More Than Ryuen, I Know You

Ayanokoji held a hand up toward the sky.

A beam of sunlight slipped between his fingers and fell across his cold eyes.

It was a little dazzling, but he craved that touch of warmth.

The girl beside him laughed at the sight. "Weren't you the one who said you shouldn't stare at the sun?"

Ayanokoji pursed his lips. "That's why that line never caught on."

Sorry, I didn't mean to ruin your reputation, Keigo Higashino!

After that, Ayanokoji said goodbye to the girl.

Before they parted, she told him to recommend any good books he came across. She'd be waiting in the library for him to tell her about them.

Ayanokoji readily nodded. After all, learning never ended. Even he had to read and review from time to time.

Er... right, review. What else did Ayanokoji need to learn besides romance and socializing?

And that wasn't even mentioning how Ling Xiaolu, who had crossed over, had filled in the gaps in Ayanokoji's knowledge of the world of anime.

He was practically invincible!

As for his hardware, it was beyond question. Ayanokoji gave it a quick check. There was only one word for it: awesome!

The air always felt especially fresh after the rain.

Ayanokoji took a deep breath and felt invigorated, a pleased smile on his face.

He might have been even happier if he hadn't spotted the purple-haired boy and his lackeys approaching.

"Hey, kid. You're pretty clever."

"From Class A, are you? Why not become my inside man? Help me take down Sakayanagi and Katsuragi, and I'll make you the leader of Class A. How does that sound?"

Ryuen raised his voice as he said it, as if he wasn't speaking to Ayanokoji at all.

Better take the long way around.

Ayanokoji had no idea why Ryuen had randomly connected him with Class A, so he pretended not to hear and turned to leave.

But the next second, he realized the way behind him was completely blocked.

By sheer coincidence, he'd ended up in an awkward spot.

The white-haired girl with a cane slowly approached him, accompanied by several of her followers.

In an instant, the two classes faced off, their gazes clashing as tension filled the air. Ayanokoji was the lone bystander caught in the middle.

Hey... Don't drag innocent civilians into your brawl.

Ayanokoji grumbled to himself.

And it seemed the other side wasn't after him anyway.

"You've been here for only a month, and you already think you're a princess, Sakayanagi?"

"Have you been too comfortable in Class A? Why don't you come down and play with me?"

Ryuen taunted the calm, smiling white-haired girl, a contemptuous grin on his face.

"Well, if it isn't Dragon Boy. It's been a while. I see that cheap dragon throne in Class C is comfortable enough."

The girl spoke evenly, her composure unshaken.

"Hmph. Don't get too cocky, Sakayanagi Arisu!"

"Class B was first. You're next. One day, I'll knock you down from that position."

"And when that day comes, even if you put on a girl's face and cry, begging me to spare you, it won't do you any good."

With that, Ryuen ignored Ayanokoji standing between them and strode past Sakayanagi. The carefree look on his face had turned to irritation.

How annoying...

Sakayanagi's haughty, self-proclaimed genius act irritated Ryuen to no end.

Academic ability: A? Nearly perfect entrance exam scores? Every student in Class A hanging on her every word?

What a load of crap!

In his eyes, she was just a sheltered young lady with book smarts who could only talk a good game.

One day, he'd make Sakayanagi understand what true strength was!

Watching Ryuen walk away, trailing the heavy scent of gunpowder, Ayanokoji couldn't help sighing for him.

You've lost again, Ryuen. You care too much about class rankings. You care so much that the moment someone throws Class A's name in your face, you fly into a rage and lose your reason, putting yourself in the shoes of a defective product from a lower-ranked class.

Your confidence gave you strong pride, but that pride became your weakness.

Nothing much happened on the surface, but the moment you lost your composure and your smile disappeared, you'd already lost.

"So, Mr. Ayanokoji, is there anything else you'd like to say?"

A pleasant voice reached him. Ayanokoji lowered his gaze slightly and realized the petite, beautiful girl had somehow come right up to him.

"..."

"Sorry, I'm not close with Ryuen. He was stirring things up on his own."

"I know," the girl said softly, a sweet smile gradually appearing on her face. "I know Ryuen."

At that, Ayanokoji's eyes narrowed slightly.

Good... Class A really did have some sensible people.

But just as he thought he was out of it, the girl's next words slipped out:

"I know Ryuen, and I know you even better."

Ayanokoji: "?"

The girl had paused before saying it, as though she wanted to see how Ayanokoji would react.

The effect was just what she'd hoped for. She was pleased with his response.

She couldn't quite make out the emotions hidden in his subtle expression, but that brief moment of blankness comforted her.

Did that fleeting lapse mean she'd entered his thoughts, if only for an instant?

She wished she could talk with him in private sometime. Even just a few minutes would make her happy.

With that hope in her heart, she bowed to the boy, just as she had when they first met at this school, then slowly left with her companions.

???

Puddles dotted the streets as the rain cleared.

Ayanokoji stood by the roadside, looking a little troubled.

Had I... stumbled into a nest of people who spoke in riddles?

Couldn't a single one of them just say what they meant?

This is really fucking ridiculous.

After muttering one last curse, Ayanokoji headed back to the dorm.

Elsewhere, Horikita slowly stretched in the library, lost in thought as she watched the others discussing things at another table.

At the emotionless boy's request, she had spent the past week coaxing and tricking Sudo and the others into attending study sessions.

There had been some results, but they often got into arguments with her over trivial things she couldn't understand.

As expected, she still couldn't understand how the minds of poor students worked.

Another thing that made her uncomfortable during the study sessions was that a girl named Kushida Kikyo seemed a little too eager to get close to her.

Though Horikita's attitude had remained basically the same from beginning to end, Kushida Kikyo kept starting conversations with her, seemingly trying to sound her out.

It struck her as somewhat strange.

Besides...

Could the emotionless boy's plan really keep every student in the class from being expelled?

Horikita wasn't very confident.

There were only two days left until the midterm exams.