After breaking up, my ex asked me to win her back

At Yuqiu High School, Kagura Hikaru thought a great aspect of the Island Nation high schools was that all significant school events were arranged autonomously by the students themselves.

For example, for large-scale school events like the sports festival and cultural festival, which are held to make the students happy, the mood inevitably starts to shift if adults intervene or even completely take charge.

As a school focused on advancement to higher education, Yuqiu High School usually has a very strenuous academic schedule, so the cultural festival serves as an outlet for relief.

There were only three days left until the official start of the cultural festival, and each class began their preparations in earnest.

After school today, everyone gave up their club activities to help decorate their classroom.

The program for Kagura Hikaru's class at this year's cultural festival was a maid cafe; they planned to set up shop right in their classroom.

There were also options like a haunted house or a family restaurant, but in the end, the maid cafe received the highest number of votes.

It was a conventional choice, as there would likely be many other classes choosing a maid cafe, given its simplicity and ability to attract attention. All that's needed was to combine maid outfits with serving coffee.

However, the students in second year Class A could confidently claim that there wasn't another maid cafe throughout the whole school that could rival theirs in terms of talk value.

That was because their class boasted three exceptionally beautiful girls—Kohinata Suse, Ayakoji Chiyoko, and Kiryu Hina—who all could be TV idols, creating a lineup as luxurious as an airliner cabin crew.

Class president Hagawa Reki rushed to measure the girls' sizes immediately after class ended, then prepared to go out and rent maid outfits.

There were indeed a few girls in the class skilled in sewing, but there simply wasn't enough time to make everything themselves.

Even so, there was still a problem: it seemed that the class funds allocated for the cultural festival had gone a bit over budget. They could only afford to rent some very cheap outfits. If they wanted nicer ones, there wouldn't be enough for everyone to wear, and the girls who were looking forward to the maid outfits would definitely be disappointed.

In the end, it was Kohinata Suse who solved the clothing issue; she somehow managed to procure a large batch of English-style maid outfits that fit everyone, and both the fabric and craft were quite professional.

Some students noticed that where there should have originally been brand tags, they were all torn off, making it unclear whether these were branded clothes or not.

Even when asked directly, Kohinata Suse merely smiled without giving a response.

The maid outfits were sorted, and what remained was the coffee.

The coffee machines had already been moved into the classroom, rented with class funds. However, the critical factor wasn't the machines, but the people making the coffee.

As it was a maid cafe, the girls would be the servers, and naturally, the boys would take care of the backend.

The boys in the class each took turns trying to make coffee with the machine.

Ayakoji Chiyoko and a few class committee members acted as judges, choosing three boys who made the best-tasting coffee to take charge of the coffee machine. Kagura Hikaru was among them, his coffee being of an entirely different caliber; there was no reason not to choose him. Explore more at My Virtual Library Empire

The rest of the boys would be responsible for cooking and various logistics tasks.

Even though it was called a cafe, they planned not to offer just coffee; necessary dishes and snacks were essential too.

They needed to select someone for this area as well.

In the end, Kagura Hikaru won the cooking competition, so the situation became him being responsible for both coffee and cooking.

"I don't have three heads and six arms; you're expecting too much from me!" Kagura Hikaru protested.

"How about this then?" Kohinata Suse suggested, raising her index finger. "Kagura could be the 'head chef,' in charge of the entire kitchen."

"Hmm, I think that's a better idea," said class president Hagawa Reki, lifting his glasses in agreement.

Ayakoji Chiyoko also folded her arms and said, "Well, I guess that's the only way."

Kagura Hikaru sighed.

He already had work from the Student Council and the Drama Club plays, and at this rate, he really was going to be overwhelmed.

Although he complained inwardly, he still took on the responsibility.

This was the cultural festival, a collaborative project involving everyone; he couldn't dampen everyone's spirits.

He and the other boys cleaned the classroom, moved desks and chairs around, while the girls were responsible for the room's decorative frills, making the classroom feel more like a maid cafe.

Kagura Hikaru finished his part quickly, and he went outside to dump out the dirty water and fill up with fresh water at the downstairs tap.

While waiting for the bucket to fill, he felt a little bored and took the opportunity to look around him.

The weather was still the scorching heat of summer, with the sun remaining fully intense at three or four in the afternoon, heat ascending and the cicadas' cries disrupting the quiet.

But this is summer, feeling annoyed now, maybe after this period, the nostalgia will begin.

The chants of sports clubs that were often heard after school were absent today, replaced by the noisy sound of moving tables and chairs coming from the building behind, and hurried figures in the corridors; it seemed that other classes were also busy cleaning just like them.

Well, the cultural festival is in less than three days, and any slower in action, they wouldn't have had the leeway to prepare for the event.

After all, they only had the after-school hours of these three days to prepare; they still had to attend classes at other times, leaving not much time to spare.

"Takahashi-kun, hurry up and bring the rag over!"

"Ah! There's a spider!!"

"So dirty! Who left chewing gum here..."

A variety of lively voices came from upstairs.

Is this what they call youth?

"It's so hot....."

Kagura Hikaru wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand and bent down to turn off the tap.

Just as he was about to lift the bucket, he saw someone extend a hand next to him, offering a handkerchief.

"Here, use this to wipe off the sweat."

It was a familiar voice.

Kagura Hikaru looked up, and Kiryu Hina was already beside him, looking at him with a smile.

There wasn't any scheme or cunning in that smile, only warmth and sincerity.

That expression was exactly the same as when they were dating.

Kagura Hikaru felt momentarily dazed, but remembering what she had done, he quickly came to his senses.

"...No need, thank you."

He didn't take the handkerchief but bent down to lift the bucket and walked toward the stairs steadily.

Kiryu Hina followed him step by step.

"I heard you're going to perform in a play?"

"Yeah."

Kagura Hikaru wasn't surprised she knew this; the breadth of Kiryu Hina's information network was evident from several previous incidents.

Even after she had stepped down as Student Council President, those connections wouldn't just disappear.

And besides, it wasn't anything that needed to be kept secret. Perhaps the members of the Drama Club had already spread the news, unbeknownst to him.

"I'll come to cheer for you when it's time."

"It's not a sports match, no need to come."

"...Really? I'd like to see you perform again."

"This time, Kohinata Motoyo and I are acting opposite each other, are you sure you want to watch?"

"Yes!"

"Then it's up to you."

Kiryu Hina, who was walking behind him with hands clasped behind her back, let out a faint smile, and her steps became a bit lighter.

Now that she had been granted permission, it was time to make a scene.

This time, I won't let anyone else have you.

You are mine, Mister Hikaru.