If a Huge Mess Breaks Out, It's Definitely Not Just One Person's Fault

As for Kitagawa Ryo's currently rather complicated emotional relationships...

It can only be said that if Tsukishiro was completely unaware of the specifics and was simply acting on preconceived notions from a political perspective, Sakayanagi Arisu was a master who knew and understood all the circumstances but pretended not to be ignorant because of her own possessiveness, which was perhaps not so much, then Sakayanagi Narimori was simply acting out of absolute trust and letting go of his daughter.

After all, to get back to the point, Sakayanagi Arisu was a child who had her own opinions since she was a child.

That's why all he needs to do is wait, hope, and offer his blessings.

Of course, if Kitagawa Ryo really does something to Arisu in the end, Sakayanagi Narimori wouldn't mind letting him taste his fists, even if the other party is someone who just defeated a wild boar head-on.

"The timing was just perfect."

Tsukishiro continued with a smile.

"The pair of rings that Kitagawa asked me to order a while ago were finally finished and delivered today."

Even though he knew that Tsukishiro's words were just auspicious platitudes to make people happy, Sakayanagi Narimori was still unconsciously drawn to the two items the other party had taken out.

Sakayanagi Narimori was aware that Kitagawa Ryo wanted to commission a ring specifically for Arisu, but unlike others such as Tsukishiro, he didn't assign much additional meaning to this gesture.

Or rather, the only people who could attribute these qualities to it were Kitagawa Ryo and Sakayanagi Arisu.

It can be a simple gift between lovers, a token of love to express feelings, or even a symbol of engagement or marriage. But all of these are just speculations from outsiders.

However, Tsukishiro Tsuneshige naturally wouldn't understand Sakayanagi Narimori's thoughts. He had always treated it with the highest standards. After all, although the three years at ANHS were only a small part of Kitagawa Ryo and Sakayanagi Arisu's lives, he only hoped that if they could leave behind some unforgettable and beautiful memories during these years, they would remember him, the 'helpful person,' when they looked back on those times in the future.

It was precisely for this reason that Tsukishiro meticulously prepared three different pairs of rings for Kitagawa Ryo's operation, making it seem as if the customer could choose any one of them.

However, there's nothing wrong with that. After all, if the two people's relationship is to develop smoothly, the first thing they need is the engagement rings that symbolize their love, then the engagement rings that signify their relationship after they've established their Marriage Contract, and finally the wedding rings that they exchange at the wedding.

The styles of the three are naturally different. After all, engagement and wedding rings, which need to be worn for a long time, are simple and understated in style, so that they can be worn comfortably on the hand after marriage. On the other hand, engagement rings, which are used to show off and express love, naturally need to be more flashy and dazzling.

"The extra amount is simply my personal sentiment and heartfelt blessing to these two."

After opening and displaying each of the three gift boxes containing rings to Sakayanagi Narimori, Tsukishiro offered his congratulations in the same manner.

"Um."

Since it was Kitagawa Ryo Tsukishiro, Sakayanagi Narimori couldn't just make the decision for him directly. After simply agreeing, he asked:

Are you just going to send it to Kitagawa like this?

"After all, Kitagawa himself said that it would be best to hand it over to him today; this is the message he sent this morning."

As he spoke, Tsukishiro showed his phone, which contained a message from Sakayanagi Arisu Ryo that morning, sent after Kitagawa Ryo had launched a surprise attack on him.

"However, the method might need to be a bit roundabout."

In front of Sakayanagi Narimori, Tsukishiro naturally couldn't say that it was because the person in question was currently on a date with another girl. After coughing twice, he continued vaguely:

"Kitagawa means that we can just put it in the Drama Club's activity room. He should be able to go back and get it when he has time. I've already asked their department's advisor Sima Kexian, to get the spare key."

"Since he has his own plans, let's do it that way. Arisu should be very happy."

Sakayanagi Narimori slightly, indicating that he had no objection, since he was currently adhering to a policy of non-interference.

"Okay, I'll have my secretary send the things over right away."

After saying that, Tsukishiro got up and called over his secretary, who had been waiting outside the door. He gave her a few simple instructions and then handed the items to her.

While Horikita Suzune finished lunch and went out of the Student Council's office to wash her lunchbox, Hotaru, who did not deliver Suzune's Valentine's Day gift as Kitagawa Ryo had expected, jumped out of the Student Council office window with the gift box in her mouth again. As if sensing something, she ran along the wall from all sorts of impossible angles, through the blind spots of the surveillance cameras, all the way to the Drama Club's activity room.

The traces that Karuizawa Kei and Shiina Hiyori had prepared here before have been cleaned up completely, and all sorts of things have been moved to the site by the two of them. However, three red velvet gift boxes are still neatly arranged on the table, which were just delivered by Tsukishiro.

Hotaru quickly put down the chocolate gift box she was holding, casually opened all three boxes with her furry front paws, checked them, and after confirming that there were no Romanized initials representing the names of both parties engraved on the inside of the rings, she directly picked up one of them, exchanged it with the one she was wearing before, and then jumped out of the window again, running towards the Student Council once more.

Even now, Kitagawa Ryo, who is still having lunch with Ichinose Honami at the Gymnasium, has no idea what's going on...

That person who orchestrated the biggest chaos of this Valentine's Day celebration and delivered a perfectly unexpected betrayal was none other than his dear sister.

Or should I say, "this cat"?

Chapter 477: If a major chaos occurs, it will definitely not be one person's fault.

"Phew... I'm full."

"Me too, the portion is just right."

Perhaps it was because from beginning to end, Ichinose Honami and Kitagawa Ryo's pupils remained in their own little worlds, containing only each other's image. Even with a large group of other people surrounding them, their eating rhythm was not affected in the slightest, and they did not feel nervous or ashamed at all.

Kitagawa Ryo didn't need to clean up the mess himself; he could easily bribe his way out of the mess with his Private Points, and school staff would be happy to take on this private job without any middlemen taking a cut.

Ichinose Honami, or rather, some girls don't really value Private Points, or money, but the reality is that what they truly value often requires Private Points to achieve. Both Kitagawa Ryo and Ichinose Honami have long understood this.

Love has always been an inexpensive luxury; the inexpensiveness and luxury vary from person to person, yet are all too clear.

Let's go for a walk.

Instead of immediately returning to the Gymnasium, Kitagawa Ryo extended an invitation to Ichinose Honami.

"Well, it's not even afternoon yet."

Winter afternoons always exude a drowsy, lazy atmosphere. The sun overhead looks dazzling, but the actual heat it casts is quite limited, at most enough to make you zip up your down jacket halfway.

To be honest, as soon as they were enrolled for almost a year, the Tokyo Advanced Nurturing High School campus, no matter how big, had already been explored by the students. Kitagawa Ryo and Ichinose Honami were no exception. However, due to the Valentine's Day celebrations today, many ordinary benches, streetlights, and other items near the Gymnasium had been specially decorated to match the festive atmosphere, which made it look quite refreshing.

"Unbeknownst to us, almost a year has passed."

Perhaps recalling the opening ceremony held in the Gymnasium on the day she first enrolled, Ichinose Honami gazed at the building's exterior and couldn't help but utter this remark.

To be honest, this should be the year with the most changes in her life so far, even surpassing the years when she was reborn with her memories, because the most fundamental changes in her as Ichinose Honami occurred in the ten months after she enrolled in school.

There are many reasons why she was able to take this crucial step, which she had never tried before in the past ten years. For example, the fully enclosed management system of Tokyo Advanced Nurturing High School truly separated her from her family for the first time, placing her in a new environment as an independent individual; another reason is ANHS Advanced Educational High School's educational system, which is completely different from other high schools, especially its Private Points system; of course, this is also inseparable from the various events she experienced after entering the school.

Although some people say that growing up can happen in the blink of an eye, Ichinose Honami doesn't actually agree with that statement.

If she were to define it, growth would probably be like the pain of having tendons and bones ripped out, because before that, those tendons and bones had also been implanted into her body in such a long and painful way.

Fortunately, at this point in time, Ichinose Honami is finally able to look back on and face everything from the past with a more relaxed attitude.

Even after all the reasons mentioned above, Ichinose Honami still felt that the real key reason was actually the person holding her hand at that moment.

"Yes, in just over a month, we'll be able to see the new First Year students' opening ceremony here, and then it'll be our turn to be called 'senior brothers and sisters'."

Kitagawa Ryo Ichinose Honami chatted casually with Ichinose Honami in a relaxed tone:

"However, Honami should also be careful. During the first month after the new students enroll, the school strictly prohibits upperclassmen from revealing any information about ANHS's Class Points, Private Points, Special Exam, or other key systems to First Year students. Anyone found doing so will be severely punished. Last year when we enrolled, a few of them who couldn't keep their mouths shut were caught red-handed."

"Yes, I understand. I'll keep that in mind when dealing with the new students."

Ichinose Honami nodded obediently in agreement.

Since realizing that social skills and interpersonal relationships are also an innate and quite useful talent, she has begun to consciously utilize this ability. Her planning and strategy during last year's Sports Festival were also based on this ability.

Moreover, she had already heard Kitagawa Ryo say that the incoming First Year students would be the new rivals and contestants for him and Ayanokoji Kiyotaka —perhaps a chessboard would be a more apt description?

"I think it's unnecessary for Honami to make a lot of contact with the new students in the first month of school. He can just take advantage of the club recruitment opportunity to make contact with a couple of them. After all, a considerable number of the new students participated in ANHS's Cultural Festival last year. Maybe some of them have already obtained or deduced some information from that day's journey. We can't treat this group with ordinary eyes."

Kitagawa Ryo, still somewhat worried, added another instruction. This was mainly because Ichinose Honami had just mentioned earlier that she wanted to take the initiative as the person in charge of club recruitment, showing a strong desire to connect with new students, which made him quite concerned.

"The Cultural Festival... It's a pity I was busy with the shop that day and couldn't go out and observe these new students who are about to enroll."

"By the way, doesn't Liang have a list of his favorites? Could you tell me about it briefly? These should be our natural allies, right?"

When faced with Ichinose Honami's question about the bait being too strong, Kitagawa Ryo also gave a vague and ambiguous answer:

"Not necessarily. According to the rules, if the freshmen I select are also selected by Ayanokoji, then the decision will fall into their own hands, and they will have to choose which side to support. So even if they are on my list, it is still uncertain whose camp they will be assigned to."

"Huh--Is that really how it is?"

Ichinose Honami deliberately dragged out her words slightly, but instead of retreating immediately, she continued to ask:

"But there shouldn't be any problem with Yuki, right? Ryo is quite close to her, isn't she? Even if Ayanokoji chooses her, the other party should still choose to join Ryo's side, right?"

So, no matter how you look at it, the focus is still on the snow.

However, Kitagawa Ryo expressed his understanding, since only Ichinose Honami had seen the marks left on him by the snow up close that day.

Although those injuries were actually the least serious in terms of any kind of play involving Ace and his love, and were indeed due to Yuki's own psychological issues and not her intention to some extent, it's understandable that she was held onto by Ichinose Honami, who is extremely sensitive to such matters.

"Yuki, with her personality, if Ayanokoji really chooses her, she might actually choose to go to the other camp and become an open mole to cause trouble. After all, achieving the camp's goal only rewards 20 million Private Points, which might be quite attractive to other students, but she doesn't need to transfer classes."

As he spoke, Kitagawa Ryo added in his mind:

After all, you can't transfer to a class across grades.

"I see. From Liang's description, it seems like the other person's personality is somewhat similar to Ichika's?"

"After all, they both came from the White Room, but compared to Ichika, Yuki was eliminated halfway through, so she might have some psychological issues."

Having subtly revealed some information about the snow in a tactful tone, Kitagawa Ryo spoke again:

"I also plan to correct some of her misconceptions after she enrolls in school."

"All right."

Knowing Kitagawa Ryo's past, Ichinose Honami didn't ask questions like, "When did you meet so many White Room students?" However, she secretly gave the organization a huge negative score, feeling that it was like a large-scale social experiment petri dish, and it was truly remarkable that Kitagawa Ryo could emerge from there so well, both physically and mentally.

"Oh, right, there's something else I really want to ask Liang."

After calmly finishing their conversation about snow-related matters, Ichinose Honami looked up again, her expression serious as she gazed at Kitagawa Ryo.

"Liang, when are you going to transfer to another shift and leave?"

"Knowing the approximate time will allow me to prepare accordingly."

It has to be said that Ichinose Honami's progress during this period at ANHS has indeed caught Kitagawa Ryo's attention. The 20 million yen transfer fee, which almost all ANHS students racked their brains for three years but could not raise, seemed to her to be something that could be produced with just a period of preparation.

But you can't question her, because Ichinose Honami has already achieved such a miracle once before.

"Well, I really can't say for sure right now."

Kitagawa Ryo honestly shared his thoughts on this.

"Actually, at first, my plan was just to stay in Class B for about a semester. After all, that should be enough time for me to bring Class B to Class A and Arisu."

"But things are progressing slower than I expected in Class A, and due to the chain reaction of the Student Council election starting early, I'm starting to doubt that Arisu will be able to defeat Suzune and become the Leader of Class A."

"Therefore, the time for transferring classes and leaving should be even later, and it's not impossible for me to stay here for another semester."

Just like the Kinder Surprise slogan that grants three wishes at once, Kitagawa Ryo's first class transfer was also intended to accomplish several planned tasks in one go. However, he now realizes that plans can't keep up with changes. It's been more than two months since he transferred, and Class A still hasn't decided who will win.

Even if they are separated, it seems that Suzune still has a greater advantage.

"Staying for another semester wouldn't be a problem. After all, I really like the atmosphere in this class, and Hui would probably be happy to see that too."

Ichinose Honami smiled and replied, "Don't be fooled by how confident she sounded. If Kitagawa Ryo said he'd be leaving at the end of next month, she really wouldn't have a way to raise enough Twenty Million Personal Points in just over a month. It's always better to stall for a little longer, since they're classmates now."

And to be honest, Ichinose Honami really felt that the atmosphere in Class B was much better than in Class A. Coming here was like coming home, and she felt right at home. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to immediately be on par with the veteran Karuizawa Kei after just transferring classes.

"As long as Honami likes it, that's fine."

After discussing these important future events—which were somewhat dull but necessary to reiterate— Kitagawa Ryo and Ichinose Honami ended their afternoon walk and began heading back into the Gymnasium to prepare for the afternoon and evening.

While they were discussing transferring classes, on the other side of the campus, someone else was also making a final decision after careful consideration.

"Um... did Hiyori call them over?"

Karuizawa Kei hesitated for a moment, looking at the Class D boys who had suddenly appeared from some corner and were huffing and puffing as they helped out. She Ishizaki Daichi turned to Shiina Hiyori and asked her a question.

"No—why would I possibly tell anyone about something like this?"

At this moment, Shiina Hiyori had lost the shrewdness she had displayed when plotting against Kitagawa Ryo a few dozen minutes earlier. She shook her head in confusion, seemingly unaware of the situation.

"I asked them to come and help."

Immediately afterwards, Ryuen Kakeru's voice came from behind the two of them.

Karuizawa Kei and Shiina Hiyori simultaneously turned their heads in surprise. After all, appearing in this place at this time meant—

"So, Ryuen, you didn't get any dates on Valentine's Day either, did you?"

Almost choked by Shiina Hiyori's unconscious remark, Ryuen Kakeru tried his best to maintain the mysterious smile on his face and somewhat flamboyantly smoothed his long hair in front of his forehead.

"Compared to spending Valentine's Day on a date, I, as a helpful and enthusiastic person, would much rather support every dream."

As he spoke, Ryuen Kakeru pointed to the other boys from Class D who were actively moving things and setting up the venue.

"It's still faster than you two girls doing it, right? The longer it drags on, the easier it is for someone to find out."

How did you know we were doing this?

"As a class Leader, it's my duty to care about the romantic relationships of my students."

Ryuen Kakeru simply shrugged at this.