Yearning is the Emotion Furthest from Understanding

Transfer successful; Makoto Nishikado's personal terminal now held an additional 300,000 private points.

Horikita Manabu gave him a slight nod before turning to leave.

He did not even spare a glance for Horikita Suzune standing beside him, turning toward the dorms and quickly vanishing into the night.

The evening breeze was bleak, seemingly carrying a hint of detachment.

"You two siblings are really something. You've managed to blow such a small issue into something this big."

Makoto Nishikado tapped his terminal to confirm the receipt of funds, then looked toward the direction Horikita Manabu had departed, shaking his head in bewilderment.

Since he had taken the money, he was willing to offer a few more personal words.

In truth, Makoto Nishikado found it hard to understand.

Given how much the Horikita siblings cared for each other, it was no small feat that they had reached this point.

Especially since what they were facing were merely trivial matters that could be resolved with a simple conversation.

[Triggered Horikita Suzune's emotions, gained 6132 emotional points.]

"What would you know! The matters between my brother and me are not for an outsider like you to judge!"

Horikita Suzune was quite indignant.

In her heart, her brother Horikita Manabu was like a towering mountain, yet this mountain was always icy cold toward her.

She tried hard to imitate her brother's calmness, rationality, and even his coldness, but all she received in return was an even more distant attitude.

How could an outsider like Makoto Nishikado possibly understand the conflict between her and Horikita Manabu?

"You look like you're trying to emulate your brother, right? Then do you know that Class A of the third year is the only class in the upper grades that hasn't had a single student drop out?"

Makoto Nishikado countered.

"People actually drop out of this school?"

Horikita Suzune froze instantly, her anger replaced by shock.

In the week since enrollment, she had felt that Advanced Nurturing High School was practically a student's paradise.

The facilities were luxurious, the curriculum was flexible, and the teachers were exceptionally "lenient" toward the students.

It wasn't that she hadn't noticed the subtle, eerie atmosphere in the school, such as the inexplicable point rules or the teachers' hands-off approach.

But she had never imagined that this seemingly gentle school possessed such a cruel system as expulsion.

"It's like this..."

Makoto Nishikado shared a portion of the intelligence he had recently gathered with Horikita Suzune.

[Triggered Horikita Suzune's emotions, gained 4287 emotional points.]

[Triggered Horikita Suzune's emotions, gained 2745 emotional points.]

[Triggered Horikita Suzune's emotions, gained 2658 emotional points.]

The more Horikita Suzune heard, the more alarmed she became, until finally, she was looking at Makoto Nishikado as if he were a monster.

"Is all of this information you gathered yourself?"

A sense of frustration welled up in Horikita Suzune's heart.

She could now understand Horikita Manabu's attitude toward Makoto Nishikado.

Unlike herself, who knew nothing, the boy before her had already begun to delve deep into the school's systems.

"Most of it, but some of the intelligence was gathered by relying on the collective strength of Class B."

Makoto Nishikado reminded her.

Class B functioned as a whole, and they had a social butterfly like Honami Ichinose.

As long as there was a clear goal, they could demonstrate outstanding intelligence-gathering capabilities.

Makoto Nishikado would not take sole credit for this.

Class B was a unit.

Unfortunately, Horikita Suzune did not grasp what Makoto Nishikado meant.

"It's because you're leading them that Class B can perform like this; you barely deserve the position of vice president."

Horikita Suzune was unwilling to admit it, but she still praised Makoto Nishikado.

If only she had Makoto Nishikado's capabilities.

Then, perhaps her brother would acknowledge her too.

"That's not the point. How can you understand your brother so little?"

Makoto Nishikado looked at her envious gaze and couldn't help but sigh, his tone tinged with helplessness.

If he had a younger sister like Horikita Suzune, he would certainly have a massive headache.

"..."

Horikita Suzune opened her mouth to retort, only to find she couldn't utter a single word.

Makoto Nishikado knew the situation regarding Horikita Manabu's class management at the school; he knew his class was the only one that hadn't suffered a single dropout.

Yet she, his own younger sister, knew absolutely nothing about her brother's affairs.

She was his sister, so why had things turned out this way?

"You have been chasing your brother's shadow all this time, striving to turn yourself into another Horikita Manabu."

"But the facts have proven that your approach is fundamentally wrong. Do you have an answer as to why things have ended up like this?"

As Makoto Nishikado asked, he also pondered the situation in the context of the plot.

Perhaps because bystanders see things more clearly, he quickly arrived at the answer.

"I..."

Horikita Suzune's lips moved, but she couldn't make a sound.

Her brother worked hard to protect his classmates.

Yet she didn't believe she would ever do the same.

Even after learning crucial information about the school from Makoto Nishikado, she hadn't even considered sharing it with her classmates.

Why had she become like this?

She was clearly chasing after Horikita Manabu's shadow, wasn't she?

"Is it because I can't gain my brother's approval?"

This was the answer Horikita Suzune had thought she found.

But now, she wasn't so sure.

"The Horikita Manabu you are chasing is one summarized from appearances, one you could even say you've fantasized; it is not the Horikita Manabu who truly exists."

"The one who denied and rejected this sibling bond is not him, but you."

Makoto Nishikado extended a finger and pointed at Horikita Suzune.

"You're talking nonsense! I am the one who admires my brother the most!"

Horikita Suzune snapped her head up, tears shimmering in her eyes, her voice turning sharp with agitation.

How could she possibly reject the bond with her brother? That had been her spiritual pillar all along!

"I've already said it: you admire the Horikita Manabu you've fantasized about in your mind, which is why you've gone down the wrong path."

"Put yourself in his shoes: watching your own sister imitate a fantasy version of you, only to become increasingly like a stranger."

"In her eyes, there isn't even room for the real brother who stands before her. How do you think he would feel?"

Makoto Nishikado's voice remained calm, yet it carried an unquestionable weight.

This time, Horikita Suzune failed to retort once again, sinking back into silence.

"After entering this school, you assumed your brother didn't acknowledge you as his sister, so you deliberately distanced yourself from him. You didn't try to understand his life, didn't care about his work, and didn't even know what he was doing at school."

"As time passed, all that remained in your mind was that fantasy brother, while the real Horikita Manabu had long been forgotten by you."

"You poor, misguided child, why are you worshipping your own brother like an idol?"

Makoto Nishikado paused after saying this.

Reviewing it like this, he even felt a bit sorry for Horikita Manabu.

Horikita Suzune kept her head down, making her expression impossible to read.

But from her slightly trembling shoulders, one could tell that a massive storm was raging within her heart.

It was true; Makoto Nishikado wasn't talking nonsense.

It wasn't that her brother had distanced himself from her; it was that she had distanced herself from the real brother in order to get closer to the fantasy one.

Seeing her expression, Makoto Nishikado offered her a piece of wisdom.

"Admiration is the emotion furthest from understanding."

Seeing that he had moved Horikita Suzune, Makoto Nishikado knew that the subsequent tasks would be much simpler.

"Since your brother entrusted you to me, I won't take the money without doing the work."

"From now on, whenever you see me, remember to address me respectfully as Teacher."

"I will teach you how to be a proper leader for a class."

"And I can also teach you, while I'm at it, how to get along with your important family members."

"Give me your personal terminal; I'll add your contact information."

Makoto Nishikado extended his hand after speaking.

Horikita Suzune looked up, handed her personal terminal to Makoto Nishikado, and spoke in a voice as soft as a mosquito's hum.

"Please look after me from now on, Teacher Ximen."