Shizuku

The next day.

Horikita stood at the entrance to the gymnasium, looking solemn, a fairly thick notebook in her hands.

She planned to help the class in her own way—or, more accurately, to help herself.

It was all for the sake of moving up to Class A and earning her brother's approval.

Before long, a red-haired boy, a full 183 centimeters tall, emerged from the gymnasium.

He wiped away the sweat that covered his head after his intense workout and took a big gulp of his drink. Only then did his gaze finally land on the black-haired girl standing in front of him.

Horikita? Was she here to see him?

A flicker of confusion crossed his face as he walked toward her.

"Sudo, I have a notebook here. Take it and have a look."

"It covers some basic English and highlights the key points. It should help with your English exam."

The girl spoke calmly, her brows drawn together and her almond-shaped eyes impassive.

English was one of Sudo's greatest weaknesses.

His score on the last quiz had been absolutely astounding—it had completely exceeded Horikita's imagination.

If she left him to his own devices, even if he memorized the answers before the exam, he'd probably mix them up or copy them down wrong.

With that in mind, Horikita had put together some of the basic question types that might appear on the exam, so Sudo could get familiar with them in advance.

Looking at the girl holding out the notebook to him, Sudo was momentarily taken aback. He also found himself seeing her in a slightly different light.

So she hadn't been deliberately picking on him. She'd simply stayed true to her own principles all along.

She hadn't held their previous disagreement against him at all.

She'd even put together notes for him before the exam. Compared to her, he was the one being petty.

"Oh... thanks."

Sudo took the notebook from her, his expression not quite able to hide how he felt.

"Don't mention it. I'm helping you for the sake of the class."

Horikita's gaze softened a little. "Good luck on the exam."

With that, she turned and walked away, leaving him with only a glimpse of her retreating figure.

"..."

"Good luck... on the exam."

Sudo stood rooted to the spot, muttering to himself.

Clearly, he'd only remembered the second half of what Horikita had said.

He glanced at the notebook in his hands. The solemn, worried look on her face when they'd met flashed through his mind, and suddenly a sweet feeling welled up inside him.

She cares this much about me... Could it be that Horikita...

In front of the gymnasium, a 183-centimeter-tall hulk stood there with his mouth half open, his cheeks flushed and his expression bashful, a rather indescribable lovesick grin on his face.

Passersby did their best to avoid looking at him, afraid they might lose their lunch.

Ayanokoji happened to pass by and caught just one glimpse before he couldn't bear to look again.

So, aside from the sun and the human heart, there was something else you couldn't look at directly.

Sudo, you're something else.

Suppressing a wave of nausea, he gathered his thoughts. He'd arranged to return Sakura Airi's camera to her today.

But... where was she?

Ayanokoji arrived at the agreed-upon meeting place and waited for a long time, but Sakura never showed up.

She wasn't the type to deliberately keep people waiting.

The fact that she hadn't arrived early was already surprising enough.

Ayanokoji had a decent understanding of people's personalities.

After waiting a little longer, he checked his phone. He hadn't received a message from Sakura saying she wanted to reschedule.

His brow twitched slightly. Something seemed off.

His gaze sharpened. Then he opened Sakura Airi's profile and tapped the campus-location feature, which was only available between friends.

?

What was that location?

Sakura's marker was on a narrow path nearby, and it was moving. Not quickly, but in the exact opposite direction from where he was.

Ayanokoji zoomed in on the map, and the situation suddenly became clear.

Not far ahead of the marker showing Sakura's location was an old, abandoned warehouse where the school had once stored equipment. There was no way Sakura would go there alone.

Ayanokoji's thoughts sharpened.

By then, he'd already formed his own theory about what was happening.

He exited the location screen and tapped another contact's profile picture:

"An indecent assault involving a student has occurred at Storage Warehouse No. 4, southwest of Keyaki Mall."

After confirming that the message had been sent, he put his phone in his pocket, slipped both hands into it, and headed toward the marker.

Inside Warehouse No. 4, a man lowered a person-sized burlap sack from his shoulder and laid it on the floor.

His movements were light and careful, as if the sack held some priceless treasure.

He untied the cord at the opening and eagerly took a greedy breath from inside. A sweet fragrance reached him, and his face lit up with excitement.

Carefully, he lifted the "treasure" from the sack and set it on the floor. Now it was time for him to make his most passionate confession.

He would pour out all the love he had kept pent up for so long, the love he'd never been able to express, to the girl lying on the floor!

The girl on the floor slowly opened her eyes, feeling a chill. An unfamiliar place stretched out before her...

A moment later, she realized that her hands and feet had been tightly bound with two ropes, leaving her unable to move. Tape had also been stuck over her mouth, and she couldn't make a sound!

Her eyes widened in terror, and tears instantly welled up in them. She struggled with all her might, but couldn't move at all.

Who had tied her up and brought her to a place like this?

A thought flashed through her mind, and she felt she already knew the answer.

As a streamer who went by the stage name "Shizuku," she had a cute, dazzling appearance and a devoted fanbase. Among them were one or two fans who were nearly crazed with infatuation.

They sent "Shizuku" obscene messages every day, claimed to love her more than anyone, and said they wanted to meet her in person to express their feelings...

That was why Sakura Airi always dressed plainly in her day-to-day life, disguising herself to make herself look less attractive. She was careful wherever she went, afraid one of her obsessive fans might ambush her in person.

And today, her nightmare had come true...

Sakura Airi lay on the floor, already weeping.

In her blurred vision, a man with a receding hairline approached. Her instincts told her he was the obsessive fan who'd been harassing and threatening her with private messages every day.

The man wore a lecherous grin as he slowly approached his idol.

To make sure she had a good experience, he'd even taken the time to brush his teeth.

"Heh heh heh," the man laughed lewdly.

"Shizuku-chan, do you remember me? Did you get the gift I sent you? I've been imagining your expression when you saw it every single day~"

Sakura Airi's eyes went still, and the tears in them trembled. So it was the old man from the camera repair shop.

Suddenly, the man seemed to realize something. He reached out and tore the tape from the girl's mouth. "Now we can have a nice little chat~"

"Please..."

The girl's voice trembled. "Please, let me go..."

"What are you talking about, Shizuku-chan? We're so close. Why would I hurt you~"

"I just want us to get a little closer..." As he spoke, one hand began unbuttoning the girl's jacket.

His other hand settled on her slender, fair-skinned calf, inching up along her skin.

Her knee... her thigh...

The girl squeezed her eyes shut, tears falling like pearls from a broken string.

The man was overjoyed, the corners of his mouth lifting uncontrollably.

"You really do dare to act on your fantasies."

Just as he was about to get what he wanted, a voice devoid of emotion came from behind him.

The man froze. He felt a tremendous, inexplicable force seize his hand, and his whole body was lifted into the air as if by a crane. Before long, he was a few centimeters off the ground.

Half a second later, he was flung four or five meters away, landing face-first in the dirt.

He scrambled upright, too panicked to care about the pain, and looked back toward the girl.

A boy in the same uniform, standing a little over 170 centimeters tall, was beside her. He stared at the man expressionlessly, his vacant eyes carrying a faintly unsettling edge...