Miyabi Nagumo's words had struck right at Ichinose's weak spot, and she hesitated.
Just as Ichinose was about to sacrifice herself for the good of her class and agree to Nagumo's advances, Akasaka grabbed Nagumo by the wrist and pulled him behind himself. His gaze turned icy.
"Vice President Nagumo, if you want to pursue my girl, you should at least respect who got here first."
"Or are you saying... you want to make an enemy of me?"
Akasaka adopted an unprecedentedly forceful attitude. It was clear he wasn't joking.
If Nagumo insisted on stealing Ichinose away, Akasaka might really become his enemy.
Meanwhile, Ichinose remained rooted to the spot, staring blankly at everything unfolding before her.
Akasaka's words, calling her his girlfriend, kept replaying in her mind. Her face instantly turned scarlet, and steam seemed to rise from her head.
Akasaka had no time to worry about any of that. His eyes were fixed firmly on Nagumo.
Nagumo was silent for a long while before giving a mocking laugh.
"You could've just told me earlier that she was your girl. I wouldn't have made a move on her. We're colleagues, after all."
Nagumo backed down.
It wasn't that he was afraid of Akasaka. He simply needed to focus on dealing with Horikita Manabu and didn't want to make himself another enemy for no reason.
Besides, this enemy was no weaker than the Student Council President. He might even be stronger.
According to rumors circulating outside, Akasaka Ryunosuke was the culprit behind Class A and Class B switching places.
Nagumo didn't want to antagonize such a formidable opponent just yet. The time wasn't right.
In the end, Nagumo gave up on pursuing Ichinose and left with a carefree stride.
Akasaka watched him go without saying a word.
Ichinose tugged at Akasaka's collar and lowered her head as she thanked him.
"Thank you for helping me out, Akasaka. But it was a bit much to use me as an excuse, don't you think?"
Ichinose puffed out her cheeks. She'd finally realized that Akasaka had been using her as an excuse.
Her earlier feelings of gratitude vanished, replaced by a little resentment.
Faced with such an adorable Ichinose, Akasaka remained unmoved and kindly offered her a warning.
"Stay away from Miyabi Nagumo from now on. I could help you this time because I happened to be nearby. You might not be so lucky next time."
Ichinose nodded solemnly.
"I understand. Thank you for the warning, Akasaka."
Once he'd made sure Ichinose was all right, Akasaka prepared to leave too. "If that's everything, I'll be going now, Ichinose."
Ichinose nodded as she came back to her senses, then shook her head.
Akasaka looked at her, confused.
Ichinose's cheeks were rosy as she spoke bashfully. "Um! Akasaka, let me treat you to a meal. You helped me out, after all, so let me thank you by buying you dinner."
Akasaka thought it over, then nodded.
It was a free meal, after all. He might as well enjoy something good.
Ichinose happily led him to the student cafeteria, where she ordered the most luxurious student meal, worth 3,800 Personal Points.
Akasaka dug in without hesitation.
It was a top-of-the-line deluxe meal.
It came with Australian Lobster as a garnish, along with six pieces of Tempura—fried shrimp.
For dessert, there was a slice of chocolate cake and some Strawberry Pudding.
The drinks were a Milkshake and Milk Tea.
Akasaka ate with relish. He normally couldn't bring himself to spend money on something this nice.
Ichinose watched him from the side, as though remembering how much she'd been able to eat before she enrolled, too.
Back then, she'd been growing fast and had been a bit chubby, with a round face.
But by her third year of middle school, she'd grown into her looks and become the person she was now.
If her middle school classmates saw her as she was today, they probably wouldn't recognize her...
After all, her hair had been flaxen back then, while now it was pinkish gold.
Ichinose twirled a strand of hair and held it up to examine it, looking troubled.
How strange. I never dyed my hair, but it turned pinkish gold on its own...
Akasaka quickly finished the deluxe meal, let out a satisfied burp, then picked up a toothpick and began picking his teeth, looking thoroughly content.
"Wow! It's been ages since I've eaten this well."
Akasaka patted his little belly to show that he was full.
Ichinose happily paid the bill for them. Including her own meal, it came to only 4,030 Personal Points.
She'd been frugal with her own food, ordering only a Poor Set Meal worth 230 points.
Although her classmates had entrusted most of their points to her for safekeeping, she didn't dare spend them carelessly. She was even reluctant to use her own points.
When Ichinose learned that points could buy everything at this school, she understood how important they were. She was usually very thrifty, spending only a little over 10,000 points a month.
She still had 180,000 Personal Points left, which showed just how frugal she was. She could give Akasaka a run for his money.
Even so, it hadn't stopped Ichinose from developing...
It was hard to understand. How could Ichinose be so thrifty and still develop so well? How many girls must have been jealous of her?
Especially the flat-chested ones... like Sakayanagi Arisu, for example.
Elsewhere, Sakayanagi suddenly sneezed.
"Achoo! Who's talking about me?"
Our adorable Little Princess, Miss Sakayanagi Arisu, furrowed her brows. Even so, she was still cute.
The students from the former Class A, now Class B, were all captivated by the adorable Sakayanagi Arisu. More than half of them were even willing to submit beneath her white-stockinged bare feet.
Meanwhile, after saying goodbye to Ichinose, Akasaka prepared to head back.
He had important matters to discuss with Horikita Manabu, and his schedule was tight.
With Ichinose watching him leave, reluctance written all over her face, Akasaka finally disappeared from her sight.
Akasaka hadn't gone far when he ran into Nagumo, who'd been waiting for him for quite a while.
Akasaka regarded him warily.
"Is there something else?"
Nagumo had his hands in his pockets and a smile on his face. He strolled up beside Akasaka and asked curiously,
"You... are you really dating Honami-chan? Somehow, it doesn't seem that way to me~"
Nagumo glanced pointedly at Ichinose in the distance.
"People in a normal relationship don't leave their girlfriends behind and walk off alone. You're not pretending, are you?"
Akasaka shot Nagumo a cold look.
"What? You want to steal her from me?"
Nagumo shrugged helplessly.
"Don't make it sound so bad. It's a matter of mutual consent."
"If you hadn't been there just now, I would've gotten what I wanted."
Nagumo patted Akasaka on the shoulder.
"Little Honami will be mine sooner or later. I've never failed to get a woman I wanted. We'll see."
With his hands in his pockets, Nagumo headed toward Ichinose. He clearly hadn't given up, and he also wanted to test whether Akasaka's claim was true.
A man in his position wasn't the sort to think only with his lower half.
I sighed deeply. I knew full well it was a trap, but I had no choice but to step into it. What a headache.
When Ichinose saw Nagumo coming her way again, she looked a little nervous.
Akasaka wasn't there to help her now. She timidly pulled out her phone, preparing to call a classmate—Kanzaki Ryuji—to come help.
But it would take time for Kanzaki Ryuji to get the message and come over. He was sure to be slower than Nagumo, who was already close by.
Nagumo quickly reached Little Honami and extended a hand to put it around her arm. He glanced at Akasaka Ryunosuke in the distance and saw that he wasn't coming over. A little puzzled, he wondered,
Strange. Was I wrong?
Just as Nagumo thought he'd been mistaken, the sound of a camera flash rang out. It was the shutter sound of a Japanese phone camera.
To prevent voyeurs from taking photos, Japan had made it impossible to disable the flash on any Japanese phone. So Nagumo quickly realized someone had photographed him. His heart sank, and he suddenly had a bad feeling.
After taking a photo of Nagumo harassing Ichinose, Akasaka hurried over and slapped away the dirty hand blocking her. He pulled Ichinose back with a bold gesture and held her tightly in his arms.
"Oh!" Ichinose let out a cute little whimper. Her face flushed scarlet as Akasaka held her slender waist, her head buried against him.
She felt she couldn't face anyone now. Ichinose's face had turned completely red.
Akasaka hurriedly called the Student Council President, ready to report Nagumo. He didn't notice that Ichinose Honami in his arms was practically boiling over with embarrassment..
The call connected quickly, and Akasaka launched into his complaint without a word of preamble.
"Hello? President Horikita, Miyabi Nagumo hit on my girl and tried to steal her from me. I have photos to prove it! You have to give me justice, President!!!"
Akasaka pretended to wipe away crocodile tears and continued describing his nonexistent grievances.
"If Miyabi Nagumo doesn't pay me several million in emotional damages, I won't let this go!"
Miyabi Nagumo...
Horikita Manabu...
And Ichinose Honami, wearing a dazed and adorable expression.
Before you continue