Ayanokoji's Terror

Airi Sakura flinched violently, like a startled animal, instinctively clutching her schoolbag tighter, her head drooping so low it seemed about to bury itself, her body still trembling faintly.

Through her thick lenses, she shot a quick glance at Yuefeng, then immediately looked away, her voice thin as a mosquito's hum, choked with tears: "Th-thank you... I'm, I'm fine..."

"Good that you're fine." Yuefeng didn't step closer, keeping a safe distance. "Try not to take such secluded paths from now on, especially when you're alone. If something like this happens again, shout for help, or head straight to a crowded place and find a teacher or security."

"Mm... G-got it..." Airi Sakura replied in a small voice, still not daring to lift her head.

Yuefeng knew she needed time to calm down; his presence here would only add to her pressure. "I'll head off then. Take care of yourself."

He nodded and turned to leave.

Just then—

"Yuefeng-ge."

That flat, emotionless voice came from the direction Yuefeng had arrived from.

Yuefeng's steps faltered, his heart clenching as if gripped by an invisible hand. He turned slowly.

Kiyotaka Ayanokoji stood there, leaning against the wall on the other side of the corner, hands in his pockets, quietly watching this scene.

His face still showed no expression, but Yuefeng felt that those dark brown eyes held something more than usual... an extremely subtle, hard-to-read something.

He's here. He really was nearby. How much did he see?

"Kiyotaka." Yuefeng tried to make his voice sound natural. "You're here too."

"Mm." Kiyotaka responded, his gaze shifting from Yuefeng's face to the still-head-down Airi Sakura behind him, lingering for a second, then returning to Yuefeng's face.

"That was handled well just now." Kiyotaka said in a tone of stating a fact. "The legal citations were accurate, and the timing and tone were just right. More efficient than using direct violence, and leaves no lingering trouble."

Is he... critiquing? Yuefeng's emotions churned. Kiyotaka had seen the whole process but hadn't shown himself, only appearing after Yuefeng had "resolved" it.

"I just... happened to remember those rules." Yuefeng said vaguely.

"Happened to remember." Kiyotaka repeated, then tilted his head slightly—that tiny, abrupt movement appearing again, as if adjusting some observational parameter.

"You seem to have a particular preparation for 'handling emergencies' and 'exploiting rules.'"

Yuefeng's heart jumped. Kiyotaka's observation was too sharp.

"In Advanced Nurturing High School, knowing more rules can't hurt." Yuefeng tried to steer the topic toward generality.

Kiyotaka nodded, not pressing further. He glanced at the still-uncertain Airi Sakura, then said to Yuefeng, "She needs time to calm down. Let's go."

With that, he took the lead, walking toward the path's exit, his steps not pausing as he passed Yuefeng.

Yuefeng took one last look at Airi Sakura, nodded to her, and followed Kiyotaka.

The two walked one after the other in silence for a stretch. The setting sun stretched their shadows long.

"You're very concerned about Class D's affairs." Kiyotaka suddenly spoke, breaking the silence, his tone flat, impossible to tell if it was a question or a statement.

Yuefeng's heart lurched. Here it comes—Kiyotaka was bound to ask.

"Just happened to run into it." Yuefeng said. "Whether it's a Class C or Class D classmate, you can't just ignore something like that."

"Is that so." Kiyotaka said noncommittally. He paused, then added, "Airi Sakura, a Class D student. Introverted personality, poor at socializing, but has a special talent."

Special talent? Was he referring to her hidden photography skills and information-gathering ability? Kiyotaka had clearly noticed her long ago.

"You know a lot about her." Yuefeng probed.

"Necessary observation." Kiyotaka replied, then turned his head to glance at Yuefeng, his eyes looking unfathomable in the sunset's glow.

"Yuefeng-ge, you seem... to be imitating my methods."

Those words, like an ice spike, instantly pierced the calm facade Yuefeng had worked to maintain. He felt his breath stop for a moment.

Kiyotaka had seen it! He'd seen that Yuefeng's approach of calmly applying pressure and citing rules was an imitation of his own tactics against Ishizaki last time!

"I..." Yuefeng opened his mouth, momentarily at a loss for an answer. Deny it? Denying it in front of Kiyotaka was clearly futile. Admit it? Then what reason could he give?

But Kiyotaka didn't wait for his reply. He turned his head back, his gaze level on the increasingly noisy main campus path ahead.

"Imitation is the beginning of learning." Kiyotaka said slowly, his voice still steady, but Yuefeng caught a rare, almost probing edge in it. "But pure imitation can't handle all variables. Especially when... the 'script' changes."

The script changes!

Yuefeng's pupils contracted slightly. Did Kiyotaka know about the "script"? Or was he just using that word to describe "expected circumstances"?

Was he referring to how the Airi Sakura incident was supposed to be resolved by him, but Yuefeng had "cut in"?

"I don't understand what you mean." Yuefeng chose to play dumb.

Kiyotaka didn't explain. They had reached the end of the path, facing the bustling central avenue ahead.

"The Sports Festival." Kiyotaka stopped, looking at Yuefeng again. This time, his gaze lingered for a moment on Yuefeng's slightly sweat-dampened bangs from the earlier tension, then fell into his eyes. "Watch out for Ishizaki. He might create an 'accident' in the Obstacle Relay."

Another warning. But this time, Yuefeng no longer felt it was just a simple reminder.

"Why are you telling me this?" Yuefeng met Kiyotaka's eyes, finally voicing the question that had been circling in his mind.

Kiyotaka held his gaze for a few seconds. Those dark brown eyes still held no emotional ripple, but Yuefeng felt as if he were staring into a bottomless, icy pool, with countless undercurrents he couldn't comprehend churning beneath.

"Because," Kiyotaka said in that consistently flat tone, uttering words that sent a chill down Yuefeng's spine, "a you who exits due to an 'accident' cannot fulfill the task of 'guidance.'"

...nor can it provide sufficiently interesting 'observation data'."

With that, he gave Yuefeng a slight nod, then turned and merged into the departing crowd of students without a trace of hesitation, vanishing from sight in moments.

Yuefeng stood alone on the spot. The evening breeze blew past, yet he felt not the slightest warmth.

Kiyotaka's words were like a bolt of icy lightning, splitting apart the fragile sense of stability he had gradually accumulated over these past days.

He knows about "Father's" mission! He even used the word "guide"! He sees me as "observation data"!

He anticipated that Ishizaki might cause trouble at the Sports Festival and "reminded" me—not to protect me, but to ensure the "observation" and the "mission" could continue?

A chill ran from the soles of Yuefeng's feet straight to the crown of his head.

He thought he was carefully playing his role, surviving in the cracks, strengthening himself through learning and imitation.

But in Kiyotaka's eyes, all his actions were probably just a slightly deviant variable in the script—a "data point" worth observing but expendable at any moment.

Even his recent act of "imitating" Kiyotaka to rescue Sakura might, in Kiyotaka's view, be nothing more than part of the "learning process," or perhaps an interesting case of "script deviation."

"Heh..." Yuefeng let out a low laugh, his voice filled with self-mockery.

He looked up at the sky. Dusk was gathering, and a faint, dim orange glow lingered on the horizon.

The supremacy of ability?

No, here, there might be deeper laws—about control, observation, and exploitation.

And he, Ayanokoji Yuefeng—this accidental intruder, this "reader," this pawn forced to play the role of "older brother"—

How could he possibly find a path of his own within this ever-changing "script" written by a control-freak father and a CPU-kun younger brother? A path where he wouldn't be so easily "observed" or "discarded"?

The Obstacle Relay at the Sports Festival might just be the first true proving ground.

He tightened his grip on the strap of his school bag, and his gaze gradually sharpened.

"Observation data, huh..." he muttered to himself. "Then watch closely, Kiyotaka. See if this 'data' of yours can break out of your preset model."

He took a step forward, heading toward the dormitory. His silhouette, set against the deepening night, seemed lonely—yet somehow carried an inexplicable resolve.

At the corner of the path, a bush rustled slightly. A small figure quietly poked her head out.

She watched the direction Yuefeng had gone. Behind her thick glasses, a pair of eyes blinked, filled with lingering fear, gratitude, and a faint trace of curiosity—one she herself had not yet recognized.