That evening, Natsukawa was lying in bed reading manga when his Personal Terminal suddenly buzzed. He opened the chat app and saw a message from Kushida Kikyo, then tapped it without thinking.
"Natsukawa-kun~! Good news! (≧▽≦) Ike, Yamauchi, and Sudo all agreed to attend Horikita's study group after school tomorrow!"
A cute dancing-rabbit sticker followed the message.
Natsukawa raised an eyebrow and replied:
"As expected of Kushida. You made it look easy to do what ordinary people can't."
"Aw, it was nothing~! I'm just happy I could help! ٩(๑＞₃＜)۶"
He set down his terminal, a knowing smile playing at the corners of his mouth. As expected, for those three, Kushida's energetic pleas were far more effective than any rational analysis of pros and cons. He just wondered how long this fragile agreement, forcibly glued together by their little angel, would hold up against Horikita's icy attitude. Half an hour? Or only a few minutes?
Natsukawa didn't concern himself with that. He simply passed the message on to Ayanokoji, confirmed that he knew, and went back to his manga.
The next day, after school.
As promised, Natsukawa was at their usual spot in the library, helping Sakura review social studies. Compared to the awkwardness of the day before, Sakura seemed a little more relaxed today. Now and then, she gave a quiet "Mm" during his explanations to show she understood. Her voice was still soft, but it was clear she was trying hard to keep up.
"...So first, we do this, then this, and most importantly, this..." Natsukawa tapped a chart in the textbook with his pen, trying to explain a complicated concept in simpler terms.
Just then, a distant yet piercing argument came from the other side of the library shelves. One voice was rough and irritable—unmistakably Ken Sudō's. The other was cold and sharp, dripping with undisguised sarcasm. It was Horikita Suzune.
Sakura had obviously heard it too. Her body gave the faintest flinch, and her shoulders, which had started to relax, tensed up again. She looked anxiously toward the noise.
Natsukawa stopped explaining and closed the book in his hands. "I'll go check," he said gently to Sakura. "You keep reading here and try to understand the section I just marked. I'll be right back."
Sakura nodded obediently, though a trace of worry remained in her eyes.
Natsukawa stood and headed toward the source of the noise. The closer he got to the study room, the clearer the argument became.
"...Are you kidding me? Just because you're smart, you think you can talk to me like that?! I'm going to club practice. I'm done here! I even took the whole afternoon off..." Sudō roared.
"If you can't understand even these basic questions, you should be thinking about how to avoid getting expelled, not wasting time on pointless club activities. Or is your brain only big enough to let you charge around a basketball court?" Horikita's voice was cold as ice.
"What did you say?! You bitch!"
"Sudō, calm down!"
"Horikita, maybe you could ease up a little..."
Kushida Kikyo's anxious voice cut through the argument as she tried to calm them both down.
As Natsukawa came around the corner of the library shelves, he saw Ken Sudō kick a chair aside, grab his bag, and shout with a livid expression, "I'm done! Anyone who wants to come to this damn study group can go ahead!" Then he stormed out without looking back.
Ike and Yamauchi exchanged glances. They looked at the furious Sudō as he left, then at Horikita's frosty expression and Kushida's pale face. In the end, they too sullenly picked up their things, muttering, "What the hell?" and "With Horikita acting like that, forget it," before slipping away.
In an instant, the once-noisy study table was left with only three people.
Kushida Kikyo patted her chest lightly, looking shaken. She turned to Horikita, still trying to keep her tone gentle. "Horikita, I know you're trying to help Sudō and the others, but... couldn't you phrase things a little more tactfully? Arguing like this won't get us anywhere..."
Horikita glanced coldly at her. "Tactfully?" She gave a scornful laugh, her eyes full of arrogance and contempt. "With people who lack even basic comprehension and have such bad attitudes, being tactful is just a waste of everyone's time. My goal is to get them to understand the material and pass their exams, not to play big sister and coddle them. I should've known better than to waste my time on them. I should've just let them get expelled. And stop clinging to me. I'm not going to play your friendship games."
The smile froze on Kushida's face. For the first time, hurt and a trace of offended anger clearly surfaced in her warm brown eyes, usually brimming with cheer. She bit her lip, her voice trembling slightly. "I... I was only trying to help... If that's how you feel, Horikita, then I'll leave you alone!"
With that, she grabbed her bag and gave Horikita a long, complicated look before turning and hurrying away. But as she passed Natsukawa, she paused for a moment and shot him a look that mingled helplessness with an unspoken "See? There's nothing I can do."
Now, only Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, still seated as though he'd blended into the background, and Natsukawa Sosuke, leaning against the bookshelves and taking it all in, remained in the empty study room.
Ayanokoji saw Natsukawa and gave him a blank nod in greeting.
Natsukawa walked in, pulled over a chair, and sat opposite Horikita. The study room still reeked of the argument.
Horikita didn't even look at Natsukawa. She merely tidied the textbooks on the table, though they'd barely been opened. Her profile was stiff as a cold plaster statue. But Natsukawa keenly noticed how tightly she handled the pages, her fingers turning faintly white at the knuckles. It gave away the fact that she wasn't as unaffected as she seemed.
"That was quite a teaching demonstration, Horikita," Natsukawa said, his tone flat, making it impossible to tell whether he was praising her or mocking her.
Horikita finally looked up, her reddish-purple eyes fixing sharply on him with displeasure. "If you came to laugh at me, you can leave now."
"Laugh at you?" Natsukawa gave a soft chuckle and leaned forward slightly, his gaze dissecting Horikita like a scalpel. "I'm just curious. Someone who keeps saying she wants to make it into Class A—why does she act as if she's deliberately driving away potential 'pieces'?"
"Pieces?" Horikita frowned, clearly displeased with the word. "I don't need pieces who can't understand the material. People who can't master even the most basic knowledge have no place helping me reach Class A. They'll only hold me back."
"Hold you back?" Natsukawa echoed, a hint of pity in his eyes. "Horikita, don't you think you've got something wrong? You're in Class D. Not Class A, or even Class B. Here, the people you consider 'dead weight' are the majority of the class. Do you really think a class can stay in Class A thanks to one person, or a handful of 'elite' students?"
He paused, watching Horikita's expression shift slightly, then continued in the same calm tone he might use to state a simple fact. "You think you're outstanding and refuse to associate with 'flawed products.' But have you ever wondered why someone as 'outstanding' as you was placed in Class D? Are you thinking that if you just get rid of Sudō and the others who can't study, you'll be able to lead whoever's left to Class A? Little Horikita, you're far too naive. By that logic, the bunch of do-gooders in Class B who are always trying to help others should be at the bottom. And how many Class Points do they have? 890—right on the heels of Class A."
"Class B... has 890?" Horikita's eyes narrowed sharply. She knew the figure, and remembered how Class B had once called on everyone to maintain discipline in class. But ever since learning the truth about the school, she'd focused only on how to get into Class A and forgotten the significance of earning so many points in the first month.
"Exactly," Natsukawa said. "Do you know how they did it? Not because everyone in Class B is smarter or more capable than you. Quite the opposite. They understand 'cooperation' and know how to bring people of different abilities together and work toward a common goal. Ichinose Honami is the heart of Class B. She may not have the pride of a top student like you, but she knows how to unite the whole class."
He watched Horikita's prideful expression begin to waver, though she was still trying to hold on to it, then delivered his final blow. "Pride can motivate you, but it can't lead a group. If you really want to make it into Class A instead of clinging to the fantasy that you're 'brilliant as you are,' then learning how to deal with the 'dead weight' you look down on—and how to use them, or even guide them—is part of the 'strength' you truly need. Besides, who told you that 'dead weight' is useless? Go ask your big brother. You stubborn tsundere—the 'strength' this school values isn't just academic ability."
Natsukawa's voice wasn't loud, but each word struck Horikita's defenses like a hammer. Her hands, resting on her knees, clenched unconsciously around her skirt. Her usually proud reddish-purple eyes now flickered fiercely. Anger and indignation were there, but more than anything, she was shaken by the blunt exposure of her shortcomings and forced to face her own inadequacy... She even temporarily forgot that some of Natsukawa's remarks had been out of line.
She opened her mouth to argue, only to realize that, under Natsukawa's precise attack, everything she'd prepared to say sounded feeble. Until now, she'd only known to follow in her brother's footsteps, only known that her brother had always stood alone, aloof from others. Cooperation was something she may have understood subconsciously, but had always refused to face. Now Natsukawa had laid it bare before her without mercy.
The library fell into a long silence. Natsukawa said nothing more. He knew he'd planted a seed; what happened next was up to her.
He stood and straightened his clothes. "Think it over, little Horikita. If you still refuse to change, then go ahead and drown in your useless pride."
With that, he didn't linger. He turned and left the library, leaving the proud girl alone to wrestle with herself.
Before you continue