tilting her head cutely and saying “Master” in that adorable voice was too much, okay?! Don’t misunderstand!!

“Oho, got a reaction?”

“That was borderline. If anything, it felt more like a reaction to Hanako-san herself?”

“Yeah, same impression…”

“Um, can everyone please stop analyzing my reactions?”

I have no idea what’s so entertaining about it, but I wish they’d stop scrutinizing every twitch I make.

Lately even Nishikawa-san and Natsumi-senpai have started reading my expressions… if Tachikawa-san joins in too, it’s over…

“Then try having her say ‘wife’ and see.”

“Me?”

“Yeah. That’ll tell us whether he’s reacting to the word or to the person.”

“N-No… um…”

If Sara-san called me that, there’s no way I wouldn’t react—

“M-Master…?”

“…………”

Sara-san murmurs it shyly, cheeks flushed.

Since I’m right next to her, I heard it crystal clear, yes.

“It’s just… more than the word itself… the embarrassed look on Sara-san’s face right now is… so unbearably cute that I kind of want to hug her immediately, or rather—”

“Kazunari, your real thoughts are leaking everywhere.”

“Fweh!?”

“K-Kazunari-kun…”

I thought only gag manga characters did stuff like this—turns out I’m the one who does it?!

And now Sara-san is staring straight at me, face bright red… and for some reason spreading both arms wide?

“S-Sara-san?”

“Well… if that’s what you want, I’m always ready… which would you prefer? Being hugged by you… or me hugging you…?”

She fidgets, yet her eyes are clearly—very clearly—pleading with expectation.

Ugh… that’s unfair…

“Hey Sara, you’re not seriously saying that, right?”

“Eri-rin, you know she’s serious, don’t you?”

“I have no reason to joke about it.”

“““……………”””

Her expression practically screams, “Why would you ask something so strange, Eri?”

Pure bewilderment written all over her face.

And I already know she’s completely serious.

That’s exactly why I have to be extremely careful not to say anything careless.

“…Hey, hey, what do you think Satsukawa-senpai is about to do?”

“…Probably try to hug Takanashi-kun…”

“…Right?! Right?! Kyaaa!”

“…Kuhhh… always flaunting it like that…”

“…I’m not jealous. I’m not jealous at all…”

“…Should we just interrupt…?”

“…You’d get killed by Satsukawa-senpai.”

“Kazunari-kun, would it be better if I called you Master?”

“N-No, normal is fine.”

Sara-san takes things like this way too seriously—if I said I wanted it, she’d probably do it without hesitation.

But I only got a slight jolt from the novelty; I don’t have the Master attribute, and I want her to stay the same as always.

“Fufu… understood.”

“Satsukawa-senpai, if Takanashi-kun had actually asked… would you really have called him Master?”

“Of course. Anything I’m capable of doing, I want to fulfill every single one of Kazunari-kun’s wishes.”

I knew it… she really was serious…

Good thing I didn’t jokingly ask her to do it.

“But honestly… I’m relieved.”

“Right?! Yeah, that kind of name is—”

“I want to call Kazunari-kun ‘you’ instead.”

“““……………”””

Wait, this isn’t new information.

We’ve had conversations like this before—multiple times.

So why is everyone looking at us with such dead fish eyes?

…Strange, isn’t it…?