Chapter 113: Milk Tea Can Bring Joy
"Milk tea? Is it the British style milk tea from England?"
Looking at the shop's sign and the product photos of various milk teas, Shinomiya Kaguya asked curiously.
Fujiwara Chika, who was standing nearby in anticipation, replied, "No, Kaguya-san, this is actually Chinese bubble tea. It has just become popular in Japan these past few years."
Kaede nodded: "That's right, it is indeed that kind of bubble tea. Milk tea differs slightly across various regions, and nowadays there are many flavor variations. However, if you're talking about the one that has consistently maintained the most authentic flavor, it would probably be Mongolian milk tea. That's quite different from this."
"I've had Mongolian milk tea, I've had it!"
Hearing Kaede mention it, Fujiwara Chika immediately raised her hand and said, "My family traveled to Mongolia the year before last, and I had it once. It was savory, and very delicious! But I like anything as long as it tastes good, hehe!"
Shinomiya Kaguya wasn't very knowledgeable about these things, but upon hearing this, she gained another piece of useless trivia.
Soon, it was their turn to order. Kaede directly ordered an iced pudding milk tea, while Eriri ordered bubble tea with cheese foam.
Seeing what Eriri ordered, Kaede smiled and said, "Lunch was already a calorie bomb, and now you're drinking milk tea, yet you still added extra cheese foam. Aren't you afraid of gaining weight?"
"Of course not!"
Eriri glared at Kaede in dissatisfaction and said, "We walked quite a bit today, so I've had exercise. I won't get fat!"
Does that amount of exercise even count? Typical Eriri.
After Fujiwara Chika finished ordering, Shinomiya Kaguya fell into decision paralysis, mainly because she had never tried this before and didn't know what to order.
In the end, following Fujiwara Chika's suggestion, she ordered a caramel pudding milk tea.
Soon, all four milk teas were ready. Holding their respective drinks, the four of them went to a rest area inside the mall, sat side-by-side, and started drinking.
Taking a big gulp, Eriri said contentedly, "Ha, today was perfect! We visited all the places we wanted to see, and I bought everything I wanted! Kaede-kun, where should we go tomorrow?"
"Still thinking about playing around?"
Gently tapping Eriri's forehead, Kaede smiled and said, "Did you forget Aunt Sayuri's request? You can't neglect your studies. Come over tomorrow to do your homework first, then I'll check your recent study progress. Only after you finish those things can we consider anything else!"
"Ugh... So strict!" Eriri mumbled quietly. Sensing Kaede's gaze, she immediately lowered her head and silently drank her milk tea.
Shinomiya Kaguya, surprised by the taste of the milk tea, took a pleasant sip, then looked at Eriri and said, "I actually think Asakura-kun isn't wrong. Regardless of anything else, a student's primary job is studying. Toyogasaki Academy, if I recall correctly, has a pretty high deviation score. There must be some academic pressure, right?"
"It's okay." Eriri smiled and nodded. "When I first entered high school, I was indeed a bit worried, but fortunately, Kaede-kun tutors me regularly and monitors my studies, so it hasn't been that stressful."
"Oh? It seems Asakura-kun is quite good at studying?"
Shinomiya Kaguya glanced at Kaede in surprise. She had originally assumed Kaede was only dating Eriri because they were in the same club, combined with his handsome looks and excellent character. Now it seemed his grades were also very good?
Eriri immediately nodded and said proudly, "Kaede-kun's grades are among the top in the grade. He ranked fifth during midterms."
"Why are you talking like you're the one who got fifth place?" Kaede looked at Eriri speechlessly, shaking his head as he said, "It was just one test score. I wouldn't brag about something like that. After all, the three years of high school have just begun; maintaining that momentum and improving further is what's most important."
Shinomiya Kaguya looked at Kaede with appreciation. Although grades were not the only criterion for assessing personal ability in her eyes, combining her initial evaluations of Kaede's various aspects, plus the fact that his relationship with the President was also very good, Kaede's score in her book was already extremely close to that of one of her juniors, Ishigami Yuu.
It wasn't that Ishigami Yuu was truly far superior to Kaede; it was just that Shinomiya Kaguya had known Ishigami longer, and part of the score was familiarity. After all, Ishigami's personality and behavior often caused annoyance.
While watching Eriri and Kaede bicker, and Fujiwara Chika occasionally interjecting to derail the topic, Shinomiya Kaguya took a sip of milk tea, her expression gradually relaxing into a slight smile.
Fujiwara Chika was speaking when she noticed Shinomiya Kaguya next to her was silent. She turned her head and saw Shinomiya Kaguya squinting slightly, taking small sips of her milk tea.
"Hehe, Kaguya-san, doesn't milk tea make people happy? It's very relaxing, isn't it~~~"
Hearing Fujiwara Chika's words, Shinomiya Kaguya did not deny it, nodding her head.
"It truly is very relaxing."
Kaede was also sensible enough not to bring up the topic of calories again. While Eriri alone might have been fine, there were three girls here now, and bringing up that topic would only cause him trouble.
At three in the afternoon, after saying goodbye and parting ways at the mall entrance, Fujiwara Chika looked at the old flip phone in Kaguya's hand and said in surprise, "I didn't expect Kaguya-san to exchange email addresses with those two!"
"Is that really so surprising?" Shinomiya Kaguya glanced at Fujiwara Chika, smiled as she put her phone away, and said, "I'm not the person I was a year ago, and besides, aren't these two juniors quite interesting? In my opinion, they are more worth befriending than some people at school."
"Kaguya-san, that's high praise."
After whispering this, Fujiwara Chika also put away her phone, which now contained exchanged emails and LINE contacts. She linked arms with Shinomiya Kaguya. "Alright, let's go home too. Kaguya-san still needs to be home on time. I've already called the driver! Let's arrange to hang out with Asakura-kun and Eriri-chan again next time!"
It seemed everyone had a very enjoyable outing today.
On the way back, Eriri looked at the newly added contacts on her phone and said happily, "Hehe, although Fujiwara-senpai inexplicably gives me 'pink-haired psycho' vibes, Shinomiya-senpai really is an excellent person! I can't believe I actually had the chance to get her contact information!"
"Honestly, I was surprised too."
Kaede nodded, especially since exchanging email addresses was something Shinomiya Kaguya had proactively suggested.
However, neither Kaede nor Eriri possessed anything Shinomiya Kaguya would need to deliberately approach them to obtain. She probably just genuinely wanted to add their contact information.
He doubted they would ever use it, though.