Chapter 425: Shooting Prodigy, Mafuyu (Patreon)

Chapter 425: Shooting Prodigy, Mafuyu

Seeing that familiar figure, Hachiman couldn't help but smirk.

They had previously invited Mafuyu, but for some reason, she had declined. Encountering her here was unexpected.

Watching Mafuyu expertly aim, shoot, and reload, it was clear she was no stranger to these shooting games.

Her decision to wear a mask was likely to avoid being recognized by anyone she knew. After all, her enthusiastic gaming persona was quite different from her usual demeanor.

Considering Mafuyu's typical demeanor at school, she was like an iceberg beauty.

As the "bang bang bang" of gunshots continued, prizes at the stall fell one after another.

Finally, amidst the lament of the middle-aged stall owner, Mafuyu gathered the prizes she had won into a bag and prepared to leave.

At that moment, a familiar voice sounded in her ear.

"Good evening, Mafuyu-sensei."

Hearing this voice, Mafuyu's body trembled, then she hastily shook her head, seemingly wanting to deny her identity.

But could she fool Hachiman?

Watching Mafuyu's cherry-colored hair swaying with her head movements, a mischievous idea popped into Hachiman's mind, and a smirk appeared on his lips.

"Isn't it? Sorry, then it seems I've made a mistake because your back looked exactly like one of my teachers."

Hearing Hachiman's words, Mafuyu nodded repeatedly, thinking she had successfully deceived him.

Just as she was about to leave, Hachiman spoke up again.

"But then again, how could Mafuyu-sensei possibly play this shooting game? You know, my teacher is a cold beauty."

Huh? A cold beauty?

This statement made Mafuyu pause in her tracks. Although she usually tried to maintain a cold demeanor at school, hearing it spoken out loud still felt strange.

For some reason, she couldn't help but ask a question involuntarily, "In your mind, what kind of person is your teacher?"

After asking, she inwardly scolded herself for being too nosy. What if Hachiman figured it out?

But of course, Hachiman wouldn't choose to expose her. He just smiled and answered Mafuyu's question, "In my mind, I think Mafuyu-sensei is great."

"Although she may seem cold on the surface, she's actually a very responsible and good teacher. Whenever classmates ask her questions, she always answers them seriously and responsibly, making sure they understand."

"So, don't be fooled by Mafuyu-sensei's cold exterior; she's quite popular among the students."

Upon hearing this praise, Mafuyu felt a flutter of joy in her heart. As a teacher, receiving compliments from students was truly an honor.

But before she could fully savor the moment, Hachiman spoke up again.

"Actually, despite Mafuyu-sensei's serious demeanor, she has a clumsy side in private."

"Although she may seem perfect on the surface, she's not good at many things, like tidying up or cooking."

"And even though she's not good at them, she often tries to act tough, which is quite clumsy and adorable."

Adorable?!!!

Upon hearing these words, Mafuyu's body trembled slightly.

It wasn't because she was angry or happy, but because she felt extreme embarrassment.

At the age of twenty-four, being told by Hachiman that she was cute was incredibly embarrassing.

And when Hachiman mentioned her shortcomings in tidying up and cooking, Mafuyu felt a slight unease.

What a bother. Everyone has things they're not good at, right? Even Hachiman probably has his own shortcomings.

But as she racked her brain, she couldn't think of a single thing Hachiman wasn't good at.

Mafuyu tried hard to recall, but to her surprise, she couldn't think of a single thing Hachiman wasn't good at.

They had known each other for quite some time, and she had learned a lot about Hachiman. But in her impression, whether it was academics, housework, or cooking... Hachiman seemed to excel at everything.

This made Mafuyu feel somewhat disheartened.

What? He's so perfect that not even a single flaw can be found?

Just then, Hachiman spoke up again.

"Actually, compared to the serious and perfect Mafuyu-sensei at school, I prefer her in private. Although she's a bit clumsy, she feels more real to me."

L-Like...?

What on earth is Hachiman talking about? We're in public, you know.

Upon hearing Hachiman mention those words again, Mafuyu's heart began to race.

In the past, whenever Hachiman mentioned those words, she would unhesitatingly retort with something like "Just a brat, talking nonsense. Remember, I'm your teacher."

But then she recalled the various experiences they had shared: the swimsuit mishap at the beach, the princess carry during the king's game, the blurry memory of that kiss after drinking too much, not to mention the handholding, leaning against walls, and hugs at the summer festival cosplay.

And let's not forget how he often fed her and the lively, cute Komachi.

All of this made Mafuyu hesitate.

And then, Hachiman spoke up again.

"If I were to summarize in one sentence, it would be—"

"Mafuyu-sensei is the best in the world!"

Upon hearing this, Mafuyu couldn't take it anymore. Her heart was overwhelmed with embarrassment.

"Hachiman-kun, what are you saying? We're in public!"

Unable to endure it any longer, Mafuyu lifted the mask covering her face, turned around, and blushed as she shouted at Hachiman.

Seeing her remove her mask, Hachiman's face broke into a smug smile.

"Good evening, Mafuyu-sensei."

Now Mafuyu couldn't help but understand. Hachiman had clearly recognized her earlier; he was just teasing her.

Realizing this, Mafuyu couldn't help but pout unhappily.

"Hachiman-kun, you're so mean! Teasing your own teacher like this!"

Hearing this, Hachiman raised an eyebrow.

"Why would I do that? I was just casually greeting you, Mafuyu-sensei."

Seeing Hachiman deny it so casually, Mafuyu felt helpless.

She couldn't repeat what Hachiman had said earlier; after all, "cute," "like," and "the best in the world" were just too embarrassing.

At that moment, Mafuyu was dressed in a blue-purple yukata adorned with flower petals. The front of her yukata had been slightly pushed open by the impact of the air gun, revealing two patches of fair skin and a small deep cleavage.

Noticing Hachiman's gaze, Mafuyu hastily adjusted her yukata to cover the exposed area, her face flushing even deeper.

Hachiman smiled, "Mafuyu-sensei, would you like to join us? Everyone is over there."

Upon hearing this, Mafuyu nodded.

If she hadn't run into them, she would have slipped away on her own. But since she had, it was only polite to at least say hello.

And so, Mafuyu followed Hachiman to the location of the cold drinks shop, where the girls had almost finished eating their fried noodles.

Seeing Hachiman return, Yui asked curiously, "Hikki, where did you go just now?"

"Oh, I ran into someone I knew, so I went over to say hello," Hachiman shrugged.

Someone he knew?

Upon hearing this, the girls blinked in curiosity, wondering who the person Hachiman knew was.

Just then, Mafuyu popped out from behind Hachiman and greeted the girls, "Good evening, everyone."

"Eh? Kirisu-sensei?"

Seeing Mafuyu's familiar face, the girls were surprised, then greeted her one after another.

"Good evening."

"Kirisu-sensei, didn't you say you had work to do?" Yumiko asked, puzzled.

"Uh, well..."

Upon hearing this question, Mafuyu felt a bit flustered. Earlier, when the girls invited her, she had used the excuse of having work to do to decline, considering that school would start the next day. It was a reasonable excuse.

But now, here she was at the festival when she was supposed to be busy with work, which was not easy to explain.

Fortunately, Hachiman came to her rescue in time.

"Well, you see, Mafuyu-sensei just told me earlier that she finished her work and came out, and it just so happened that she ran into me."

"It's really quite a coincidence."