Welcome to Paradise of Freedom

But unexpectedly, she waited for a long time, and there was no movement beside her, as if Kiyotaka had vanished into thin air.

Kei Karuizawa blinked her eyes open slightly out of curiosity, only to see Kiyotaka's gaze as calm as a mirror, watching her without a ripple. His eyes were utterly clear, betraying not a hint of desire.

"You... why are you looking at me like that?"

This unexpected turn of events made Kei breathe a sigh of relief, yet a trace of disappointment crept into her heart.

"Rather than that, why are you dressed like that?"

Kiyotaka had been sizing up Kei ever since the light came on. She was now wearing nothing but a bikini set, its fabric so thin it almost revealed the texture of her skin. It perfectly outlined the graceful curves of her body, especially her proud peaks, barely covered by two small floral patches, their round fullness pressed tightly between her arms, forming a bottomless chasm. Her lower half was covered by only a scrap of cloth, tied around her waist with two thin strings that looked like they could snap at a tug, knotted into a bow. This accentuated Kei's naturally long legs to the fullest, and since she wasn't a sporty girl, her thighs carried a soft, plump feel.

But that plumpness, when it fell on her, gave off a sense of just the right proportion.

And Kiyotaka, sharp-eyed as he was, noticed that between Kei's legs, the gauzy underwear faintly revealed the scenery within, and even a few stray hairs, rebellious against being confined, had mischievously poked out.

Kei blinked, looking at Kiyotaka's calm, unruffled eyes, and a stubborn defiance rose in her heart.

She spun around gracefully in front of him and asked.

"Don't you think this looks good on me? Why don't you have any reaction at all?"

But Kiyotaka just pointed at her body and said.

"The fabric on your butt is stuck in there. Your whole butt cheek is showing."

"Ah!!!"

Kei was completely shattered by Kiyotaka's words. She crouched down instantly, her pretty face blushing so red it looked like it could be squeezed for water.

"Are you an idiot?!"

Crouching on the ground, Kei said indignantly.

"Why do you say that?"

Kiyotaka asked calmly, whether he truly didn't know or was just pretending.

"Do you know how much courage it took for me to stand in front of you dressed like this? Because of the promise between us—you protected me, and I would give you my body and soul. But now, when I stand before you, you have no reaction at all. That hurts, you know! Am I that ugly?!"

Kei's tone gradually reverted to her old bossy self, giving off a feeling of, "Ah, this is the real Kei Karuizawa."

"You know, when you were in the room and saw it was me beside you, and quietly moved your chair away, I felt the same way."

Kiyotaka looked at Kei and told her a secret.

"So you're getting back at me?"

Kiyotaka shook his head.

"Getting back at you does me no good. Or rather, you can think of it as a reserved item. Just know that I might need it anytime, and you can give it to me anytime."

Kiyotaka gazed at Kei indifferently, words spilling from his lips.

"You're such a devil. Being your partner is as dangerous as dancing on a knife's edge."

Hearing Kei's words, a faint smile appeared on Kiyotaka's face.

"Isn't that exciting too?"

With that, he pulled Kei up, leaned in, and forcefully claimed her lips, and then Kei felt her slime being ruthlessly ravaged, her gaze growing dazed.

"Buzz buzz buzz."

The terminal's ring snapped Kei out of her daze, startling her.

Kiyotaka calmly took out his terminal and found it was a message from the school, containing the results of this special exam.

"Wow, what happened to Class A? That's brutal!"

On the scoreboard, Class A's bloody deduction of 200 points was prominently displayed, as if nailed to a pillar of shame. Class B's class points remained unchanged, neither added nor subtracted.

Class C was the big winner, directly gaining 200 class points.

And Class D gained 100 points.

Kiyotaka looked at the scores and couldn't help narrowing his eyes. Everything had turned out exactly as Ryuen had predicted, making him the big winner.

Just then, Kiyotaka's terminal rang.

It was a call from Horikita.

"Hello."

"Meet at the cafeteria. Hirata's calling."

"Mm, got it."

Putting away the terminal, Kiyotaka turned to leave. Kei grabbed his arm and asked pitifully.

"Where are you going?"

"The cafeteria. Hirata probably saw the results and is gathering us there."

Hearing this, Kei immediately said.

"Then I'm coming too. Wait for me!"

Kei hastily threw on her school uniform and followed Kiyotaka to the cafeteria.

When Kiyotaka and Karuizawa arrived at the restaurant, Horikita, Kikyo, and Hirata were already seated.

The others looked a bit puzzled to see Kiyotaka and Karuizawa arriving together, but they didn't say anything.

Once the two sat down, Hirata spoke up.

"Everyone's seen the exam results, right?"

"I never thought Ryuen's claims would actually come true—he really did become the big winner."

Horikita said with reluctant admiration, though she sounded displeased.

"What happened in your group?"

Kiyotaka looked at Horikita and Kikyo. They, along with Hirata, had been assigned to the Earth Group. Basically, the Earth Group was a gathering of class leaders, so Ichinose's absence was an anomaly.

"We ended up getting through it safely."

Kikyo said with a smile.

As expected of Kikyo. Even under that much pressure, she managed to get through it in the safest way possible at the last moment. Her methods were truly impressive. Kiyotaka knew that Horikita and Hirata alone couldn't handle that situation, which only highlighted Kikyo's terrifying ability.

Kiyotaka silently praised her in his mind.

Then Kiyotaka laid out everything that had happened in his own group. Because Hirata was there, he directly pinned all the plans on Horikita. This earned him a subtle glare from Horikita.

"So that means the extra fifty points we got were the result of Koenji's reckless behavior back then? He guessed right?"

Hirata calculated the scores and said in surprise.

Kiyotaka also kept his distance from Koenji. In all of Class D, he was the most unconventional and the one who gave Kiyotaka a sense of danger.

"Yo, what's the fun chat about? Mind if I join in?"

Ryuen's voice rang out behind them.

He walked straight over to Horikita and lifted a strand of her hair, saying, "Suzune, why won't you even look at me? Is it because I called the outcome right and you're feeling ashamed?"

"Slap."

Horikita forcefully slapped away Ryuen's hand that was on her hair and said coldly, "There's nothing to talk about between us."

Ryuen didn't take it to heart and let out a sinister laugh.

"No matter. This time I just took a shot at Class A. Next time, my target will be you, Suzune. I'm very interested in you. Hahahaha."

With a wild laugh, Ryuen slowly walked away with his people.

Before leaving, Ibuki silently glanced at Kiyotaka, her gaze complicated.

Horikita, on the other hand, stared at Ryuen's direction with furrowed brows. Although Ryuen acted arrogantly, the pressure he put on her was immense.

Kiyotaka sat there silently the whole time. His gaze seemed very unfocused, with no discernible point of focus. But if one looked closely, they could see a sharp glint flash in his eyes as he stared in Ryuen's direction.

With the exam over, the cruise ship that had been staying at sea finally docked.

No matter how good the ship was, spending a long time at sea made everyone feel a sense of floating. Now that they were on solid ground, Karuizawa stretched comfortably.

"Ah, finally back."

Since the first-years had spent nearly a month away, the school gave them five days off to adjust.

After everyone returned to school by bus, they dispersed in small groups.

"Ayanokoji, do you have any plans for the next few days?"

When Kiyotaka was looking up at the blazing sun, Karuizawa walked up to him and asked.

"Nothing much. The only thing that counts as a plan is probably sleeping in."

Kiyotaka replied indifferently.

"Then... can you go shopping with me tomorrow?"

Karuizawa asked cautiously.

"Is that really okay?"

Kiyotaka glanced in Hirata's direction and asked.

"What's the big deal? I'm going to announce it when I get back anyway. Or are you scared?"

Karuizawa lifted her head and looked at Kiyotaka.

"I am scared. I'm scared of trouble."

With that, he walked away without looking back.

Karuizawa stomped her feet in anger as she watched him leave.

"You jerk!"

Chapter 56: Your Maid Outfit Looks a Bit Off

Walking on the road, Kiyotaka felt like he was about to melt. If he had to choose an archenemy, he might unhesitatingly pick summer.

"What kind of crappy weather is this? Why does it even have to exist? Is its only purpose to make me feel completely drained?"

Kiyotaka tried his best to squeeze into the shade, but the heat source seemed to follow him, leaving him nowhere to hide.

"I've been waiting for you for a long time, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka."

Just as Kiyotaka was trudging back to the dormitory building like a zombie under the blazing sun, someone called out to him.

Kiyotaka glanced to the side and found that the person who had stopped him was none other than Student Council President Manabu Horikita, with Secretary Tachibana following behind him.

Secretary Tachibana had always looked down on Kiyotaka, and she couldn't even understand why the president would patiently wait for this person under the scorching sun.

"Ah, it's the Student Council President. May I ask what business you have with me?"

Manabu Horikita pushed up his glasses and walked toward Kiyotaka as he spoke.

"I've been keeping an eye on your performance, including the change of the final [Ghost Card] holder to you on the deserted island, helping Class D win, and during the ship special exam, how you helped Kei Karuizawa escape and deceived Class A with a double trap."

Upon hearing this, Kiyotaka's eyes remained dull as he replied.

"The Student Council sure has a lot of power, being able to know about things like this. Is there anything in this school that you don't know?"

"Don't worry, this matter is limited to just me and Tachibana. It's just a small privilege of mine."

Manabu Horikita stared at Kiyotaka with an expressionless face.

"So, what exactly does the Student Council President want from me? If there's nothing, I'd like to go back and take a nice, comfortable shower. Don't laugh at me, but I really hate the heat."

This wasn't an excuse; Kiyotaka was speaking his true thoughts. In fact, going back to the dorm to shower was more important to him than whatever purpose Manabu Horikita had for chatting with him.

Upon hearing this, Manabu Horikita let out a light laugh and said.

"Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, are you interested in joining the Student Council as Vice President?"

Because the information contained in Manabu Horikita's words was too heavy, Kiyotaka didn't respond for a moment. Instead, Tachibana behind Horikita spoke up anxiously.

"President, this goes against the rules! The Student Council's roster has already been filled. Didn't we already bring in members from the first and second years during summer break?"