The Tardy Classmate

With a screech, the bus finally came to a slow halt.

Horikita Etsuka stretched his back and followed Horikita Suzune off the bus.

Horikita Etsuka glanced casually at the main gate. Aside from the imposing characters for [Advanced Nurturing High School] at the entrance, two people who looked like teachers were standing on either side of the gate.

His gaze focused on the objects the two teachers were holding, which looked similar to mobile phones.

What are they holding in their hands?

Horikita Suzune stopped in her tracks. She put one hand on her hip, turned back, and said to Etsuka:

"Etsuka, we can look at the school later. Let's just get inside for now."

"Yeah, coming." Horikita Etsuka nodded and walked through the school gate.

"Students, please hand over your communication devices."

One of the teachers standing in front of the gate spoke up.

Without asking any questions, both Suzune and Etsuka handed their phones to the teacher.

Surrendering communication devices was mandatory.

This wasn't just stated in the specific notice on the admission letter; his older brother, Horikita Manabu, was also at this school, so he already knew a bit about the situation.

The school's requirement was to cut off all contact with the outside world for these three years.

The teacher then took out two brand-new Student Terminals and handed them to the pair: "These are your Student Terminals, which also serve as your student identification. Please be sure to keep them safe."

"Understood." After acknowledging this twice, they walked into the campus.

"It's been two years since we last had contact, huh." Etsuka cupped his head with both hands, glancing casually at the surrounding environment: "Sis, do you miss Brother?"

Suzune's footsteps paused slightly. She didn't answer, only looking at the large scrolling screen on the wall.

It was covered in a dense list of names, along with their assigned classes.

"Let's not talk about that for now. Let's check the class assignments." Suzune said.

Etsuka looked at the scrolling screen and felt a slight headache.

He then turned directly to the teacher at the school gate and said: "Excuse me, teacher, sorry to bother you, but are you able to look up student classes?"

The teacher at the gate was slightly taken aback: "Yes, that's right. We are responsible for guiding the new students."

"Oh, I see." Etsuka flashed a sunny smile: "Then, teacher, could you please help me check which class I'm in? My name is Horikita Etsuka."

"Yes, certainly."

While the teacher was looking it up, Horikita Etsuka added: "Also my sister, Horikita Suzune, could you help check for her as well?"

Horikita Etsuka knew that his sister's personality meant she wouldn't usually take the initiative to ask for help, so he had to ask for her.

The teacher nodded, and within a few seconds, he looked up and said: "Horikita Etsuka, Class 1-B. Horikita Suzune, Class 1-D."

Horikita Suzune's delicate brows furrowed: "Why am I in Class D?"

The teacher glanced at Horikita Suzune and said: "I wouldn't know about that. You two should hurry and report to your classes."

"Yes, understood." Horikita Etsuka made an OK gesture, then waved at the teacher with a smile: "Thank you, teacher. I'll head off to report now."

"Go on, make sure to report early." The teacher responded with a smile.

Etsuka pushed the frowning, contemplative Suzune forward: "Oh, Sis, what's there to think about? It's just a random class assignment."

"Yeah." Suzune replied, and she stopped thinking about it. After all, both her and Etsuka's grades were at an elite level; only a random assignment could explain it.

No matter how she thought about it, there couldn't be anything fishy about the class assignments, right?

"Sis, I'm off to report to my class!" Etsuka waved his hand and parted ways with Suzune.

Suzune stood where she was, not moving. She looked at Etsuka's back and thought of Horikita Manabu.

"Brother..."

"Not bad, the environment is pretty decent." Horikita Etsuka commented while inspecting the surrounding facilities, taking the opportunity to glance at the youthful and beautiful girls passing by.

I have to admit, the quality of the girls at this school is truly high.

This made Etsuka, who had never been in a relationship, feel a bit shy.

Arriving at the door of Class B, he saw that several girls were already chatting inside.

Horikita Etsuka knocked on the door, and instantly, the gazes of those three or four girls converged on him.

"Hello there, classmates." Etsuka waved his hand generously.

The girls were slightly stunned. The blue-haired girl with braids in the lead had her eyes light up, and she raised her hand to greet him in return: "Hello, classmate."

Horikita Etsuka walked over slowly. He extended his palm and revealed a sunny smile as he said:

"My name is Horikita Etsuka. It's a pleasure to meet you all."

The blue-haired girl with braids also extended her hand to shake his: "My name is Sakurajima Sweet. It's a pleasure to meet you, Horikita-kun!"

"Horikita Etsuka..." the short-haired girl next to Sakurajima Sweet said: "I feel like that name is so familiar!"

Horikita Etsuka raised his eyebrows in surprise: "Oh? Have we met before, classmate?"

"No, that's not it." The girl with short hair shook her head.

"Oh! I know, I know!" Another girl with two buns in her hair raised her hand and hopped slightly as she said, "It sounds a lot like the name of the third-year Student Council President!"

Sakurajima Sweet placed her index finger against her lips, looking thoughtful. "It does, doesn't it? What was it... Horikita Manabu."

She then blinked and looked at Horikita Etsuka. "Could it be that you're related to him?"

[Horikita Manabu? The Student Council President?]

Horikita Etsuka understood in an instant.

[So my brother became the Student Council President, huh.]

The corners of his mouth curled up slightly as he said, "Actually, he's my brother."

"Eh?! Really?" All three girls wore expressions of shock.

"You don't know? Senior Horikita Manabu is so handsome; there are quite a few girls in school who like him!" the short-haired girl said cheerfully.

"Is that so? Then my brother is quite popular."

As Horikita Etsuka responded, he thought to himself.

[These freshmen gather information way too fast. I just got into school, and they already know who the Student Council President is.]

Horikita Etsuka and the three girls seemed to have an endless supply of topics, laughing and chatting the whole time.

At this moment, in Class 1-B, the classroom was bustling with activity as students chatted happily.

In a corner of the classroom, Ichinose Honami, with her long pink hair, was deep in conversation with the newly acquainted Shiranami Chihiro.

"You're such a good person, Ichinose." Shiranami Chihiro, who had a slender figure and short brown hair, said with a gentle smile.

Ichinose Honami shook her head lightly and replied modestly, "Not at all, Chihiro, I'm really happy chatting with you too."

Upon hearing this, a blush appeared on Chihiro's face, and she nodded shyly, her hand still tightly clasped with Ichinose's.

Ichinose Honami's gaze inadvertently swept over the seat by the window that was still unoccupied, and a hint of curiosity welled up in her heart.

"Ichinose, what's wrong?" Chihiro noticed Ichinose's gaze, looked up, and asked in confusion.

Ichinose Honami snapped back to reality, quickly shook her head gently, and explained, "It's nothing, I just noticed that seat is still empty."

After a short time together, Ichinose Honami had already gained a certain understanding of her classmates, but so far, one student had yet to appear.

She was quite curious about who the final student would be.

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