"It's true."
Seeing her sisters all look over, Miku wasn't surprised. The five of them looked exactly the same, and ever since they were little, people had constantly mistaken them for one another.
Miku nodded lightly.
"I said I was Itsuki, but he didn't believe me."
Ichika blinked her bright eyes.
"That feels kind of unbelievable."
Nino didn't care at all.
"What's so strange about that? Our hairstyles are all different. As long as you pay attention, it's easy to tell us apart."
Miku puffed out her cheeks slightly, clearly unhappy.
"Nino doesn't understand anything."
How could she doubt her? She wasn't stupid—how could she possibly confuse real and fake?
Miku was certain that Ye Feng didn't even know about the existence of the five sisters.
Nino, the girl with waist-length hair and black butterfly hairpins on both sides that looked ready to flutter, snorted.
"Boys are all liars. Miku, you were just fooled, that's all…"
"He wasn't."
Miku shot back.
She was normally quiet, reserved, and introverted—but whenever she was with Nino, the two of them always ended up bickering.
"Well, well~"
As the eldest, Ichika spoke up, raising a finger and grinning.
"This kind of thing is actually really simple. You just need to test him, you know~"
"Uh…"
Itsuki swallowed her food and hesitated.
"Is that… really necessary?"
She just wanted to study properly. Everything else was irrelevant to her.
"It's very necessary," Ichika said seriously.
"If he can tell Itsuki apart, that means he's been paying attention to her all along. Who knows—maybe he'll confess to Itsuki soon~"
"With that in mind, for Itsuki's protection, it's decided."
Itsuki: "..."
What the heck—Ichika was clearly just curious herself!
Yotsuba asked curiously,
"Miku, who are you talking about? Do we know him?"
Miku pressed her lips together slightly, unconsciously counting grains of rice as she spoke softly:
"Itsuki's desk neighbor. Ye Feng."
"Eh—?!"
Yotsuba exclaimed, then hurriedly added when everyone looked at her,
"I've heard of him! Ye Feng-kun seems to be pretty famous at Sobu High…"
"Mm… come to think of it, he is famous—but his reputation isn't very good."
Itsuki swallowed another bite and said so.
Ichika glanced at Yotsuba, then smiled brightly at Itsuki.
"So, Itsuki—what do you think?"
Itsuki complained,
"Obviously, I look at him with my eyes!"
She wasn't familiar with Ye Feng at all. In fact, today was the first time she'd ever spoken to him.
He rarely attended class, plus he had the reputation of being a delinquent…
Itsuki explained herself.
Secretly observing her? Confessing?
That was completely impossible!
"Ye Feng? Itsuki's desk neighbor…? Is there even such a person?"
Nino thought for a moment and had no impression at all. She glanced at Miku.
"In that case, I agree with Ichika's decision."
Miku trusted her own judgment and said calmly,
"Nino can pretend to be Itsuki and try…"
"I'll do it!"
"Wait—why does someone always have to pretend to be me?!"
Itsuki protested.
Ichika said sweetly,
"Because Itsuki is the cutest, of course!"
"That's not true!"
Itsuki retorted.
If we're talking about cute, isn't it obviously you or Nino?
In just a few days, Ichika had already made plenty of friends—she'd even received a love letter.
Miku added quietly,
"Because pretending to be Itsuki just means keeping a straight face…"
Itsuki: "..."
Even though it was true, that was way too mean!
And honestly… it was true.
Itsuki was serious and earnest by nature. When the others impersonated her, all they really had to do was stiffen their expressions.
After lunch, Ye Feng headed back to the classroom alone. Full and satisfied, he planned to take another nap.
After all—
Sleeping made you stronger.
As he passed the staff office, the door wasn't closed. Ye Feng subconsciously glanced inside, then quickened his pace, trying to get away.
"Ye Feng."
A beautiful teacher with long black hair reaching her waist, wearing a professional suit under a white coat, suddenly called his name.
Ye Feng pretended not to hear and sped up.
The next instant—
A rush of wind.
Ye Feng turned and caught Shizuka Hiratsuka's fist.
The people around them stared in shock. Hiratsuka's cheeks flushed as she snapped angrily,
"Let go already!"
"This is clearly your fault, Sensei."
Ye Feng sighed and released her hand.
"Enough nonsense—come inside with me!"
Hiratsuka glared at him and walked into the office.
Ye Feng casually shut the door behind him.
Turning around, he saw Shizuka sitting in her chair—one leg crossed over the other, leaning back, arms folded across her chest in a full boss-level pose.
Ye Feng glanced twice, then looked away.
Hiratsuka Shizuka had an amazing figure, long legs, and a beautiful face. She was a rare beauty and extremely popular at Sobu High.
If she dressed up a little, fixed a few bad habits, and put on a nice dress, her head-turning rate on the street would be off the charts.
It was just a mystery why she still couldn't get married.
Can't mess with her.
Definitely can't mess with her.
Shizuka didn't mind his glance at all. She gently swung her leg and looked over with a half-smile.
"You've been surprisingly well-behaved lately. You're actually attending class?"
That's thanks to little Mafuyu.
Otherwise I'd definitely be napping somewhere.
Or just showing up late.
Ye Feng replied with a righteous expression,
"Shizuka-sensei, please don't slander me. I've always been well-behaved."
In truth, Ye Feng was very famous at Sobu High.
Unfortunately, his fame was firmly linked to the word "delinquent."
Thankfully, he ranked second in the entire grade and didn't bully people on campus—otherwise, he'd have been expelled long ago.
Even so, hardly anyone dared to approach him.
This gave Hiratsuka Shizuka quite a headache.
Luckily, the newly arrived teacher Kirisu Mafuyu was his neighbor—otherwise, this kid might have completely gone off the rails already.
Shizuka tugged at the corner of her mouth.
"Lying through your teeth—doesn't your conscience hurt?"
Ye Feng touched his chest, fell silent for a moment, then replied calmly:
"Sorry. Not at all."
"Heh…"
Shizuka clenched her fist and sneered.
"Kid, come here. I'll help you check."
"Physical contact between men and women is inappropriate, so I refuse."
Like hell that's 'checking'.
You clearly just want revenge!
Suppressing his inner complaints, Ye Feng said seriously,
"If there's nothing else, Shizuka-sensei, I'll be heading back. Class is about to start."
"No rush."
Shizuka waved her hand casually.
"The first class this afternoon is my Japanese lesson. I'll allow you to be late."
Ye Feng: "..."
Listen to yourself.
Is that really something an excellent teacher should be saying?