The Hunter's Whisper

The clamor of the Sports Festival was like a stone dropped into a lake; the ripples it stirred would eventually settle into calm.

Campus life returned to its original track.

The atmosphere in Class D had never been better.

Because they had earned a considerable number of class points during the Sports Festival, everyone's personal points had risen accordingly, leaving them far more well-off.

Even the atmosphere for studying had grown much stronger as a result.

After all, no one wanted to go back to those days when they had to carefully budget even their free lunches.

Natsume Yu was still the same as ever.

By the window, with a thick book in hand, he wore an air of complete indifference toward the outside world.

During class, he slept.

After class, he read.

He was as calm as a pool of deep water, revealing not the slightest ripple.

But only certain people knew what terrifying undercurrents churned beneath that deep water.

"Bzz."

His phone gave a faint vibration beneath the desk.

Natsume Yu's gaze never left his book, yet his finger lightly tapped the screen and sent a message he had prepared long ago.

On the other side, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, who was attending a study group, felt the phone in his pocket vibrate as well.

He glanced at the screen without changing expression, then put the phone away.

Several Class B students sat across from him.

"Ayanokoji, your solution to this problem is incredibly clever," one Class B boy said with an admiring expression.

Ayanokoji nodded blankly and said in his flat, unchanging tone, "It's nothing. Our class just wants to study properly now. We don't want any more conflicts."

Another Class B girl smiled and joined in. "Yeah. Ichinose says it all the time too. We're all classmates, so we should get along peacefully."

Ayanokoji gave a quiet "Mm," then added, "Ichinose is a class leader worthy of respect."

A few simple words precisely conveyed the signal Natsume Yu wanted to send.

Class D hoped to form an alliance with Class B.

At least, on the surface, that was the case.

Meanwhile, among the girls in Class B.

Kushida Kikyo was gossiping with several girls she was close to.

Her sweet voice and cute face made her welcome in any group.

"Oh, right, have you heard? That idol star was actually a delinquent girl in middle school!"

"Really? You'd never be able to tell!"

Kushida Kikyo covered her mouth, her eyes curving into crescents as she smiled.

"Yeah, but look at how popular she is now. That just goes to show everyone makes mistakes. As long as someone can turn over a new leaf, shouldn't they be forgiven for what happened in the past?"

She shifted the topic with perfect naturalness, without the slightest trace of deliberation.

Yet those words were like invisible needles, quietly piercing the heart of someone nearby.

Ichinose Honami was discussing a problem with her classmates, smiling brightly and flawlessly.

But when Kushida's words drifted into her ears, her smile froze for an instant.

A shadow too subtle to notice flashed through those eyes that were always filled with kindness and energy.

No one noticed anything unusual about her.

Except for Natsume Yu in the distance, who had been observing everything from the corner of his eye.

He saw that whenever Ichinose was alone afterward, she would unconsciously clench her fists. Her gaze would drift uncontrollably toward empty spaces, revealing anxiety and inferiority utterly at odds with her image as the perfect class leader.

Good.

The bait had already been cast.

That fish, its heart full of wounds, would soon bite the hook on its own.

After school, in the library.

Natsume Yu leaned against a bookshelf, flipping through an obscure philosophical work on existentialism.

A gentle voice sounded beside him.

"Do you like this book too?"

Natsume Yu turned his head and saw a quiet, delicate face.

Shiina Hiyori from Class C.

A girl who also liked reading alone.

"I'm just browsing," Natsume Yu replied blandly.

But Shiina Hiyori was drawn to the book in his hand and began talking on her own. "I really like the ideas the author mentions in it. About 'free choice' and 'the weight of existence,' I think..."

She spoke at length, clearly having studied the book deeply.

Natsume Yu listened quietly. Only after she finished did he speak slowly.

"You've only seen the first layer."

"Hm?" Shiina Hiyori froze.

"The freedom the author speaks of is itself a shackle imposed by a higher dimension. And the weight he discusses is merely the meaningless groaning of an individual under predetermined rules."

Natsume Yu's voice was not loud, yet it carried a penetrating force that seemed to pierce straight through to the essence of things.

"When you can look at a problem from the perspective of the one who makes the rules, you'll realize that so-called 'existence' is nothing more than a game whose data can be altered at any time."

Boom!

Something exploded in Shiina Hiyori's mind.

She stared blankly at Natsume Yu, her beautiful eyes filled with shock and disbelief.

Natsume Yu's insight completely surpassed the book, surpassing the limits of what she could understand, opening a door to an entirely new world for her!

This man...

Who exactly was he?

At that moment, Shiina Hiyori became convinced that this seemingly ordinary boy was the only possible "soulmate" she could have in this world.

"Um..." Shiina Hiyori's cheeks flushed slightly, and her tone became somewhat restrained. "Natsume, I... Can I be friends with you?"

Na-tsu-me.

She had even asked around about his name in advance.

Natsume Yu looked at her, the corner of his mouth lifting in an almost imperceptible curve.

"Sure."

During their following conversation, Natsume Yu not only successfully acquired an important piece of his harem puzzle, but also obtained the information he wanted from Shiina Hiyori's worried words.

"Our class... has had a terrible atmosphere lately."

Shiina Hiyori spoke softly, her brows drawn together.

"After Ryuen failed at the Sports Festival, he's become more and more... obsessive. A lot of people in the class are scared of him."

The wounded beast had indeed begun to lose its reason.

A calculating coldness flashed in Natsume Yu's eyes.

Good.

It was time to arrange the final stage for this grand drama of "redemption."

He needed an opportunity.

An opportunity that would allow him to legitimately intervene within Class B, utterly crush Class C, and firmly hold the critical chess piece known as Ichinose Honami in his hand.

And that opportunity would soon be offered to him personally by that out-of-control beast.

On the way back to the dormitory, Natsume Yu sent Ayanokoji a new instruction.

[New mission: Follow Ryuen Kakeru. Record all of his movements, every person he contacts, and every place he goes.]

[Remember, you absolutely cannot be discovered.]

[This is your ultimate test.]

At the other end of the phone, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka stared at the message in silence for a long time.

He knew the real show was about to begin.

And he would be the most crucial executor in this grand production.

Inside the classroom.

Horikita Suzune's gaze fell on the window seat for the countless time.

Natsume Yu had already left.

Yet she felt as though that man's shadow still remained there.

She found herself becoming less and less able to stop paying attention to him, to stop thinking about him.

She tried to imitate Natsume Yu's way of thinking and analyze the school's situation.

Sakayanagi of Class A, Ichinose of Class B, Ryuen of Class C... and Class D's current state.

She reviewed all the information in her mind over and over, yet she always felt as if a thick fog lay between her and the truth.

She could not see through it.

She could not understand at all where Natsume Yu's every move was leading.

For the first time, this feeling made her waver in her blind admiration for her brother.

Her brother's strength was textbook strength—perfect strength.

But Natsume Yu's strength was abyssal strength, impossible to define and impossible to predict.

That immense gap left her with a deep sense of powerlessness.

Night.

Natsume Yu lay on his bed, the light from his phone screen reflecting off his calm face.

Suddenly, the screen lit up.

It was an urgent message.

From Kushida Kikyo.

"Master, this is bad!"

"Sakayanagi Arisu from Class A seems to have started investigating you!"