"No… I can't go on… Kanade… Let me rest for a bit…"
"Nope. Not until I'm satisfied. Keep going."
"W-why are you like this…?"
When Kato Megumi arrived at Eriri's house, she overheard this peculiar exchange through the slightly ajar front door.
It sounded… questionable. The kind of dialogue you'd hear in a certain infamous visual novel, where something scandalous was accidentally witnessed because someone left the door open.
"Um… What exactly is going on in there?" Megumi tilted her head as she stepped inside, taking in the scene of Kanade and Eriri.
Kanade, at least, seemed focused on teaching, occasionally glancing up at Eriri before returning to the materials in front of him. Eriri, on the other hand, was a mess.
Tears welled up in her eyes, and her forehead was plastered with stickers featuring humiliating phrases such as:
"(＞人＜;) I'm sorry, I'm worse than a middle schooler.""o(╥﹏╥)o Please don't look at this failure of a person!"
It was a spectacle that defied logic.
Is this some kind of weird punishment game?
"Oh, Kato, you're here," Kanade said, noticing her arrival and beginning to greet her.
Before he could continue, Eriri shrieked in alarm.
"Eek! Megumi! W-why are you here… No, wait! Don't come closer… and don't look at me!"
She waved her hands frantically, trying to stop Megumi in her tracks, but quickly realized one hand wasn't enough to hide her shame. Switching to both hands, she only succeeded in making herself look even more ridiculous.
The bigger her reaction, the more attention she drew—especially from Megumi, whose gaze was now entirely fixed on her.
"Eriri… hmm… Oh, I get it. Everyone has their unique hobbies. I can understand," Megumi said with a serene nod.
"It's NOT a hobby!" Eriri wailed. "Who would willingly enjoy something this humiliating?! Even an elementary schooler wouldn't put up with this!"
"That's precisely why it's perfect for you," Kanade interjected.
Sometimes, drastic problems required drastic solutions. For someone like Eriri, who seemed beyond hope, the only way to spur her into action was through sheer humiliation.
Kanade had never seen a high schooler whose English skills were worse than a typical middle schooler's. This wasn't advanced math or science—it was English!
Desperate, he recalled a book he once read titled The Manual for Training Problematic Girls. While many parts of it were absurd and borderline unmentionable, some sections about discipline techniques were unexpectedly practical.
Education, after all, was about shaping individuals into something better. And for Eriri, rewards clearly weren't going to cut it. Only punishment—tangible, embarrassing punishment—could motivate her to make an effort.
The plan was simple: expose her embarrassing state to someone she respected, like Kato, and drive home the point. If you can't handle this level of exposure, imagine how much worse it would be if your classmates discovered your English scores!
Eriri, now on the verge of tears, abandoned her futile attempts at hiding. It was pointless—she'd already been fully exposed.
"Ugh… Megumi… You understand me, don't you?" Eriri pleaded for support.
Unfortunately, Megumi had no intention of rescuing her. Instead, she calmly took a seat beside Kanade and handed Eriri a bag of cookies.
"I made these myself. If it gets too hard, have a bite to cheer yourself up."
"…"
Eriri stared at her, feeling utterly betrayed.
Nevertheless, she snatched the bag, tore it open, and shoved a cookie into her mouth with a vengeance.
"Ugh… fine! I'll pass this time, no matter what…!"
Megumi blinked at Eriri's determination and decided that things were under control.
"Kanade-kun, would you like to try one too? It's my first time baking, so I'd appreciate your feedback," Megumi offered.
"Sure, I'll give it a try," Kanade agreed.
He initially suspected Eriri was using this as an excuse to slack off, but since Megumi had brought the cookies, he decided to let it slide and give Eriri a short break.
Taking a cookie, Kanade bit into it and carefully savored the flavor before offering his thoughts. "It's really good. Feels like something you'd find at a high-end pastry shop."
Though Kanade wasn't particularly fond of sweets, he found Megumi's cookies surprisingly enjoyable. They weren't overly sugary, instead carrying a rich aroma and a subtle bitterness that lingered pleasantly after each bite.
Glancing at the bag of cookies, Kanade's interest was piqued.
"…"
No, he decided. Competing with Eriri for cookies wasn't worth the humiliation.
To his surprise, Megumi seemed to pick up on his hesitation and nudged him further. "Would you like another? Try savoring it slowly this time."
"…"
Since the baker herself insisted…
Kanade took another cookie, breaking it in half and sampling it more deliberately this time.
The experience was entirely different. First, a bitter tang enveloped his taste buds, its aroma rich and distinct. Then, a fleeting burst of sweetness followed, disappearing almost as soon as it arrived.
It felt like the bitter flavor was a victorious army defending its stronghold, only to discover sweet invaders attempting a coup. After a fierce struggle, the bitterness triumphed, marking its territory with bold arrogance.
"How did you make this?" Kanade asked, genuinely intrigued.
He had never encountered cookies with such dynamic and evolving flavors. Not just unique in taste but also in how the method of eating altered the experience entirely.
"I added some finely ground coffee beans to the cookie dough," Kato Megumi explained softly. While this could have been considered a "radical" move, her calm and collected delivery made it sound like a brilliant innovation.
"It's my first time trying this, so I wasn't very confident. I'm glad you both liked it."
"That explains it. I thought the flavor was a bit unique, but it's still really delicious!" Eriri nodded enthusiastically.
As someone with a serious sweet tooth, Eriri loved sugary treats. But she found the slightly bitter twist intriguing—it was a nice change of pace. Of course, what she appreciated most was that discussing cookies meant more time away from her "English prison."
"…"
Kanade refrained from further comments. He genuinely liked the cookies, appreciating both ways they could be eaten. The only downside was that having just two wasn't enough to satisfy him—but he wasn't about to stoop to fighting Eriri over the remaining ones.
"If you liked them, I could send you some later," Kato offered, twirling a strand of hair around her finger. Her slightly bashful expression added to the unexpected gesture. "I might've gone overboard and made too many. There are still plenty left at home."
"Uh…" Kanade was momentarily caught off guard but quickly nodded. "Sure, thanks a lot, Kato."
"No problem at all! After all, you've helped me so much."
Kanade: "…"
He couldn't recall doing anything that significant for Kato. If anything, it always seemed like he was the one benefiting from her kindness.
"For instance, without you, I probably would've failed math this time," Kato added.
"…"
Ah, so this is preemptive payment. Kanade chuckled inwardly, feeling less awkward about accepting her cookies now.
"Don't worry—I'll make sure you pass with flying colors!" Kanade said confidently, thumping his chest.
"Wha—?!" Eriri interjected indignantly. "Why does Megumi get to take it easy?! You told me I had to aim for a B!"
"That's totally different!" Kanade retorted. "Math and English are completely different beasts! Math is tricky—just because you understand it doesn't mean you've mastered it. But with English, once you know it, you know it."
"What kind of reasoning is that?!" Eriri exclaimed, her head spinning as she tried to make sense of his logic. "Why are you always right…"
"Maybe the real question is why you're always wrong," Kanade muttered with a sigh. He wisely avoided mentioning Senpai Kasumigaoka, knowing full well that such a comment would set off Eriri's infamous temper.
In their endless verbal skirmishes, Eriri was almost always outclassed. On the rare occasions she managed a comeback, it was usually thanks to outside help—a prime example of being both bad at fighting and overconfident.
"Alright, enough distractions. You've rested long enough. Get back to memorizing your vocabulary! I'll be quizzing you soon, and if your mistakes are as bad as before… well, don't expect to get much sleep tonight," Kanade warned.
For someone as stubborn as Eriri, only firm discipline would yield results. Even if he didn't plan on following through with his threats, he had to at least act like he would.
Faced with his ominous tone, Eriri immediately fell silent. She hesitated for a moment before nervously touching the stickers on her forehead, then reluctantly returned to her vocabulary drills.
Satisfied with her compliance, Kanade turned to Kato. "What's giving you trouble in math? Is it equations, inequalities, geometry, or functions?"
In Japan, high school math textbooks are standardized nationwide. By the second term of their sophomore year, students typically cover topics like basic calculus and derivatives. At this point in the semester, they were likely tackling trigonometric functions—a notorious stumbling block everywhere.
"Um…"
Kato hesitated, her uncertainty evident. Kanade began to suspect she might not even know which topics she struggled with—a possibility he'd hoped to avoid.
Thankfully, Kato was more proactive than Eriri. She quickly pulled out a workbook and slid it over to him.
Kanade flipped through it, his eyes scanning the various marks and annotations. These were likely the problems she found difficult.
"Let's see… Ah, this one can be solved like this," Kanade explained.
As an exceptional student, Kanade had already mastered high school math during the summer break before his sophomore year. He'd fast-tracked his studies, partly to impress Shinomiya Kaguya, which made tackling these problems a breeze. With a single glance, he could identify the solution path.
After explaining his thought process, Kanade turned to Kato. "Did I leave anything unclear?"
Rather than the usual "Did you understand?" he preferred phrasing his question this way. It was less intimidating and more considerate—a philosophy he followed himself.
"Yes, I understand. Thank you, Kanade-kun," Kato replied warmly.
"Great. Let's move on to this next problem."
Kanade glanced at the next question and quickly devised a solution. After explaining it, however, he noticed Kato hesitating. She lightly tapped her eraser against the desk, her demeanor uncharacteristically uncertain.
"Um…"
Kanade immediately recognized the problem: she hadn't understood.
"Which part didn't I explain clearly?" he asked.
"Well… this part," Kato said, pointing to the very beginning of the solution with a delicate finger.
"…"
You didn't understand it from the start?!
Kanade broke into a sweat, sensing trouble ahead.