Welcome to the Free Paradise of the True Sect

"Alright, I'll give it a try. It'd be best if I can help Sudo."

After school, Kikyo found Airi Sakura.

"Airi!"

Airi Sakura froze in place at the sound, her expression flustered as she looked at Kikyo and asked, "What is it, Kikyo?"

"It's like this—I wanted to ask, do you have any evidence regarding Sudo's incident? If you do, could you help him out?"

Airi Sakura grew visibly tense at the question and said, "I don't know. I don't know anything. Please don't come to me about this."

With that, she tried to flee, but in her panic, she tripped and fell, sending her camera skidding across the floor.

Startled, Airi scrambled up to retrieve the camera, but no matter how many times she pressed the power button, nothing happened.

"How could this..."

"I'm sorry, Airi. If it weren't for me, your camera wouldn't have broken."

"No, it's my own fault. Let's just leave it at that. I'm going now."

Watching Airi walk away, Kikyo glanced back at Kiyotaka, who stood in the shadowy corner, and shook her head.

Failure was expected. If it weren't, Kikyo wouldn't have needed to approach her—she would have stepped forward on her own. Now, the task was to figure out how to dig up her secret and use it.

Having reached that conclusion, Kiyotaka left without another word, leaving a dejected Kikyo behind.

On the internet, there was a moderately well-known everyday model. Aside from sharing the same hair color as Airi Sakura, everything else about her was completely different.

But her true identity was Airi Sakura herself. At that moment, in her dark room, Airi was admiring her own photos while browsing through her fans' comments. Among them, one fan was especially obsessive, leaving messages under nearly every picture.

"Airi-chan, you just keep getting prettier."

"Airi-chan, you finally updated. I feel like my life has lost all meaning without seeing you."

"Airi-chan, I think I know where you are. I'm breathing the same air as you right now. I'm so happy."

"Airi-chan, I can't hold back anymore. I'm going to find you. Wait for me—I know who you are."

As his words grew more and more unhinged, Airi Sakura was so terrified that she shut down the computer, unable to look any further. The room plunged into darkness.

On the weekend, since Airi Sakura's camera was broken, she went to the electronics store at the mall to get it repaired.

"Hello, I'd like to get my camera fixed."

"Sure, be right there."

The person who responded was a greasy-looking middle-aged man. The moment he saw Airi, his eyes lit up as if he'd discovered something, and he hurried over.

"What's broken? Let me see."

Airi handed over the camera. The greasy store clerk pretended to examine it for a moment before saying, "The internal parts are damaged. It'll take two or three days to repair. Fill in your information, and I'll notify you when it's ready."

Airi Sakura numbly picked up the pen and asked, "What information do I need to fill in?"

The greasy store clerk looked up at her and said, "Name, phone number, and... your address." As he said the last word, a lecherous, unsettling smile crept across his lips.

Airi Sakura stared at him in fear. She wanted to run, but her camera was in his hands, leaving her frozen and unsure of what to do.

"Oh, okay. Just filling these in is enough, right?"

Just as Airi was at a loss, a cold voice cut in. Someone took the pen from her and swiftly filled in his own details on the form.

"Done. Contact me when it's ready."

The greasy store clerk, caught off guard by this sudden interference, clicked his tongue almost imperceptibly. But with so many people around, he couldn't make a scene, so he grudgingly took the form and left.

"Ayanokoji... What are you doing here?"

Airi Sakura, still shaken, looked at Kiyotaka and asked.

"Ah... just passing by. Saw you were in trouble, so I thought I'd help."

Was that really the case? Not at all. When Airi broke her camera, her frantic reaction made it clear how important it was to her. This electronics store was the only one in the area, and Kiyotaka had been lying in wait here, looking for an opportunity to get close to Airi Sakura.

"Thank you, Ayanokoji. If you don't mind, can I buy you a drink?"

Airi Sakura lowered her head, speaking timidly.

"Sure, I'd love to."

Kiyotaka kept his gaze fixed on Airi, his eyes devoid of any emotion. Yet that empty, unreadable stare somehow put Airi at ease, and her tense body gradually relaxed.

At the drink shop on the first floor of the mall, Kiyotaka took a piece of paper, wrote down a number, and handed it to Airi Sakura.

"This is my terminal number. When your camera's fixed, or if you ever have any problems, feel free to contact me."

Airi froze for a moment, her cheeks flushing slightly as she hurriedly replied, "Sorry, I was careless. I should have been the one to give you my contact info."

After a flurry of fumbling, the two finally exchanged contact information.

Taking a few sips of coffee, Kiyotaka glanced at Airi Sakura, who had relaxed considerably, and spoke.

"I want to ask you something. Do you have any evidence that proves Sudo is innocent?"

Airi Sakura's expression, which had been relatively calm, instantly tensed up. Her hands unconsciously tore at the note with the number on it.

Seeing Airi like this, Kiyotaka knew it wasn't the right time. He said, "But it's fine. Pretend I didn't ask. I have something to take care of, so I'll be going now."

Airi Sakura watched Kiyotaka's retreating back, her expression deeply conflicted.

Chapter 14: Saving Airi Sakura

Day five. Only three days remained until the Student Council's ruling.

Yet there had been zero progress on the matter.

At this moment, Kiyotaka and Horikita had arrived at the school building where Sudo's fight had taken place.

"This place is so secluded, and there are no cameras anywhere. No wonder there are no witnesses or related evidence."

Horikita surveyed the surroundings, then said.

Kiyotaka also casually looked around the building, lost in thought.

At the same time, in a dark alley somewhere.

Airi Sakura was being backed slowly into a corner by a man.

"Airi-chan, it's me? What are you so scared of?"

"You seemed so happy when you interacted with me before, didn't you? Why are you so afraid now?"

Airi Sakura's expression was panicked. She kept retreating, staring in terror at the man before her. She recognized him—it was that clerk from the electronics store.

Helpless, she pulled out her terminal and called the number Kiyotaka had given her just two days ago. But before the call could connect properly, the greasy clerk snatched it away and hung up.

"What do you think you're doing! Don't let others interfere with our alone time, okay? Airi-chan?"

Kiyotaka frowned at the call that had connected and then been quickly hung up. After a moment's thought, he directly called his homeroom teacher, Chabashira.

"What is it?"

"I want to buy Airi Sakura's terminal location."

Chabashira paused at this, a smile curling at the corner of her lips.

"Interesting guy. Sent it over. Check it yourself. The corresponding points have been deducted."

After hanging up, Kiyotaka told Horikita to head back first, then set off following the location.

Fortunately, the location wasn't far. Within a few minutes, Kiyotaka had arrived.

By then, the greasy clerk had already cornered Airi Sakura against the wall. Seeing her with nowhere to run, he let out a lecherous laugh.

"Hehe, Airi-chan, you're mine now."

"Uh, excuse me."

The greasy clerk flinched and whipped around. At the sight of those golden eyes, rage surged within him.

"You again, you little brat! You always mess things up for me. Die!"

With that, he charged at Kiyotaka like a mountain of flesh.

Kiyotaka first looked up, confirming there was indeed a camera above. He waved at it, then casually sidestepped the clerk's charge and delivered a light kick that sent him crashing into the wall.

"Take a look above your own head. With a camera that big right there, you still think about getting handsy. I wonder how your brain works."

Without bothering with the greasy man, Kiyotaka walked straight over to Airi Sakura. Seeing her still shaken, he took off his jacket and draped it over her.

Feeling the warmth on her body, Airi Sakura whispered a soft "thank you," and then leaned on Kiyotaka as he helped her leave.

Because she was startled, Airi Sakura's legs had no strength, so her entire body leaned against Kiyotaka. Inevitably, her softness pressed and swayed against his arm with each step. Her buds stood erect, and combined with the pleasant, clean scent emanating from Kiyotaka, Airi Sakura couldn't help but blush, a strange sensation stirring within her.

Feeling the slight tremble from Airi Sakura beside him, Kiyotaka thought she was still scared and said, "It's okay. He won't dare come after you again. That place was full of cameras. If it blows up, he'll definitely be in big trouble."

Airi Sakura nodded absently. For some reason, her mind was filled with Kiyotaka's clean scent. Deep inside, she felt an inexplicable sense of safety and a jolt like an electric shock.

The more she thought about it, the weaker and hotter her body felt. She murmured, head bowed, "Ayanokoji-kun, could you trouble yourself to walk me back to my dorm?"

Kiyotaka glanced at her, nodded, and said nothing.

The walk was filled with an awkward silence, the only peculiarity being Airi Sakura's increasingly flushed face.

Kiyotaka successfully saw Airi Sakura back to her dorm. Watching her sit on the bed, he said, "Get some good rest. I'll be going now. Find me if anything comes up."

With that, Kiyotaka turned to leave, but a small hand grabbed hold of him.

Kiyotaka turned to look at Airi Sakura, who was gripping him. Airi, who had been keeping her head down, lifted it, her face flushed crimson, her lips parting and closing as she panted softly.

"Ayanokoji-kun, do you have a girlfriend?"

Kiyotaka calmly looked at Airi Sakura and nodded.

"I do."

Then, after a moment's thought about Kikyo, he added, "And more than one."

Airi Sakura hadn't expected Kiyotaka to be so honest, and even more so, she hadn't anticipated he had multiple girlfriends. This left her momentarily stunned.

"You're just going to tell me that straight up?"

Kiyotaka shrugged nonchalantly.

"It's fine. Actually, you're one of my targets too."

After saying this, Kiyotaka calmly watched Airi Sakura. Since he was laying his cards on the table, there was no need to pretend anymore.

But to his surprise, Airi Sakura looked at him with hazy eyes and smiled.

"So I'm one of your targets too? That's good. As long as it's not one-sided on my part, I don't care about anything else."

With that, Airi directly pushed Kiyotaka down onto a chair and sat sideways on him. Her cool, red lips, trembling slightly, pressed against his, clumsily seeking his saliva, while her slender fingers roamed restlessly.

Because of their seating position, Airi felt a surge of heat at a sensitive spot. After a brief thought, she realized what it was.

"Kiyotaka... can I call you that?"

Kiyotaka nodded.

Airi shyly lowered her head and asked timidly, "Does it hurt? I can help you."