36. Had He Forgotten What He Did to Our Arisu?

The stretch of road between the first-year and second-year dormitories.

A beautiful figure came rushing over.

"Suzune, I didn't expect you to follow me all the way here." It was the voice of Student Council President Horikita Manabu.

The person who had come running was Horikita Suzune.

Horikita Manabu hadn't invited her to meet him. He had deliberately chosen a spot where Suzune could still see him from her dormitory.

One reason to suspect that was that Yagami Shizuka was waiting not far from where Manabu stood.

Manabu had been standing there for half an hour. He certainly didn't look like someone who'd gotten up in the middle of the night to go scrounging for something.

He had come here on purpose and deliberately lured Suzune over.

It was easy to see how calculating the Student Council President was.

"I'm not the useless person you thought I was back then. I came here to catch up with you, big brother." Suzune showed Manabu a gentleness she never displayed during the day, without a trace of her usual coldness.

"Catch up?" Manabu sneered. "I heard you ended up in Class D. Just like three years ago, you haven't changed at all.

"You've spent all this time looking at my back, and you still haven't realized your own shortcomings. Choosing this school was a mistake."

"T-There must be some kind of mistake. I'll move up to Class A soon. Then—"

"That's impossible. You'll never make it to Class A. More than that, your class will fall apart. This school isn't as simple as you think." Manabu flatly rejected her.

"I absolutely... absolutely will make it to Class A..." Suzune's voice trembled. She was shaking with fear, but she was also deeply indignant.

"Didn't I say it was impossible? You really are a disobedient little sister." Manabu pressed her until her back was against the wall. He grabbed her wrist and pinned her there.

"No matter how much I avoid you, you're still my sister. If the people around me find out you're my sister, I'll be the one embarrassed. Leave this school immediately."

"I... I can't! I... I absolutely will... make it to Class A!" Yagami Shizuka could clearly see how much pain she was in. Manabu easily lifted her off the ground.

"You're so foolish. I'll make you suffer like you did in the past!" Manabu seemed to have hardened his resolve. He raised his right fist, preparing to bring it down.

Don't worry. Ayanokoji will step in.

Yagami Shizuka continued watching quietly. Just because ordinary people couldn't understand what was happening didn't mean he couldn't.

Horikita Suzune was obsessed with her big brother. Manabu had treated her harshly to cure her of it.

Unfortunately, Suzune's obsession ran deep, so Manabu didn't dare show her any kindness at all. That was how the siblings had ended up like this.

"Big brother, I—"

"You don't have the strength or the right to climb higher. Do you understand?"

Just as Manabu steeled himself to strike, a figure appeared behind him. Ayanokoji had arrived.

He immediately grabbed Manabu's hand.

"Who are you?"

"A-Ayanokoji?" Suzune didn't think she'd been rescued. She only felt embarrassed.

What followed was the fight between Manabu and Ayanokoji.

Ayanokoji easily dodged Manabu's attacks one after another. Manabu was astonished, and his gaze sharpened.

Seeing how the other boy treated his little sister gave Manabu a bit of comfort. "Suzune, I never thought you'd have a friend. Honestly, I'm surprised."

"He... isn't my friend. He's just a classmate."

"It seems you're still the same as ever, misunderstanding what it means to be proud and lonely.

"And you. Your name is Ayanokoji, right?

"With you around, things might get a little more interesting." Manabu turned and walked into the night.

"If you want to move up to a higher class, then struggle with everything you've got. There's no other way."

As Manabu was about to pass the second-year dormitory, he spotted someone crouching on the stone steps.

"I've been waiting for you, senpai. You look happy. Did you have a nice chat with your sister?"

Yagami Shizuka wasn't making things up. He had genuinely seen Manabu smiling.

"Yagami Shizuka? What are you doing here?" Realizing that someone had seen all his secrets made Manabu shudder. His gaze grew wary as well.

Yagami Shizuka had no intention of speaking nicely to him. "You've got some nerve asking me that. Have you forgotten what you did to my Arisu?

"Listen, Horikita Manabu. Just because I haven't said anything doesn't mean I don't know. I recorded the whole thing just now, when you laid hands on your own sister. Just wait until you're brought to justice."

Manabu's face fell instantly.

If the video got out, the consequences would be serious. It wasn't strange for the Student Council President to have a younger sister at the school, but he hadn't cared about her—and had even beaten and scolded her.

If the video were released, he'd immediately be stripped of his position as President.

He wouldn't be expelled, since Suzune would definitely plead for him, but his popularity would plummet. He still had another year before graduation, too.

Even now, the murderous intent in Manabu's gaze was enough to make anyone shudder.

"What? You want to kill me?" Yagami Shizuka wasn't afraid in the least.

"Do you think you can? I already posted an article somewhere, with photos of you and your sister. It's scheduled to go live tomorrow morning. Go ahead and try killing me—then see if you can find it."

Manabu knew the guy in front of him was a little crazy. If he didn't want to provoke him, it was best to go along with what he wanted. "What do you want?"

"What do you think? An apology! I want you to apologize to my Arisu and speak politely to her from now on. If you have a problem with me, take it up with me. What's the point of taking it out on her?"

Yagami Shizuka pointed at his phone. "I'm telling you, I've already uploaded it to cloud storage. There's no way to delete it. You'll apologize tomorrow, or I'll post it on the School Forum every single day. No particular reason. I'll just post it for fun."

Manabu's face twitched. He truly hadn't expected the guy to be this crazy. He couldn't even remember how many times he'd spoken to Sakayanagi Arisu. Why was Yagami taking it so seriously?

And Sakayanagi Arisu had said Yagami didn't care that much about her. She'd said that, and he'd believed her?

He'd been waiting here all night—and might have been waiting for several days—and she called that not caring?

"Fine!" Horikita forced out the word. "I'll apologize tomorrow."

He didn't want to say another word to this guy. He didn't even ask whether he could delete the video; the other boy had already said that was impossible.

"Ha! Look at me, forgetting!" Yagami Shizuka slapped his forehead. "Tomorrow's Sunday. Arisu might not go out, so she might not accept your apology. How about this: go apologize to her in the classroom on Monday. Then she can forgive you."

Yagami Shizuka spoke casually, keeping his eyes on Manabu's expression the whole time.

Getting someone to back down was an art. If he demanded an apology in public right away, the person might hesitate. But once he'd agreed to apologize, making him do it in public put him in a bind, leaving him little choice but to comply.

"Fine. I'll come and apologize on Monday, as promised." Manabu finally gave in.