She Will Be Loved

"She Will Be Loved" is the ninth episode of StarLight. It was published on FictionPress and SparkaTale between 2 August and 13 September 2016, marking the series' return to a weekly schedule after the erratic publication of the previous episode, "Summer Vacation". "She Will Be Loved" follows Ryouichi and Hinata in their respective attempts to impress their love interests, Sanae and Hideki, in the run-up to Valentine's Day.

Plot
A week before Valentine's Day, Ryouichi decides to finally confess his feelings to Sanae. He bakes a cake, hoping to present it to her, but it vanishes, having been stolen by Kage in the previous episode despite this making no chronological sense. At the same time, Hinata decides to confess her feelings to Hideki, a boy in her class, and enlists the help of the White Star Fan Club in doing so.

Mio first suggests that Hinata write Hideki a love letter, but Hinata accidentally places it in a girl's locker instead. Hitomi then suggests spying on Hideki to find out his interests and preferences. Sanae outsources this to Kazuo by telling him that Hideki is a lizardman, but Kazuo does not discover any meaningful information. Meanwhile, Ryouichi buys a dozen red roses for Sanae, only to discover he is allergic to them.

Next, Nagisa suggests that Hinata seduce Hideki with a wall slam. Hinata attempts to do so but, in a busy crowd, accidentally wall-slams the girl she had earlier given the love letter to. Finally, Sanae suggests that they simply work together to help Hinata make Valentine's chocolates. This plan works successfully, but as Sanae heads home with some of the leftover chocolate, another monster attack occurs.

Ryouichi takes advantage of the attack to make one last attempt at impressing Sanae, by becoming the customed hero "Sombrero Guy". White Star, swayed by his noble intentions (and not recognizing him), allows him to join her, and the pair track the monster to the arcade; however, White Star quickly concludes that it is far too dangerous for Sombrero Guy and orders him to retreat. White Star defeats the monster while Ryouichi leaves, despairing that he will never win Sanae's affections.

The following morning, the girl Hinata had accidentally flirted with introduces herself as Maki and confesses to Ryouichi, having recognized him as Sombrero Guy. She shows him a news report in which White Star praises Sombrero Guy's courage and nobility. Ryouichi decides that winning Maki over is "good enough", and agrees to be her boyfriend. Hideki, meanwhile, rejects both Hinata and another girl, explaining he is not yet ready for a relationship.