Faced with Kazehara Tetsu's "unreasonable" comment, which seemed to be a bit of a cold shoulder, Horikita Manabu did not show any offended expression.
"At this point... I can't make any more changes."
"In a few months, I will graduate from This School. By then, even if I want to correct the distortion of Nagumo, there will be no way."
"But..."
Horikita Manabu's eyes were locked on Kazehara Tetsu.
"At least now, while I can still stand here, I can leave a thought. As for the result... let time and you latecomers decide."
"Now that the matter has been decided, I have accepted the information."
"Then... let's talk about another more interesting thing. About your 'cute' sister...Horikita Suzune."
Horikita Manabu's expression is still cold and hard, like an iron plate without temperature.
"There's nothing more to say about Suzune."
"Don't be so cold, President."
Kazehara Tetsu was not dissuaded by this repulsive attitude, but instead took half a step forward, with a bit more meaning in that cynical smile.
"Although Outsider is not clear, I can see clearly. In the past few months, the girl who once only chased your back like a poor imitator has changed a lot."
"At least... she will no longer blindly do things according to your idea of a 'perfect superman'. She has begun to have her own thinking, even if that kind of thinking is still very immature."
"..."
Horikita Manabu was silent for a moment.
"Indeed."
After a long time, he finally admitted this.
"She has definitely changed a lot."
"Originally, in my opinion, she was a straight line that had already been set on a trajectory that would only extend rigidly, but now... this line has deflected."
He looked at Kazehara Tetsu.
"It seems... that I was influenced a lot by 'someone'."
The intended meaning of these words could not be more obvious.
"It is precisely because of the intervention of that 'variable' that her growth trajectory has undergone some changes that even I did not expect. Although it has become more unpredictable... But at least, she is no longer willing to follow my path, but has begun to explore her own way of survival."
"Since you can see it so clearly, since you have acknowledged her change..."
Kazehara Tetsu spread his hands, with some incomprehensible confusion in his tone.
"Then why haven't you accepted your current sister? Why do you still maintain that indifferent attitude in front of others?"
"Accept? It's still too early."
"Now Horikita Suzune has indeed thought and struggled. But... she still lacks something."
"What's wrong?"
"Courage."
These two words came out of Horikita Manabu's mouth.
"Face my courage."
"Right now, she is still 'avoiding' me, or trying to 'circumvent' me to prove something."
"When one day, she no longer does it for my approval, but for her own beliefs..."
"At that time, she will be a truly grown-up sister."
"Before this, any tenderness was just poison that hindered her."
Is this Spartan education?
Kazehara Tetsu Listening to these remarks, I couldn't help but feel dumbfounded in my heart.
"As an older brother, you are really strict."
He couldn't help but complain.
"Obviously I care about you so much in my heart, but on the surface I still pretend to be righteous enough to kill my relatives. If I were Suzune, I would probably have a psychological shadow long ago."
"Harsh?"
Horikita Manabu has no comment on this evaluation.
"There's nothing we can do about it."
Suddenly, his conversation changed, and the pressure originally directed at his sister was instantly transferred to Kazehara Tetsu.
"I could have had more time to wait for her to awaken. But... it was your influence Kazehara Tetsu that disrupted my rhythm."
"Because of your intervention, her growth rate has been forcibly accelerated, and her direction has even shifted. This makes me, the older brother, have to deal with this change in advance."
"If we continue to use the previous set of standards, I'm afraid we won't be able to accurately evaluate her now."
"Eh?"
Kazehara Tetsu blinked.
"What are you talking about? What does this have to do with me? I'm just an enthusiastic classmate passing by."
"When did you discover it?"
He asked tentatively, trying to make a last effort to conceal his identity as the mastermind behind the scenes.
"No need to act stupid, Kagihara."
Horikita Manabu didn't give him this chance and directly exposed his thin disguise.
"You should know very well how much I pay attention to my sister's affairs."
"Everyone around her, everything that happens... is within my field of vision. And in these few months, the person who can occupy a dominant position..."
"There is no one else except you."
The air fell into silence again.
Kazehara Tetsu didn't refute, just shrugged. That default attitude was a silent showdown.
Now that he has been seen through, there is no need to act out that clumsy drama again.
Horikita Manabu quietly stared at the young man in front of him.
He didn't want to ask that question.
But as a brother's instinct, or as a final confirmation before leaving office, he still spoke.
"Kagihara."
"You..."
"Are you interested in my sister?"
"..."
"This really... scared me."
"I originally thought you would ask me what I thought about Student Council, or my countermeasures against Nagumo. I didn't expect..."
Kazehara Tetsu's gaze met Horikita Manabu's gaze directly without any dodge.
"Indeed."
"I'm really interested in Horikita Suzune."
"If I wasn't interested, and I'm not a philanthropist, why would I go out of my way to help her? To guide her? Or even to give her a hand when she was about to collapse?"
"I have invested so much time and energy... naturally in order to receive my 'return' at the end."
These words sound a bit utilitarian, even a bit scumbag.
But this is Kazehara Tetsu.
There is no hypocritical "for her own good", only a naked "I want her".
Hear this answer.
There was no anger on Horikita Manabu's face, nor was there the vigilance that a brother should have when hearing someone coveting his sister.
On the contrary.
His expression seemed to relax a little, as if he had received an answer that was expected but had to be confirmed with his own ears.
"Really?"
He responded calmly, with no hint of emotion or anger.
"That being the case..."
There are no warnings, such as "stay away from my sister" or "if you dare to hurt her, I will kill you" or other cliché lines.
Horikita Manabu took a deep look at Kazehara Tetsu and finally nodded.
"Then do whatever you want."
This is Tacit Approval, also a kind of letting go.
"Gone."
Horikita Manabu didn't say any more nonsense, took steps and left here.
"What a... awkward brother."
Kazehara Tetsu sighed in a low voice.
This chance encounter with Christmas Eve was actually more fruitful than imagined.