Kushida Kikyo's Invitation

Monday afternoon, the last period of social studies, passed amid noisy self-study.

You En set down the last borrowed copy of Beast Mark Identification and unlocked another new skill.

"Tracking lv0 (Beast lv0, Beginner Level)"

He had finally confirmed one thing: some skills could be merged into a more advanced composite skill.

After unlocking skills like Wild Foraging, Flora and Fauna Analysis, various fire-starting methods, direction determination, astronomy, first aid, and hunting, these skills were finally consolidated into one.

"Survival (Wilderness lv0, Beginner Level)"

It was quite satisfying.

You En looked at the classroom, where only a few people remained, stood up, and prepared to leave.

Horikita Suzune had said she was going to the library to study tonight. You En didn't plan to go; he felt he had been studying a bit too much these past few days.

Even though his condition was still fine, he had developed some psychological resistance, so he intended to take it easy.

Go find Ibuki or Ichinose for a chat?

"You En-kun, do you have time right now?"

Kushida Kikyo walked over. Seeing You En alone in the classroom after school, she guessed Horikita might be busy and immediately came to ask.

You En looked up.

"I do. Want to ask me out?"

Kushida Kikyo rolled her eyes internally. If Horikita weren't in the picture, simply asking You En out wouldn't be a problem, but right now, Horikita Suzune's matters were her top priority.

She shook her head slightly, leaned her body forward, and put on a pleading posture.

"No, it's just that I want to talk to you about something. If it's a bother for you, then forget it."

You En waved his hand with an irritated expression.

"Oh, it is a bother."

"..." Kushida Kikyo's smile froze. Wasn't this the moment he was supposed to ask what it was about?

She widened her eyes, leaned in further, and put on a pitiful yet determined look.

"Well... it's about Horikita. I really want to talk to her, but she never gives me a chance.

Since you're so close with her, maybe you understand her better. Could you tell me about her? I want to be friends with her."

You En closed his eyes.

"No."

Kushida Kikyo really wanted to curse. Whether it was Horikita or this You En, why were they both so difficult to deal with?

Suddenly, she recalled a remark from her good friend Wang Meiyu.

--You En seems to be pretty strapped for cash. I heard from a friend in another class at the Piano Club that he was bullied by girls from Class B and had to do a lot of things just to get a little snack.

Kushida Kikyo tentatively spoke up.

"How about we go chat? Please, my treat?"

You En looked quite tempted but still maintained some restraint.

"'My treat' sounds so crude, like I'm just freeloading. You should call me... an emotional counseling master!"

Kushida Kikyo's eye twitched. She was genuinely amused and annoyed. She couldn't keep this up; if she adjusted any more, she might end up yelling, and that would be the end.

"Well... fine. Let's pack up and head out."

You En felt that Kushida Kikyo was still lacking something right now.

Although it was quite entertaining to gradually stir her emotions to a peak, teasing her right below the threshold without letting her vent, he still felt something was missing.

"Let's go, You En-kun."

Kushida Kikyo, as expected of the emotional trash can of the entire grade and even the whole school, had excellent control over her emotions. In the time it took to pack her bag, she had already composed herself.

At Palette Café, You En handed the menu to the waiter.

"I'll have this."

Kushida Kikyo took the receipt and glanced at it. He had only ordered a relatively cheap glass of lemonade, with no snacks.

"You En-kun, are you sure you don't want to order anything else? I can afford it."

"This is fine."

You En didn't care about the details. He spoke up.

"Let's get down to business."

His habit at the table was that if the guest was important, he would first chat to build rapport, stir emotions, and then finally discuss business.

If it wasn't that important, he would cut straight to the point. If they could reach a consensus, they'd continue eating and talk details. If not, they'd part ways.

"Then I'll just say it—I want to become friends with Horikita Suzune."

Kushida Kikyo had long since prepared her reason.

"You know, since the start of the semester, Horikita Suzune hasn't had any interaction with the girls' group at all. It's not that she barely talks to anyone besides you, but the girls over there have started to complain about her. So I want to help her—she looks so lonely all by herself, and being isolated isn't pleasant either."

You En nodded lightly.

"Are you done?"

Kushida Kikyo thought he was putting on quite an act, even if he did seem convincing.

"Yes, no matter what, I want to become friends with Horikita Suzune."

"I have a question for you."

You En looked at Kushida Kikyo before him.

"Mm."

Kushida Kikyo hummed in acknowledgment, expecting him to ask about the girls' ostracism or why she wanted to befriend Horikita Suzune, but instead heard this:

You En said, "In everything you just said, is there even one true sentence?"

Kushida Kikyo played dumb. "What do you mean?"

"If you genuinely wanted to be friends with Horikita, you wouldn't be here having this conversation with me."

You En shook his head.

"Why? First of all, I'm definitely not within the scope of people you'd want to be close friends with. Second, if you truly wanted to be friends with Horikita and already considered her a friend, would you come discuss her with someone as distant from you as me? So the final conclusion is that, in your mind, Horikita Suzune ranks lower in priority than I do."

Kushida Kikyo froze. What he said was so accurate that she couldn't think of a rebuttal for a moment.

The atmosphere grew awkward.

Just then, the waiter brought their drinks. You En took a sip, and the tension between them eased slightly.

Kushida Kikyo finally spoke, putting on a righteous front.

"Um, I think what you just said is wrong. How can there be talk of priority between friends? Everyone should be equal."

You En smiled. "To you, are friends equal?"

Kushida Kikyo saw no issue with that.

"You En-kun, is there something wrong with that?"

You En chuckled.

"If friends are equal to you, then are all your friends equally important—or equally disposable?"

Kushida Kikyo suddenly stood up and slammed the table, startling those around her. She apologized to the surroundings.

"Sorry, I heard something interesting and got a little too excited. My apologies."

It wasn't that she lacked composure, but You En's words had struck at her core.

Kushida Kikyo shed her earlier dismissiveness. She had thought he was just a weirdo who studied well, but his gaze was so sharp it felt like he had stripped her bare, as if she had no secrets in his eyes.

"Did she say something to you?"

"No."

You En spoke. "Actually, Horikita hasn't noticed yet... oh no, maybe she has, but she just doesn't want to think about it. That's better for both of you. But it looks like you're not planning to let this go."

"You don't know what it's about, so that's fine."

Kushida Kikyo's eyes shifted slightly.

"You'd better not ask either. Let's end things here today. It's best if you don't get too close to that woman—Horikita."

"Ha ha ha ha."

You En laughed. He had finally seen what he wanted to see. Compared to the hypocritical angel Kushida, he preferred the true demon Kikyo. In fact, it was precisely her disguise that gave her a strange allure.

Hearing that laugh, Kushida Kikyo felt a chill in her heart. He didn't take her verbal threat seriously at all. Since that was the case, she'd have to resort to something more concrete.

She shifted back into her girlish persona. "Um, how about we head back to the dorm together later... As a girl, I'm still a little scared. You can't refuse such a small request, can you?"

"It's on the way anyway."

You En accepted readily.

To put You En at ease, Kushida Kikyo even pulled out her textbook and asked him some questions, interspersing the conversation with subtle hints and physical contact to close the distance between them.

You En took it all in stride, like a seasoned hunter, step by step waiting for his prey to walk into the trap.

"Thank you, You En-kun. You explained it really well."

Kushida Kikyo looked at him with admiration:

"If I'd asked for your advice sooner, maybe I wouldn't have done so poorly on this exam."

You En asked, "What was your score again?"

"Only 107."

Kushida Kikyo tapped her own head, looking a little embarrassed as she spoke.

You En estimated that her actual academic ability was only slightly below Horikita's. If she studied seriously, she should be able to reach around 140 to 150 points.

The reason she scored this low was probably that she hadn't put any time or effort into studying. Whether during breaks or in class, as long as someone contacted her, she'd pick up her phone and reply.

During breaks, she had to network with all kinds of people. After school, she went to club activities, getting along with classmates and senior club members. Her classmates constantly asked her for help with all sorts of trivial matters.

Under these circumstances, she could still grasp 50% of the material—that was mostly due to her natural talent.

Kushida Kikyo glanced at the time. It should be about right now. She said, "You En-kun, thank you so much for today. Let's head back to the dorm. Would you mind escorting me, a helpless girl?"

Seeing her put on an act of pitifulness, You En smiled too. Yeah, about time. Don't disappoint me too much.

The two walked along the school path toward the dormitory.

As they passed by the club building, Kushida Kikyo suddenly spoke, "You En-kun, I need to use the restroom. Sorry, but could you come upstairs with me? Everyone's already left the club rooms, and the motion-sensor lights aren't very sensitive... I'm a little scared."

You En replied very gentlemanly, "Sure."

"Then let's go up together."

Kushida Kikyo suppressed her wildly pounding heart, feeling eerily calm.

The two entered the club building together, climbed to the second floor, and stopped in the hallway between the second and third floors.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I just think you people are really annoying. All I wanted was to start over."

Kushida Kikyo's tone was chillingly low, as if she had merged into the dark surroundings.

"Oh? What's wrong, Kushida-san?"

As an old hand at acting, You En had to play his part well.

"Nothing. From today on, you'll do as I say."

Kushida Kikyo's eyes narrowed, a sharp, ruthless glint in them.

Though the timing was inappropriate, You En really wanted to say that this version of Kushida was actually much more attractive than usual—there was a strange kind of coolness to her.

He asked, "And why should I?"

Kushida Kikyo grabbed You En's hand and pressed it against her proudest feature.

"If you refuse, I'll report to the school that you assaulted me here today. These fingerprints will be the evidence."

Kushida Kikyo used the weapon meant to protect women's rights to launch an attack on You En.

Feeling the still-immature touch, a strange smile crept onto You En's lips.

"What makes you think

—that I won't make this threat come true?"

The moment the words left his mouth, Kushida Kikyo felt a chill spread through her entire body. Step by step, she was backed into a corner. His hand roughly kneaded, and his other hand seemed about to reach for her neck—but she didn't dare move, not at all.

Seeing that she was finally afraid, You En deliberately pulled his hand away, stepped out of his acting mode, and wore a serious expression.

"Scared, Kushida-san?"

Kushida Kikyo felt her body heat up, a strange sensation running through her. But it wasn't arousal—it was just her body's automatic protective response to the danger it sensed.

"Kushida, remember this—never, ever use your body as a joke,"

You En said softly.

"You don't know what kind of person you might run into. Not everyone can be threatened by you, not everyone has a conscience...

And besides, when you force someone else, you're also cornering yourself."

Kushida Kikyo slid down the wall and sat on the ground, speaking with a hint of self-abandonment.

"I've already been pushed into a corner by Horikita."

"No, you've pushed yourself into a corner."

You En crouched down to avoid putting more pressure on her, his tone just like before when he was teaching her how to solve problems at the café, "Kushida, want me to teach you?"