"Where are we going?"
You En ran along as Ibuki led him. He couldn't just wrench himself free, so he could only follow and ask.
Ibuki didn't answer. She pulled You En up to the second floor, checked that all the classrooms were empty, then stopped at the corner of the corridor.
"There shouldn't be anyone here."
Ibuki took a deep breath and glared at You En. Her little mouth twitched as she worked up to it for a long while.
"...Woof."
In the end, all she managed was a quiet little bark. Realizing what she'd just sounded like, Ibuki's face turned completely red, even her earlobes growing warm.
You En found it rather amusing. A somewhat aloof girl with androgynous beauty was making such an adorable sound right in front of him.
"Not bad... pretty convincing."
You En offered her a half-hearted consolation.
It seemed to provoke her even more.
Ibuki lifted her head, her face bright red. Whether from humiliation or shyness, she had a little something in her eyes, but mostly she looked indignant. Then, almost without thinking, she said,
"Woof... woof!"
The blue-haired girl had both hands pressed against his chest. Her pose was a little... Well, an ordinary guy might have lost control.
But You En wasn't an ordinary guy. He could keep his composure. He'd gotten to indulge his curiosity once, and that was enough. "Let's leave it at that. 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, so I'm always looking to improve my meals, right? You'd be doing me a huge favor. When you get down to it, I'm the one coming out ahead."
"Then... all right."
Ibuki let out a breath of relief.
"But one dinner isn't enough, is it?"
"If you want to treat me to a few more meals, I won't say no. Guess I'll just take advantage of you a little more."
The two gradually calmed down.
Only then did Ibuki realize that their pose looked a little intimate.
Just then, both their terminals received messages at the same time.
Conveniently, they separated and each took out their terminal.
You En's message was from Suzune.
"Horikita Suzune: "I've been waiting for you for ages. I was going to come 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 back about the elective class. Why'd you go upstairs alone with a scumbag who already has a girlfriend? I stopped him from getting away. Deal with it yourself.""
Ibuki's expression shifted slightly, but she didn't really believe Ryuen's nonsense. As she put it, what kind of pearls could come out of that dog's mouth?
Watching You En type a reply,
Ibuki wanted to ask him if he had a girlfriend, but she didn't know what right she had to ask.
So she changed the question. "Are you close with that person?"
You En thought it over before answering,
"About as close as you and I are."
Hearing that,
Ibuki interlaced her fingers. She didn't know why, but in the end, she told him what was going on.
"Oh, she's waiting for you downstairs. What are you going to do?"
"Go down together, obviously. Why?"
You En stated it as if it were a simple fact. "We haven't done anything we need to hide, have we?"
Ibuki didn't think what had just happened was something she could let people find out about. If a third person heard, she felt like she'd want to kill them.
"Come on, let's go downstairs."
"Okay."
You En walked over to the stairs, then suddenly felt a little dissatisfied. He leaned in close to Ibuki's face.
"What are you doing?!"
Ibuki jumped, nearly thinking he was going to... Then she heard him say,
"...Woof!"
She froze.
You En was grinning broadly, looking as smug as a little ringleader.
"I think I did a better job than you."
All the negativity in Ibuki's heart swept away, replaced by her purest smile.
"You're competing over that, too? How childish!"
You En laughed. "Just tell me, was it convincing or not?"
Ibuki smiled. "Yes, you were great at imitating a dog."
"Still better than your lousy impression."
You En never backed down.
Ibuki figured she couldn't win an argument with him, and she probably couldn't outthink him either. But her fist was itching a little.
She asked with a mischievous look,
"You don't look like you know how to fight."
"...I really haven't trained. I'm sorry, Lady Ibuki."
You En eyed Ibuki's small fist. Even a small fist could hurt when it hit, and she'd had training, so he had no choice but to surrender.
That was just how it went when you took the light-novel-author route. If he'd become a master of boxing or swordsmanship, he could've handled Little Ibuki with ease.
Ibuki sounded a little disappointed. "I thought you'd at least try to talk tough."
"I don't want to get beaten up."
You En and Ibuki went down the stairs to the first floor. In the middle of the corridor, two people were waiting, the atmosphere stiff.
When Horikita Suzune saw You En coming over with Ibuki,
she asked, her expression unreadable, "Who is she?"
"A classmate from the lesson. Want to meet her?"
"No."
Horikita Suzune didn't say anything else. "Let's go."
"Hey! Wait, I haven't said anything yet."
Ryuen Kakeru, who'd been quiet until then, stepped into their path, looking bored.
Before You En or Horikita could say anything,
Ibuki stepped in front of You En.
"Ryuen, what are you doing?"
Ryuen paused, then chuckled. "Nothing. I just wanted to meet her too. Is this your... new boyfriend?"
Ibuki held her forehead, exasperated. "Ah, I actually thought I might hear something decent from you. I must be stupid."
She turned to You En.
"You go on ahead. I'll deal with him. You don't need to worry about us."
You En didn't especially want to deal with Ryuen Boy, who seemed like a lot of trouble, so he nodded.
"See you later, then."
He and Horikita Suzune went around Ryuen and left.
Ryuen merely turned to watch them go, making no further move. Only after they'd left did he ask Ibuki,
"What do you think of him? Could he become Class D's leader?"
Ibuki thought it over. She felt You En was the same kind of person as her.
"No. Like me, he only acts in his own interests."
"Oh?"
Ryuen trusted Ibuki's judgment, though that was mainly because he was confident in his own ability to read people.
"Is there a chance we could recruit him?"
"Hey, I'm warning you. Don't try anything with him."
"Hah. You've only had one class with that guy, so why are you already sticking up for him?"
Ryuen looked at Ibuki, seemingly surprised.
"You didn't go upstairs to kiss him, did you?"
"Huh?!"
Ibuki kicked him. Ryuen took the hit without getting mad, then brushed off his pant leg.
"Fine, I won't ask about anything else. Your personal life isn't my business. I just have one question. Answer honestly."
Ibuki had already thought Ryuen was annoying. Now he was even more annoying. If he were the only boy in Class C who seemed remotely decent, she wouldn't even have listened to him a little.
"What?"
Ryuen's eyes were half closed, his gaze a little sharp.
"Will that guy stand in our way as we try to reach Class A?"
Ibuki didn't answer at once. She rubbed her chin and thought carefully before finally sharing her opinion.
"Yes. He's mentally tough, even tougher than you."
Ryuen's pupils contracted. Then he looked as if he'd found something interesting.
"Interesting."
Ryuen knew Ibuki wouldn't say that without good reason.
Now this was interesting. The mental fortitude he was most proud of was apparently no match for that rather ordinary-looking student.
"Try to get on good terms with him,"
Ryuen said, looking at Ibuki with a teasing grin.
"If you want to date him, that's fine too. Do whatever you can to bring him over to our side, and I won't lay a hand on him.
I think that's a pretty good deal.
What do you think, Ibuki?"
"Tch. I knew nothing good would come out of your mouth."
Those few remarks about You En left Ibuki feeling flustered.
"I'll listen to you when it comes to class matters, but this is my private business. Stop sticking your nose into it."
Ryuen wore his usual mysterious smile.
"Isn't that advice coming from a personal place too? I care about my classmates' love lives."
Ibuki was blunt. "We have no personal relationship. Get lost."
"Fine."
Looking at her, Ryuen decided he couldn't keep pushing the subject, so he changed the topic.
"What do you think of this school's elective classes?"
"Hmm... They're highly specialized."
Ibuki thought for a long time before offering that assessment, then explained the contents of Survival Class in detail.
Ryuen frowned.
"Insects? Burmese pythons? Venomous snakes? Animal behavior?"
What use did any of that have in modern society? It was nothing but a hobby for a tiny fraction of people.
Ibuki had forgotten to mention the Survival Class teacher's name and identity. But she didn't care much about fame or reputation; she valued personal ability more.
"Sounds kind of interesting."
Ryuen hadn't figured it out, but his wild instincts gave him an answer.
"We should sign up for the next class too. Someone needs to go."
Ibuki's eyes lit up, and she answered at once. "Then I'll go."
Ryuen thought about it, then agreed to her request.
"All right. I hope you manage to win him over soon."
Ibuki was initially pleased that he'd agreed to her request, but after hearing his final remark, her expression grew complicated.
"...Forget it. I won't hold it against you."
Ibuki went to the store, supposedly to buy mouthwash and hand sanitizer.
Ryuen narrowed his eyes. He hadn't told anyone, but he'd been trying to learn about the school these past few days. He'd learned very little, but the more he found out,
the more he instinctively felt... afraid.
There were no official school rules at all, only regulations set by the Student Council and rules within each club.
A stage like this should have been easy for him to thrive on.
So why did it make him so uneasy?
Where did this unease come from?
Ryuen couldn't figure it out. He thought about it, got nowhere, and decided to go cause trouble for Class A or Class B instead.
As he walked down the corridor,
Ryuen suddenly thought of the expression on the face of the boy named You En.
He couldn't shake the feeling that the boy was important...
But since he'd already promised Ibuki, he wouldn't go back on his word unless it became absolutely necessary.
As he left the school building,
Ryuen Kakeru felt a vague thought taking shape in his mind.
He would regret the decision he'd just made.
Before you continue