Another Invitation (3K)

"How could this be? Weren't you supposed to arrange for me to meet Horikita Suzune today?!"

In a secluded corridor,

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka listened to the boy in front of him, Yamauchi, complain. For the past few days, he had been devising strategies to help him resolve his "conflict" with Horikita Suzune.

"Hey! Ayanokoji, what are you thinking about?! I'm talking to you!"

Yamauchi Haruki was deeply disappointed. On top of that, he was convinced Ayanokoji ranked lower than him in their social circle, so he shouted,

"Didn't you say you could help me get closer to Horikita? Maybe even make her my girlfriend?"

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka shook his head. Choosing Yamauchi Haruki had been a last resort, but there hadn't been enough time to find another option.

The only person easy to provoke, prone to acting on impulse, and even capable of committing a crime was him.

His plan had been simple and should have been easy to pull off. But Yamauchi Haruki's desperate desire had made it impossible to keep the plan hidden. That person had spotted it with remarkable perceptiveness.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka had a rough idea of what would happen next. Expressionless, he said,

"I never said that."

That was right. He hadn't promised anything. He'd merely offered some "advice" and lent a hand as a friend.

As for using the student council president's name to lure Horikita Suzune out, that would indeed be difficult to explain. Still, it didn't matter. It was only a deception.

The biggest problem might be the cafeteria, but there was no evidence. As long as he stuck to his story, they couldn't convict him.

"What do you mean, you never said that?"

Yamauchi Haruki continued, "I don't care. You have to arrange for her to come out. If that doesn't work, then someone else. Either way, she has to be a pretty girl. At the very least, someone like little Kushida."

Hearing "Kushida," Ayanokoji Kiyotaka thought of what he'd seen that morning. She and You En had probably gotten quite a bit closer.

In that case, if he couldn't test the student council president, he could try testing You En instead.

Yamauchi Haruki spoke up. "Hey, why are you so quiet? I'll lower my standards a little. Someone a bit less attractive than little Kushida is fine, too. Even someone like Hasebe would do."

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka nodded,

"I'll see what I can do. Kushida should be concerned about you."

Yamauchi Haruki's eyes lit up. "Really? You can get little Kushida to meet me alone?"

"She'll need some time to notice you."

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was careful with his words. The person in front of him probably wasn't wearing a wire, but it was best not to leave anything that could be used against him.

Yamauchi immediately broke into a grin:

"Ayanokoji, you're such a good friend. No, a real brother!"

The bell rang.

The two returned to the classroom.

You En had also hurried back from the infirmary, and they happened to run into each other at the door.

Yamauchi Haruki muttered, "Tch. So what if he's good at studying? What's the point if he can't make friends? Right, Ayanokoji?"

You En might have teased Ayanokoji before, but now he ignored him.

He entered a step behind them, watching their expressions. Ayanokoji showed no emotion and gave nothing away, but Yamauchi still seemed to be looking forward to something. Could their plan still be in motion?

Back at his seat,

You En sent Horikita Suzune a message,

"You En: "Are you still in the infirmary?""

"Horikita Suzune: "Yes.""

"You En: "Try not to go out.""

"Horikita Suzune: "You've told me that several times already. I understand now. I won't be tricked.""

"You En: "I hope that's true.""

"Horikita Suzune: "Let's not talk about that. Could you take notes for me this lesson? Just write them in the notebook I lent you. I'll go over them and organize them myself later.""

"You En: "Notes, right? No problem.""

"Horikita Suzune: "Thanks.""

You En looked through the notes Horikita Suzune had lent him. He'd have to take notes for her this lesson, so first he'd see how she usually did it.

He skimmed through them,

How should he put it?

Horikita Suzune was very diligent. You could say no one was more diligent than her.

But her method still needed work. She had no organizing system and hadn't fully synthesized the material. She'd only made a few simple categories, relying entirely on her formidable memory and intelligence to study.

Of course, that was a method, too. In fact, you couldn't see the benefits of building a system right away.

Her grades might even fall for a while. Only once the system was fully established would the results become clear.

It wasn't something he could teach her. He could only prompt her to think about it herself.

You En listened attentively through the last class of the afternoon, then went to the school infirmary.

Horikita Suzune was chatting with Hoshinomiya-sensei. She seemed somewhat tempted, but in the end she still shook her head and refused.

"Oh, You En, you're here?"

Hoshinomiya-sensei had a bright, energetic smile that suited her perfectly.

"I was just chatting with Suzune here. She said she was interested in our Class B. I could let both of you transfer over."

Horikita Suzune immediately denied it.

"I never said that. She just said classes were ranked according to the students' abilities, and I felt that was unfair. Besides, whether you go to Class B is your decision. I can't, and won't, decide for you..."

Hoshinomiya-sensei didn't seem embarrassed at all to have her lie exposed in front of them. She simply smiled and moved on to the point.

"They've finished checking. The results came back pretty quickly, mainly because these things were bought at a pharmacy..."

You En frowned. "What?"

Hoshinomiya Rie said, "They're all drugs that can easily cause side effects, but none of them are fatal, and they don't interact with one another. Some of them are even health supplements. They weren't meant to be taken just once, either. They were probably mixed into food and consumed at least three times."

Horikita Suzune felt a chill in her heart. They were classmates. Why did Ayanokoji harbor such malice toward her? Had he really planned to use Yamauchi to harass her?

You En spoke up. "We'll report this to the Student Council in a bit.

"Also, Suzune, your routine is too predictable. That makes it easy for people to take advantage of your habits. Be more careful from now on."

Horikita Suzune nodded. She hardly dared imagine what might have happened if You En hadn't noticed today and stopped her. What if she'd sat through class with her period and the drugs' side effects, then gone outside to meet someone else with bad intentions? What would have happened to her in the end?

"Are you planning to go to the Student Council? Aren't you going to report it to your Chabashira-sensei?"

Hoshinomiya asked.

You En shook his head. "Would telling her do any good?"

Hoshinomiya nodded.

"I see you understand her quite well. But you've made the right choice. In fact, we teachers don't get involved in conflicts between students.

"The Student Council is an unofficial organization specifically meant to oversee students like you. If you have a conflict or want to work together, go to them."

You En stood up. "Then we'll be going. Thank you for looking after us."

"Mm."

Hoshinomiya held up her right hand and made a finger heart.

"Don't worry. If you need treatment in the future, you can always come to me, your big sister Hoshinomiya. It doesn't matter if you don't transfer to our class."

You En walked out of the infirmary and asked Horikita Suzune,

"How are you feeling?"

Horikita Suzune moved around to check her body. "Great. Actually, I've never felt this good before. I think I understand now why you said Hoshinomiya-sensei's treatment was magic."

As she spoke, she unconsciously took You En's hand and linked her arm through his, like a couple.

You En looked at her. "What's this?"

Horikita Suzune realized what she'd done on instinct and quickly let go.

"Sorry. I don't think I'm completely clearheaded yet."

Had the person Horikita Suzune imagined in the infirmary just now really been him?

You En suspected it, but wasn't sure. As a certain Hachiman had said, men shouldn't be so confident. Still, perhaps he could boldly test his theory later?

He brought his thoughts back to the matter at hand. "Let's go to the Student Council first and report what happened. After that, we'll have to tutor the Class B students. Can you manage?"

Horikita Suzune closed her eyes and tried to steady herself.

"No problem. I feel great. Almost too great. If I do anything out of line, please don't take it to heart."

"Then we're fine."

You En decided he'd better stop wondering why she'd linked her arm through his.

They had more important things to do. Time to go tattle. Would that count as telling on someone to their parents?

After all, it was her older brother.

Student Council Room.

You En entered. This time, Tachibana Akane wasn't the only one there. President Horikita Manabu was there, too.

The student council president looked up. "What is it?"

He was asking You En.

You En first described what had actually happened, without adding any personal guesses or emotions. Only afterward did he explain what he suspected, making it clear that it was just his personal opinion, not evidence.

After listening, the student council president showed no outward reaction. He merely nodded to indicate that he'd heard everything.

Tachibana Akane, on the other hand, looked angry. Her eyes brimmed with disgust, as well as concern for Horikita Suzune.

You En got the feeling the relationship between the two people in front of him was different from what he knew, too.

How far had things gone for Tachibana Akane to treat Horikita Suzune like her own little sister?

Perhaps Horikita Suzune should call Tachibana Akane her sister-in-law.

While he was letting his imagination run wild,

Horikita Manabu brought his hands up from under the table and rested them on top, looking like a commander.

"So, what do you intend to do? According to what you've said, there's no evidence at all. It's just your speculation."

Hearing that, You En understood that Horikita Manabu had no intention of dealing with the matter. The moment he started speaking in official jargon and tossed the problem back to them, it meant he didn't want to handle it.

"Of course we'll find the culprit and make sure they get the punishment they deserve."

Horikita Suzune spoke up, voicing what she truly wanted.

Horikita Manabu seemed a little disappointed. He turned his gaze to You En.

"And you?"

You En understood perfectly well that Horikita Suzune's approach made the most sense for an individual, but a school—or any group—was different.

He spoke. "I think we should use this incident as a lesson and strengthen the boys' and girls' ability to protect themselves. To prevent serious incidents on campus, prevention should be our priority, but we also need ways to put a stop to them."

Horikita Manabu lowered his hands and asked, more seriously,

"What specific measures?"

You En answered offhandedly,

"I'm only offering my personal opinion. It may not have any practical value.

"First, provide personal safety equipment for free or at a discount, and keep a record of who receives it.

"Second, after classes or activities end, lock up and secure any unused facilities and equipment to prevent them from being occupied or misused as breeding grounds for crime.

"Third, we could form a campus patrol or appoint Disciplinary Committee Members to monitor and look after the campus and its students to some degree."

"Join the Student Council."

Horikita Manabu held out his hand and invited him again:

"The Student Council needs people like you. It'd be a waste for you to stay only in the Kyudo Club."