Hirata Yosuke, the Reliable Man

After purchasing his items, Ayanokoji walked back to the dormitory in a nonchalant manner.

A flock of geese flew across the sky, heading home and leaving behind...

A lone figure always stands out so starkly on campus.

Watching students wearing the same freshman ribbons walking along the campus paths in groups of three or five, Ayanokoji felt a genuine sense of admiration for them.

Even in his past life, he wouldn't have been able to integrate into a group so quickly.

Ayanokoji muttered to himself.

Before long, a group of girls approached from the opposite direction.

A girl with pink hair, a sweet appearance, and a dazzling figure was being ushered along in the center of the group.

She wore an angelic, healing smile on her face, constantly responding to those around her who struck up conversations, and she seemed to enjoy it tirelessly.

It was a scene of perfect harmony.

Watching this, Ayanokoji felt that this girl radiated a unique aura—a powerful sense of approachability that made people feel comfortable and willing to draw near her.

As they brushed past each other, the pink-haired girl gave a polite nod, wearing a natural and pleasant smile.

Ayanokoji nodded in response, offering nothing but his usual deadpan poker face.

Having seen the girl's face up close, Ayanokoji felt that she was likely the most beautiful girl he had seen at this school.

There was a clear gap in class between her and the average girl, and even beauties of a similar tier were a slight distance behind her.

In terms of looks alone, there might be many who could reach the same level as the pink-haired girl, but when combining her temperament and personality, she was likely unrivaled.

I remember her name is Ichinose... something-nami?

In any case, her name should contain "nami," otherwise it wouldn't make sense.

After brushing past Ayanokoji, the women beside Ichinose began to criticize him.

"What's his problem? Honami-chan greeted him so politely and kindly, yet he just kept a straight face."

"I don't know which class he's from, how rude!"

"Don't you think so, Honami-chan?"

"Haha... it's fine. We're all first-year students, and besides, everyone has their own way of doing things. We shouldn't force our expectations on others~"

Ichinose said to her friends with a smile.

The infectious nature of that smile instantly made them cast their previous displeasure to the back of their minds.

"Hey, hey, Honami-chan, let's go to the cafe together next~"

"Yeah~ there's still some time before the sun sets."

"Hmm, I don't have anything to do anyway, let's all go have fun together!"

And so, the group of girls walked down the campus path with light steps, their youthful laughter overflowing between them.

Back in the dormitory, Ayanokoji placed the items he had bought on the table and then took out the butterfly brooch from his pocket.

"..."

Every time he saw this butterfly, Ayanokoji couldn't help but fall into a state of melancholy.

This little butterfly carried seven years of his emotions.

It was his first love, and even more so, a beautiful memory.

But now, one of its wings had lost its meaning.

While pondering, he detached one of the wings, revealing the "body" of the butterfly—a black device.

Ayanokoji used his finger to toggle the button exposed to the air.

A conversation began to play from the back of the other wing:

"

"Chabashira-sensei, I have a few questions I'd like to ask."

"Oh?"

"You can ask, but I won't necessarily answer all of them."

"That's fine, Sensei. You only need to answer what you can answer."

"Go ahead."

"First, points can buy everything—literally everything, right?"

"..."

"I understand. Second point..."

"

Ayanokoji stopped the recording, his expression as calm as an ancient well.

He hoped this recording would serve as a wake-up call to certain people in the class, so they wouldn't do anything foolish that might implicate him.

But how should he present it to the class?

Ayanokoji was troubled.

It was difficult, a bit difficult.

His well-intentioned warning from the morning had been taken as a humblebrag and a provocation; surely, no one in the class would believe his words now.

"..."

He rubbed his forehead in deep thought, and after a few seconds of contemplation, he thought of a suitable candidate.

He dialed the landline in his dorm; if it were him, he would likely help unconditionally...

Beep, beep, beep.

The call was answered on the other end, and a gentle, clear male voice came through.

"Hello, Ayanokoji-kun, is there something you need?"

"Hirata, I have some information I need to give you, regarding the interests of the class."

Hearing this, Hirata Yosuke's eyes flickered, and his tone sounded pleasantly surprised.

"Ayanokoji-kun, is it convenient to meet up now..."

On a bench by the river, Hirata arrived first.

A moment later, he turned his gaze toward the direction of the dormitory building, where Ayanokoji was slowly approaching at the speed of an elderly person.

Seeing Ayanokoji approach, Hirata smiled and waved at him.

Ayanokoji waved back, accompanied by his signature poker face.

After a long discussion of this and that, Hirata understood the ins and outs of the situation, agreed with Ayanokoji's idea, and marveled at his keen intuition.

"Then, Hirata, I will give this to you tomorrow, and you can reveal its contents to everyone."

"Mm, alright."

Hirata nodded in agreement, feeling a sense of admiration in his heart.

Only today did he truly feel he had met the real Ayanokoji.

The man before him was far more capable than he appeared on the surface.

With the matter settled, Ayanokoji felt much more relaxed.

He couldn't help but stretch, and the breeze from the riverbank blew from across the water, rippling the surface and gently lifting the bangs of the two people on the bench.

"Hey, Hirata, why did you choose to meet in a place like this? Wouldn't it have been fine downstairs at the dorms?"

Ayanokoji asked nonchalantly; he didn't mind the extra walking, he just felt it was a bit pointless.

Faced with Ayanokoji's question, Hirata was slightly stunned, then scratched his head in embarrassment, bowed his head slightly, and said, "Sorry, Ayanokoji-kun, I decided on it without asking."

"Actually... I have some other things I want to say to you."

Ayanokoji: "?"

???

Don't do this!

Something's wrong, Hirata, you're acting strange.

Ayanokoji looked into Hirata's clear eyes, and for a split second, he felt a genuine sense of dread.

Hirata shyly raised his eyes to meet Ayanokoji's indifferent pupils.

In that instant, Ayanokoji felt as if he saw a flush of red tinting Hirata's cheeks.

"Actually..." Hirata took a deep breath and slowly began, "there are some things I want to discuss with you!"

?

That's it?

Damn, what a letdown.

I wasted so much mental energy preparing myself.

All that preparation (anticipation) for nothing.

Ayanokoji's mouth twitched, his pupils contracted, and he finally forced an awkward smile.