The Silent Vigil

On Wednesday afternoon, the sky was a hazy gray-white. Sunlight struggled behind the thick clouds, casting a gloomy pall over the entire campus. Feng Qi stood by a corridor window on the third floor of the School Building, absently rubbing the edge of Sakura's sketch. It showed Ishizaki talking with an unfamiliar student in front of a vending machine. With delicate strokes, Sakura had captured the unusual caution on Ishizaki's face.

But his gaze went beyond the sketch, following a familiar figure in the courtyard below.

Horikita Suzune was walking alone toward the Library. Her stride was as straight-backed as ever, each step landing precisely in the center of the stone path, as though she maintained order within herself through this ritual. Yet on closer inspection, her back seemed heavier than usual, her shoulders slightly stiff, as if bearing an invisible weight.

Ever since yesterday's meeting in the Old Library's book collection room, Feng Qi had noticed something was off about her. When they discussed how Ryuen might use the school's Class Evaluation System to cause trouble, her fingers had unconsciously tightened, leaving deep creases along the edge of the meeting notes. In that moment, what had flashed in her eyes wasn't her usual cool analysis, but a rare trace of anxiety.

"Are you watching Horikita?"

Kushida Kikyo had appeared beside him at some point, her voice as soft as a whisper. She followed Feng Qi's gaze. Her eyes, usually filled with laughter, were now full of worry. "She's been a little distracted since this morning. During math class, when Onodera asked about applications of quadratic functions, she unusually failed to answer at once. She paused for a full two seconds."

Feng Qi looked away from Horikita and down at the sketch in his hand. The paper had grown slightly warm from his repeated rubbing. "Ryuen is systematically looking for every class's weak points. For Class D, he chose the target that's easiest to overlook, but also the one most capable of shaking its foundations."

Kushida immediately understood what he meant and drew in a quiet breath. "You mean he's targeting what Horikita cares about most..."

"The balance she's worked so hard to maintain." Feng Qi's voice was soft, nearly lost in the distant clamor outside. He remembered that after yesterday's meeting, Horikita had been the last to leave. She had stopped at the end of the corridor, gazing for a long time toward the Student Council Office, where her brother worked.

The classroom felt stifling and heavy during afternoon Modern Literature. As their Japanese teacher, Nakamura, explained a passage about human weakness in Natsume Soseki's Kokoro, Horikita, who was usually attentive, stared out the window in a daze. Her fingertip rested on the page, unmoving, while she gazed blankly at the clouds drifting across the sky. She returned to normal after only a few seconds and quickly noted down the teacher's main points, but even that brief lapse was enough to show how unsettled she was.

At break, the classroom was soon filled with the din of conversation. Ike and Yamauchi loudly argued about the latest manga plot, Sudo dozed with his head on his desk, and several girls gathered around Hirata to discuss preparations for the upcoming Culture Festival. Amid the commotion, Feng Qi noticed Horikita quietly pack her books and head alone to the Open-air Platform on the top floor of the School Building. It was a place she often went when she was in a bad mood, where she could overlook the whole campus without being disturbed.

"Should we follow her?" Hirata's voice came from behind him. He had noticed Horikita's unusual behavior too, and his brow was furrowed with the same concern.

"Give her some space to be alone," Feng Qi said, though his feet had already started toward the stairwell. "I'll make sure she's safe."

The wind on the Open-air Platform was strong, rushing past their ears and whipping their clothes about. When Feng Qi pushed open the heavy iron door, its rusted hinges let out a grating squeal. Horikita was leaning against the railing with her back to the entrance. Her long hair whipped wildly in the wind, and her slender shoulders looked especially slight beneath her loose school uniform. She didn't turn around, but the tension in her back showed that she had sensed someone's arrival.

"If you came to comfort me, there's no need." Her voice carried through the wind, harsher than usual, as if she had deliberately raised a barrier.

"I just came up for some air." Feng Qi walked over and stopped at a carefully measured distance from her—close enough to reach out if needed, but not so close that she'd feel pressured. His gaze swept over her hand gripping the railing. Her knuckles had gone faintly white from the force, betraying the turmoil within her.

They stood side by side in silence, looking down at the campus. From here, the windows of the Student Council Office were clearly visible. Behind those windows lay the domain of the brother she had always strived to catch up with. Feng Qi noticed that Horikita's gaze remained fixed in that direction, her expression impossible to read.

"The Student Council's regular meeting is this afternoon," Horikita suddenly said, her voice so faint the wind nearly carried it away. "If Ryuen really is spreading negative opinions about Class D and affecting our Class Points, then my brother..."

She left the sentence unfinished, but Feng Qi understood her completely. Horikita had always seen her brother as her goal, and surpassing him was what drove her forward. Anything that might affect the Student Council's judgment—especially anything that might make her look incompetent in front of him—would matter deeply to her. It struck her far more profoundly than an ordinary threat would.

A sudden gust of wind swept in, violently flipping open the notebook she had spread across the railing. Its pages fluttered wildly with a rustle, like a startled flock of birds. A neatly folded sheet slipped out, spun through the air, and landed at Feng Qi's feet.

He bent to pick it up and found a photocopy of the Class Evaluation Metrics, with several key items carefully circled in red: classroom discipline, participation in extracurricular activities, and class cooperation. Every one was a weak point for Class D, and a likely target for Ryuen.

"What's this...?"

"I got it from Hirata." Horikita's tone carried a trace of self-mockery. She finally turned to look at Feng Qi, her eyes slightly red from the wind. "I can't believe I've started worrying about this kind of thing too. It's... ridiculous."

Feng Qi handed the paper back to her, his fingertips accidentally brushing hers. They both paused at the brief contact. Her fingers were cold, as if she had been standing in the wind too long.

"You don't have to bear all this alone." Feng Qi looked at her wind-reddened profile, his voice calm and firm. "We're a team. Hirata, Kushida, Sakura, and I—we're all working toward the same goal."

Horikita lowered her head, her long hair falling like a waterfall and hiding her expression. This was the first time Feng Qi had seen her so visibly shaken. A fine crack had appeared in that cold protective shell.

"I just..." Her voice was nearly swept away by the wind, tinged with a rare vulnerability. "I don't want my own shortcomings to drag down the class's evaluation. And I especially don't want... that person to think I can't even handle something like this."

Just then, the phone in her pocket suddenly vibrated, shattering the fragile moment. Horikita glanced at the screen, and her expression shifted slightly. Feng Qi caught a glimpse of the two characters "Tachibana" on the display. It was Tachibana Akane, the Student Council secretary.

"I have to go." She hurriedly gathered her things and clutched her notebook to her chest, as if guarding her last line of defense. Then she strode toward the stairwell without even saying goodbye.

Feng Qi stood alone on the empty platform, watching her disappear through the iron door. The faint scent of her shampoo lingered in the wind: a crisp mint, mingled with the dampness that heralded rain.

He took out his phone and messaged Hirata and Kushida: "Keep a close eye on developments with the Class Evaluation. Ryuen may be starting to apply pressure through the system. Pay particular attention to the latest Student Council meeting."

As he pressed send, Feng Qi unconsciously tightened his grip on the phone. In this increasingly complicated game, Horikita's vulnerability had been laid bare. Protecting her from being crushed by her overwhelming sense of responsibility, and helping her learn to rely on her classmates, might be more important—and more difficult—than countering Ryuen's Scheme.

Dark clouds were gathering on the distant horizon, rolling toward the campus. A storm seemed to be coming after all. And Feng Qi knew that, through it, he had to be the one who could hold an umbrella over her.