A Bridge to the Starry Skies

Hoshino comes back to his childhood place. He goes in pursuit of a monkey taking his brothers hat and meets Ui. He kisses Ui by accident by falling on her and Hinata appears and thought Hoshino forces himself on Ui calling him a pervert. When the brothers reach the Yorozuyo inn they are welcomed by the owner and shows them their room. When Hoshino came to bathe he was accidentaly seen naked by Tsumugi Todo and the owner of the inn Senka Yorozuyo. In the morning they go to the school they transferred in and Tsumugi shows the brothers the way to their schools. When Hoshino enters the class, Hinata notices him and she was surpirsed to see him in their school « read less

Following an awkward morning and breakfast with Senka, Kazuma and Ayumu head to school with Daigo. As Ui and Ibuki catch up, Kazuma experiences an aura that he is being watched. Class breaks for lunch; on his way with Daigo to get food, Kazuma experiences another aura as a girl hides. Homeroom is let out; as Kazuma leaves with Daigo, he spots the girl and gives chase. Bumping into and startling Madoka instead, bodyslams him onto the floor. The next morning, shooed out of the inn, Kazuma rethinks the incident and decides to apologize to Madoka; finding her at the shrine. Making up, she inquires about him and Ui, brought to tears upon hearing they kissed. Watching this from atop a tree and upset at Madoka crying, the girl from earlier reveals herself to be Koyori Toudou, Tsumugi's other sister. Berating the poor boy with acorns, and to the defense of Madoka, Koyori pardons Kazuma and leaves. On their way from school the next day, Ui and Kazuma bump into Ayumu. With a moderate fever, Kazuma piggybacks him the rest of the way as Ui fantasizes about being carried. Back at the house, Ayumu asleep, Kazuma and Ui relax in his room. Senka drops by with Tea and Daifuku, of which Ui immediately begins to make a mess of herself eating. To his amusement, Kazuma laughs. « read less

The school games are on and Ui, Hoshino, Hinata and friends are all participating. The title comes from the last event in the games, when they have to all do a series of random tasks in a race. First, they must each eat 30 bowls of red bean soup, then they must catch eels, then they must pick a card and dress up in the costume that matches (The wedding dress). « read less

With finals over, everyone save for Ibuki and Ayumu plan a trip to Honchou, a nearby metropolis, to celebrate. When a bus is unavailable to accommodate the group for two hours, they detour to an arcade to pass time. Having stayed at school to practice, Ibuki finds it difficult to concentrate, Kazuma on her mind. The group assembles the following week to watch her participate in a nationwide target archery competition; despite making it to the finals, Ibuki is eliminated. Kazuma finds the distraught girl at the overlook, cheering her up. « read less

On his way back from a trip to Honchou, Kazuma finds Hina at the park alone and hungry. Buying the desolate girl food and drink, he sits with her as she describes a recent fight with her father that drove her to run away, left with nowhere to go. Against his better judgment, he discreetly takes her in. Senka discovers the hidden arrangement but agrees to house Hina in exchange for housekeeping. News of this reaches her father, and following a failed attempt to extradite his daughter, Kazuma is challenged to tug-of-war in her name. The battle is fierce and close, but thanks to no small measure of luck, Kazuma wins. « read less

School back in session, Daigo reiterates his discontent to Kazuma about rejecting Madoka on their way to class. As Kazuma tries to explain otherwise, she happily catches up to them. Class out for the day, and walking home together, Ibuki neutrally warns Ui that unless she confesses to Kazuma soon, someone else might; including herself. That night, as both girls ponder the conversation, Ayumu calls Ui and asks if she will model for him the next day. That morning, acting on behalf of this, Senka shoos Kazuma out of the inn. Aimless and bored, he decides to visit the shopping district, bumping into Ibuki along the way. The two instead travel together to Honchou and spend the day playing arcade games, trying on clothes, dining, and singing karaoke. Back at the house, Ayumu takes a break and sits with Ui who is surprised to learn that the drawing is a gift for Kazuma, as he believes they're dating. As the day closes in, Ui bids her regards and walks home, upset. Sitting at the park, Ibuki happily thanks Kazuma for their time out, jokingly describing them as a couple and though serious, playfully asks him out. He sharply turns down the offer and leaves; though a minute or so into doing this, runs back to apologize. Fighting the urge to cry, Ibuki, heartwrenched, maintains her offer was a joke; returning home as rainclouds drench her. Back home, discontent with her behavior from her brother's marriage, Ui calls him to the surprise that his wife, Kuriko, is pregnant. Ibuki heads to the overlook early in the morning to vent about Kazuma. As she heads to school, Ui catches up, overjoyed that she is going to be an aunt. « read less