I wonder what the point of a character like Houjou is.
Hard to say without seeing how this arc will end up, but if I had to guess, it's to force a change in Mai and Tae's relationship. I enjoyed the first half of this volume, especially the birthday present, but the basic dynamic between them (Mai enjoys teasing Tae without reflecting on why, while Tae gets embarrassed but holds fast to strong boundaries due to the age gap) hasn't really changed since like chapter 3. Now, with the introduction of Houjou, it's already been demonstrated that Tae is the first person Mai turns to when she's feeling down, and it looks like she'll soon force Tae to face the age gap issue head-on in a way she's been managing to avoid doing up to now.
Now I do think Houjou could've been introduced better, she's certainly not a very entertaining character at the moment aside from when she's being Draco Malfoy, but I think the concept behind her character does make sense. We'll just have to see if the mangaka sticks the landing.
last edited at Aug 3, 2022 11:10PM