Dragon Garden Boy

"Where are we going?"

You En was being dragged along by Ibuki and couldn't forcefully break free, so he could only follow and ask.

Ibuki didn't answer. She pulled You En to the second floor, walked past all the classrooms to confirm no one was there, then came to a corner of the hallway.

"There shouldn't be anyone here now."

Ibuki took a deep breath, glared at You En, her small lips moving slightly as she mulled it over for a long time.

"...Ugh."

In the end, she only let out a quiet whimper. Realizing her own sound, Ibuki's face flushed completely red, even her earlobes felt hot.

You En found it quite amusing—a somewhat aloof girl with a neutral, handsome beauty making such an adorable sound in front of him.

"Not bad... pretty close."

You En comforted her with a white lie.

That only seemed to provoke her more.

Ibuki lifted her head, her face bright red—whether from humiliation or shyness was unclear. Her eyes held a bit of it, but more than that, defiance. Without thinking, "Ugh... woof!"

This blue-haired girl, with both hands pressed against his chest, her posture was... if he were an ordinary man, he probably wouldn't have been able to hold himself back.

But You En wasn't. This was still within his rational control. Seeing it once was enough to satisfy his curiosity. "Let's stop here. How about you treat me to dinner sometime?"

Ibuki just looked up at him.

You En added, "Think about it—I usually eat that kind of stuff. I always want to improve my meals a bit, right? This would be a big help to me. Honestly, I'm the one coming out ahead."

"Then... fine."

Ibuki let out a sigh of relief.

"How could just one day be enough?"

"If you want to treat me to more meals, that's fine too. I'll just take a little extra advantage."

The two gradually calmed down.

Ibuki only then realized how ambiguous their posture was.

Just then, both of their terminals received messages at the same time.

Taking the chance, they separated and each pulled out their terminals.

You En's message was from Suzune.

"Horikita Suzune: "I waited for you for a long time. I tried to find you, but someone told me you went upstairs. What are you doing up there?""

Ibuki checked her message.

"Ryuen Kakeru: "I'm waiting for you to report on the elective course info. How did you end up going upstairs alone with some guy who already has a girlfriend? I stopped him for you. Handle it yourself.""

Ibuki's expression shifted slightly, but she didn't really believe Ryuen's nonsense. In her own words, what good could come out of that bastard's mouth?

Watching You En reply to his message, Ibuki wanted to ask, "Do you have a girlfriend?" But she didn't know what standing she had to ask that.

So she changed the question. "Are you close with that person?"

You En thought for a moment, then gave his answer.

"Same as with you."

Hearing that reply, Ibuki interlaced her fingers, unsure of what she was thinking, but in the end, she told him the situation.

"Oh, she's waiting for you downstairs. What are you going to do?"

"Go down together. What's the problem?"

You En stated it like a fact. "It's not like we did anything shameful."

Ibuki didn't agree. That thing they just did definitely couldn't see the light of day. If a third party found out, she'd probably want to kill someone.

"Let's go. Head down."

"Mm."

You En walked to the stairwell, suddenly feeling a bit unsatisfied. He abruptly leaned close to Ibuki's face.

"What are you doing!?"

Ibuki flinched, almost thinking he was about to... and then she heard a sound.

"...Woof!"

She froze.

She only saw You En grinning brightly, smug like a class leader among kids.

"I think I did it better than you."

The negative emotions in Ibuki's heart vanished completely, replaced by the purest smile.

"You have to argue over this? How boring!"

You En laughed heartily, "Just tell me if it fits or not."

Ibuki smiled wryly, "Right, you really do imitate a dog well."

"Still better than your poor imitation."

You En never admitted defeat with words.

Ibuki felt she probably couldn't outtalk him, nor outthink him anymore, but her fists itched a little.

She asked with ill intent, "From the look of you, you're not a trained fighter, are you?"

"...I really haven't trained, sorry, Lady Ibuki."

You En looked at Ibuki's delicate fists—no matter how small, punches still hurt, and she had training besides. Helpless, he could only surrender.

Let's just say this is the price of walking the path of a light novel master. If he were a martial arts master or swordsmanship master, he could handle little Ibuki easily.

Ibuki said with slight regret, "I thought you'd put up a fight."

"I don't want to get beaten up."

You En and Ibuki went down the stairs to the first floor, where two people were waiting in the middle of the corridor, the atmosphere tense.

Seeing You En walk over with Ibuki, Horikita Suzune's expression revealed neither joy nor anger, "Who is she?"

"A classmate from the same lesson. Want to meet her?"

"No."

Horikita Suzune said nothing more, "Let's go together."

"Hey! Wait, I haven't spoken yet."

Ryuen Kakeru, who had been silent until now, blocked their path, looking utterly bored.

Before You En or Horikita could say anything, Ibuki stepped forward, blocking in front of You En, "Ryuen, what do you want?"

Ryuen paused for a moment, then let out a laugh, "Nothing, I just wanted to get to know him too... your new boyfriend?"

Ibuki helplessly pressed her forehead, "Ah, and I actually thought I'd hear something decent from you. I was too naive."

She turned to You En and said, "You go ahead. I'll handle this guy. You two don't need to worry."

You En didn't really want to deal with Ryuen-boy either—too troublesome—so he nodded, "See you later, then."

He and Horikita Suzune bypassed Ryuen and left from the side.

Ryuen only turned his head to size them up, making no further moves. After they left, he asked Ibuki, "What do you think of that guy? Will he become Class D's leader?"

Ibuki thought for a moment. She felt You En was the same kind of person as herself.

"No. He's like me—he only acts from his own interests."

"Oh?"

Ryuen trusted Ibuki's judgment, though that was mainly based on his confidence in his own ability to read people, "Is there any chance of recruiting him?"

"Hey, I'm warning you, don't get any ideas about him."

"Ha, you've only been in one class with that guy, and you're already defending him?"

Ryuen looked at Ibuki, seeming somewhat surprised, "You two went upstairs just now—were you kissing?"

"Ha??"

Ibuki immediately kicked him. Ryuen took the hit without getting angry, just brushed off his pant leg, "Fine, I won't ask about anything else. Your personal feelings aren't my business. I'll just ask one question, and you answer me honestly."

Ibuki had only found Ryuen annoying before; now she found him even more so. If it weren't for the fact that he was the only guy in Class C who looked remotely decent, she wouldn't have bothered listening to him at all, "What?"

Ryuen half-closed his eyes, the gaze he revealed slightly sharp, "Will that guy become an obstacle to us reaching Class A?"

Ibuki didn't answer immediately. Instead, she pinched her chin and thought seriously for a moment before finally voicing her opinion.

"He would. His mental fortitude is strong—even stronger than yours."

Ryuen's pupils contracted, then he looked as if he'd discovered something interesting.

"Interesting."

Ryuen knew Ibuki's judgment wasn't baseless.

This was interesting. His most prized trait—his mental fortitude—was supposedly inferior to that seemingly ordinary student just now.

"Find a way to get on good terms with him,"

Ryuen looked at Ibuki, a teasing smile on his face.

"It's fine if you want to date him too. Pull him over to our side as much as you can, and I won't make a move on him.

I think that's a pretty good deal.

Ibuki, what do you think?"

"Tch, I knew nothing good would come out of your mouth."

Ibuki was flustered by the remarks involving You En.

"Class matters, I'll listen to you. But this is my private business, so keep your mouth shut."

Ryuen wore a mysterious smile.

"Isn't this advice from a personal standpoint too? I do care about my classmates' romantic affairs."

Ibuki said bluntly, "You and I have no personal relationship. You should get lost."

"Fine, fine,"

Ryuen looked at her expression and decided not to push the topic further, shifting to another.

"What do you think of this school's elective courses?"

"Hmm... They're highly specialized."

Ibuki took a while to come up with that assessment, then explained the content of the Survival Class in detail.

Ryuen frowned.

"Insects? Burmese pythons? Venomous snakes? Animal behavior?"

In modern society, what was the point of these things? Nothing more than a niche hobby for a very small number of people.

Ibuki forgot to mention one thing—the name and identity of the Survival Class instructor. But she never cared about reputation or fame anyway; she valued personal ability more.

"Feels a bit interesting,"

Ryuen hadn't figured it out, but his animal instincts led him to a conclusion.

"Next class, I still need to sign up. Someone still has to go."

Ibuki's eyes lit up, and she immediately said, "Then let me do it."

Ryuen thought it over and granted her request.

"Fine, I'll wish you good luck in nabbing him soon."

Ibuki was initially happy to hear his agreement, but the last sentence made her expression complicated.

"...Forget it, I won't bother arguing with you."

Ibuki headed to the store, reportedly to buy some mouthwash and some disinfectant hand soap.

Ryuen narrowed his eyes. He hadn't told anyone, but in these past few days, he'd been trying to learn about the school and had learned very little. Yet the more he learned, the more he instinctively felt... fear.

This school actually had no official school rules—only student council regulations and club bylaws.

A stage like this should have been easy for him to work with.

So why did it make him so uneasy?

Where did this unease come from?

Ryuen didn't know. He thought about it but came up with nothing, so he decided to go find trouble with Class A or Class B instead.

Walking down the corridor, Ryuen suddenly recalled the expression on that male student named You En's face just now.

He felt that guy was somehow key...

But since he'd already promised Ibuki, he wouldn't break it unless it was important.

Stepping out of the school building, A faint thought arose in Ryuen Kakeru's mind.

He would regret this decision he'd made.