The Strange Pink Letter

Leaning on my Cane, I slowly walked to the table and looked at the food she had brought back.

"Since dinner has already been bought, Kamuro, please go ahead. I'll hand over the accounts later."

"No, no, your monthly salary is already more than enough, let's skip this expense."

She unusually interrupted my command and even asked another question.

"Compared to the number of points, I'm more interested in knowing what you were doing alone in this dark room? Why is your pillow wet? Could it be...?"

It seems that an afternoon of free time has made her a little arrogant; the puppy is becoming a bit disobedient.

"Kamuro, as I said, you are free today."

I looked at her, my eyes filled with an unquestionable attitude.

Upon hearing my words, she seemed to suddenly remember what had happened, and quickly left with her camera, her face still showing belated joy at surviving the ordeal.

Honestly, if everyone were as easy to understand as Kamuro, that would be so great.

Sitting at the table, I quickly finished my late dinner, then turned off the lights again and climbed into bed.

Although I still don't understand, one thing I'm sure of is that Hoshino-kun is definitely special to me.

As for what exactly is "[special]", I'm not sure right now. But take it slow, I'll find out eventually.

As for how to deal with him... he seems to care a lot about his personal space being invaded and doesn't really like people who are too proactive... so let's just stick to the pattern of [not deliberately contacting him] and [not intentionally rejecting him]!

First Semester of First Year:

Chapter 70, Section 65: The Strange Pink Letter

The next day, after breakfast, Hoshino En and Ayanokoji Kiyotaka walked to school together.

The fact that he didn't encounter Sakayanagi and her entourage blocking the elevator must have been due to his words yesterday.

Great, now his peaceful daily life is finally going back.

The two walked to the front of the teaching building. Ayanokoji Kiyotaka looked at the rows of buses parked inside the school gate and suddenly asked a question.

"Fate, what is that for?"

"There must be Special Exam that require leaving the school grounds, such as school trips, camps in the woods or by the sea, etc. Most schools have these."

Hoshino En explained to him, who lacked common sense.

Putting aside the training camp for now, does this school really arrange school trips for students like most schools do? That would be a pure perk... well, not necessarily.

Schools might also give out strange tests like "a timed karaoke race at a scenic spot," so that's entirely possible.

"But this has nothing to do with us now. These are probably exams prepared for the second and third-year students."

It seems the seed planted with the Chairman has finally exploded; the upperclassmen should be too preoccupied with the first-year exams for a while.

I wonder how long their exam will last, and whether it will coincide with the Midterm Exam?

If their Midterm Exam are cancelled, then A-Sho and the others won't be able to get their old exam papers. What will happen to their Midterm Exam then?

... Never mind, these aren't things he should be thinking about. Now that he's free from Sakayanagi's troubles and the interference of the older students, he can finally enjoy his peaceful daily life.

I usually spend my time educating Kiyotaka, helping him practice swimming before the summer exams, watching Karuizawa grow up, studying with Shiina, listening to Kushida's nagging, and finally enjoying a late-night snack with Kiyotaka... This kind of daily life is just wonderful!!

Yes, that's what Hoshino En originally thought.

When he opened the shoe cabinet and saw the pink letter that suddenly appeared inside, all his hopes and expectations shattered in that instant.

Those who know him well know what kind of person he is; they would never give him something like this. To outsiders, he doesn't seem like the type to receive love letters, but he has indeed received something similar...

Was it some guy he barely knew who wanted to harm him?

Did the envelope contain a device that would release poisonous gas upon contact, or a trigger-activated miniature bomb?

The envelope was placed on top of his indoor shoes... Could it be that a trigger trap had been placed inside his indoor shoes as well?

"Ah, I've looked into this before, it's a love letter, isn't it?"

Just as he was hesitating, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, who had changed into indoor shoes, walked over.

He glanced at the contents of Hoshino En's shoe cabinet, and said, as if showing off his knowledge, "Eight."

"These kinds of love letters usually involve arranging for the person being confessed to to meet on the rooftop or under a tree with special symbolic meaning during lunch break or after school, and then have a private chat to express their feelings to each other."

Can we talk privately?

Hoshino En, resting her chin on her hand.

So that's it, it's a threatening challenge to a fight.

I was being very discreet, but I still got targeted...

"You're overthinking it. This is probably a proper love letter."

Seeing the intense wariness in Hoshino En Enishi's eyes, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka immediately understood his thoughts.

Hoshino En: No, no, no, the combination of "student" and "love letter" inherently implies "improperness." What kind of "proper" love letter is there in this world?

"What would most people do in this situation?"

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka reached into Hoshino En's shoe cabinet, took the letter out, and placed it in her hand.

"If it's someone you don't like, should you just ignore them? Or should you meet with them and then politely decline?"

"If I go to see them, I'm likely to be pressured by their friends and family, and end up having to agree; if I don't go, they might come to the class demanding an answer, which could cause even bigger trouble."

As Hoshino En opened the envelope, she rejected Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's proposal.

"Moreover, for this option to appear, there is a crucial prerequisite: the letter must be signed."

He quickly read the letter, and his expression immediately became extremely solemn.

"But this letter, it didn't."

No, which means that if he treats it as a love letter, he will ultimately have to meet the other person in person before making a decision.

Of course, he could just throw it away as waste paper. But to avoid unnecessary trouble, he would definitely go and meet the other party—at least to find out who was targeting him.

Judging from the contents of the letter, the other party asked him to meet behind Special Building, where there were no surveillance cameras, during one of his few free afternoons. Although the entire letter used ambiguous language, there were also signs of it being copied from a template. It seems the other party copied it from somewhere.

Now, the probability of a love letter is greatly reduced, while the probability of it being a fake love letter used to trick him into a honey trap is greatly increased.

You need to be prepared in advance for the possibility of being ganged up on by the other side.

"Let's go first, Kiyotaka. The morning class meeting is about to start. We'll talk about this at noon."

"OK."

The two walked towards Class D's classroom.

During the morning class meeting, Hirata Yosuke got the right to speak from Chabashira Sae and announced the strategy for Class D this month: strictly abide by discipline during the day and reduce non-compliant behavior; organize study sessions after school to improve the overall academic performance of the whole class.

These were all fairly standard solutions, but it seems Kushida didn't reveal the existence of that exam paper, perhaps wanting to claim all the credit at the end.

Hoshino En didn't care much. Since she had given the test paper to Kushida O, it was her freedom to do whatever she wanted with it. What he wanted to know more now was who the person who had placed the love letter in his shoe cabinet was.

Is it A-Sho? Possibly, maybe he just wants to use force to make him submit.

However, if it really is him, he would probably sign the letter with Shiina's name, or simply let her write it herself—under the pressure of [class interests], Shiina would definitely comply, and in that case, Hoshino En would be more likely to fall for it.

However, no. Since the letter was unsigned, the possibility of A-Sho being the sender was actually quite low.

Could it be Ichinose from Class B? It's unlikely. That class is full of sunny, cheerful students; they wouldn't do something like stabbing someone in the back.

So that's Sakayanagi from Class A? But she had Kamuro follow him for a month, so she should know his strength well. She wouldn't call him to a place without surveillance; she would be at a disadvantage then—even if she has people who are good at fighting under her, Hoshino En also has Kiyotaka.

That must be Katsuragi? Because he revealed the key points of this month's exam to all the classes, and even included a foolproof strategy—as long as they followed the strategy, every class could perfectly pass this difficult written exam, and their Class A's natural advantage would be completely gone.

Furthermore, Hoshino En wasn't familiar with the girls in Class A who were part of the Katsuragi Faction, so it's possible that he used an unsigned letter to test her. This obviously imitated "love letter" sentence structure also makes sense.

Hoshino En: "..."

I feel like my peaceful daily life is about to be destroyed again.

First Semester of First Year:

Chapter 71, Chapter 66: Who was the visitor...?

At noon, ignoring Ayanokoji Kiyotaka Horikita Suzune, Hoshino En dragged him to the cafeteria.

The wall behind the Special Building is very clean. If we were to install surveillance cameras there, it would be very conspicuous and would not be worth hiding at all. So, like yesterday, we have to ask Kiyotaka to bring a camera to help us.

Then--

"Kiyotaka, order whatever you like for lunch, it's on me; in return, could you do me a small favor? Okay?"

In the cafeteria, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was speechless as he looked at Hoshino Emi, who had swept her bangs back and was trying to seduce him with her Hoshino En.

How is your behavior any different from Horikita Suzune's?

Si: "The difference is huge! She'll be bothering you until the exam is over, or even longer; but I'm different. I only need you to help me for one noon—a lunch in exchange for a noon of your time, isn't that a good deal?"

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka: "..."

That sounds like a good idea.

All done!

So, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka ordered the most expensive set meal, and after finishing it, he was eagerly dragged to the back of the Special Building by Hoshino En.

Hoshino En: The horses are fed, now it's time to run. Don't stop until you're dead!

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka: "..."

I feel like I've been tricked.

Behind the Special Building, Hoshino En stood in the most conspicuous spot waiting for the arrival, while Ayanokoji Kiyotaka stood in a hidden corner, his left side slightly turned out.

From this angle, the surveillance camera on his left breast pocket could clearly see everything behind the Special Building.

They kept an eye on their surroundings while remaining in that position and waiting.

Not long after, the culprit who delivered the love letter appeared.

She was panting heavily as she hurried to the Special Building.

Upon seeing Hoshino En, her eyes lit up with surprise, and she ran towards him.

As the person gradually approached, Hoshino En Yuuki's confident expression slowly turned into astonishment.

"Hoshino -kun, ha... ha... I didn't keep you waiting long, did I, ha..."

With her brown bob haircut and Little White Flower hair accessory, the cute and sweet-looking girl, Shiranami Chihiro, asked while panting.

Private↑→№∵→★}'¨Transfer" QUN: Hoshino Yuan: "..."

He never imagined that the love letter would be sent to him by the girl who had previously harbored deep hostility towards him.

Damn it, why is it wrong again? Is there some variable I'm not familiar with?

However, before his doubts could be resolved, the girl, who wasn't in great physical condition, seemed about to collapse from exhaustion.

"Shiranami, if you don't mind, would you like to lean against me? I'll take you to a shady spot."

So he extended his right hand.

Then, Shiranami Chihiro naturally took his arm, a stark contrast to her previous attitude towards him.

Hoshino En: "..."

Wait, what's up with this girl? Wasn't she always breathing on me before? How come she's suddenly acting all friendly today?

Hoshino En thought to herself, but still slowly helped her to the shade of a tree, placed her coat on the ground as a cushion, and helped her sit down.

"Don't move from here, I'll go buy you some water."

Let her sit comfortably against the big tree, Hoshino En went to the nearest vending machine to buy a free bottle of water and took the opportunity to send a message to Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.

Hoshino En: [I don't need to check here. Go and look around the other parts of the Special Building. See if anyone is peeping or taking pictures, or if there are any strange [surveillance cameras] pointing in my direction.]

There are very few surveillance cameras around the Special Building. The only one facing outwards is the one above the main entrance, pointing directly at the door. Inside, there are only cameras at the corners of the staircases and the doors to important offices. The others are probably installed by someone else; you should look for them.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka: [... Okay.]

The servant was so rude... This lavish lunch was definitely not for nothing.

However, judging from that person's naive appearance, she probably wouldn't have set up any strange surveillance around, so he only needed to make a token appearance and go through the motions...

... That's it?

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, seeing Ichinose Honami and Sakayanagi Arisu hiding around the corner in the direction Shiranami Chihiro come from, immediately overturned his earlier thoughts from lunchtime.