After Natsukawa had thoroughly scrambled her CPU, Kushida raised her head. Most of the hostility in her eyes had faded, replaced by scrutiny and hesitation. She stared at Natsukawa for a long time, as if weighing whether his words were trustworthy.
Suddenly, she did something unexpected.
She thrust out her hand and grabbed Natsukawa's right wrist. Her grip was strong, and her fingertips were cold. Before he could react, she pulled his hand over and pressed it firmly against the left side of her chest—against her uniform blouse.
Natsukawa could clearly feel the soft, bouncy sensation of the girl's breasts beneath his palm, along with a somewhat rapid heartbeat. Well, the heartbeat was his own. The other party's front armor was simply too thick for him to feel hers.
"Um..." A hint of unnatural red colored Kushida's cheeks. Whether it was from anger, embarrassment, or something else, he couldn't tell. But her eyes were exceptionally resolute, even carrying the ruthless determination of someone with nothing left to lose. "A verbal promise isn't enough... This is insurance. If you dare tell anyone, I'll accuse you of rape. I won't wash this blouse. I'll keep the... fingerprints on it. I hope you'll keep your word, Natsukawa-kun..."
Natsukawa froze. He had expected Kushida to pull a move like this, but he hadn't thought she'd go straight into it without warning. How was he supposed to defend against that? Still, he quickly regained his composure. Seeing the defiance and fluster in her eyes, he suddenly smiled. Rather than pulling his hand back, he applied a little pressure with his fingers and began to gently knead and stroke.
"Mm!" Kushida shuddered as if struck by an electric current. Her cheeks instantly turned bright red, and she shoved Natsukawa away, stumbling back several steps. Her hands instinctively flew to her chest, and her eyes filled with shock and shame.
"You...!"
"If you're going to preserve the evidence, you might as well go all the way. I'm just helping make it more convincing." His tone was calm, as if nothing had happened. "To show you I'm sincere, I can help you get in touch with Horikita. I don't know why you're so fixated on her, though."
Kushida's eyes lit up, but suspicion immediately filled them again. "How?"
"You'll find out in time." Natsukawa left it at that and turned to head downstairs. "Just act like you normally do. Of course—in front of me, you don't have to."
When he had descended a few steps, Kushida's voice came from behind him. It had already returned to its usual bright, sweet tone, as if the hysterical demon from moments ago had never existed.
"Then it's a deal, Natsukawa-kun~! I look forward to working with you!"
Natsukawa didn't turn around. He simply raised a hand and waved casually.
Now alone in the empty stairwell, Kushida Kikyo leaned against the cold wall and slowly slid down to the floor, gasping for breath. The flush of shame and anger on her face gradually faded, replaced by an overwhelming exhaustion and bewilderment. She looked down at the faint wrinkles in her uniform blouse, then remembered Natsukawa's acknowledgment of her efforts. Her expression was impossible to read.
After a long while, she finally stood up. She carefully patted and straightened her uniform skirt, smoothed her slightly mussed hair with her fingers, then took a small mirror from her schoolbag and slowly adjusted her expression.
A few seconds later, her familiar, bright smile reappeared. She took a deep breath and walked lightly down the stairs, as if everything that had happened were an illusion.
When Natsukawa returned to the library, Sakura Airi was still sitting as before, like a quiet porcelain doll. Only the faint sound of her occasionally turning a page showed how absorbed she was. The sunlight had shifted across her red hair, lending the contours of her profile an even softer look.
"Sorry for the wait." Natsukawa sat down across from her and placed the chemistry textbook he'd brought on the table.
Sakura gently shook her head to show that it was all right, but her curious gaze fell on the brand-new chemistry textbook.
Natsukawa opened it and began reviewing the basic concepts with Sakura. His explanations were as clear and accessible as ever, turning complex chemical reactions into more vivid examples. Sakura listened carefully, nodding from time to time and occasionally asking a small question. Her voice was still quiet, but compared to when she'd barely dared to speak at all, she had come a long way.
As he explained an inference related to the periodic law of the elements, Natsukawa was drawing a diagram on a sheet of scrap paper when Sakura suddenly spoke in a soft voice. "Um... Natsukawa-kun, I think the teacher mentioned this topic in class... but it's not on the midterm exam."
The tip of Natsukawa's pen paused. He remembered now: Chabashira had deliberately marked the wrong exam scope for this midterm. He'd been so focused on the system task these past two days that he hadn't paid attention to the scope Chabashira had set. That little Sae really did have a lot of tricks up her sleeve. She'd even come up with a scheme like this to make sure the students passed the midterm.
"Mm, I might have remembered wrong," Natsukawa replied without changing expression, already making a mental note. "But even if it's not on this exam, you should still learn it. It's the foundation for a lot of what comes later."
That night, in the high-rise dormitory.
Ichinose Honami had just finished her evening study session and was sitting at her desk, going over the day's class matters. In the soft light of her desk lamp, her pink-gold hair shimmered like flowing honey. Her Personal Terminal chimed with a special notification. She picked it up and saw that it was from Natsukawa Sosuke.
"Good evening, Ichinose. Sorry to bother you so late. I have some new ideas about class competition. Would you have a moment?"
At the sight of his name, the corners of her mouth lifted slightly without her realizing it. Her fingers quickly unlocked the screen.
"Natsukawa-kun? It's all right, I'm still up! (^▽^) Go ahead. I've been looking forward to talking with you more!"
"Perhaps we've been too focused on 'competition' between classes. But have you considered that this school might also have Special Exams that require 'cooperation'?"
"Cooperation?" Ichinose looked a little surprised.
"Exactly. The adult world isn't just a zero-sum game where one side lives and the other dies. More often, there's cooperation amid competition—or, as it's sometimes called, coopetition. The school's goal is to develop people who can adapt to society, so there must be tests that assess our ability to cooperate."
There was a brief pause before the next message arrived, as if he were giving Ichinose time to absorb the idea.
"So, I think that rather than waiting until cooperation is necessary to look for allies, we should start cultivating and maintaining potential partnerships now. Classes with similar goals could build rapport and trust in advance."
"Do you mean... our Class B and... Class D?" Ichinose's reply was tentative.
"Exactly. We share the same goal—reaching Class A. We also face the same potential threats, such as Class C. Establishing a connection in advance would let us encourage each other, and provide mutual support when necessary."
"What should we do, specifically?" Ichinose's question brimmed with interest and a hint of eagerness.
When she saw Natsukawa's proposal for "cooperation between classes," a flash of surprise crossed her blue eyes before she fell into serious thought.
Keywords circled through her mind, falling into place. She hadn't overlooked the possibility of other kinds of interaction between classes, but Natsukawa's perspective was clearly more forward-thinking and systematic. Yes, the school's ultimate goal was to develop people who could adapt to society, so pure confrontation couldn't be the only theme. Working with Class D could keep the unpredictable Class C in check, and provide extra security for uncertain exams in the future. More importantly, Natsukawa was in Class D...
At that thought, Ichinose felt her cheeks grow slightly warm. She touched them with her cool fingertips, took a deep breath, and tried to bring her thoughts back to the matter at hand. She picked up her terminal again and tapped rapidly on the virtual keyboard. Her tone was polite, but carried unmistakable admiration and excitement.
"Natsukawa-kun, your ideas always make me see things in a new light! (^▽^) I'd vaguely thought that our class might not be able to handle every kind of challenge by fighting alone, but I couldn't organize the idea of 'coopetition' as clearly as you did."
Then she turned to a more cautious concern. "But how can we approach them naturally, without seeming abrupt or making the other classes—especially Class A and Class C—too wary?"
"The midterm exams are a perfect opportunity. Hirata Yosuke from our class is organizing a study group. You could use that as an excuse to send a few Class B students over to exchange study tips and share review materials. Hirata-kun is also widely regarded as a genuinely kind person. Since the approach is rooted in academics and has a straightforward motive, it won't invite suspicion."
When she saw Natsukawa's reply, Ichinose nodded thoughtfully. She pictured the scene and decided the proposal was clever and practical. She could even think of suitable people to send: Kanzaki-kun was steady, while Shibata-kun was more personable...
"Using the study group as an opening is very thoughtful of you, Natsukawa-kun. That way, we can genuinely help the students who need it while naturally starting a conversation between the two classes. I'll contact Hirata tomorrow. I'll give careful thought to the specific people and approach, too."
She set down her terminal, feeling inexplicably excited. It wasn't just because she'd found a potential strategic direction; perhaps it was also because she'd found someone she could have this kind of conversation with. In the lamplight, her faintly flushed cheeks and softly shining eyes revealed the girl's happiness and restless excitement.
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