Welcome to the Paradise of Freedom

"Actually, there's another more important reason I called you out today."

"What?"

Kiyotaka looked at Karuizawa and asked.

"A movie I like just came out, and I have no one to watch it with."

"..."

This was Kiyotaka's fault—he shouldn't have expected Karuizawa to have anything serious to discuss with him.

"Come watch it with me, okay?"

Karuizawa shook Kiyotaka's arm as she asked.

"Sigh, since I'm already out, I guess I can spare a little more trouble."

Looking at Karuizawa's expectant eyes, Kiyotaka simply couldn't bring himself to refuse.

Having received his consent, Karuizawa immediately stood up from her seat in the waiting area and eagerly dragged Kiyotaka toward the movie theater.

Calling it a movie theater, Kiyotaka would rather call it a private cinema. Watching the couples filing into their private rooms one after another, that thought crossed his mind.

"Come on, I've bought the tickets. Room 108."

The room wasn't large, and the furnishings were simple—an oversized screen, a comfortable sofa, and snacks and drinks on the table.

As soon as they stepped inside, the movie was about to start. Karuizawa looked around, then sat down on the sofa. She glanced at Kiyotaka, who was still standing dumbly by the door, and said.

"What are you standing there for? Come sit!"

Kiyotaka walked over and sat down on the sofa. Because the sofa wasn't big, most of their arms were pressed together, but neither of them minded in the slightest.

"Let me ask just in case—can I sleep later?"

Kiyotaka asked without much hope.

"What do you think?"

As expected, it was impossible.

The movie began. Kiyotaka glanced at it—a cliché romance film.

Movies like this really couldn't hold Kiyotaka's interest, so before long, he started to doze off.

Karuizawa was watching the movie with great enthusiasm when she suddenly felt a weight on her shoulder. She turned her head and saw that Kiyotaka had fallen asleep.

Through the faint glow of the movie screen, Karuizawa studied Kiyotaka closely. She noticed that his sleeping posture was very peaceful, completely different from his usual expressionless face.

Kiyotaka's breathing was steady and even, and the warm air he exhaled lightly brushed against Karuizawa's neck, making her feel a little ticklish.

"Looking at him like this, he's actually pretty handsome... Why did he used to be so invisible, like I'd never even noticed him before..."

Watching Kiyotaka's sleeping profile, Karuizawa murmured to herself.

Ever since the Manabe incident, Kiyotaka's presence had gradually filled Karuizawa's life. Especially when he said he would protect her—at the time, she had impulsively promised to give him her body and soul, but deep down, she had felt a little uneasy about it.

But that feeling had slowly faded as she spent more time with Kiyotaka. Now, Karuizawa might truly be able to do whatever he told her to.

Gazing at Kiyotaka's slightly pale lips, Karuizawa asked softly.

"Can I kiss you?"

Then she let out a self-deprecating laugh and said.

"What am I even saying? He's asleep. Mmh!"

Karuizawa's eyes instantly flew wide open, her body tensing up, because Kiyotaka, who should have been fast asleep, had no trace of drowsiness in his eyes and was already rampaging inside her mouth.

But slowly, Karuizawa closed her eyes, wrapped her arms around Kiyotaka's waist, and began to respond to him. Karuizawa's little snake was very agile, coiling around Kiyotawa's tongue like a spirit serpent as she kissed him back.

Karuizawa's hands roamed over Kiyotaka's body, and she was surprised to find that his seemingly frail frame was unexpectedly solid—each restrained muscle seemed to be bursting with explosive power.

"Mmh~"

Kiyotaka's hand had somehow slipped into Karuizawa's clothes, stealthily climbing up to her peaks. Feeling the scorching heat of his hands, Karuizawa couldn't help but let out a soft moan.

They parted briefly, a silver thread still connecting their tongues. After Karuizawa took a deep breath of fresh air, she responded to Kiyotaka even more fiercely.

For a moment, the sound of their sucking kisses nearly drowned out the movie.

After who knows how long, Kiyotaka released Karuizawa, letting her collapse limply in his arms. Karuizawa accidentally brushed against something hard, and she immediately realized what it was. Her face flushed crimson all the way to her ears.

"Kiyotaka... are you... uncomfortable?"

Karuizawa asked in a soft, sticky voice. She didn't dare lift her head to look at him, because she knew how strange her expression must be right now.

"What do you think?"

Kiyotaka replied calmly.

"I... I can help you."

Karuizawa gathered her courage and said.

But Kiyotaka made no sound at all, just sitting there with steady, calm breaths.

Receiving no response, Karuizawa's mind was in turmoil. After hesitating for a long time, she slowly reached her hand toward that forbidden territory she had never touched before.

As the zipper was slowly pulled open, what lay hidden within gradually revealed its true form.

"Wha... how..."

Startled by what she saw, Karuizawa spoke in surprise.

Then, Karuizawa parted her red lips and buried herself in diligent work.

In terms of technique, Karuizawa was inexperienced, her silver teeth occasionally clashing, but her tongue was especially nimble, slithering like a dragon and snake, bringing Kiyotaka a different kind of pleasure.

Skill is honed through practice. The once-inept Karuizawa, without any instruction, launched an assault. The teasing of her clever tongue, combined with fierce thrusts, ultimately led Kiyotaka to press down on Karuizawa's head, unleashing a brilliant burst of fireworks.

Karuizawa only felt herself suddenly pinned down by Kiyotaka, and then a lava-like heat rapidly filled her mouth.

After lifting her head, she intended to spit it out.

"Swallow it."

Kiyotaka, as if seeing through her thoughts, said quietly.

Karuizawa froze, then without hesitation, her throat moved, and she swallowed all that heat.

Karuizawa wiped the remnants near her mouth and rubbed her stiff cheeks as she said.

"Is it always this tiring?"

A day passed quickly. After the private room incident, Karuizawa's attitude toward Kiyotaka grew even more affectionate. When they finally parted, Kiyotaka watched her turn back to wave at him and murmured to himself.

"Still not enough..."

Chapter 58: Sports Festival, Sakayanagi Arisu Appears!

A few days of vacation flew by in an instant, and the students of Class D returned to campus life.

"These are some materials for the Sports Festival. Fill in what you're good at, compile them, and hand them to me. Also, this month, extra PE classes will be added to accommodate the Sports Festival. I'll send you the new schedule later."

Homeroom teacher Chabashira handed out some documents during homeroom and addressed the class.

Hearing that a Sports Festival would be held under the scorching summer sun, most of the class let out groans of despair, except for Sudo, who stood up excitedly.

"Chabashira-sensei, may I ask? Is the Sports Festival one of the [Special Exams]?"

Hirata, now the representative of Class D, looked at Chabashira with a questioning gaze.

Chabashira rested her hands on the podium and said absentmindedly.

"How you interpret it is up to you, but regardless of the outcome, it will have a huge impact on the class."

Just as everyone expected Chabashira to give a definite answer, she only uttered a vague statement.

This made those who hated sports even more distraught. If it were an ordinary school, it might be fine, but here, every move affected class points, and class points directly impacted their lives. This chain of consequences made even slacking off impossible.

"Kiyotaka, look at this?"

While everyone was chattering and discussing, Horikita was quietly flipping through the materials alone. When she spotted something, she couldn't help but call out to Kiyotaka.

Hearing Horikita's call, Kiyotaka listlessly lifted his head and glanced at her. Seeing her finger pointing at the document, he began to flip through it. When he reached the place Horikita had indicated, Kiyotaka smiled and said.

"So it's a competition format. We and Class A are grouped together as the Red Team, while Classes B and C are the White Team? Doesn't that mean you'll have a chance to get close to your brother?"

"Kiyotaka!"

Horikita said with a mix of coquettishness and anger.

Kiyotaka immediately raised both hands in surrender.

Chabashira seemed to be keeping a close eye on Kiyotaka's situation. Just as they finished talking, she spoke up.

"I believe some of you who read the materials carefully have already noticed. This Sports Festival splits everyone into the Red and White camps. Our Class D will be grouped with Class A as the Red Team. Listen carefully to what I say next, because I won't repeat it."

Chabashira tapped the podium and continued.

"The entire competition will use a points system. For individual events, the top four will earn 15, 12, 10, and 8 points respectively. From fifth place onward, each lower rank deducts one additional point. For team events, the points are tripled from the above baseline.

At the end, the total scores of the Red and White sides will be tallied. The losing side will have 100 class points deducted equally from all classes. Within the winning camp, the class ranked first will gain 50 class points, the second will remain unchanged, and the third and fourth will lose 50 and 100 class points respectively."

"Teacher, why is it all about deductions? Isn't there any way to earn points?"

Karuizawa raised her hand and asked.

"No. And pay attention—even if the Red Team wins, if our Class D is the one dragging the team down, we'll still lose 100 class points. The theme of this Sports Festival is 'give it your all.'"

Chabashira's words were like salt in the wound for those in the class who disliked sports. Not only was there no benefit, but a single misstep could lead to deductions.

"However. For those who place individually, there are still rewards."

Chabashira's single sentence silenced the class.

"Individuals who place first will receive 5,000 personal points or a three-point bonus on exams. Second place gets 3,000 points or two points. Third place gets 1,000 points or one point."

"Is that the kind of points I'm thinking of?"

Ike stood up excitedly and asked.

"Yes." Chabashira shook her head helplessly.

"Heck yeah!"

A sliver of good news amid the bad made the whole class erupt in cheers.

Sometimes, people have to learn to find joy in hardship.

Kiyotaka couldn't help but think to himself.

"Chabashira-sensei, you left out one item."

Kiyotaka hadn't planned to speak up, but this matter was too important—if overlooked, Class D might never have a chance to advance.

A faint, barely noticeable smile curled at the corners of Chabashira's lips.

Hearing this, the Class D students quickly scanned the documents.

"What! The bottom ten students in the competition will have ten points deducted on the next exam?"

Ike exclaimed in disbelief after reading the last line.

Those words instantly deflated many students with poor grades who had hoped to try their luck. If studying was already hard for them, another ten-point deduction would practically guarantee failure.

"I'll leave this registration form here. You choose the right candidates yourselves and hand it to me. I'll submit it to the school. Next class, there will be a meeting between classes. Don't be late. Dismissed."

Chabashira gave them no chance to ask further questions and left immediately.

Soon, it was time for the whole grade to gather.

The meeting was hosted by a senior named Toumaki from Class 3-A. Horikita felt both relieved and disappointed when she realized her brother wasn't the one in charge.

"You like your brother that much, why don't you go to him yourself?"

Kiyotaka, standing beside her, asked.

"His excellence is the goal I've always been striving toward, but I've never achieved it. I don't have the courage."

Horikita bit her lip as she spoke.

"And what if you find someone even better than him?"