"But you know, even back then, Homura was already really strong... He knocked out all four of those thugs like it was nothing..."
Eriri sighed as she recounted that time.
"Yeah, we didn't even have time to react." Megumi nodded.
"Good thing Homura could fight, or we would've been in serious trouble." Utaha let out a soft sigh.
"Thugs like him aren't common, but you never know when one might show up, which is why I always walk you girls home at night." Homura shrugged.
After chatting a little more, Homura did teach the girls for a bit, but before long, everyone gave up, including Rin.
Rin was a pretty energetic girl, so she didn't have the patience for this.
"In any case, you should at least learn some self-defense." Homura reminded everyone.
At this, the girls could only nod in agreement.
===
Once all that was done, the real work began.
Instead of jumping straight into class, Homura started a video call with Kousaka Akane.
"Kousaka-san, how's the progress?" Homura asked directly.
"Well, you see..." Akane swirled her drink, then gulped it down. "On the first day, the kids were all careful, and the quality was great, but now… they're getting a little too excited."
Hearing this, Homura raised an eyebrow, waiting for her to continue.
"Fate is already recognized as a work that'll become an absolute masterpiece… Everyone didn't know much about it before, but now that they're focusing on every little detail—every line of dialogue, every bit of character personality—they're getting hyped up."
Homura nodded in understanding.
Getting too excited while drawing could easily affect the body since they could forget everything else. Maybe the artists themselves did not notice, but there was no way Akane wouldn't.
"So, I threw a bucket of cold water on them." Akane continued.
"I see... that was the right call, Kousaka-san. To maintain quality, strictness at this stage is absolutely necessary." Homura nodded in agreement. "I'll leave things to you over there, then."
"Of course, that's my job." Akane said while downing another glass. "And what about you, Minamiya-sensei? How are things on your end?"
"On my end... Well, let me just show you." Homura chuckled.
"Eriri, Mashiro, I'm showing Kousaka-san the keyframes!" Homura called out.
"Oh, go ahead, whatever." Eriri waved him off without even looking.
Mashiro didn't acknowledge him at all—she was completely in the zone, which was normal.
"Hmm...?"
Akane focused on the keyframes that Homura was showing her, stunned by the absurdly high level of completion.
However, that wasn't even the most shocking part.
What really blew her away were the battle scenes!
Homura was showing her the keyframes one by one, but with her experience, it wasn't hard to piece together the full sequence.
It was that series of movements that instantly changed her whole attitude.
"No wonder..." Akane muttered to herself. "So that's why you said all the key frames for the battle scenes were left to you guys, huh, Minamiya-sensei... Yeah… This is something that none of us—no, no one in the industry has ever achieved."
Akane stared at the keyframes in Homura's hands, not even wanting to blink.
"Minamiya-sensei, your skills really caught me off guard..."
"Oh?" Homura raised an eyebrow. "And what makes you so sure it's me?"
Akane took a deep breath and leaned back in her chair.
"A master suddenly appearing out of nowhere in Another Dimension... Seriously, there's no one else it could be but you, right?"
"Well, makes sense." Homura nodded. "If there was someone that skilled, they would've been on Another Dimension's member list a long time ago."
"But with this..." Akane suddenly smiled. "Fate's overall quality just went up another level. Maybe... it'll be legendary?"
"I'll take that as a blessing."
Even though Homura said it like this, he was sure that Akane's words would definitely come true.
===
Evening, Temporary Classroom.
"I feel like we've been learning so fast lately... Is it just me?" Umi asked, feeling a bit puzzled.
"I feel the same way..." Nico nodded in agreement. "But only here. At school, it's still the same as always."
"It's surely thanks to Homura-kun." Kotori said as if it were obvious.
"Yup!" Honoka clenched her small fists. "I honestly thought my already pitiful grades would get even worse! Never expected I'd actually improve!"
"I feel like I've improved a lot too!" Yukiho chimed in with a big smile on her face. "I'm sure I can get into Otonokizaka with ease!"
"It's kinda a shame that Homura-kun isn't a real teacher..." Eli shook her head.
"Aren't I basically a teacher right now?" Homura shrugged casually. "Maybe the only difference is that no one's paying me."
"Eh?! I don't have any extra allowance to give you!" Honoka quickly covered her pockets.
Homura: "..."
"You really think I'd take your pocket change?" Homura said, his lips twitching.
"Fufufu, we've all lost count of how much we owe Homura-kun already." Nozomi chuckled.
"Hmm... that sounds familiar..." Hanayo muttered softly. "I feel like there's another line after that..."
"Yeah, it does sound familiar. Pretty sure I heard it in a drama before." Maki twirled her hair, pondering.
"Wait, wasn't it two lines?" Nico scratched her head.
"Rin knows! Rin totally knows, nyaa~!" Rin raised her hand excitedly.
"What is it?!" Honoka asked excitedly.
"A humble girl like me has nothing to offer except..." Rin trailed off, and her face quickly turned red.
"You mean, 'except offering myself'?" Nozomi grinned playfully. "Honestly, Rin-chan, you've been confessed to by Homura-kun so passionately before, yet you still get all shy about this stuff?"
"Nyahaha... Rin's still not used to it..." Rin awkwardly scratched the back of her head. "But everyone else is the same, nyaa~!"
"Yeah... Looks like there's no choice but to offer ourselves then..." Nozomi kept teasing, making the girls even more flustered.
"Even though I was mentally prepared, hearing that still makes me pretty happy. Good thing no one said the other line." Homura chimed in and let out a breath of relief.
"Huh? What other line?" Kotori asked curiously.
Regardless, hearing that Homura was happy, she couldn't help but smile a little herself.
"Didn't Nico say there were two lines? It's the other one." Homura replied.
"But I can't quite remember it... It feels like it's right on the tip of my tongue..." Hanayo pondered, stroking her chin thoughtfully.
"Fufufu..." Nozomi suddenly giggled and looked at Homura. "Don't worry, Homura-kun. I have a feeling no one's gonna say the other one to you."
As soon as Homura saw Nozomi's smile, he knew that she definitely remembered.
"Well then, I'm glad." Homura chuckled.
"Mou, stop being all mysterious..." Maki pouted.
At this, Homura shook his head and decided to tell them.
"Alright, the other line is: 'A humble girl like me has nothing to offer, except in my next life, I'll repay you by working like a horse or an ox.'"
Upon hearing this, the girls looked at each other, and after a moment, the whole room burst into laughter.