- Join in too late...

Ziong MingDe maintained his archery posture, wanting to say something to Sugi Yui at this moment, but then thought that there was no necessary to say it.

- After all, it's the last time.

When Ziong MingDe thought like this, Sugi Yui patted his shoulder.

"Don't show this expression."

Her tone became gentle, with a hint of playfulness at the end.

"Your presence is important to me, and to the Kyudo Club."

But the sincerity in her words was genuine.

Ziong MingDe's heart was touched.

This was the first time in his life that someone said to him, "Your presence is important to us."

There was a moment when Ziong MingDe even wanted to drop the bow in his hand and embrace Sugi Yui, not out of teenage love, but out of gratitude for being recognized by someone.

However, it was only a moment.

Soon, Ziong MingDe realized that it was not himself who was being recognized, but "Ziongzong".

- Why

- Just an invented personality

- But able to

- Gain more meaning of existence than me

Unconsciously, Ziong MingDe smiled.

In Sugi Yui's eyes, it was a friendly smile in response to the words "Your presence is important to me, and to the Kyudo Club."

But to Ziong MingDe, it was just a self-deprecating smile.

"A way to slip out?"

In Sugi Yuki's room, Koga Mizuo widened her eyes, incredulously staring at Yuki's confident face.

"The two of us can't possibly slip out of school without anyone's help!"

Mizuo stared at Yuki, with partly doubting eyes, thinking that there was no way to deceive the school; and partly with hope, hoping that reliable Yuki could come up with some method she hadn't thought of.

"We're not going to slip out from school, Mizuo."

While Yuki said that, she had already started packing some necessary items, like wallets and cell phones.

"Not from school?"

Mizuo saw Yuki start packing things and suddenly understood something, but it was still vague, without a clear concept of Yuki's idea.

"Are you suggesting that we sneak out now?"

"Yes~!"

Yuki nodded vigorously, a happy and contented smile on her face. To Yuki, it was satisfying to have Mizuo in sync with her thoughts.

"But even if we sneak out from the second floor window, if Yukino comes looking for us, won't it be exposed?"

While asking the question, Mizuo started packing things with Yuki, which meant that she believed Yuki had already considered everything and expected to receive a reasonable answer to her question.

"Yes, usually there would be that kind of problem, after all, Mom always likes to use bringing us some snacks as an excuse to inspect our study progress..."

At this point, Yuki provocatively paused for a moment and continued.

"But the current situation is special. Based on my observation, Mom has become obsessed with a soap opera during this time period. She's unswerving on anything, and sometimes even forgets to use the bathroom!"

As she said this, Yuki fluttered her eyelashes, making Mizuo imagine what it would be like if Yukino forgets to use the bathroom.

"What's more, today's soap opera is a special edition, two and a half hours long!"

Sugi Yuki's eyes sparkled, a gleam that convinced Mizuo, who had doubted before, that there was no better time than now to sneak out.

"Before we go, let's double-check that we have everything."

Together with Mizuo, Yuki counted the props they needed to bring and glanced at the watch to confirm the time.

"1 minute before the soap opera starts, it's time for us to go, Mizuo!"