Become Number One in Your Heart

After leaving the Dormitory Building, Yuyuki secretly followed Kushida through the small forest nearby. What came into view was a vast azure artificial lake. As it was already close to dawn, there was no one else around.

Kushida leaned against the railing and gazed at the tranquil lake, carefully listening to the sounds around her. Apart from the rustling of water stirred by the breeze, there was no other movement nearby.

Only then did she slowly open her eyes. Her face no longer held its usual sweetness, replaced instead by a terrifyingly violent expression. Then she angrily kicked the railing, producing a deep buzzing echo.

"Damn it, why is that damn Horikita at this school? She even dared to expose my past. That damn guy—don't think this is going to end like this."

"And Tenyo Yuyuki, he's practically an idiot. Horikita fooled him so easily. What a moron. An idiot."

Kushida kicked the steel railing again and again, making it hum continuously as she occasionally cursed herself with words like idiot and fool.

Yuyuki watched the scene from behind a tree.

Though he knew that most people in the world lived behind masks, there were still few whose contrast was as extreme as Kushida's.

He silently listened to Kushida's curses.

Horikita's name had come up several times, but his own had come up even more often. Compared to her hatred for Horikita, Kushida seemed even more dissatisfied with Yuyuki's foolishness.

"That's enough."

Yuyuki revealed a faint smile.

Having read the original work, he naturally understood very clearly

that Kushida was someone who operated on the presumption of guilt.

Whether the other person bore her goodwill or malice, or whether they knew about her past, in truth, none of that mattered to Kushida.

What mattered was

that as long as Kushida believed you knew, she would use every possible means to force you out of school.

More importantly, Kushida's inner strength was also exceptional. Though she could not endure the psychological strain brought by hypocrisy, she still chose to press onward. No matter who her enemy was or how powerful they were, Kushida was willing to sacrifice everything to protect her place at the school.

Against someone like that, trying to rely solely on strength and goodwill would never work.

Looking at her back, Yuyuki stepped out from behind the trees and called uncertainly, "Little Kikyo?"

Upon hearing Yuyuki's voice, Kushida's shoulders visibly trembled. She turned back to look at the somewhat surprised Yuyuki, her pupils shrinking slightly. Even she had moments when she could no longer keep acting, but Kushida quickly composed herself.

"Yuyuki?" Kushida mocked teasingly. "What is it? Are you disappointed after seeing me like this?"

Unable to help herself, Kushida blurted out the question.

After asking it, Kushida frowned. Even she did not quite understand why she had asked that.

Logically speaking, what she should have done now was seize some leverage over Yuyuki and prevent him from revealing what had happened here.

Otherwise, given Yuyuki's standing in class and the rumors from the start of school, Kushida's image would surely collapse.

Was it because, at the start of school, Yuyuki had saved her like a ray of light?

Though Kushida felt somewhat dejected, she quickly steeled herself. Nothing was more important than her image in class.

Hearing Kushida's question, Yuyuki instead revealed a faint smile.

Spreading rumors at the start of school could not only raise D Class's guard against Kushida, but also plant a seed when Kushida was in trouble.

Those who greedily fed on trust would eventually be burdened by it.

"Honestly, it really startled me." Yuyuki scratched his cheek and said awkwardly, "But I'm not disappointed. If anything, I think this version of Kushida is even better?"

"Huh?"

Kushida exhaled in disbelief. Her gaze remained sinister as she said gloomily, "I knew you were an idiot, but you can still say it's better after seeing me like this? What exactly do you mean?"

"Well..." Yuyuki said softly, "The old Kushida always felt very distant to me. But now, I feel like you're closer instead. Does that sound kind of disgusting?"

Looking at the somewhat bashful Yuyuki before her, Kushida clenched her small hands and fell silent for a moment.

A perfect goddess was difficult to approach, but seeing her like this had instead made Yuyuki think he had a better chance of getting closer to her.

If it had been someone else, Kushida would have immediately forced them to leave fingerprints and secured some leverage. Yet she actually believed Yuyuki's explanation.

Her actions at the start of school had indeed produced results.

It was just that Yuyuki would become even harder to deal with.

"Tch, this is so annoying."

Kushida turned her head aside and irritably bit her finger.

She was also hesitating over whether to force Yeyue to withdraw from school. Judging by the situation, Yeyue would not expose her past.

Thinking of this, Kushida walked over to Yeyue, placed one hand on her hip, and poked his chest with the other. She said coldly, "Listen carefully. If you dare tell anyone about what happened here, I will never let you off. Understand?"

"Hm... this is a secret that belongs only to Little Kikyo and me."

Hearing Yeyue's reply only made Kushida even angrier. She grabbed him by the collar with both hands and said fiercely, "You really are an utterly hopeless idiot. Why do you trust me so easily? Clearly... clearly..."

Although Kushida did not finish her sentence, Yeyue understood perfectly well.

As Long As he said anything even slightly inappropriate, Kushida could make him withdraw from school without any psychological burden. What he had done At the Start of School had only earned him the bare minimum of trust; there was still a long way to go before Kushida could instantly regard him as one of her own.

However, for Kushida, who believed in presumption of guilt, this was a necessary step.

"Little Kikyo, calm down first." Pressing a hand on Kushida's shoulder, Yeyue waited for her to settle down before saying, "Then... were the rumors At the Start of School all true?"

"That's right." Kushida crossed her arms and calmly nodded.

As Long As she was given an opportunity, she could list Yeyue as an enemy Without Hesitation. However, she hoped Yeyue would be the one to give her that excuse.

Unfortunately, Yeyue would not give her that chance.

"Then if Little Kikyo and I got together, would you treat me the same way?"

"Who knows?"

Kushida Cannot Help but avoid Yeyue's gaze. With a Cold Laugh, she said, "Yeyue, you have no idea how nauseating it is to be trusted by everyone, yet have to suppress the disgust in your heart every day and cater to people you hate. When the day comes that I can't endure it anymore, I'll expose your secret too."

"Though I can't understand the feelings you're talking about, that's enough." Yeyue said indifferently, "If that would make Little Kikyo feel better, I'd be more than willing."

It was the answer she had expected. Though she had long known that he was an idiot, Kushida still felt somewhat disappointed, yet also slightly happy.

This was the joy of being trusted. Kushida was often trusted by others, and she had long since grown accustomed to and enjoyed it. Yet even after Yeyue learned her true nature, he was still willing to trust her. That trust was so different from all the rest.

Kushida lowered her head slightly. When she raised it again, her sweet smile had returned.

"Do whatever you like, Yeyue. Let's go back!"

"Hm."

The two returned to the dormitory, chatting and laughing along the way. From Kushida's behavior, there was no trace of the violent aura she had shown earlier. The elevator also stopped on the � floor.

Unexpectedly, Kushida got off the elevator on this floor as well.

"Kushida, aren't you going back?"

"I'm going to your room. I'm not satisfied yet."

After confirming that no one was around, Kushida returned to that sinister expression.