The falling speed of cherry blossoms is 5 cm per second.
This makes a rain of cherry blossoms last for quite a long ti.
However, at this mont, Yukima Azuma had no ti to appreciate this beautiful rain of blossoms.
He stood still, his eyes fixed on the scene ahead. After a long gaze, he could finally see two words resonating within the spring breeze: "Encounter."
At the top of Detective Hill, the girl stood there.
Her pristine white dress gently swayed in the wind, and the white beret lay neatly in her hands.
From above, her gaze t Yukima Azuma's. Her right hand lightly held the hem of her dress, while her left hand tucked stray bangs neatly behind her forehead.
Under the spring sunlight, she looked as though she had stepped out of a painting.
This was the beginning of a love story in a light novel.
Not a taphor, but in the literal sense.
Yukima Azuma recognized the girl standing atop the hill, both in mory and in reality.
Kato gumi—a beautiful heroine with no particularly outstanding traits.
Even without distinctive highlights, just interacting with and understanding her would make anyone unconsciously fall for her.
She didn't need stereotypical cuteness; she herself was the embodint of the most unique charm.
From beside him, a "Wow!" of amazent suddenly rang out.
Honestly, it was a bit unpleasant to hear—a voice resembling that of a fanatical nerd.
Turning his head in the direction of the sound, Yukima Azuma saw a bespectacled boy on a bicycle.
The na seed to be Aki Tomoya.
Flipping through his mory, Yukima Azuma quickly confird the boy's identity.
At this mont, Aki Tomoya was staring blankly at the hilltop, as if turned to stone. The expressions on his face shifted incessantly, clearly revealing that he was deeply engrossed in so sort of fantasy from which he could not extricate himself.
Truth be told, Yukima Azuma harbored no affection for Aki Tomoya.
The reason was simple.
Yukima Azuma had once been involved with Kasumigaoka Utaha.
Even though Yukima Azuma's presence had all but eliminated any chance of Aki Tomoya having a connection with Kasumigaoka Utaha, the irritation remained.
And so...
Yukima Azuma walked over to Aki Tomoya and gave a light kick to the rear wheel of his bicycle.
There was no need to use much force.
Aki Tomoya imdiately lost his balance, and the bicycle wobbled back into motion.
Amid a cacophony of yelps, the bicycle with Aki Tomoya aboard staggered off toward the opposite side of the road.
On the far side of Detective Hill was a downward slope. Before long, Aki Tomoya's figure had completely vanished from sight.
Yukima Azuma let a satisfied smile cross his face.
At that mont, Katō gumi descended from the top of Detective Hill.
"Yukima-san, you're really an," she said softly.
Her voice was gentle, devoid of obvious emotion, like a feather drifting through the air. Yet, it was incredibly pleasant to the ear.
Yukima Azuma turned around and saw Katō gumi standing there.
He placed the beret he had been holding onto her head.
Adjusting its position carefully, he tilted his head slightly to ensure it sat neatly and snugly.
Once finished, Yukima Azuma stepped back two paces, his gaze akin to admiring an eternal masterpiece.
"Kato-san, you look so adorable today. This outfit suits you perfectly."
"Thank you, Yukima-san, but I'm just an ordinary person. Complints like that don't really serve any purpose."
"No, no, I truly an it."
"Thank you. That makes happy."
"Oh, so the first thanks is for returning your hat, right?"
"Yukima-san, where were you headed?"
"I was planning to go grocery shopping. My fridge at ho is completely empty."
"Really? What a coincidence. I was about to buy so ingredients too."
The two of them walked up Detective Hill together, chatting as they went.
Neither ntioned the less-than-pleasant manner in which Aki Tomoya had been "sent off" monts earlier.
Katō gumi showed no sign of reproach or discomfort regarding Yukima Azuma's rather "aggressive" behavior toward the stranger.
In her mind, there was only one simple thought:
'If Yukima-san did that, there must be a reason behind it.'
Interestingly enough, Yukima Azuma and Katō gumi had been classmates during the last six months of middle school.
After transferring from Tokyo to Chiba and then back to Tokyo, Yukima Azuma had coincidentally been placed in Katō gumi's class.
Thanks to mories that had "taken the lead," Yukima Azuma quickly recognized Katō gumi's existence—soone who often went unnoticed in the classroom.
From that point on, the two beca friends.
In group activities or ho economics classes, Yukima Azuma always chose gumi as his partner.
Before Yukima's arrival, Katō gumi usually completed assignnts alone or was randomly assigned to groups.
.....
After a shopping trip, Yukima Azuma and Katō gumi pushed a shared cart to the checkout counter.
When it was their turn, gumi took the items from the cart while Yukima handed them over to the cashier.
"Huh, what's this?"
Katō gumi picked up a bag of coffee beans, blinking curiously.
Yukima Azuma took it from her and asked casually:
"Is there sothing wrong?"
"If I rember correctly, Yukima-san is more of a tea person and almost never drinks coffee," gumi replied.
"I'm surprised you noticed that much. I thought I'd try making homade coffee this ti."
Hearing this, Katō gumi stared at the bag of coffee beans for a mont, seemingly lost in thought.
After checking out, the two walked out of the supermarket together.
Katō gumi's ho was nearby.
anwhile, Yukima Azuma had to head in a different direction to catch the train.
So, at the supermarket entrance, they said their goodbyes and went their separate ways.
After walking a few steps, Katō gumi turned back briefly, glancing at the bag of coffee beans in Yukima Azuma's hand, tilting her head slightly.
.....
On the train, Yukima Azuma stretched a bit and took his phone out of his pocket.
Scrolling briefly through a shopping website, he quickly selected a DIY coffee machine.
After spending a fair amount of money, he even opted for express shipping.
He currently had enough funds, so splurging a bit wasn't an issue.
Besides, this was a necessary purchase.
Japan wasn't all that big. With expedited shipping, the coffee machine arrived at Yukima Azuma's apartnt almost at the sa ti he did.
Receiving the coffee machine, he carried the package into his apartnt.
At that mont, Kasumigaoka Utaha was on the first floor.
She seed to be downstairs getting so water.
The two made eye contact.
Kasumigaoka Utaha quickly turned away, though her gaze flickered briefly toward the large box in Yukima Azuma's hands.
"What did he buy?"
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