Ichinose confesses? Grades are out.

Single for 18 years... what does that have to do with having toned arm muscles?

Horikita furrowed her pretty brows, looking completely bewildered.

Besides, wasn't she the same age as Ayanokoji?

When did he suddenly grow three years older?

She didn't understand... she really didn't understand.

Ever since she met this boy, Horikita would occasionally hear him mutter some inexplicable words.

At first, it was just things that sounded like catchphrases, then came things like "wocao," "what the," and "niubi"...

Horikita once thought Ayanokoji was just very interested in livestock, and that he probably wanted to work in the animal husbandry industry after graduation.

But later, she gradually realized that this guy seemed to be simply venting certain emotions, and in most cases, he was saying them to himself—what one might call talking to himself.

Perhaps it was because he wasn't good at using facial expressions to convey his feelings, so he had to resort to verbal expressions instead.

Horikita guessed as much in her heart, a flicker of pity crossing her brow, and the way she looked at Ayanokoji softened slightly...

Sitting on the ground, Ayanokoji continued to stare straight ahead, his face indifferent.

Even though he sensed that the girl's gaze toward him seemed a bit strange, he didn't take it to heart.

He didn't care how Horikita interpreted things.

"Single for 18 years" was just a habitual phrase he used as a transmigrator, one of the many lines in his vast linguistic arsenal used to confuse others.

Furthermore, he often used knowledge from his past life to baffle the people in this world, leaving them stunned and confused—it was incredibly satisfying.

Just like that, the two of them spent a swimming lesson in a strange atmosphere...

In the evening, the afterglow of the setting sun spread across the earth, shining on the faces of the boys and girls engaged in club activities; the scenery was beautiful and picturesque.

Behind the gymnasium, in a secluded spot.

A girl with cherry-pink hair stood there, her skirt fluttering in the breeze, her beautiful, slightly trembling eyelashes telling of her nervousness and unease.

She looked as if she were waiting for someone, casting glances toward the corner ahead from time to time, a sense of hesitation between her brows.

After a while, she seemed to suddenly think of something, a flash of inspiration in her eyes, and she took her phone out of her skirt pocket to dial a number. Shortly after, a boy who looked listless walked around the corner.

"Ichinose, did you need something?"

The boy asked indifferently, his eyes as dim as usual.

Ichinose stared at his face for a moment, not knowing how to start. Unconsciously, her cheeks gradually turned crimson, her eyelashes fluttered slightly, and her gaze dodged his from time to time.

?...No way?

Could it be...

Spring?!

Ayanokoji looked at the shy, tender-looking girl before him, his eyes flickering as he felt a slight stir in his heart.

He had no feelings, but he was eager to learn.

He had long wanted to flip through the textbook of love once more.

And while he was at it, perhaps delve deeper into areas he hadn't touched yet...

However, the next second, Ichinose shattered his expectations.

"A confession... someone wants to confess to me!"

???

What is this girl rambling about?

So it turns out you're not the one confessing?

Come to think of it, I seem to have heard a guy named Hirata say this back at the start of the school year.

Ayanokoji was speechless, his eyes instantly dimming again.

"Uh... and what does that have to do with me?"

He said in a cold tone, clearly a little bit annoyed.

"Ayanokoji-kun... I want you to pretend to be my boyfriend... because..."

"I don't want to hurt this child's feelings..."

So you can hurt my feelings instead, is that it!

Ayanokoji couldn't help but protest in his heart, a trace of resentment lingering in his eyes.

"No," he said coldly. "There's no point in doing that, unless..."

"Unless...?" The girl stood on her tiptoes, looking at him with longing, her water-blue eyes shining brightly.

Unless we turn this fake act into reality.

The scumbag Ayanokoji almost blurted out what he was thinking.

He thought for a second before changing his tone: "Unless she doesn't like you that much, doing this will only hurt her even more."

"Eh..." Hearing this, the girl lowered her head slightly, her eyes losing their previous luster, her expression a mix of hesitation and disappointment.

Clearly, upon hearing the words "hurt her even more," Ichinose abandoned her previous idea.

To think there was someone in this world who cared so much for others...

Ayanokoji stared at her for two seconds, feeling an urge to reach out and pat her head, but he held himself back.

It wasn't time yet.

"Ichinose."

"It takes immense courage to confess to someone. It is precisely because of that affection that one desperately wants to know the other person's feelings, and why one would go all-in to confess."

"They should, and deserve to, receive a clear response."

Ayanokoji said this with deep meaning, his tone flat, yet a hint of tenderness revealed itself in his brow.

Ichinose Honami slowly looked up, meeting his gaze directly, and was suddenly moved, as if she had caught a glimpse of a shift in the boy's eyes for a fleeting moment.

She wasn't sure, but she felt inexplicably happy.

"Mm, I understand."

The next second, she flashed a brilliant smile at the boy.

Afterward, the boy walked out alone, leaving the stage to the love-struck girl who was about to make her move.

He picked a random chair by the roadside and sat down, staring blankly at the last arc of crimson on the horizon.

It was hard to say how much time had passed before a girl with short, light green hair ran out from where he had just been, tears streaming down her face, and sprinted toward the dorms without looking back.

Tears fell like pearls behind her, leaving marks on the ground as they landed, causing Ayanokoji to involuntarily shift his gaze toward her.

Watching the girl's tearful figure fleeing in the sunset, he felt a sudden touch of melancholy.

As expected, most people's first love is bitter.

Ayanokoji murmured to himself.

A few days later, the day to reveal the scores finally arrived.

Chabashira-sensei walked into the classroom with her usual cold expression.

The students in the class were initially chatting about lighthearted topics, seemingly confident about the exam results.

But the moment they saw Chabashira's expression, they fell silent, their faces turning worried.

"Congratulations, everyone. In this midterm exam, every single one of you scored above the passing grade."

Chabashira first offered a cold smirk, and before the class could react, she wiped the smile away a moment later and said:

"Unfortunately, there is still a student who will be expelled."

"The student to be expelled is Ike Kanji. Reason for expulsion: cheating."

As the words fell, everyone was stunned.

In the gap between joy and heaviness, smiles froze halfway, turning into faces of pure blankness.

Ayanokoji looked at Ike's name on the blackboard with a detached expression, his abyss-like eyes as if he had foreseen this outcome all along.