The Turning Point of the Incident

Night fell, and before long it was 7:12 p.m.

Zhuge Linghao was playing a game in Ayanokoji's room.

Ayanokoji spoke softly. "You're not nervous at all. Aren't you afraid of getting severely punished?"

Zhuge Linghao kept his eyes fixed on the game screen and didn't even look up. "Because you guys are reliable, Ayanokoji. I trust you!"

Ayanokoji's eyes remained calm. "I'll give you this: you've got quite a personality... Never mind. Anyway, do you remember Sakura Airi?"

Zhuge Linghao kept playing. "Not at all! Is there even someone like that in our class?"

"Ding-dong..."

The doorbell rang in the room.

Ayanokoji opened the door and saw Kushida Kikyo standing outside. Looking uneasy, she asked, "There's something that's really bothering me. Do you know what Horikita meant by what she said earlier?"

Ayanokoji glanced at Zhuge Linghao and asked, "Maybe you could explain it?"

Zhuge Linghao had just lost a life.

Veins bulged on his forehead as his fingers flew across the controls. The corner of his mouth twitched repeatedly. "I don't have time! I'm going to settle this once and for all with this guy!"

Kushida Kikyo leaned in to look. "Huh? Zhuge-kun's still here? What game is he playing?"

Ayanokoji watched Zhuge Linghao battle with fierce concentration, then turned to Kushida and answered, "Street Fighter. I hear it's a fighting game that lets you connect to the school network and battle other people. Let's not disturb him for now. We can talk downstairs."

The rows of streetlights lit up all at once as Ayanokoji and Kushida Kikyo strolled along the cobbled path beside the river.

Ayanokoji spoke first. "As Horikita said, whether or not this incident counts as self-defense, that isn't the root of the problem."

Kushida Kikyo looked puzzled. "Huh?"

Ayanokoji spoke evenly. "Sudo usually says nasty things and acts aggressively."

"Zhuge is even more unpredictable. He often makes a spectacle of himself. Some people might like him, but I think more people probably hate him with a passion."

"Considering the way they usually talk and behave, it wouldn't be surprising if people resented them."

"Let me ask you this: suppose there's a murder, and there are two suspects. One is a criminal with a history of murder, and the other is an honest person who lives a quiet life. Whom would you believe?"

Kushida Kikyo walked with her head lowered. "I'd believe the honest person who lives a quiet life."

"But the truth could be exactly the opposite. There's very little to go on right now. Without enough evidence, people may have already jumped to conclusions and made a judgment that puts Sudo and the others at a disadvantage."

Kushida Kikyo looked down at a dead moth on the ground. "You mean people's prejudices against certain groups are hard to change, right?"

Ayanokoji neither confirmed nor denied it. Instead, he continued talking about Sudo.

"Sudo's attitude and behavior haven't improved. He's still quick to lose his temper, so Horikita probably doesn't want to help him."

Kushida Kikyo began doing what you'd expect of her, given the role she played.

She said earnestly, "Then at the very least, we should give Sudo and the others some advice. That's what a friend should do!"

Ayanokoji, walking ahead of her, glanced back. "Kushida, just do what you think is right. There's nothing wrong with helping them..."

"Still, Ayanokoji, you really understand Horikita, and you're very clever, too."

Ayanokoji disagreed. "I don't think so."

Beneath the dim streetlights, it was impossible to tell what expression Kushida Kikyo hid beneath her orange hair.

If Zhuge Linghao had seen this, he would have rushed Ayanokoji away from her right then and there, making sure she didn't set her sights on him!

Because he knew the blackened little demon Kushida was about to make her entrance, and in this state, her jealousy was intense.

The more Ayanokoji and Horikita showed off their intelligence in front of her, the more she wanted to make sure they were all expelled!

Kushida Kikyo struggled to keep her expression under control and spoke sweetly. "It's late. I should head back. I'll talk to Sakura by myself. If a whole group of us goes to see her, she might get suspicious!"

Ayanokoji looked down as a line of ants carried away the dead moth, piece by piece.

In a dark room, Sakura Airi sat in front of her computer, working up her courage—or perhaps just agonizing over what to do.

[I don't want to get caught up in a violent incident.

I don't want anyone to know who I really am.

But I don't want Zhuge and the others to get hurt, either.

I'm not good at interacting with people.

I'm even worse at looking people in the eye when I talk.

I'm fine on my own.

I'm fine with being lonely.]

Just then, someone knocked on Sakura Airi's door!

"Who is it? Who's out there?"

"It's me. I know who you really are~"

The next day, after classes ended at noon.

In the classroom corridor, Ayanokoji said to Horikita, "I made plans with Kushida yesterday. She's going to talk to Sakura by herself today."

Zhuge Linghao chimed in beside him. "I know! You two were out so late last night. You went on a date, didn't you..."

Horikita didn't believe a single word Zhuge Linghao said, not even the punctuation, since he was always spouting nonsense!

Her attention was on the two curvaceous figures not far away.

"Hello, Sakura," Kushida Kikyo said, putting all her warmth into her greeting.

"W-what is it?" Sakura Airi replied in a quiet voice, like a cute little animal.

Kushida Kikyo spoke gently. "There's something I'd like to ask you. Is that okay? It's about Sudo and Zhuge."

At that, a trace of unmistakable fear flashed in Sakura Airi's eyes. She gripped her camera tightly in her right hand and turned away. "I-I'm sorry. I have something urgent to do!"

A dark glint flashed in Kushida Kikyo's eyes. She grabbed Sakura Airi's left hand. "I won't take long. This is really important. Could you hear me out?"

Like a startled rabbit, Sakura Airi struggled desperately. "I-I don't know. I don't know anything..."

Watching them, Horikita Suzune folded her arms. "It doesn't look like things are going very well."

Ayanokoji agreed. "It's not that simple."

But from Zhuge Linghao's point of view, one of them was trying to run while the other held on.

Then one let go, the other fell, and a camera shattered.

Zhuge Linghao stared in shock. [Holy crap! That was on purpose! Kushida Kikyo absolutely did that on purpose!]

Then Kushida Kikyo crouched down theatrically and asked, with an exaggerated show of concern, "I'm sorry. Are you all right?"

Sakura Airi only had eyes for her camera. She dropped to her knees, picked it up, and checked it over and over.

"It's broken. It won't turn on..."

Kushida Kikyo apologized. "I'm sorry. It's my fault for letting go so suddenly..."

With her back to Kushida Kikyo, Sakura Airi said, "No, I was just careless..."

With that, Sakura Airi, her red hair tied into twin tails, fled in a panic.