Sakayanagi Arisu: Thank You for Trusting Me. / Sakayanagi Arisu's Curiosity.

"Of course, don't I know what kind of personality my girlfriend has?"

Hashiba Hikaru tightened her grip on the other person's arm, a nonchalant smile playing on her lips. "Why would Honami ask that?"

"Because..."

Gazing at his gentle expression, Ichinose Honami seemed to draw courage from her boyfriend. She pursed her lips and made her final decision.

She knew very well that if she couldn't be honest about this, even if she successfully resolved the rumor-mongering incident, it would still become her nightmare in the end.

Because one thing is true.

She still said it.

"What?"

Hashiba Hikaru's expression changed slightly. Although he already knew some of it from Sakayanagi Arisu, he was genuinely surprised to hear his girlfriend admit it.

"It was theft... but it was returned in the end."

Ichinose Honami's voice grew softer and softer, for this was her most unbearable memory, and simply speaking it aloud to the person she loved had exhausted all her strength.

Will he just hate me?

Of course not!

Hashiba Hikaru immediately exclaimed, and he hugged Ichinose Honami even tighter in his arms, his expression solemn.

"As I just said, since Honami and I are a couple, I will always stand by your side. I will make my own judgment about who my girlfriend is; I don't need this messy post to draw a conclusion."

"Even if one of these things is true, I believe there's a reason for it. Would Honami be willing to tell me the details of this matter?"

Hashiba Hikaru looked at her tenderly, waiting for Ichinose Honami's reply.

"Yes, I will tell Hikaru everything."

Ichinose Honami pressed her face against Hashiba Hikaru's chest and began to explain to her boyfriend the only part of her past she couldn't tell anyone else—something that happened during her middle school years.

Because her mother was hospitalized, the family's financial situation suffered a huge blow. At this time, her younger sister, Ichinose Miu, happened to take a fancy to a hair clip in a convenience store. On her sister's birthday, Ichinose Honami overcame her inner fear and struggle and stole the hair clip from the store.

But the mother quickly found out about this. She not only scolded her severely, but also took the pink-haired girl and the item back to the convenience store. In addition to returning the item, she even performed an extreme dogeza (a prostration gesture) to beg for forgiveness.

Although the other party ultimately chose to forgive her and not report her, the melancholy look in her younger sister's eyes and the disappointed expression on her mother's face became the key reason why Ichinose Ho could not forgive herself. She locked herself in her room and took a long break from school.

"I see."

Hashiba Hikaru remained calm, because this matter had exceeded his expectations.

This was indeed a criminal act, but the final result and the impact were minimal, and the items were returned. Using this incident as a basis for accusation is completely untenable.

"Hikaru... what are you thinking now?"

Ichinose Honami swallowed nervously. After confessing the matter, the girl was terrified, afraid that the other person would hate her because of it, something she absolutely could not accept.

"I have no opinion. Since the items have been returned in the end, it means everything is still under control."

Hashiba Hikaru's voice was gentle. "Honami and Auntie have apologized to the convenience store staff, and they have accepted the apologies. So, this matter can be considered closed."

"I won't form any negative thoughts about Honami based on this incident, because I've been to your house. Your aunt Miu are both very nice people. It's a very lucky thing to grow up in a family like that."

"Real?"

Although Ichinose Honami was nervous, her heart finally settled down after hearing Hashiba Hikaru's statement.

"Hmm, Honami, don't be too nervous. I won't hate you because of this."

Hashiba Hikaru looked gently into her eyes and spoke earnestly.

"Moreover, although it's something difficult to talk about, talking about it will actually help Honami grow and bravely face his past, something many people can't do."

"I really admire you for bringing this up, Honami!"

"Real?"

Tears welled up in the girl's eyes again, but this time it wasn't from fear, but from gratitude.

"Real."

"Hmm, light!"

The pink-haired girl finally couldn't hold back any longer. She hugged Hashiba Hikaru's body tightly and pushed the boy down onto the bed.

522

Chapter 522 Sakayanagi Arisu: Thank you for trusting me.

While the students in Class A were diligently browsing mobile forums in the living room, searching for potential targets, the two in the bedroom had already collapsed onto the bed.

"Light... light... light..."

After being comforted by Hashiba Hikaru, Ichinose Honami felt a strong sense of security. Overwhelmed with emotion, she nestled against the boy's chest, repeatedly calling his name.

"Yes, I'm here. I'll always stay by Honami's side."

After Hashiba Hikaru put his arm around his girlfriend and comforted her, the rest of the situation became much easier to handle.

"Uh-huh."

Ichinose Honami buried her pretty face in Hashiba Hikaru's neck, feeling the warmth of her skin. The girl felt very comfortable, and in an instant, an unprecedented thought arose in her mind, one that had never occurred during their previous relationships.

[If I could, I would want to stay by the light's side forever.]

[The light... will always be mine...]

[Forever...]

"Hehe, since Honami is so resilient, then handling this matter becomes quite simple."

Hashiba Hikaru lay on the bed, unaware of the girl pressing her neck tightly against his. "The first step is to find out who posted the false information."

"Yes, I know."

Ichinose Honami responded softly, her attention completely focused on how to get close to her boyfriend; the girl's small hand had already slipped inside Hashiba Hikaru's clothes.

"I have a question for Honami now, and I hope you can make the decision yourself."

Hashiba Hikaru pressed down on the small hand that kept sliding inside her clothes and asked earnestly, "Honami, are you planning to tell your classmates about this only true thing? Or will you treat this post as a rumor?"

"Hmm..."

After Ichinose Honami's small hand was stopped, she rested her chin on Hashiba Hikaru's shoulder. After thinking for a long time, she slowly said, "I want to tell everyone in the class the truth after this is over, is that okay?"

"Yes, that's a good way to handle it. After all, everyone is a bit tense right now. After we've dealt with all the Rumor Incident, I'll go with Honami to tell everyone the truth."

Hashiba Hikaru patted her back, a smile playing on her lips.

"Uh-huh."

Ichinose Honami gazed at her boyfriend beneath her. Although she sensed from some subtle clues that he might have had a lot of contact with other girls, after what happened today, the pink-haired girl's resolve only grew stronger.

[I will definitely marry Hikaru, that's an indisputable fact!]

[Hashiba Hikaru Ichinose Honami's.]

[This will never change.]

"Let's go outside and investigate together who attacked Honami."

Hashiba Hikaru noticed the increasingly strange look in Ichinose Honami's eyes, and for some reason, he suddenly felt a little nervous.

"Uh-huh."

For the rest of the morning, Hashiba Hikaru and Ichinose Honami spent their time collecting information from the School Forum with their classmates. Although the post was made by an anonymous ID, the different responses from the students might reveal some clues.

"Classmate Hashiba, I'll ask the computer club members later; maybe they can find out where it came from."

Shibata Sou tidied up his notes, looking very serious.

"Well then, I'll leave it to Shibata -san."

"We should also get the rest of the class involved in the investigation, but before that, we need to reach a conclusion on this matter. What do you think, Classmate Hashiba?"

"Yes, I've already thought of how to phrase it."

Hashiba Hikaru looked at Kanzaki Ryuji, who had offered his opinion, and smiled as she presented a speech she had just prepared.

"This is a letter of clarification. Honami will announce it as the class representative of Class A of the First Year. This is our class's statement. Although we cannot stop the rumors, we must make a statement, because the other side may have other tricks up their sleeve."

The boy thought for a moment and realized that simply posting on the internet might not be the only method used by the person behind the scenes. As things continued to escalate, it was important to first get Ichinose Honami and Class A to express their opinions.

"Yes, I understand what the light means."

Ichinose Honami and her classmates all crowded around to take a look at a passage written by Hashiba Hikaru in her notebook. Although the content was not very long, the meaning was very clear, and everyone smiled.

"Then I'll publish it."

Having gained courage from her boyfriend, Ichinose Honami's mood had calmed down compared to her previous anxiety. She carefully typed the clarification letter written by Hashiba Hikaru into her phone and posted it on the school forum.

"That's fine. After lunch, let's all split up and get started!"

"Clear."

Although he longed to continue spending quality time with his boyfriend, Hashiba Hikaru, after all, the Vice President of the Student Council, and he still had to go to the Student Council to do his work today.

Ichinose Honami could only stay in the dormitory with Ando Sayo to continue communicating with the students in her class.

After entering the Student Council's office, Hashiba Hikaru glanced at the students inside. This time, everyone cast curious glances at the boy, since everyone had seen the post about Ichinose Honami, but no one dared to ask him anything.

Although they haven't become Student Council President yet, many student leaders know that day is not far off.

"Good afternoon, Classmate Hashiba."

Sakayanagi Arisu looked up and, seeing Hashiba Hikaru's calm face, became the first person to speak to the boy.

"Good afternoon."

Hashiba Hikaru sat back down and glanced at the silver-haired girl opposite her. The girl seemed completely unconcerned about the commotion that had swept through the entire school that morning, as if nothing had happened.

"After everything is over, are you free Classmate Hashiba? I'd like to invite you to look at what I mentioned this morning."

Is it that document?

"Yes, and there's some information I might be able to pass on to Classmate Hashiba."

Sakayanagi Arisu didn't see any signs of frustration or exhaustion on Hashiba Hikaru's face. She guessed that he had already calmed down his girlfriend and had just seen the clarification letter released by Ichinose Honami, which was a very obvious result.

"What intelligence?"

You'll know when you get there.

Sakayanagi Arisu smiled and said, "Is Classmate Hashiba in a hurry?"

"No, I'm not in that hurry."

"That's good."

After their conversation ended, the air gradually quieted down. After a while, Sakayanagi Arisu spoke again.

"Classmate Hashiba, thank you for trusting me."

"... We don't fully trust each other yet, so there's no need to jump to conclusions, Classmate Sakayanagi."

"Hehe, but I believe you'll ultimately choose me."

Sakayanagi Arisu smiled as she looked at the boy's face.

"I hope so."

523

Chapter 523: Sakayanagi Arisu's curiosity.

After finishing his work in the Student Council, Hashiba Hikaru organized the relevant documents and materials, and instructed his subordinates to prepare the materials for the meetings that week. As he was about to leave the Student Council office, he glanced at the blond-haired man sitting deep inside the office— Student Council President Miyabi Nagumo.

The other person was sitting in their seat, looking down at the documents in their hands. This diligent and serious demeanor did not affect the boy's judgment. If you were to ask who most wanted to see Class A of the First Year suffer a setback, Miyabi Nagumo would definitely be number one.

Could this be related to him?

Hashiba Hikaru stroked his chin, and after putting the question into his mind, he didn't dwell on it too much. He headed straight for the meeting place with Sakayanagi Arisu, which was the Activity Classroom that the silver-haired girl had arranged.

Although no one has yet figured out the exact reason for obtaining the classroom, it's of no consequence to Hashiba Hikaru's desire to seize control of the Student Council, and there's no need to delve into it further.

"Classmate Hashiba is here. Would you like something to drink?"