The Truth of Kikyo Kushida

"Um, if I said I just suffered from a temporary bout of blindness and deafness, would you believe me?"

An Xiao saw there was no way to dodge it, so he forced a smile and spoke to the cold-faced Kikyo Kushida in front of him.

"Tch, I really chose the wrong spot..." Kikyo Kushida clicked her tongue in annoyance, then stepped forward, bringing her face close to An Xiao's.

"Do you think I should believe you?"

"Fair point..."

"What you heard just now... if you tell anyone else, I won't let you off."

Her tone wasn't just cold; it was more of a threat.

An Xiao looked at Kikyo Kushida, who was completely different from her usual self, under the streetlights. After a brief moment of eye contact, he let out a weary sigh and said with a bitter smile.

"Even if I said I wouldn't tell anyone, you probably wouldn't believe me anyway."

Seeing An Xiao suddenly relax his entire body, the threats that Kikyo Kushida had been about to make got stuck in her throat. Flustered and angry, she grabbed An Xiao by the collar.

"I'm not joking with you!"

"However, you're right. I couldn't guarantee before that you absolutely wouldn't spread this around."

"After all, you've been getting pretty close to that bitch Horikita."

"Before... what do you mean by that?" Hearing Kikyo say this, An Xiao, who had just let his guard down, felt his heart jump back into his throat.

"Exactly what I said." Kikyo released his collar, then suddenly grabbed one of An Xiao's hands and slammed it onto her chest.

"If you dare to tell anyone, I'll report you for harassment."

Kikyo Kushida threatened him, but by this point, An Xiao's brain had already crashed.

Softness—astonishing softness—was transmitted through his hand. Perhaps because the owner's physique was quite toned, An Xiao could even feel some intricate textures through her school uniform.

Perhaps because Kikyo had pressed down with a bit too much force, half of An Xiao's hand had sunk in slightly, leaving him in a position where he didn't know whether to pull away or keep pushing.

Not daring to close his eyes, An Xiao stiffly turned his head away, his speech becoming stuttered.

"U-um, Kushida-san."

"Huh? Now that you have the evidence, it's too late to back out. I'm going to keep this uniform and never wash it."

"No, that's not what I meant." An Xiao bit his tongue hard, forcing himself to stop stuttering.

"It's just that..."

Before An Xiao could finish his sentence, Shiina Hiyori emerged from the shadows behind him, holding her phone in both hands, clearly having been recording something.

"I actually had someone behind me."

"Can you let go of my hand now? Perhaps we should find somewhere else to have a proper talk."

"Right, Kushida-san?"

"No, I get that we need to talk, but why come to my room?" An Xiao poked his head out from the kitchen, his tone weak.

"At this hour, do you think there's anywhere else suitable to go?"

But at this hour, isn't it even worse for you two to come to a guy's room?

An Xiao grumbled inwardly, feeling exhausted, but he still brought out the three bowls of millet porridge he had prepared.

"Let's eat while we talk. After all, none of us have had dinner yet."

"Thank you." Shiina took the bowl An Xiao handed her, took a small sip, and a satisfied smile appeared on her face.

Kikyo, sitting to the side, rested her chin on one hand and stirred the porridge with her spoon several times before taking a reluctant bite, though her expression softened slightly.

Her gaze shifted to Shiina Hiyori, who was eating quietly, and she asked, "Tell me, when did you start recording?"

"Hmm~ probably right when you walked toward An Xiao."

Doesn't that mean she recorded everything!!?

Kikyo's nails dug into her skin, leaving five distinct red marks on her fair thigh through her skirt. She gritted her teeth, staring daggers at Shiina Hiyori.

Then, her expression shifted again, returning to her usual pitiful, innocent look as she looked at Hiyori.

"So, can you delete that video?"

"I can't! Kushida-san, you were trying to threaten An Xiao earlier. If I agree, An Xiao will be in trouble." Shiina Hiyori set down her bowl and spoke to Kikyo earnestly.

"Tch." The gentle expression on Kikyo's face vanished instantly, reverting to the look An Xiao had seen earlier.

"Um, can I interject?" An Xiao couldn't help but ask, looking at Kikyo with confusion. "I don't know why you have these two different faces, but was it really necessary to go that far?"

"That far" naturally referred to the incident where An Xiao was forced to touch her chest.

"Necessary! Why wouldn't it be?" Kikyo's voice rose sharply after hearing An Xiao, but realizing she was losing control of her emotions, she calmed down and looked at An Xiao with a cold sneer.

"Well? Is your image of me shattered now?"

"Not really. Actually, I feel like chatting like this is much easier than before, so I think it's fine."

"Huh? Don't you guys usually prefer the 'energetic' version of me, the one who looks at you with wide, watery eyes all day? That disgusting version?" Seeing that An Xiao didn't seem to be lying, Kikyo's curiosity was piqued, and she asked.

"Besides, you didn't seem all that surprised when you saw me like that earlier."

"Well... if you'd ever met our homeroom teacher, you'd probably understand."

"Wait, you're changing the subject. You still haven't answered my question."

"What's there to answer? If Shiina hadn't been following you, I would've had you wrapped around my finger already, and things wouldn't have turned into this mess." Kikyo Kushida tapped her fingers against the table irritably, speaking with impatience.

"...Actually, there were security cameras there." Seeing Kikyo like this, An Xiao said with a touch of helplessness. Watching her tapping hand freeze, he continued, "There's a vending machine right near there. To prevent people from maliciously damaging the equipment, the school installs surveillance devices on them."

"Even if it might not record a clear image, it can at least capture audio quite clearly." Having said that, An Xiao sighed again, rubbed his temples, and added, "If it had been anyone more lecherous, they might have used that opportunity to keep touching you."

"Or, after getting their hands on the footage and audio, they could have tracked you down and said things like, 'You wouldn't want this to get out, would you?' or 'If you do this, I'll...'"

As An Xiao spoke, he noticed the strange look in Shiina's eyes and the gaze of pure disgust from Kikyo, and his voice gradually trailed off.

"Um, An Xiao, that kind of book is actually the sort you should read less of, you know!"

"Disgusting."

"No, isn't this a specialty of your world?"

"What kind of specialty is—" Kikyo's mocking words cut off halfway through.

This guy... in a certain sense, he didn't seem to be wrong.

This was truly a case of Garen buying Last Whisper; he had been silenced and had his armor shredded all at once.

The two sat there staring at each other, and the scene suddenly turned quiet.

"Hey, I heard you're pretty good at making desserts. You should have some left at home, right?" Not knowing what else to say, Kikyo Kushida brought up what Ichinose had told her earlier to change the subject.

"Yeah, there's some left in the fridge."

"You don't mind if I have some, do you?"

Although she said that, Kikyo had already stood up and walked toward the fridge, and Shiina followed her silently.

Watching the two of them walk away, An Xiao didn't know what else to say, so he could only drink his porridge in silence.