Whereas Hanagaki Akari's loyalty was torn between her love for her beloved king and her friendship with the king's strongest adversary.
Who will she choose?
Sequel to The Boss Queen.
Read the first book to understand the story better since this is...
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SUMMER, 2006.
"Hm. Not bad."
15-year-old Hanagaki Akari was standing in front of her full-length mirror and was staring down at her own reflection. She was in her school uniform and her long silky dark hair was hanging loosely past her shoulders. She whirled her body around and even made a curtsy, acting all giddy and stupid. She grinned proudly in satisfaction with her appearance followed by a loud huff.
"Alright! You can do this, Akari! Nothing bad will happen today," she mumbled to herself and was chanting her usual morning mantra, tapping both of her cheeks rapidly to at least help boost her morale. She was now in her last year of middle school and things were not as easy as she was during her first and second years.
After the incident with Ishiyama Kazunori when she was in her first year, Akari was laid comatose in the hospital bed for three months, affecting her school grades and risking her guaranteed spot on the softball team. Fortunately, the school gave her a second chance to make up her grades by either attending remedial classes or supplemental lessons once she got fully recovered. She studied really hard while undergoing rehabilitation at the same time to avoid repeating a year and passed the placement exam given to her by the school with almost perfect scores, accelerating her to the second year.
Buzz! Buzz!
Akari flinched at the sound of the doorbell and whipped her head toward the half-opened door of her bedroom. "Oh, that must be him."
Turning away from the mirror, she hurriedly grabbed her school bag from her study table and exited her room to meet her personal escort at the doorstep.
"Good morning, Iza-san!" Akari greeted in enthusiasm the moment she opened the front door of her apartment and welcomed the tanned male with a warm brief hug.
Izana gave her a small smile and a pat on her head. He was donned in a plain dark-blue t-shirt, worn-out jeans, and sandals. His bleach-blonde hair was now styled in a short center-parted undercut, making him look younger than his actual age. He still had his pair of Hanafuda-derived earrings in his ear for as long as she could remember. Izana raised his hand, showing a plastic bag to her. "I brought us breakfast. Let's eat first before I drive you to school."
Akari only bobbed her head and pushed the door wider, gesturing him to enter. "Come in."
This became their daily routine for the past two years. Izana would come to her apartment early in the morning and will always bring breakfast with him, either homecooked by him or he'll buy from a convenience store. They'll enjoy eating breakfast together at the dining table and sometimes talk about anything random before Izana will drop her off at school using his motorbike. And if he was not available, he will order one of his subordinates to fetch her in his stead, mostly Kakucho and Ran.
"I'll come to pick you up again after school," Izana said as she jumped off his motorbike once they reached her school.
Akari pulled the borrowed helmet off her head and handed it over to him. "Okay."
