Summer Pool

The tense atmosphere of the final exams ebbed away like the tide with the bell marking the end of the last subject.

Advanced Nurturing High School welcomed a brief summer break.

The nerves that had been taut for an entire semester finally had a chance to relax, and a rare sense of ease filled the campus.

As a holiday perk, the school opened its superb indoor heated swimming pool for students to use freely.

The news immediately caused quite a stir among the first-years.

For most students, this was not only a good opportunity to unwind, but also a rare social occasion not strictly constrained by the point system or class barriers.

Before long, students from different classes began organizing trips to the pool on their own.

With Ryuen's rare tacit approval—or rather, because he could not be bothered wasting energy stopping them over something so trivial—quite a few Class C students arranged to go together as well.

Yuefeng had originally planned to bury himself in books in his dormitory or continue building his "database" in the library, but Hiyori Shiina unusually "invited" him with a hint of anticipation in her eyes.

"Y-Yuefeng... Everyone seems to want to go to the pool... Um... if you're not busy..." She lowered her head, unconsciously twisting the hem of her clothes between her fingers. Her voice was weak, but clear.

Faced with an invitation like that, Yuefeng could not bring himself to refuse. Besides, he truly needed to step away from his intense studies and tense calculations for a while.

He nodded. "Sure."

On the way to the pool, the Class C students walked in small groups, their mood far livelier than usual.

Ishizaki and his group were there too. But when he saw Yuefeng, Ishizaki's expression visibly stiffened. His gaze darted away, and he kept his distance. Even his two lackeys fell silent, not daring to make their usual racket.

Some Class C students found this rather puzzling, but the excitement of the approaching pool soon washed away their curiosity.

In the changing room, Yuefeng changed into an ordinary pair of dark blue swim trunks.

He looked at himself in the mirror. This body had grown a little sturdier since he had first crossed over. The muscles in his arms and abdomen had begun to take shape, though he was still far from muscular.

A faint mark remained where his old injury had been on his left arm, though it was not noticeable without a close look.

When he reached the poolside, the sight before him suddenly opened up.

Beneath the enormous glass dome, the pool water was clear and azure, reflecting the simulated summer sky overhead.

Sunlight streamed through the glass, scattering rippling glimmers across the water. The air held the faint scent of chlorine and the cheerful noise of students.

There were even more people than he had expected. Students from nearly every class were present.

Over by Class A, Katsuragi Kohei was meticulously stretching before entering the water, his powerful physique looking like a sculpture beneath the sunlight.

Not far from him, Sakayanagi Arisu sat on a lounge chair by the pool, still pale and slender as ever. She wore a light purple one-piece swimsuit with a simple, classically elegant design that made her skin seem as white as snow.

She had not entered the water. She simply sat quietly with a small book in her hands, though her eyes were not on its pages. Instead, with her usual calm and interested expression, she slowly surveyed the students playing in the pool.

Her gaze occasionally rested on certain people—such as... Yuefeng, who was walking in through the Class C entrance? Yuefeng was not sure, but he could feel the weight of that gaze.

Ichinose Honami of Class B was like a little sun, splashing around with several girls at the edge of the pool, her laughter bright and crisp.

She wore a lively orange two-piece swimsuit that radiated energy.

She was chatting with a similarly cheerful-looking girl with short brown hair beside her. That was probably her friend.

Quite a few Class D students had come as well. Horikita Suzune was alone in one of the lanes, swimming a textbook breaststroke with precise, efficient movements, as though she was not playing in the water but completing a training assignment.

Meanwhile, Hirata Yosuke wore his signature gentle smile as he played a passing game in the water with several Class D boys, creating a harmonious atmosphere.

What made Yuefeng's gaze sharpen slightly, however, was another corner occupied by Class D.

Airi Sakura stood together with a girl who wore her hair in a high ponytail and looked spirited and lively.

That was her friend, Haruka Hasebe. Today, Airi Sakura had unusually left her signature twin braids undone, allowing her chestnut-colored hair to fall loose, as though trying to conceal something as much as possible.

She wore a relatively conservative dark blue one-piece swim dress and her signature oversized swimming goggles, looking thoroughly uneasy.

From time to time, she tugged at the hem of her skirt and hid behind Haruka, but her eyes could not help darting swiftly around the entire pool, as though searching for someone.

When she saw Yuefeng, her body visibly shrank back. Her face instantly flushed red, and she quickly lowered her head, nearly hiding herself in her friend's shadow.

Haruka seemed to notice her friend's unusual behavior. Following her gaze, she spotted Yuefeng, raised an eyebrow, and gave him a cheerful yet probing smile before waving at him in greeting.

Yuefeng nodded back. He could understand Sakura's nervousness. The warehouse incident and the earlier harassment had clearly left a deep psychological scar on her.

He looked away, unwilling to make her any more uneasy.

Just then, he felt a familiar, utterly calm gaze directed at him from the other side of the pool.

Kiyotaka Ayanokoji.

He had come. Wearing the simplest black swim trunks, he stood in the shadows by the poolside, as relaxed as ever—or rather, as lacking in obvious presence as ever.

He was not participating in any games. He simply stood there quietly, his eyes sweeping across his surroundings with their usual indifference.

Yet Yuefeng could sense that beneath that seemingly casual gaze, there was an extremely subtle pause whenever it passed over Sakayanagi Arisu of Class A, Ichinose Honami of Class B, Horikita Suzune of Class D—

—and himself.

Kiyotaka's appearance was like an invisible magnet, drawing certain special attention.

During a pause in her splashing, Ichinose Honami casually glanced in Kiyotaka's direction and hesitated slightly. The lively smile on her face did not change, but a trace of barely perceptible curiosity seemed to flicker in her eyes.

Sakayanagi Arisu's gaze caught Kiyotaka almost immediately.

She closed the book in her hands. A faint, unreadable smile curved her lips, and her light purple eyes, reflecting the water beneath the simulated sunlight, appeared especially deep.

She simply watched him from afar without making any other move, merely observing.

Even Horikita Suzune, who had been single-mindedly focused in her lane, seemed to glance toward where Kiyotaka was during a turn for breath, though she quickly returned her attention to her swimming rhythm.

Yuefeng understood. To the eyes of these brilliant minds, Kiyotaka, the "ordinary" Class D student, was clearly not as mediocre as he deliberately appeared.