Sakayanagi Wants to Win / The Archangel's Moment of Rest

We proceed with the original plan for Ken Sudō and observe the reactions of the other classes.

Chapter 92 91 Sakayanagi Wants to Win

After Tanaka Yukishin left, the classroom of Class B fell into a brief silence.

Sakayanagi Arisu in place, her slender fingers unconsciously gripping the hem of her skirt, her knuckles turning slightly white from the force.

Her usually serene and smiling purple eyes were now clouded with gloom, and her lips were pressed into a tight line, as if she were trying her best to suppress some kind of emotion.

--Three minutes ago.

When Tanaka Yukishin pushed open the door and entered, Sakayanagi Arisu was sitting by the window reading a book.

Sunlight streamed through the glass, casting a shimmering halo on her silver hair.

She slightly raised her eyes, a playful smile curving her lips.

"Isn't this Tanaka-kun, the Tanaka-kun and enjoys himself every day? What brings him to Class B?"

Tanaka Yukishin remained calm, her gaze sweeping over her before finally settling on Kamuro Masumi.

"I will be leaving school during the Gyokuryuki competition. Kamuro did a great job running errands, Sakayanagi, you are frail, so your family will be worried. That's why I came to ask if you would like me to pass on a message?"

Kamuro Masumi immediately raised her hand, her eyes sparkling.

"I want! My brother! Loyalty!"

Sakayanagi Arisu paused, her fingers pinching a tiny crease in the page.

She said softly, "I don't need it. My father is the chairman of the board."

"Okay." Tanaka Yukishin nodded, turned and left. "Kamuro, send it to me via the terminal after you've thought it through."

--Did he really just leave like that?

A sudden tightness gripped Sakayanagi Arisu's chest, and almost instinctively she cried out, "Tanaka-kun, please wait."

Tanaka Yukishin turned back.

"What is it?"

"Favoritism won't do."

She smiled, her voice soft, yet carrying a barely perceptible tension.

Tanaka Yukishin.

"So Sakayanagi was jealous."

"..."

Sakayanagi Arisu snapped the book shut in her hands, her fingertips tightening slightly.

"I want to have a fair and square match with you. Please, Tanaka-kun, disregard my family background, gender, and physical health, and give it your all."

Tanaka Yukishin was silent for a moment, then said calmly, "This is not good. The gap is too large; you will get hurt."

"I do."

She looked him straight in the eye, her tone resolute.

"Then let's run," he answered decisively. "I'm ready anytime, Sakayanagi, get ready to start."

--running?

Sakayanagi Arisu's fingertips almost dug into her palm.

She told him to disregard his family background, gender, and physical health and give it his all.

So he's actually going to race a sickly, beautiful girl with a congenital heart condition?

This shows they didn't treat her like a privileged child.

I didn't treat her like a girl.

They didn't treat her like a patient.

But at the same time, they didn't treat her like a human being!

She sighed inwardly, recalling how Tanaka Yukishin her like dirt when they first met.

She had just thought that Tanaka Yukishin had finally shown some humanity, but now it seems she's still the same old her.

Kamuro Masumi leaned against the window, sunlight streaming through the glass and dancing on her long purple hair.

She rested her chin on her hand, observing Sakayanagi Arisu's changing expressions with great interest, and suddenly burst out laughing.

I said, Sakayanagi.

Kamuro Masumi deliberately dragged out the last syllable, lightly tapping the corner of her upturned lips with her fingertip, "Didn't my older brother accept your challenge so readily? Why the expression? Come on, imitate me—"

She suddenly leaned closer to Sakayanagi Arisu, pressed her index fingers against her cheeks, and made an exaggerated smile, saying, "Cheese!"

Sakayanagi Arisu slowly raised her eyelids, a dark current surging within her crystal-like pupils.

He didn't get angry, but just gazed at the other person with a quiet, melancholy expression.

She gently tapped Kamuro Masumi's forehead, which was drawing closer, with her cane, her voice so soft it sent chills down your spine.

"Kamuro, it seems you've become quite interested in the nutritional value of red beans lately."

"Oh my!" Kamuro Masumi nimbly jumped back half a step, twirling a strand of hair between her fingers. "After all, my brother has a model's physique, excellent athletic ability, and is very capable..." She suddenly cupped her face in her hands, feigning infatuation, "As a healthy young woman, isn't it natural to be attracted to someone?"

A few cherry blossom petals were blown off by the wind outside the window, drifting past Kamuro Masumi's blushing cheeks.

She blinked her sly eyes and suddenly lowered her voice.

"Actually, I dreamt last night that I was tying my older brother's tie, and then he grabbed my hand and said..."

Before she could finish speaking, the raised cane was already pressed against her throat.

Sakayanagi Arisu's smile was as perfect as a mask, but the throbbing veins at her temples were faintly visible.

"Go on, I'm curious about what happened next in the dream."

"Whoa! Killing intent!"

Kamuro Masumi exaggeratedly raised her hands and stepped back, pressing her back against the wall.

She first straightened her clothes, which had been disheveled from laughing, then tilted her head and revealed a mischievous smile.

"It's a pity that although I'm willing to offer myself as a concubine, my feelings are unrequited. I guess I won't get to eat the red bean rice. Instead, how about Sakayanagi tries tying her long hair into pigtails? I heard that boys all..."

"Kamuro Masumi."

Sakayanagi Arisu suddenly put away her cane, placed her hands folded in front of her skirt, and revealed an elegant smile befitting a noblewoman. "For the next Special Exam, I'll expel you?"

Kamuro Masumi's expression froze instantly.

She darted forward and grabbed Sakayanagi Arisu's sleeve, her voice suddenly becoming eight octaves sweeter.

"I was wrong! Please let me continue to be your personal maid! I don't want to eat red bean rice or anything like that!"

Sakayanagi Arisu gently pulled back her sleeve, and as she turned, the hem of her skirt drew a graceful arc.

"Now you're scared? Weren't you laughing so happily just now?" She turned her back to Kamuro Masumi and walked towards the podium, but her shoulders trembled almost imperceptibly.

As the daughter of the chairman, Sakayanagi Arisu in an environment where she was treated specially—either out of awe for her status or out of pity for her frail health.

Tanaka Yukishin, however, treated her with an attitude that almost "ignored her special circumstances."

The experience of not being treated as a fragile thing made her both yearn to be treated as a normal person and want to prove that she was superior to normal people.

Kamuro Masumi keenly noticed the trembling of Sakayanagi Arisu's shoulders and immediately widened her eyes as if she had discovered a new continent.

She tiptoed around to face Sakayanagi Arisu and, sure enough, saw the smile on her lips that she hadn't had time to hide.

"Ah! Sakayanagi is actually secretly laughing too, isn't he?"

Kamuro Masumi proudly raised her index finger, "Because my older brother used a running race to brush me off, it's just like a primary school student's approach to dealing with a crush."

"Shut up."

Sakayanagi Arisu's right palm slapped Kamuro Masumi's head with her fingers bent and extended, but a suspicious blush appeared on the Kamuro Masumi of her ear.

She walked towards the door, then suddenly stopped.

"By the way, since you're so free, copy my notes on 'The Prince' three times today."

Kamuro Masumi wailed.

"This isn't fair! Clearly (seven) Erlin 4 umbrella IV you yourself--"

Five times.

"Yes, Your Highness."

Kamuro Masumi scrambled to her feet, dejected, but as Sakayanagi Arisu turned away, she secretly flashed a victory sign and mouthed, "Tsundere, arrogant, and sassy."

Chapter 93-92 The Archangel's Rest Time

"Shibata, how's the group assignment progressing?"

Ichinose Honami's voice was a little hoarse as she tapped her fingertips lightly on the table, her brows furrowing slightly.

The notebook in front of her was filled with names and group assignments, but a few blanks were circled in red, which looked particularly jarring.

Shibata Hayate looked up at her and noticed the light blue shadows under her eyes—she hadn't had a proper rest in a long time.

He sighed, closed the documents in his hand, and tried to sound as relaxed as possible.

"Currently, it has been confirmed that only three people can lead a group independently: me, you, Kanzaki."

He paused for Ichinose's reaction.

Her expression didn't relax; instead, it became even more tense, and her fingers unconsciously traced the edge of the paper.

"Eight people per group, five groups in total. There are still two groups with vacancies. The backup candidates are Xiao Qiaomeng, Shiranami Chihiro, Moriyama Susumu, and Himeno Yuki."

Are they all willing?

Ichinose Honami pressed on, her voice tinged with urgency.

Shibata Hayate smiled, trying to ease the tension.

"The class atmosphere is quite good, and with Ichinose there, plus the fact that it's for the exams, they're very willing to contribute to the class."

Ichinose Honami gave a soft "hmm" and continued flipping through the documents, but her movements were somewhat mechanical, and her thoughts had clearly drifted away.

Shibata Hayate hesitated for a moment, then spoke.

"Then let's proceed with the testing. We'll focus on the Uninhabited Island Exam and filter through past exam information. Then, we'll randomly select a Special Exam from previous years from the filtered database, and the results will determine the final decision. The three of us will then cross-verify the information."

Ichinose Honami nodded, but her gaze remained serious.

Shibata Hayate finally couldn't hold back any longer, reaching out to gently press down on her notebook, her tone soft yet firm.

"Ichinose, don't push yourself too hard. Kanzaki and I know that the dropouts from Class D have made you feel a strong sense of crisis. But according to our information, dropping out is actually quite rare."

Ichinose Honami's fingers paused slightly, then she raised her head, her eyes filled with weariness and resentment.

"Yeah?"

Her voice was soft, but her tone was unusually sharp, "So, have the seniors from Class D in the second year forgotten? Nearly a dozen or twenty students dropped out in just one year. I don't want to see any students from Class A follow in their footsteps."

Shibata Hayate speechless for a moment.

He certainly remembered those students who dropped out, but what worried him more was that Ichinose continued like this, he would eventually break down.

"Okay, I understand."

He ultimately had no choice but to compromise and reluctantly withdrew his hand.

Just then, the door was gently pushed open.

"I'm busy, Honami-chan."

Tanaka Yukishin leaned against the door frame, a faint smile playing on her lips. Her gaze swept between Ichinose and Shibata Hayate before finally settling on Ichinose.

Ichinose raised her head, her eyes initially blank, then flashing with a hint of resentment and dissatisfaction.

"It turns out to be Senior Tanaka from Class 1-D."

She deliberately emphasized the word "senior," her tone carrying a hint of teasing, but mostly revealing her exhaustion.

Upon seeing this, Shibata Hayate couldn't help but burst out laughing.