High School Student Kyosuke Hojo

The afternoon continued with the usual diligent studying, and after school, he headed to the kendo club to guide the members in their practice.

Although there were still a full three months left until the Gyokuryuki tournament at the end of July and the National High School Kendo Selection Tournament in early August, the high school team members had already entered combat readiness. Dissatisfied with the previous training intensity, they collectively demanded that Hojo Kyosuke launch active attacks against them.

"If we can remain conscious under your overwhelming pressure, winning the championship will be a piece of cake!"

Despite shouting such bold words, when faced with Hojo Kyosuke's attacks, those club members were still completely unable to react effectively in time, even though the latter held back as much as possible.

"Hojo, are you planning to participate in the National Junior High Kendo Tournament at the end of July?"

During a break, Maki Kyosuke walked over to Hojo Kyosuke and asked.

"Is there a national tournament for junior high schools as well?" Hojo Kyosuke asked in bewilderment. He hadn't been resting; instead, he was swinging his sword with full force. Because he needed to leave a little early later to enjoy dinner with the beautiful older woman Miki Okudera, he had to finish today's quota of training as quickly as possible.

"Of course there is. It's being held at the Wetland Wind Gymnasium in Kushiro, Hokkaido. I remember your enrollment documents said your hometown is in Hokkaido, right? Why didn't you know about this?"

"Ah, so it's in Kushiro. That's quite far from my hometown of Otaru; I recall it takes over three hours by car. However, I only went back to Hokkaido a few times when I was little, and spent most of my time in Mizusawa City," Hojo Kyosuke explained.

"I see. So, are you going to participate? It would be a great chance to visit your hometown, and the school will cover the travel expenses."

"If I go, wouldn't it be a bit like bullying people?" Hearing that he could visit his hometown along the way without spending his own money, Hojo Kyosuke was instantly tempted.

"How could it be? If anything, they are bullying you, a first-year junior high freshman! Besides, our Higashijo didn't place last year. Now that we finally have a talented newcomer like you, we definitely have to sweep the championship for three consecutive years!" Maki Kyosuke said eagerly.

"Alright then, just add me to the roster when you register."

After training for a bit longer, seeing that it was already five o'clock, Hojo Kyosuke quickly took a shower, changed into casual clothes, and bid farewell to everyone.

To be honest, he would much rather go to a regular family restaurant for some home-cooked food, because while Italian food was fine as an occasional treat, having it every single day was truly a bit hard to bear.

Still, he had no choice. Torn between his mother's request and the allure of the glamorous older woman, Hojo Kyosuke obediently arrived on time.

Riding his motorcycle at high speed, Hojo Kyosuke soon arrived at the Garden of Words restaurant.

At this time, most corporate slaves had not yet finished work, but those who frequented a relatively high-end Italian restaurant like the Garden of Words were mostly not entry-level salarymen, so there were already several tables of customers inside.

"Welcome."

The person who pulled the door open for Hojo Kyosuke was Tanaka, the one who had taken him to change into his uniform yesterday. Upon seeing that it was Hojo Kyosuke, he smiled and quickly pointed toward the eastern side of the restaurant.

Hojo Kyosuke turned his head to see Miki Okudera taking an order for a table of guests. He then found a secluded table, sat down quietly, and began admiring her every move.

Clearly, the female customer at that table was a troublesome type, pointing at the menu and incessantly questioning Miki Okudera. Yet the smile on Miki's face never wavered; she patiently and gently pointed at the menu to explain things one by one. Even the troublesome woman was touched by her attitude and finally closed her mouth.

Or rather, that wasn't it at all. The troublesome woman's male companion had been captivated by Miki Okudera's charm, scolded his female companion, quickly placed his order, and flashed what he thought was a charming smile toward Miki Okudera.

That's why mature older women were the best—they practically appealed to all age groups.

Miki Okudera smiled gently as usual, took the menu, and turned around just in time to see Hojo Kyosuke waving at her.

A radiant smile, distinct from her earlier professional smile, unconsciously bloomed on her face. Handing the order pad to another waiter and giving a few instructions, Miki Okudera walked over to Hojo Kyosuke.

"Thank you. You're here." Miki Okudera sat down in the chair Hojo Kyosuke pulled out for her.

"Yeah. Was work tiring today?"

"Actually, I only just arrived not long ago either. That table was the first group of guests I served," Miki Okudera said with a smile.

"Huh? Does this restaurant treat its staff that well? You only have to work half a day."

"Actually, I'm just working a part-time job. My main job is being a female college student currently studying at Ochanomizu University," Miki Okudera said with a playful smile when she saw Hojo Kyosuke's puzzled expression.

"Impressive, impressive. Should I call you Senior Okudera from now on? But why would you come to a restaurant for a part-time job? A beautiful university student like you should be able to find a better gig, right?"

Hojo Kyosuke praised. Ochanomizu University was known as the "Women's Todai" and undoubtedly ranked among the top in social recognition within Japan.

"Chuckle. Calling me senior sounds pretty nice, actually. Because I'm in the Faculty of Human Life Sciences majoring in Food and Nutritional Sciences, I prefer doing work related to my field. Besides, even though we're both just waitresses, my pay isn't lower than those classmates of mine who work as part-time models. Do you know why?" Miki Okudera asked with a mischievous, playful smile.

Why an older woman existed in that sweet spot between a young girl and a mature lady was precisely because in her, you could see both the youthful vitality unique to a young girl and the alluring charm characteristic of a mature woman.

Catching Miki Okudera's cute yet stunning smile, Hojo Kyosuke instantly knew the answer: "Because you're the poster girl!"

"Haha, you guessed it. What about you? Living in Bunkyo Ward, you must be a student too, right?" Miki Okudera asked.

"Ah, I study at Higashijo," Hojo Kyosuke said, scratching his head. How was he supposed to calmly state the fact that he was still just a brat in his first year of junior high? Fortunately, Higashijo was a combined school with both junior and senior high divisions.

"Still a high schooler?" Miki Okudera asked in surprise. Judging by Hojo Kyosuke's words and actions, she had assumed he was a college student just like her.

"Yeah."

Hojo Kyosuke silently acknowledged it; when venturing out into the world, one could never have too many disguises. Wasn't exaggerating one's age just another form of a disguise? Go ahead and try to find someone named Hojo Kyosuke in the Higashijo high school department and see if you can find him.

"Seeing your motorcycle, I thought you were one of those 'Tokyo handsome guys' who had already entered the workforce," Miki Okudera said, pointing playfully at the motorcycle key Hojo Kyosuke had placed on the table.

If it were an ordinary motorcycle key, Hojo Kyosuke wouldn't have left it on the table. But his Rocket 3 was a keyless ignition system, and the fob looked just like a luxury car key, appearing both fashionable and high-end.

Mentioning this made Hojo Kyosuke start worrying again. When he checked online after returning home, the official retail price was four million yen. How was he supposed to return a favor like that? Did he have to make his father force the family's cow to commit suicide? After all, the three years of tuition fees he was exempted from barely amounted to four million, and that was already the pricing level of a prestigious private school like Higashijo.

Let's not talk about it; thinking about it brought sorrow. Time to eat.

"Haha, my hometown is in Hokkaido, after all. This was a promotion gift from a friend. I'm so hungry, let's start eating," Hojo Kyosuke said quickly. Calling it a promotion gift was entirely accurate, right?

"Oh, it's already been prepared according to what you ordered yesterday. I'll let them know to serve your food."

Although she found it strange that a high school student would receive such an expensive promotion gift, Miki Okudera didn't press him further.

Because there weren't many customers today, Hojo Kyosuke enjoyed Miki Okudera's full company, and he put on quite a performance of what it meant to be a bottomless pit of appetite.

"I'm so full. Seeing you eat with such relish made me unable to resist eating a bit myself," Miki Okudera said, gently rubbing her slightly rounded abdomen.

"How can you blame me? The food tasted delicious simply because of your beauty; otherwise, I wouldn't have eaten so much," Hojo Kyosuke said, taking a sip of juice.

"I have to go back to work. I'll definitely need to exercise a bit extra tonight, or my weight is going to get out of control."

Hearing Hojo Kyosuke's words, Miki Okudera blushed and offered a shy smile. Then she stood up to get back to work, as the number of people in the restaurant was starting to increase at this hour.

"Can you take me to the back kitchen? I want to learn how to make Italian food." Hojo Kyosuke stood up as well.

"Ah, you'd probably have to ask the manager about that," Miki Okudera said.

"True. Well, you go ahead and get busy; I'll give you a ride home when your shift ends." With that, Hojo Kyosuke turned and walked away, not giving Miki Okudera a chance to refuse.

"You're going the wrong way, the manager's office is over there." Looking at Hojo Kyosuke's retreating back, Miki Okudera let out a soft chuckle.

Giving me a ride home?

Recalling the firm muscles she felt when hugging Hojo Kyosuke on the motorcycle the night before, along with his jacket that was filled with a masculine scent, Miki Okudera's face grew even redder.

Oh right, she had forgotten to return his jacket to him.

Various wholesome and unwholesome images flashed through her mind, causing Miki Okudera to make a few small mistakes while working.

On the other side, Hojo Kyosuke successfully found the manager's office. When he stated that he wanted to learn cooking in the back kitchen, the manager readily agreed, only telling him that the chefs were all very busy right now and had no spare time to teach him. If he truly wanted to learn, he could come back when there were fewer customers.

Hearing this, Hojo Kyosuke decided not to go into the kitchen and cause chaos. He sat in the manager's office and played on his phone, checking the silly subordinates' messages in the chat room and discussing with Shoko where to go play next weekend...