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"No, he won't just let it go!!"

Sakura Airi became alert in an instant, her eyes darting back and forth.

She looked like a prairie dog on sentry duty.

It was clear that she was very nervous.

"Don't worry, the school's security isn't that incompetent." Dongfang Yi stood up, brushed the dust off his pants, and gently took her hand, comforting her: "Besides, now that we know his identity, we already have the upper hand."

Perhaps it was the warmth of Dongfang Yi's palm, or the strength she drew from his calm and confident words, or perhaps the recent experience had made her trust the person before her implicitly, but Sakura Airi's heartbeat gradually steadied.

Even so, she still gripped the boy's hand tightly, her body subconsciously leaning toward him, as if hoping to gain courage and strength from the contact.

Dongfang Yi patted her head again and led her slowly forward.

He planned to head to the convenience store next.

After all, there was still some time left today, and getting the daily necessities out of the way would make tomorrow a little easier.

Walking side by side on the campus path, Dongfang Yi continued to analyze the situation for Sakura Airi: "Now, since I've captured his stalking on camera, we can first go to the school authorities or a guidance counselor to report him, demand that they restrict his behavior, and ideally, have him expelled."

Although the Class D guidance counselor, Chabashira, was a good-for-nothing who just slacked off and did nothing, Dongfang Yi felt she would at least handle something like this... probably.

"Mm-hmm." Sakura Airi said earnestly: "I'll remember that."

"But don't get too happy yet; this evidence might not be enough to fully convince the school." Dongfang Yi unclipped the hidden camera from his clothes: "After all, it's my first time using it, so it might not have recorded everything accurately."

"I see." Sakura Airi felt a little disappointed: "But regardless, I'm still grateful to you, Dongfang-kun."

You actually stopped stuttering?

Dongfang Yi glanced at her with some surprise, but noticing the girl's low spirits, he couldn't help but give her a light flick to the forehead first.

I was just being modest; why did you actually think I couldn't do it?

He pouted: "Don't worry just yet. With me, the ever-calculating Dongfang Yi, around, I definitely won't let anything happen to you."

"Mm!" Sakura Airi nodded vigorously, leaning in even closer, almost wanting to snuggle up to Dongfang Yi's side.

She suddenly felt a sense of happiness, even feeling that coming to this school, and even today's experience, was a stroke of luck.

The handsome boy before her seemed to possess an indescribable magic; he was confident and radiant, as if every difficulty she faced was nothing in his presence.

He was already handsome to begin with, but now he seemed even more so!

Dongfang Yi looked at this silly girl and helplessly continued his instructions: "If the school doesn't issue a punishment or take corresponding action, or if they don't handle it immediately, then you should be even more careful in your daily routine, Sakura-san."

"For example, don't go to secluded places after class, and try to have a friend accompany you when wandering around campus."

"..." Sakura Airi lowered her head, feeling a bit awkward.

She had actually wanted to find some unique scenery to take photos of...

And the classmates in Class D didn't seem like the type that were easy to get along with...

"So, you haven't made any friends yet?"

Dongfang Yi blinked, asking with feigned confusion.

He naturally knew that the bunch of rejects in Class D were all selfish people, not one of them reliable. If even one of them had been reliable, they wouldn't have allowed the girl to be expelled during the class vote exam (where the entire class voted to decide whether to expel one person in exchange for 100 class points).

He also knew that Sakura Airi was actually socially anxious and currently resisted interacting with others.

But he said it anyway.

And everything he did was for one purpose--

To recommend himself.

Ahem, don't overthink it; it doesn't mean recommending himself for her bed.

Sakura Airi held his hand and shook her head gently.

"What a coincidence, neither have I." Dongfang Yi said with a smile: "Then again, it's only the first day of school; who makes friends that quickly? So, until you find a companion, if you don't mind, just come to me if you need anything."

"Eh, i-is that okay? W-wouldn't that be too much of a bother?"

Sakura Airi looked up, pleasantly surprised, her heart feeling as if a little deer were stirring inside.

"Of course it's okay, though I might not be able to accompany you on weekday afternoons for the next month. On my days off, I'm at your beck and call." Dongfang Yi shrugged helplessly: "After all, I have to work."

"Work?"

Sakura Airi tilted her head, feeling confused by the term.

"Working as a waiter at Palette for a month, weekday afternoons, four hours a day. It earns points." Dongfang Yi shrugged.

"But aren't we given 100,000 points every month?"

"I'd love to explain it to you, but this issue involves my own stance, so I can't tell you the reason right now."

Dongfang Yi looked into her eyes, his gaze filled with helplessness and apology.

He certainly wouldn't explain the school's rules to the girl. He was already eager to trample that bunch of lucky, selfish people in Class D into the mud, so naturally, he wouldn't do something so unnecessary.

Sakura Airi was Sakura Airi, and Class D was Class D; he drew a very clear line between them.

"Mm, I trust that Dongfang-kun has his own reasons."

Although they had only been in contact for a short time, she inexplicably had the intuition that the person before her would absolutely never hurt her.

"Sakura-san really trusts me."

Dongfang Yi gave a somewhat self-deprecating smile.

"Be, because Dongfang-san is a gentle and kind person." Sakura Airi shyly turned her head away, her voice growing quieter and quieter.

Dongfang Yi really wanted to say that Sakura-san had misunderstood, and that in reality, he was just a villain who could not tolerate any sand in his eyes.

But the words that came to his lips instead were: "Sakura-san, you are absolutely right; in fact, I think so too."

He playfully raised an eyebrow at the young girl: "Could you praise me a little more?"

"...Dong, Dongfang-san doesn't seem like a Japanese person at all." Sakura Airi retorted without leaving a trace.

"That was a wonderful compliment, could you say a bit more?"

Dongfang Yi felt that this silly girl was unexpectedly wise; she had truly spoken to the bottom of his heart.

His eyes grew brighter, and he appreciated the young girl before him even more.

Sakura Airi was cornered by him just like that; she felt the blood rushing to her head, and her entire being seemed to be wrapped in a sense of shame, leaving her no choice but to bite the bullet and continue praising him: "Ugh... Dongfang-san... is, is very handsome."

Suddenly, she added a sentence on a whim: "And, and your skin is very thick."

"Sakura-san, if you hadn't added that second half, I might have been a little happier."

Dongfang Yi returned a meaningful look, leaving her to interpret it for herself.

Sakura Airi stuck out her tongue; it was only thanks to adding that second half that her shyness had lessened quite a bit.

Otherwise, she really would have wanted to find a hole to crawl into.

No matter how you looked at it, this was just too embarrassing.

"By the way, Sakura-san, have you finished buying your daily necessities?"

Seeing that they were almost at the convenience store, Dongfang Yi asked.

"I, I went to buy a camera first thing, so I haven't yet..."

"That's a coincidence, I haven't either. The convenience store is right ahead, let's go together."

"Eh? Eh!"