If the purpose was to savor the food, I would avoid those types of places lacking in individuality. But following this line of thought sounds agreeable. I will second Liliana's motion."
Yuri's eyes flashed slightly with excitement and Erica nodded and supported the idea openly.
Godou could do nothing but smile awkwardly as the core purpose of their gathering shifted from "study" to "meeting." However, he did not object. It would be a bit too tasteless to expect concrete benefits from a last-minute study meeting held just before the exams.
The important thing was the fact of "everyone gathering to study together."
Be that as it may--
The three girls, Erica, Yuri and Liliana, all seemed to lead lives that seldom brought them into contact with fast food shops and the like.
From the series of statements just now, the nature of their private lives could be easily deduced.
Just as he expected, the girls were slightly different from "ordinary." Godou nodded to himself.
Hence, the princess, the high-class young lady and the knight who had been training magic, spirit powers or the like since childhood could be considered a group. Consequently, it was Godou's mission as the high school student representative of ordinary people to assist them today--
Godou secretly resolved himself.
Cutting to the chase, the quartet made the rounds amongst the various family restaurants and fast food places near the school.
But things did not go well.
No matter which shop they went to, all were packed with students from Jounan Academy. There was no room for Godou and his group at all. Considering that exams were imminent, it was only natural for there to be many groups executing their plans of "gathering friends to hold a study meeting."
"It can't be helped, let's go to my house instead."
The journey from the school to the Kusanagi home took fifteen minutes on foot.
Although he thought this was a reasonable substitute, Erica shook her head decisively.
"No. We have to stick to our plan. If we take the train to another area, shouldn't we be able to find unoccupied shops?"
Instantly, Godou recalled the saying, "putting the cart before the horse."
After forty minutes, Godou muttered with deep feeling.
"Who could have expected a day like this..."
The quartet had gone to Ueno from Jounan Academy at Nezu.
However, all the fast food places and family restaurants in the station's neighborhood felt rather noisy and crowded.
One shop was filled with old men and women. All of them were dressed for traveling, probably having just gotten off a bus or something, in the middle of taking a break.
Another shop, on the other hand, was filled with lively young men and women in their twenties and thirties.
Accidentally overhearing the subject of their vigorous conversation, it seemed like they were members of a small drama troupe. After a public performance, they were having a pre-party before heading to a Izakaya.[1]
There were other shops that they visited.
One had a group of young men and women, roughly ten in number, with a large amount of manuscripts spread out on the tables, using staplers to assemble them into booklets. Glancing from a distance, one could see the pages were filled with what appeared to be manga illustrations and panels.
This was apparently the production of doujinshi -- the binding of copies.
Clearly there was a great amount of freedom as to what people were allowed to do in the shop, displaying the scene of a fast food place in a prosperous neighborhood. Speaking of which, Ueno was right next to Akihabara, the origin of the doujinshi.
"Although it looks like we should be able to find a shop that can accommodate us four, spending time on this search would prove rather pointless."
Why don't we just give up and go to my house to start the study meeting?
Erica was the first to refute what Godou was about to propose.
"So, let's simply get a hotel room."
This sounded like novelists or manga artists of old who would work on their manuscripts in this manner.
Godou was about to object when others did it for him.
"Eh, Erica-san, this is only the study meeting of students, going to that kind of place would seem..."
"The cost-effectiveness is far too dismal. This is clearly a waste."
Yuri cautiously expressed disagreement as Liliana warned with displeasure.
I see. Godou was struck by a revelation.
Yuri and Liliana both shopped at supermarkets and did their own cooking. Consequently, compared to Erica who grew up as a sheltered high-class lady, their sense of spending was closer to a normal person's. Contrasting with the typical high school girl whose cooking experience was zero, perhaps they were more principled in this area.
Ignoring Godou who nodded in agreement, Erica smiled tenderly.
"But consider this. Given this expenditure, we not only avoid wasting time, but also get a chance to study hard together, working on a group collaborative effort we have never tried before. In light of that, I think it is money well spent, is it not?"
That's not right, this is clearly using money impertinently, okay?
Just as Godou was about to object, he was shocked. Erica's rhetoric actually worked!
"Perhaps that is true..."