Sakayanagi's Indirect Rescue

In the dormitory at midnight, Shangguan Che tossed and turned. When he opened his eyes, he saw Hirata still tapping away at his phone screen.

The light from the screen reflected on Hirata's face, and one could vaguely make out the gentle expression he wore while replying to messages.

There was no need to guess; it was definitely another girl from the class asking about schoolwork.

This guy, isn't his energy a bit too boundless? Shangguan Che muttered to himself. He spent the whole day running around looking for clues, and now he's staying up this late to chat with girls. Is this a good thing or a bad thing?

He stared at Hirata's back for a few seconds, but soon his eyelids grew heavy with sleepiness.

Whatever, this was Hirata's own choice; he should just focus on getting some sleep. After all, he had walked nearly twenty thousand steps today and his legs felt like they were about to break—he couldn't afford to worry about other people's business anymore.

Just before drifting off into a hazy sleep, an image he had seen in the cafeteria during the day suddenly flashed through Shangguan Che's mind.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was sitting across from Horikita Suzune, appearing to be zoning out, but in reality, he had been observing everyone the entire time.

He suddenly snapped his eyes open and sat up: "Wait, Ayanokoji isn't about to make a move, is he?"

When they were discussing the Sudo incident during the day, Ayanokoji hadn't said much, yet at the critical moment, he asked, "Did the school record it?" which instantly brought everyone back to reality.

The more Shangguan Che thought about it, the more something felt off: Ayanokoji seemed to be doing things through Horikita, never stepping forward himself. Was he trying to hide his true strength, or was he trying to help Horikita build a reputation?

"Could it be that when they shook hands that night, they reached some kind of deal?" Shangguan Che rubbed his chin, suddenly thinking of the novel Versatile Mage he had read before. "Just like the protagonist cooperating with that 'turtle shell' at the academy—you get the fame, I get the profit?"

If what Horikita wanted was the prestige of "leading Class D to Class A," then what did Ayanokoji want? Money? Points? Or something else entirely?

He tossed and turned for a long time, but couldn't figure out the reason: "As expected of a school mystery world, the water is too deep; I can't understand it at all!"

In the end, he had to give up on thinking and collapsed back into bed.

Anyway, as long as Ayanokoji didn't harm him, he could stir up as much trouble as he wanted.

The next morning, as soon as Shangguan Che finished washing up, he saw Sakura Airi standing downstairs at the dormitory building with her school bag, but she wasn't holding her camera as she usually did.

His heart skipped a beat, and he hurried over: "Sakura, where is your camera? Why didn't you bring it out?"

One had to know, ever since Sakura bought this camera at the school store on the first day of school, it had almost never left her side.

Whether she was going to the cafeteria to eat or to the library to study, she would always have the camera hanging around her neck.

At the time, Shangguan Che had even teased her that "the camera is more important than a boyfriend," and although Sakura's face had turned beet red, she still held onto the camera tightly.

Hearing the question, Sakura's eyes darted away, and she whispered, "The camera... I accidentally dropped it, and it won't turn on."

"How did you drop it? You didn't get hurt, did you?" Shangguan Che immediately grabbed her arms, looking her up and down, terrified that she might have bumped into something.

"I'm fine, I just tripped while walking." Sakura lowered her head, her voice growing quieter, her fingers nervously twisting the hem of her shirt.

She was lying.

In truth, the camera had been dropped while she was being followed yesterday, but she didn't want to make Shangguan Che worry, nor did she want to become a burden to him. In her heart, a good child shouldn't cause trouble for others.

Shangguan Che looked at her nervous appearance and felt that something was wrong, but he couldn't ask anything more, so he could only ruffle her hair: "As long as you're okay. If the camera is broken, it can be fixed. If you had gotten hurt, I wouldn't let off whatever made you trip!"

Sakura looked up, seeing Shangguan Che's earnest expression, and her eyes suddenly turned a bit red.

In reality, what happened yesterday was much scarier than what she had said.

Yesterday afternoon, Shangguan Che said he was going to help Hirata look for clues. Sakura had wanted to tag along, but she was afraid she wouldn't be of any help, so she stayed in the dorm to review.

By dinner time, she was so hungry she couldn't stand it, and not wanting to disturb Shangguan Che, she took her camera and went to the mall cafeteria alone.

This was the first time she had gone out by herself since receiving the harassing letters.

As she walked into the mall, she kept feeling like someone was staring at her from behind, and that hair-raising sensation made her tremble all over.

She finished her dinner in a hurry and practically jogged all the way back to the dormitory, her mind a blank, having long forgotten the method Shangguan Che had taught her: "If you encounter danger, run to a crowded place."

Just as she turned into a quiet corridor, she suddenly bumped into someone.

With a "bang," the camera in her hand fell to the ground, and the screen went black instantly.

Sakura was so scared she nearly lost her soul. She looked up and saw a white-haired girl sitting on the ground, her cane also having fallen to the floor.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to!" Sakura quickly bowed to apologize, her body trembling uncontrollably.

Not only had she bumped into someone, but she had also broken her camera; she was in big trouble now.

"Don't you look where you're going?" A cold voice came, and Sakura looked up to see a girl with long purple hair standing nearby, frowning at her with an impatient look in her eyes.

"It's fine, Masumi, she didn't mean it." The white-haired girl on the ground smiled and waved her hand, her voice as gentle as a spring breeze, yet Sakura felt a bit afraid.

Although this girl was smiling, there seemed to be something hidden in her eyes that she couldn't fathom.

The purple-haired girl called "Masumi" let out a soft "tsk" and didn't speak again, bending down to help the girl on the ground up.

Only then did Sakura react, hurriedly reaching to pick up the cane on the floor, her flustered movements nearly knocking over a flower pot nearby.

Just as she crouched down to pick up the cane, the white-haired girl suddenly looked behind her, the corners of her mouth curling up slightly to reveal a meaningful smile.

She had clearly seen a black shadow flash past behind Sakura just now, looking like a boy.

Was it stalking? Or someone from another class? This was interesting.

"Stop grinning like a fool, can't you even brush off the dust? Do you need me to help you?" Kamuro Masumi's voice interrupted Sakayanagi Arisu's thoughts, her tone full of disdain, yet she still reached out to help brush the dust off her clothes.

"Of course, my little Masumi loves me the most." Sakayanagi Arisu raised both hands, making a gesture for a hug, her eyes filled with a cunning smile.

"Who wants to hug you..." Kamuro Masumi had just started to refuse when she heard Sakayanagi say slowly: "I suddenly feel like having a beer. I wonder if the convenience store near the school sells them."

Kamuro Masumi's words caught in her throat, leaving her to resign herself to brushing the dust off the other girl's clothes while muttering under her breath, "I really give up on you..."

Sakura walked over with the cane and carefully handed it to Sakayanagi Arisu, "I'm sorry, here is your cane. It didn't break, did it?"

"It's fine, thank you, classmate." Sakayanagi Arisu took the cane, her smile remaining gentle, "May I ask which class you are in? And what is your name? Could we be friends?"

"My name is Sakura Airi, and I'm in Class D of the first year." Sakura replied in a low voice, feeling a bit flustered inside.

She had never made friends with a stranger before, with the exception of Shangguan Che, especially not with a girl as beautiful as this one.

"As for being friends..." She hesitated for a long time, unable to bring herself to refuse, and could only lower her head, not daring to meet Sakayanagi's eyes.

"It's alright, it's okay if you don't want to be friends." Sakayanagi Arisu changed the subject with great understanding, "Then why were you walking so fast just now? You seemed to be in quite a hurry."

Sakura's body stiffened instantly.

She couldn't very well say that she was being followed, could she? Not only would that make the other person worry, but it would also make her seem useless. She opened her mouth, but couldn't say a word, and could only stand there awkwardly.

"It's okay if you don't want to say it." Sakayanagi Arisu smiled and patted her on the shoulder, "Then let's meet again next time, Sakura-san." With that, she leaned on her cane and left with Kamuro Masumi.

Sakura stood where she was, watching their backs disappear at the end of the hallway, and finally let out a sigh of relief.

Strangely enough, from that moment on, the feeling of being watched vanished. She picked up the camera from the ground and tried to turn it on, but the screen showed no response at all.

The camera was truly broken.

Thinking of this, Sakura's eyes turned red again. It wasn't that she felt bad about the camera, but rather that she was afraid.

If Shangguan Che hadn't been busy yesterday, would this have happened? If the camera couldn't be fixed, she wouldn't be able to take photos for Shangguan to see in the future.

On the other side, Sakayanagi Arisu sat on a bench by the roadside, looking at the scenery nearby with a smile still hanging on her lips.

Kamuro Masumi stood behind her and couldn't help but ask, "What were you smiling about just now? Is there something special about that girl from Class D?"

"It's nothing," Sakayanagi Arisu said with a smile, "I just feel like this school is getting more and more interesting. Oh, by the way, Masumi, you can pay a little more attention to that girl named Sakura Airi."

"Got it." Kamuro Masumi sighed helplessly, though she felt a bit curious inside. What exactly was it that could make Sakayanagi so interested?