As the Final Exam drew closer day by day, the number of people coming to the library increased significantly.
Even students from Classes C and D, who usually weren't keen on studying, came in large numbers.
Thanks to Hirata Yosuke and Kushida Kikyo's efforts to coordinate, Class D's study group got underway.
Horikita Suzune and Ayanokoji Kiyotaka were in charge of rescuing the "Three Idiots."
Horikita Suzune sat ramrod straight on one side of the long table. Mathematics textbooks lay open in front of her, and she stared expressionlessly at the few restless boys sitting opposite.
Her icy scrutiny made the trio, who already resented studying, feel even more ill at ease.
A little behind and to the side of her, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was like a quiet shadow.
"Five years ago, Akira was one-fifth his father's age. This year, he's one-third his father's age. So..." Horikita Suzune explained the math problem in her distinctive voice, launching straight into it without any preamble.
In her view, if a student could get into Advanced Nurturing University, then no matter how dull or limited their comprehension was, surely they could still solve a problem this simple, one that only required following the steps and applying a formula.
"Seriously!" Yamauchi Haruki clicked his tongue, deliberately glancing toward Kushida before turning back to glare at Horikita Suzune.
"Why didn't Kikyo-chan come over here?"
"Why did it have to be you, you... stuck-up woman?!"
"Yeah, yeah, who do you think you are?" Kanji Ike chimed in.
"Heh."
Horikita Suzune glanced past Yamauchi, then looked at Ken Sudō and Kanji Ike, who wore equally sour expressions, as if she were looking at three worthless pieces of trash.
"Do you think I want to be here? I'm sitting here only because I agreed to Hirata Yosuke's request and because I pity you. Besides, I'm not the one who'll end up getting expelled."
"You've got to be kidding!" Ken Sudō couldn't hold back and growled.
"How could I get expelled? Studying is easy, isn't it? If I just put in a little effort, a problem like this..."
"You're struggling with even the most basic Sum-to-Product formula. I've explained it three times, and you still don't get it."
"If I remember correctly," Horikita Suzune said, lowering her voice, though it grew clearer, "this is something you should have mastered by the upper elementary grades at the latest, or in your first year of junior high."
"So, can you tell me whether your heads are just for show?"
"You don't have to be so mean! It's just this one problem. What gives you the right to say that about me?"
Ken Sudō drew in a sharp breath. He didn't want to stay here any longer, didn't want to face this woman who could grind people into the dirt, and didn't want to look at those damn symbols and numbers.
"Forget it!" He waved his hand sharply, his face showing a mix of impatience and a trace of barely concealed embarrassment. "There's no talking to a girl like you. I'm going to basketball club practice. There's still ages before the midterms."
"It's still a long way off!" Ken Sudō added emphatically. Then, without looking at anyone, he snatched his jacket off the back of his chair and headed for the place that was making him feel suffocated.
Seeing this, Hirata Yosuke hurried over. "Sudō-kun! Wait, the study group isn't over yet..."
"You're so annoying! Move!"
Yamauchi and Ike exchanged glances, their faces full of hesitation and unease. They looked at Sudō's retreating figure, then at the cold, silent Horikita Suzune across the table, unsure whether to leave or stay.
Their noisy argument, Sudō's loud quarrel, and the final slam of the door as he left had long since drawn frequent glances from the students in the library.
"Kitagawa-kun, it seems like they're having a bit of a disagreement."
Kitagawa Kai withdrew his gaze from the commotion and turned back to the girl beside him. "It's nothing serious, probably just a minor disagreement."
"Horikita-san is tutoring Sudō-kun and the others, isn't she?" Ichinose Honami said softly, looking toward Class D again. Yamauchi and Ike seemed to have finally recovered a little from their frozen state and were now hurriedly gathering their things, their faces still grim.
"Horikita-san gets great grades, but her approach might not work for everyone."
"Wow, Ichinose, you even know so much about Horikita-san from Class D?"
"Not really. I've just run into Horikita-san studying by herself a few times. She's very focused and efficient."
Ichinose Honami added, her blue-violet eyes shining with sincerity, "Besides, even though we're in different classes, if we learn a little more about each other, we might be able to help one another someday."
"Then, what kind of person am I in Ichinose's eyes?"
Ichinose Honami clearly hadn't expected him to ask that. She thought for a moment, then answered.
"Kitagawa-kun, you can often get to the heart of a problem very quickly, and sometimes you look at things from a different angle than we do. It's quite unique."
"And there's also that... how should I put it? You're extraordinarily calm and composed. You hardly seem like an ordinary university student our age."
As she said this, there was a hard-to-describe note in her smile. Several times before, she had run into Kitagawa Kai walking with different girls, looking rather close to them.
"And, sometimes I feel..."
"There seem to be quite a lot of girls around Kitagawa-kun?"
At this assessment, Kitagawa Kai's dark eyes flickered almost imperceptibly, and he tugged at the corner of his mouth.
"I see. It's nothing special. They're all friends."
For now, they were just friends. Who knew what might happen later?
"Being popular isn't a bad thing. It means Kitagawa-kun has a lot of appealing qualities."
"Then, has Ichinose been attracted to me?"
The question was so direct, so completely unguarded.
Surprise, uncertainty, and a faint trace of embarrassment clearly flashed through Ichinose Honami's blue-violet eyes.
A brief silence that made her heart race.
"Kitagawa-kun, it'd be a lie to say I haven't been attracted to you at all."
She took a soft breath, looked at him with clear eyes, and finally gave the answer that had already taken shape in her heart. Her voice was gentle yet firm.
"I'm happy to be admired by you, Honami," Kitagawa Kai said, his tone more earnest than ever before.
[Ping!]
[Ichinose Honami Affection Level +3, current Affection Level: 60]
When Ichinose Honami heard him call her "Honami," the blush on her cheeks seemed to deepen.
She didn't say anything, only gave a gentle nod. Her gaze was as calm as water; everything was understood without a word.
In the distance, Shiranami Chihiro's fingers, which held a mechanical pencil, had stopped moving at some point.
As if drawn by invisible threads, her gaze fell on the strange atmosphere between the two, and her heart sank.
She had always known that Kitagawa Kai was special, different from everyone else. His composure beyond his years and the ease with which he seemed to bring everything under control attracted Ichinose like a magnet.
But she also knew all too well how dazzling Ichinose Honami was. Her heartfelt warmth was like a little sun, making almost everyone who came near her feel comfortable and at ease.
This couldn't go on.