Forced Mediation

"What kind of joke is this? Why are you acting so arrogant!"

In another section of the library, Sudo stood up with a sudden jerk, his face flushed with rage as he seemed on the verge of losing control.

"Sudo, calm down. It's not good to disturb others." Hirata placed a hand on Sudo's shoulder, seemingly trying to offer some comfort.

"Don't touch me!" Sudo shoved Hirata's hand away and pointed at him, saying, "You're no saint either! You bear a lot of responsibility for what happened last time!"

Hirata didn't get angry at having his hand swatted away; he didn't retort to Sudo's accusations, merely lowering his head slightly.

Karuizawa Kei clutched Hirata's arm, looking at him with concern, then turned to Sudo and snapped, "What kind of madness is this, Sudo? Everyone is just worried that you're going to get expelled."

"Stay out of this, woman," Sudo cursed.

"You..." Stung by the harshness of his tone, Karuizawa Kei tightened her grip on Hirata's arm.

"Sudo, you idiot, we're trying to help you. Why can't you appreciate that?" Horikita Suzune frowned, crossing her arms as she confronted him.

"Don't you realize you'll be expelled if you fail the next exam? We're helping you this much, and you're still here complaining?"

"Complaining? It's your teaching methods that are the problem!" Sudo retorted furiously.

"What's wrong with our methods? Everyone else can understand these problems, so why can't you? Isn't that a problem with you yourself?" Horikita Suzune said sternly.

"Is this the tone you use when teaching people? If so, I'd rather not learn!" Sudo grew more incensed as he spoke, pointing at Kushida nearby.

"If it weren't for Kushida inviting me, I wouldn't have come at all! Who would actually want to come to this pathetic study session?"

With that, Sudo grabbed the basketball he had on the floor. "Honestly, I'd rather be playing basketball with this time."

"Even if you train and become a professional basketball player, what of it? You'll still be nothing but a hopeless case."

"Baka!" Sudo hated it when people brought up the basketball he loved. His chest heaved rapidly.

"Why do you always like sticking your nose into other people's business? I don't need your help! Even if I get expelled, it has nothing to do with you!"

"Sudo... that's going a bit too far." Hirata looked at Horikita Suzune with concern and said, "Horikita-san is only doing this so you don't get expelled."

"Hirata," Horikita Suzune said calmly.

"Since he doesn't want our help, let him be. Even if he gets expelled, it's none of our business. We've tried so hard to teach him, yet he remains completely oblivious to his own situation."

With that, Suzune looked at Sudo with a gaze of pity. "Someone like this isn't worth our sympathy."

"But..."

"You bastard!" Sudo cut Hirata off, reaching out to grab Suzune by the collar.

"Why do you always act so high and mighty? What exactly makes you better than the rest of us?"

Suzune didn't answer, just looked at him with cold indifference.

Hirata hurriedly reached out to pull them apart. "Sudo, please, calm down."

But the difference in strength was too great; even with all his effort, Hirata couldn't pry Sudo's hand loose.

Veins bulged on Sudo's neck as he gripped Horikita Suzune's collar tightly, showing no intention of letting go.

"Horikita, apologize to me."

"No, I won't apologize. I don't believe I said anything wrong." Horikita Suzune remained as composed as ever.

"Horikita... just apologize. Sudo doesn't look like he's in a good state," Kushida said, tugging on Suzune's sleeve with worry.

Suzune glanced at Kushida indifferently. "I cannot admit to a mistake when I don't believe I've made one."

If you can't find the book title, try searching for the author; perhaps the name has been changed!

Ike Kanji, seeing that the situation was spiraling, rushed over to intervene. "Sudo, it's a small matter, no need to get so angry."

Yamauchi, who had already packed his things and was ready to leave, watched Ike Kanji step in and couldn't help but mutter.

"Seriously? You call that a big deal? We should just leave; what does it matter to us if they fight or not?"

Clearly, Ike Kanji, busy trying to break up the fight, didn't hear this.

Yamauchi Haruki waited out of boredom, his gaze drifting toward Horikita Suzune's legs.

Because Sudo was lifting her slightly, she was standing on her tiptoes, revealing a flash of white skin on her thigh.

This sparked a wicked thought in Yamauchi.

[If I go to break up the fight and accidentally touch Horikita... that would be perfectly reasonable, right? They'd even have to thank me for intervening, wouldn't they?]

Thinking this, Yamauchi swallowed hard. He interjected, perhaps unnecessarily, "Is everything okay?"

With that, he stepped toward Horikita Suzune, putting on an anxious expression. "Hey, Sudo, stop being so angry. Horikita didn't mean to say it like that."

"Please move aside."

Just then, a tall, handsome boy with black hair pushed Yamauchi aside with a firm shove.

"Ouch! Watch where you're going!" Yamauchi grumbled, but when he saw the boy was taller than him, his tone softened immediately.

"Geez, watch it next time."

The boy nodded slightly to acknowledge Yamauchi, then reached out a hand and went straight for Sudo's grip.

"Yuexia..." Suzune looked on in surprise as her brother suddenly appeared.

"Sen...senpai?" Kushida covered her small mouth, a look of surprise on her face.

Karuizawa Kei, meanwhile, looked at the handsome boy who had suddenly appeared with a hint of confusion.

"You guy, don't go sticking your nose into things between her and me," Sudo said angrily, treating the other person as a mere passerby trying to break up a fight.

"Whatever the issue is, please calm down and talk it out," Etsuka said, gripping Sudo's hand and beginning to apply pressure, slowly prying his fingers open one by one.

Sudo felt as if his hand were being gripped by steel pliers, being forced open bit by bit. He used every ounce of strength in his arm, only to find he couldn't resist at all.

Just like that, Sudo gave up on resisting with force, his arm gradually loosening. He felt that if he continued to resist stubbornly, he would very likely suffer a muscle strain.

However, despite being stopped so forcefully, Sudo wasn't angry; instead, he felt a sense of relief.

Because just a moment ago, while he was locked in a stalemate holding onto Suzune's collar, Sudo had suddenly felt regret.

He had suddenly realized that if he actually hit her, he would definitely be expelled, right? And most likely, he would even end up in prison...

The only reason he hadn't let go earlier was that he lacked a way to back down gracefully, so when a boy he hadn't seen before stepped in to stop him, he was already prepared to let go.

He just never expected the other person to have such immense strength.

"Sis, are you okay?" Horikita Etsuka looked at Suzune with a hint of concern.

Horikita Suzune straightened her clothes before saying, "I'm fine."

"Sis... sister?" Kushida was stunned. With her cute, girlish face, she asked curiously, "Senpai, aren't you an upperclassman?"

Horikita Etsuka waved his hand dismissively and said, "We'll talk about that later." He then looked seriously at the tall and burly Sudo standing before him: "Now, let's talk about the matter between you and my sister."

If you can't find the book title, try searching for the author; perhaps the name has just been changed!

In response to the requests of many readers, we have now launched a VIP membership feature that removes advertisements.

Click to view