As many students have dreaded and feared this singular day, it still arrived to the students' dismay.

Yes, today was midterms day. It was a day mostly spent on testing over different subjects that the students were taught for the last couple weeks.

Takei was well equipped due to how much studying he had done beforehand.

Everyone in the study group was solid as well. Due to the guidance of the goddess, they were more than ready for the midterms.

Without it being said, Akari was most likely going to be number one on the test scores again.

I should get her a reward for her hard work...

While the teacher was handing out the tests, Takei began to think of a reward worthy of the goddess's likes.

Once the tests were finally placed in front of him, Takei cut his train of thought and finally focused on the exams in front of him.

Thinking about Akari's reward can wait until later, I need to do my best now.

Resetting his state of mind, Takei was ready to give his all in the midterms in order to prove that his efforts weren't in vain.

"Let's do it!"

He mumbled quietly to himself in order to have a small pep talk before the tests officially started.

***

As the last session of testing finished, an unanimous relieved sigh could be heard throughout the school classrooms.

Even though Takei was well prepared for the midterms, he was still exhausted due to the sheer amount of content that was covered in the tests.

Students were let out early today since the school administration knew how hard and stressful the midterms were.

Takei left the classroom without saying a single word to either Rikka or Eiji, since he was completely exhausted.

Going home and taking a nap was one of his main priorities for today.

After grabbing his outdoor shoes and putting them on, Takei exited the school and began to walk home.

Akari had texted him beforehand and told him to go home without her.

She had gone home directly after school for some reason. Akari told him not to worry about it and to take his time coming home.

Deciding to take her up on her suggestion, Takei walked towards a local cake shop that he had overheard about during class.

It was apparently a newly opened place that was still lowkey due to its relatively hard to find spot.

Even though it was still mostly unknown, rumor has it that the cakes were nothing to joke about.

Deciding to take advantage of the situation, Takei journeyed to the specified location of the cake shop.

Fifteen minutes later, he arrived at the location with an interested expression on his face.

Looking through the windows of the shop, Takei could see many different varieties of cakes and pastries.

They were of varying colors and designs, but the one thing they all had in common was the sense of attraction.

Each cake made him want to have a bite of the sugary delicacy that was standing in front of him.

There was not a single pastry that didn't look appealing to him.

Pushing back the feeling of hunger that was consuming him, Takei walked into the cake shop.

"Welcome in, how can I help you... eh?"

A handsome young man greeted Takei as he entered through the front entrance.

He greeted Takei with a warm welcome, but stopped midway due to the realization that was evident on his face.

Surprisingly, Takei had the same exact reaction.

"Ryuto?"

As Takei had correctly guessed, Ryuto Inuzaki was working as a server at this cake shop.

Smiling at his master who had just entered his servant's quarters, Ryuto was ready to help in any way possible.

"I assume you're here for the madam?"

As expected of his excellent servant, Ryuto correctly pinpointed the exact reasoning on why Takei was here today.

Nodding with a surprised expression on his face, Takei affirmed Ryuto's assumption.

"Yeah, I was looking for something to reward her with." Takei explained. "Are there any cakes that you recommend?"

Having expected that question already, Ryuto motioned Takei to follow him.

Walking down a hallway filled with treats on either side, Takei admired the perfect presentation that the employees had set up.

After reaching the end of the hallway, Ryuto uncovered a box that was hidden in a secret location.

After unlocking the box with a key, Ryuto presented Takei with the thing that he had been looking for.

It was a golden colored cake that had white icing on top. The cake looked especially fluffy and delicious, due to Takei's hunger taking control of his stomach.

"Why was this locked up?"

Since the cake was locked in a box, Takei assumed that there was some sort of special purpose.

"Uh, I don't know? I just baked it earlier for fun and put it in this locked box to give it a mysterious vibe."

"..."

Ryuto answered his question with a very odd answer that left Takei dumbfounded.

Having enough of his antics, Takei lightly flicked Ryuto's forehead and sighed loudly.

"Ouch?!"

Since Takei was only flicking him lightly, the actual attack didn't hurt so much.

However, Ryuto didn't want to make his master's ego drop even more, so he decided to act hurt.

Rolling his eyes, Takei observed the golden colored cake even more.

I don't know why, but... this color reminds me of her golden hair a lot. It's very pretty just like her.

After having made his decision, Takei told Ryuto of his intentions.

"I'll buy it. Can I have two slices?"

Instead of buying a whole cake, which would be very expensive, Takei decided that two slices should be more than enough for them. Unconsciously, he knew Akari would be mad if she found out that he had spent a fortune for them to eat a cake together.

"Sure! I'll box that up right away for you."

Maintaining his prince-like behavior, Ryuto grabbed a company branded box and put the two slices inside.

With a final mischievous smile, Ryuto handed the box over to Takei.

"Make the madam happy, will ya?"

---

Serious-san: What a thoughtful guy that Takei is...

Sugar-san: He's the best, isn't he?