A few days after the excitement of the sports festival.

Having received a cliché “come meet me” summons to the back of the school building during lunch break—something straight out of an old delinquent manga—I let out a small sigh and headed to the designated spot.

"...You’re late, Nanase Shizuku!"

Standing there in the shade behind the school, arms crossed and puffed up arrogantly, was Yuuma—the same guy I had completely crushed in the relay.

Behind him stood a few girls, but they all gave off the vibe of being “dragged along.”

"Yeah, yeah, my bad. So what do you want? Half of lunch break’s already over."

When I asked while scratching the back of my neck in annoyance, Yuuma stomped his feet, his face turning bright red.

"I don’t like that cocky attitude of yours! I can’t accept you standing out more than me! The sports festival was supposed to be where I showed everyone how cool I am!"

'Ah... yeah, yeah. Classic spoiled rich kid tantrum because things didn’t go his way.'

I’d bowed my head to this type plenty of times in my previous life. Nostalgic.

Then, from beside me, a sharp voice cut in.

"Hey, what kind of nonsense are you spouting!"

Apparently, Anju had followed me.

She stepped forward, her face flushed red.

"Shizu—Nanase-san ran fair and square! Calling her out just because you’re upset you lost—isn’t that embarrassing for a boy!?"

"Shut up! How dare someone from a branch family talk back to me? If you keep that attitude, I’ll tell my parents and make things difficult for your family!"

Yuuma barked, wielding the “male privilege” unique to this world.

Of course, a six-year-old had no such authority. It was just childish nonsense.

But Anju, raised with strict values about family status, turned pale instantly and fell silent.

"T-That’s..."

Seeing her trembling shoulders, I let out a quiet sigh and stepped forward.

"Hey, hey, don’t get so worked up, Yuuma-kun."

Lowering my husky voice slightly, I put on that same business smile I used in my previous life when calming someone you absolutely couldn’t afford to anger.

"...Huh?"

"Back during the relay, I was going all out too. You were so fast that I figured I had to get serious to catch up. This is just the result of me giving it everything. ...If anything, you’re the one who made me go all out, right?"

I lowered myself slightly to match his eye level and lightly placed a hand on his shoulder.

'For people with strong approval needs, you start by acknowledging them. Basic stuff.'

"I-I made you go all out?"

"Yeah. That cornering—I’ve never seen anyone take turns like that. As expected of an ace. The fact that you’re upset about losing just proves how serious you were. That’s pretty cool, you know."

It wasn’t a lie.

There’s always something beautiful about a kid giving their all.

Bathed in my “adult-level full affirmation,” Yuuma quickly lost his hostility, his face turning as red as an apple.

"I-Is that so? W-Well, I was serious too! If you say that much, I guess I can forgive you this time!"

"Yeah, thanks. I’ll train harder so I don’t lose next time."

When I held out my right hand, Yuuma shyly replied, "Next time I’ll definitely win!" and shook it firmly.

'Negotiation complete. Now, Anju...'

When I turned back, Anju looked even more conflicted than before.

"S-Shizuku... Why were you so kind to someone so rude?"

She had called me Nanase-san earlier—was it because we were in public? Maybe she got embarrassed. Cute.

"Nothing special. He just wanted someone to acknowledge his effort. ...More importantly, you tried to stand up for me, right? Thanks, Anju. You really are a cute and cool girl."

Just as I ruffled her red hair and started to walk away—I noticed, from around the corner of the school building, a blonde girl with cold eyes watching us.

Aoi.

'...Ah, Aoi. She saw everything.'

When our eyes met, Aoi gave me an angelic smile.

But in her hand, she firmly held a device 'a child GPS phone', and I could swear I saw the words “Calling Mom” on the screen.

“...Wait!? Since when!? How did you even get here!?”

After this, she hit me with “I felt like Shizuku-chan was in trouble... was that bad?” and I couldn’t ask anything. Damn it.

* * *

A few days later.

Yuuma came to school completely changed—like a weight had been lifted—apparently after being severely scolded by his mother 'who had previously been unable to rein him in due to his father spoiling him, but was actually a very strict parent'.

"Good morning, Nanase-san! Let’s do our best together today!"

Seeing him greet me with a sparkling smile, the entire class was like, “Huh? What happened?” in confusion.

But I just replied, "Yeah, you’re energetic," with a grin.

In this 1:15 world, it seemed my unconscious “corporate slave skills” had finally gone so far as to reform even a boy’s personality.

However, the obsessive gazes of Anju 'and Aoi' watching this unfold only grew deeper, tightening further around me.