"Horikita Suzune, could I borrow the Kyudo Club's reception room?"
You En had come to see if anyone was at the Kyudo Club's headquarters. He hadn't expected the door to be open when he arrived—or the upperclassman to be waiting at the entrance.
Qiao Heng replied briskly, "The tea room is to the left when you come in. Use it whenever you like. You can come by when I'm not here, too."
"Thanks, senpai."
You En went inside.
Kushida Kikyo stood at the Kyudo Club entrance, a little hesitant to go in. It wasn't because she was afraid.
Even just now, she hadn't really been afraid that You En would do anything to her.
If he had, that would've been even better. It would've given her more leverage against Horikita.
It was You En's attitude toward her that she couldn't quite figure out. He didn't seem to care about her "real self."
You En sat down in front of the tea table. "You don't need to worry too much. It's my first time here, too. Have a seat."
Kushida Kikyo lowered her voice. "You just said you'd teach me. What are you going to teach me?"
"It's simple. We'll take it one step at a time. First, the most important thing..."
You En said, "What you did just now was a mistake. Coercive negotiation is extremely dangerous if you haven't made sure you're safe.
"You should only resort to coercion when you're reasonably sure you'll be safe."
"?"
Kushida Kikyo had expected him to reprimand her. She hadn't thought he would give her advice instead.
"What do you mean, 'safe'? In that situation, there was no way I could fight back, no matter what."
You En thought something was off. "Were you really planning to fight back?"
Kushida Kikyo recalled how she'd reacted at the time. She froze for a moment, but didn't feel the slightest bit embarrassed. With a cold snort, she said, "Hmph. If it was you, I wouldn't lose out anyway. And I could steal you away from Horikita. I'd come out ahead either way."
"...I have to admit, that makes me a little happy,"
You En said, then realized what he'd just said and quickly changed the subject.
"Ahem. Think about why you're so hostile toward Horikita. What is it about her that threatens you?"
Kushida Kikyo didn't bother to spare his feelings. "Her very existence is a threat."
You En pressed on. "Really? How dangerous is Horikita Suzune compared to me?"
Kushida Kikyo glanced down at her chest.
"You had your chance just now, and you still didn't dare make a move. No guy could be safer or more harmless than you."
You En let out a breath.
"It's not that I didn't dare. I just didn't want to."
It would've been a lie to say he hadn't wanted to. He simply had basic principles and a conscience.
"You didn't want to? Am I not pretty enough? Is my figure not good enough? Is my chest not soft enough?"
Kushida Kikyo leaned closer, as if she'd discovered something.
"You even squeezed it a few times. How did it feel?"
"Sorry. That's on me."
You En admitted defeat. He couldn't let that conversation go any further.
But at that point, he suddenly understood why Kushida treated him so differently from Horikita. She felt deeply insecure.
Kushida didn't understand what security really meant, though. She instinctively thought it was enough to make friends and get along with everyone on the surface. She treated superficial socializing as if it were her entire self.
Had Horikita Suzune really done anything to her? Was she truly such a threat?
No. Kushida had simply needed somewhere to vent all the frustration she'd built up from dealing with the whole school. If she didn't let it out, she'd only turn it inward until it eventually exploded—just as she had back in middle school.
Horikita Suzune was an innocent person Kushida Kikyo had chosen as her target, but there was a reason for it. Their ways of surviving were completely different, so they were bound to be drawn to or repelled by each other.
To put it simply, Horikita Suzune feared no one but her older brother. She didn't care if she offended everyone.
Meanwhile, Kushida Kikyo's trump card was precisely those "everyone," which meant she was naturally countered by Horikita.
On top of that, Horikita Suzune knew about her past. She could press the nuclear button at any moment.
With those two things combined, it was hardly surprising that Kushida was hostile toward Horikita Suzune and wanted to get rid of her.
"You two really don't have any room to reconcile."
You En shook his head. "Unless Horikita Suzune gives you some kind of leverage that could ruin her life or get her ostracized, you can't truly make peace. But I'm involved in this, too."
"You En, you..."
After hearing what he said, Kushida Kikyo felt conflicted. "You're different from her. I can believe you... but I can't trust her."
As she said it, she suddenly froze.
Trust. Trust him?
Could she really trust someone?
What was she thinking?
Kushida Kikyo couldn't understand why she'd said that.
She wouldn't trust even Hirata, the class's—and perhaps even the whole year's—universally acknowledged nice guy. In her eyes, Hirata was just like her.
You En watched Kushida Kikyo struggle with her thoughts. He didn't rush her or mind the wait. Growth and change took a long time.
"I don't really understand,"
Kushida Kikyo said at last, finally finding the question that truly troubled her—and the reason she'd begun to trust You En.
"Why can you accept the way I am now?"
"If you're asking why, I just think it's cool."
You En answered honestly. Men had loved the idea of a girl turning dark ever since they were little—especially when the girl was beautiful.
"Cool?"
Kushida Kikyo didn't understand what that had to do with the person she was now. She'd been utterly pathetic in front of him. She'd nearly given herself away. How could that be cool?
"How should I put it..."
You En thought for a moment.
"Do you think everyone likes your other face?"
"No. A bunch of idiots talk about me behind my back. Hah, as if I don't know,"
Kushida Kikyo said, casually listing a few names to show how extensive her social network was.
"They're a bunch of bitches. They can't do anything all day except hang around Hirata like parasites."
You En asked, "Some people hate you. Are there people who like you, too?"
Kushida Kikyo was blunt. "Of course. You En, you really do love stating the obvious."
"People feel the same way about you now as they do about you during the day. Some hate you, and some like you. For example, I prefer you like this,"
You En thought that being insulted by a beautiful girl was a luxury. Some people might even pay for that kind of service.
Kushida Kikyo visibly froze when she heard him say he liked her this way. Then she lowered her head, as if confirming that he meant it.
She chuckled, her smile tinged with scorn. "You really are a weirdo. You actually like me like this..."
You En didn't answer. He only nodded. This was Kushida Kikyo at her most aggressive, but also at her most vulnerable. She was deeply insecure and full of self-pity, but those things weren't contradictory.
"You En, I won't target you anymore."
Kushida Kikyo spoke up. "It's not because I couldn't beat you. I just... suddenly understand why she relies on you, too."
As she spoke, she felt a little frustrated.
How had Horikita beaten her to this as well? Her resentment toward Horikita Suzune rose another notch.
At the school library,
Horikita Suzune, who was studying, rubbed her arm and felt a chill. It was supposed to be warm this time of year.
She had no idea what was going on. After pausing for a second or two, she buried herself in her textbooks and exercises again. Next time, she would at least try to score as well as You En.
Meanwhile,
Kushida Kikyo wondered what she could possibly win at. In the end, it seemed the only thing she had going for her was her body.
But then she remembered what You En had said earlier and decided she shouldn't think that way.
"You two need to get back to your dorms before curfew."
Qiao Heng knocked gently on the reception room door.
You En and Kushida looked at each other.
"Let's call it a night."
As if she'd made up her mind, Kushida Kikyo walked up to You En and bowed deeply.
"Thank you."
Thank you for taking her seriously. Thank you for accepting her true self, the self she couldn't even acknowledge.
She was grateful that he hadn't asked her to change or told her to stop hating Horikita. He had even tried to see things from her point of view.
Perhaps she would never meet another person like him in her life.
Suddenly, she regretted the things she'd done before.
You En nodded, then returned to his usual manner.
"By the way, weren't things a little unfair just now?"
"What was unfair?"
You En looked perfectly serious, as if he were making a reasonable argument.
"Think about it. I was the only one who got to touch you. If you touched me, too, that would make things fair."
"Come here!"
Kushida Kikyo reached out. "What's unfair about that? You En, come over here and take off your clothes. I'll make sure you get your money's worth."
"Forget it. I surrender."
You En realized that kind of joking only worked on Horikita Suzune. Kushida Kikyo seemed more than happy to go along with it.
Kushida Kikyo finally figured something out—a bold hypothesis.
"You don't happen to be...?"
You En kept a straight face. "...I think that's a pretty rude question."
Kushida Kikyo laughed. "I knew it. With your personality, you're sometimes even more troublesome than me. I'd be shocked if you weren't still a virgin. Should I do you a favor?"
You En raised his chin. "Bring it on. It's not like I'd be the one losing out."
Kushida Kikyo wasn't intimidated at all. "Then let's go. To my room, or yours. Whichever you prefer. The hallway or the bathroom would work, too. As long as you're not afraid, I'll go wherever you want."
"...Forget it. I'm a little tired. I'm going back to get some rest."
You En felt like he'd unleashed some terrible female demon—one aimed at him, personally.
Watching his reaction, Kushida Kikyo felt the pent-up frustration she'd accumulated since the start of the school year vanish all at once. For once, she felt happy.
Looking at the unusually mature boy before her, with his strong mentality and strict principles—and yet such a pure heart—she felt a change come over her.
She stepped close to his chest, stopping at an intimate distance, and looked up at him.
"Why don't we try going out first?"
You En looked up at the silent school building, then at her. He wasn't the least bit tempted.
He said softly,
"It's late. Let's go home."
Before you continue