Chapter 28: The Beautiful Trouble Maker

Morning came to the hotel. Alena had a cunning idea: she would try to flirt with her teacher. Meanwhile, Arata was getting ready for his morning shower, as they were heading to a railway museum that day.

Afterward, they all departed for the museum. Alena, with a mischievous grin, began questioning the students about whether their teacher was married or not.

"Do you know anything about Sensei? Is he married?" Alena asked Akari.

"I actually don't know, but the one closest to him is Chisa-Sensei," Akari replied.

"I see," Alena mused. "But why do you and Mei always compete for Sensei's attention? Aren't you jealous that Chisa-Sensei already has him?"

"I am jealous, but I still compete using a positive approach," Akari said.

Alena didn't fully grasp Akari's words, but she understood the meaning. She found them all very strange.

Meanwhile, Pierson and Natasha were preparing to leave for Kyoto. They had tried to contact Arata several times, but his phone was not active. Their worry grew with each passing moment.

At the museum, Alena's devious plan began. She deliberately pretended to fall on a small staircase, hoping Arata would come to her rescue.

"Fujimori, are you alright?" Chisa asked, seeing her fall.

"I think I sprained my ankle and can't move," Alena groaned, her voice feigning weakness. "Could someone carry me to the first aid post?"

Many of the boys offered to carry her, but she turned them all down. Her real target was Arata. However, when she looked behind, Arata was still there, observing the situation as if he didn't care.

"Damn, my first plan failed!" Alena thought, disappointed.

Alena continued to try various ways to get closer to Arata, but she was always thwarted by the boys who were eager to help her.

After the museum visit, Alena's plans had completely failed. She was frustrated. However, a female student suddenly shouted, "Did you guys hear? There's a festival in the city!"

"Oh, you mean the Yukata Festival? I can't wait to try one on!" another student exclaimed.

"Me too! I can't wait for Narukami to see how beautiful we are!"

Alena, watching their conversation, felt a pang of sadness as she realized she truly had no friends.

That night, all the students went to the festival, wearing colorful Yukata. The city was alive with laughter and cheer.

Akari and Mei, also in Yukata, were once again competing for Arata's attention, thinking he would be there.

"Look, Shion! I'm wearing this beautiful Yukata! Does it look good?" Akari said happily.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm paying attention!" Shion replied, focused on his phone game.

"Sensei will definitely love seeing me in this Yukata," Akari added.

"Of course he won't! I'll be the one to captivate Sensei first!" Mei retorted, not wanting to be outdone.

"By the way, have you guys seen Arata-Sensei?" Daigo asked, realizing their teacher was nowhere to be found.

The three of them looked around, realizing they had no idea where Arata was.

Meanwhile, Alena felt defeated. She chose to walk away from the crowd, seeking some peace. With her hair tied up and wearing a Yukata, she walked alone. From a distance, she saw Arata talking on the phone. This was her last chance. She tried to follow him, but on her way, she was harassed by some large thugs who kept bothering her. They even tried to grab her until a hand stopped them. Arata had arrived.

"Damn it, who are you?" the thugs growled.

"Me? I'm just a teacher who happened to be passing by. Remember that!" Arata said. He then threw one of the thugs, and a fight broke out. It was five against one, and it ended with the thugs lying on the ground, beaten and bruised.

"Are you alright, Fujimori?" Arata asked.

Alena could only say yes, feeling shy and slightly flustered. When she tried to stand, she was in pain. It turned out the injury from her fake fall still hurt, and the thugs' rough handling had made it worse. Arata offered to help her.

"Can you walk?" he asked.

"No, it hurts a lot, Sensei," Alena replied.

"Alright, I'll carry you back to the inn," Arata said, lifting Fujimori into his arms.

In that perfect moment, she hugged Arata, feeling his warmth and comfort. It was a feeling she had never experienced before, a feeling that she now realized was love.

"Sensei... about what happened just now and yesterday, I'm really sorry. I made you go through so much trouble," Alena whispered, hugging him tightly.

"It's alright. It's in the past," Arata replied.

"Let bygones be bygones."