Chapter 41

Steadying her feet, he listened as Yuyuan pleaded, "Carry me, Yuyuan, pleeease~"

Yuan Yuyuan looked as if he were about to be sick. The stench was so strong that he couldn't help fanning the air in front of his nose. "Xiaoxue, are you trying to imitate Lin Chiling? Give it a rest. You're just not cut out for it."

"What are you talking about? I'm imitating your Honami! Are you going to carry me or not? If you won't, I'm not moving."

"Honami isn't mine, and she's not nearly this cu—"

Seeing Himeno Yuki about to change her expression, Yuan Yuyuan hurriedly corrected himself. "Cute! That Honami's got nothing on Lady Himeno. Hop on, Lady Himeno. I'll carry you back."

"That's more like it."

Himeno Yuki climbed onto Yuan Yuyuan's back and rested her head on his shoulder, without trying anything else. She used her phone to guide him, and the two of them ambled all the way back, enjoying the rare quiet between them.

First Semester: Chapter 39

Chapter Thirty-Six: Ichinose Breaks Down Because of Yi Dashan

On the way, when Yuan Yuyuan didn't say anything, Himeno Yuki scratched his back with a finger and leaned close to his ear. "Yuan Yuyuan."

"Hmm? Is it uncomfortable being carried like this?"

"No, I just wanted to... Never mind, it's nothing."

That left Yuan Yuyuan feeling uneasy. He couldn't stand it when people left their sentences unfinished.

"If you've got something to say, just say it! You're leaving me hanging."

"I said it was nothing. Can't you hear me?"

"Jeez... don't shout so loudly in my ear. What if I go deaf?"

"Hmph. Sorry."

When they reached the shopping center, the area around them gradually grew livelier. They also attracted curious looks from passersby, along with the occasional bickering couple. Unable to bear looking at the envy in the women's eyes, Himeno Yuki tucked her little head away and buried her face in Yuan Yuyuan's back, mumbling, "Put me down! This is so embarrassing."

"No way. Isn't this nice? Maybe we'll become the ideal couple in everyone's eyes."

"Come on!"

Himeno Yuki reached out and pinched his waist, making Yuan Yuyuan grimace in pain.

"If I put you down now, people won't envy us—they'll laugh at us. Xiaoxue, you're so silly."

"Then hurry up and walk!"

Yuan Yuyuan actually enjoyed all those envious looks. If he hadn't needed to support Himeno Yuki's feet, he might even have waved at everyone. But he had no choice. To protect his waist, he quickened his pace.

Luckily, the shopping center wasn't far from the dorms. Before long, the two of them were back. To avoid the dorm mother's gossip, Yuan Yuyuan put Himeno Yuki down outside the entrance.

"Happy now, Miss Himeno?"

"Not bad, not bad. I didn't realize you had so much stamina. You made it all that way without needing a break."

"Ha! You're kidding."

Yuan Yuyuan proudly thumped his chest. "Do you even know who you're talking to? Ever heard of Superman? Let me tell you, I'm %￥＃%￥＃..."

Himeno Yuki didn't listen to a word of his boasting. She walked straight into the dorm and pressed the elevator button.

"...You've got no class."

Yuan Yuyuan ground his teeth as he watched the ungrateful woman. After getting nowhere with her, he still headed for the elevator.

Himeno Yuki was delighted to have gotten the better of him. She was still humming when Yuan Yuyuan stepped out of the elevator. He couldn't be bothered with the smug little villain and went back to his room without even saying goodbye.

Before they knew it, it was the end of June. With no midterms to worry about, Yuan Yuyuan and Ichinose had returned to their former grind.

That day, while going through some documents, Yuan Yuyuan saw that Class C was accusing Sudo of using violence to forcibly extort Yi Dashan. When he saw that among the victims were not only Komiya and Kondo, who were in the basketball club with Sudo, but also Ishizaki Daichi, one of Ryuen's right-hand men, Yuan Yuyuan couldn't help frowning. Were those three really that weak in a fight?

Even Yuan Yuyuan couldn't keep a straight face. He could believe it if it had been Ryuen or Ayanokoji, but Sudo? No way.

His barely suppressed laughter struck Ichinose as strange. Yuan Yuyuan had looked like he wanted to die these past few days. Had being locked up made him lose his mind...?

Ichinose poked him in the arm. "Um... Yuyuan, are you okay?"

"Huh? What wouldn't be okay? Honami, take a look at this."

Yuan Yuyuan came back to himself and handed her the document.

Ichinose took it and read through it. After a while, she frowned and said, "That doesn't make sense, does it? Sudo provoked Komiya and Kondo, so they called Ishizaki over. They must have been prepared to resort to violence. But Sudo came away without a scratch, while the three of them... were left bleeding and battered??? How is that even possible?"

"Hahahaha! Now that's interesting. They'll say Ishizaki was the parent they called over, that he came to talk Sudo down or stop him from getting violent. And then all three of them got beaten up. That brainless monkey Sudo can't do anything to them. Take notes, Honami."

Yuan Yuyuan shifted into a more comfortable position, closed his eyes, and spoke lazily to Ichinose. "You have to understand, this school doesn't care about logic. It only cares about evidence. There are no cameras in the Special Building, the three students from Class C really are seriously injured, and it's true that Sudo was the one who acted. Most damning of all, those three didn't even fight back. This doesn't even count as a brawl. It's simply Sudo committing a one-sided act of violence."

"Do you mean this is Class C's plan to play the victim? Is there really nothing we can do? We can't just let Ryuen's scheme succeed. If he tries it on our class, we'll be in trouble, won't we?"

"There is something we can do."

Yuan Yuyuan opened his eyes and gazed intently at Ichinose.

"But first, I'd like to know what you want to do, Honami."

That stumped Ichinose. To be honest, she was more inclined to help Class D, but she knew the best outcome would be for Classes C and D to both suffer heavy losses. Ichinose lowered her head. She had already disappointed Yuan Yuyuan once, and she had resolved never to make the same mistake again, but...

"Honami, you don't need to hold back. Just tell me what you really think."

Yuan Yuyuan could see Ichinose's uncertainty. He patted her on the shoulder, letting her know she didn't need to be nervous.

"Um... Yuyuan won't get mad, will you?"

"No, no. You really misunderstand me, Honami."

"I think... we should help Class D?"

Ichinose kept her head lowered. Although it was impolite, she really didn't dare look Yuan Yuyuan in the eye just then.

"Of course we can. But why? If Class C falls because of this, Class D will become our enemy."

Yuan Yuyuan had expected this answer. If it had been Himeno Yuki, she would definitely have given him the answer he wanted, but he couldn't just swap them out.

"I haven't thought that far ahead. I just feel like this kind of tactic isn't right."

"I see. I thought you couldn't stand seeing people suffer. But whether the two classes both lose or Class D comes out on top, though...