How Do You Feel About Karuizawa?

"I'm so tired!"

"I say, let's call it a day. It's about time for dinner anyway."

Karuizawa Kei and Mori Nene slumped over their desks, looking as if they had been drained of all their strength.

Glancing at the time and seeing it was nearly 6:00 PM, Chiba Yu also felt it was time to wrap things up, so he stood up to go find Hirata.

Just as he rose, Hirata happened to finish his own work, and their eyes met.

Hirata spoke first: "Everyone is exhausted, so let's stop here for today."

"Agreed!"

"Yeah, it's getting quite late. Oh, by the way, should we find a place to grab dinner together?"

In an instant, the topic shifted from returning to the dorms to where they should go to eat.

Regardless of what they decided to do next, Chiba Yu packed his things, shouldered his bag, and prepared to leave immediately.

"Chiba, why don't you come with us..."

"Forget it, Hirata. I just want to go back to my room and lie down. As for dinner, I'll just grab a bento on the way back to tide me over."

Without waiting for Hirata to say more, Chiba Yu slung his bag over his shoulder and headed toward the exit, but a sudden commotion caught his attention.

"What?! You're calling me ignorant and incompetent!" Sudo slammed his hand against the table with a thunderous crash, drawing the attention of nearly half the people in the library.

"That's right. You can't even solve a simple equation. Just thinking about what will become of you in the future is terrifying," Horikita continued, pouring oil on the fire with a flat, calm tone that only fueled Sudo's rage further.

Sure enough, as soon as Horikita finished, Sudo grabbed her by the collar and retorted viciously, "So what if I can't? What's the point of studying? Instead of forcing myself to chew through textbooks, I'd be better off practicing basketball and aiming to become a professional player!"

A tedious farce.

That was Chiba Yu's honest assessment of the situation.

Admittedly, in the eyes of most, studying wasn't the only path, and many students shared Sudo's mindset.

Studying doesn't suit me, and it's useless anyway. I'd rather spend this time doing something I'm actually interested in, striving to shine in that field in the future.

The ideal is beautiful, but reality is often cruel.

Take Sudo's goal of becoming a professional basketball player as an example: every year, hundreds or thousands of high school students aim for the pros, but in that brutal selection process, only a handful manage to stand out and make it to the national team.

Even if you succeed in reaching the national team, you might face the prospect of warming the bench or barely getting any playing time. These factors alone are enough to weed out ninety percent of the candidates, and the remaining ten percent have to rely on their own merits.

Therefore, compared to such cutthroat competition, studying is arguably the fairest path available at the moment.

Furthermore, if he were to be expelled for failing this exam, Sudo's professional dream would become even more remote, though he didn't seem to realize it himself.

Seeing things escalate, Hirata naturally couldn't remain indifferent and rushed over to intervene.

"Sigh..."

Chiba Yu sighed, stopped paying attention to the drama, and walked straight out of the library.

After leaving, Chiba Yu didn't wander anywhere else and headed straight back to the dormitory.

At night, the sky was pitch black, and everything on the ground was shrouded in moonlight. The world was as still as if time had jammed, save for the occasional rustle of wind through the leaves.

The empty cup of instant noodles on the desk was proof of how the boy had dealt with his dinner.

"I'm thirsty..." Lying on his bed, Chiba Yu's gaze was unfocused, and he felt as though he had no strength left to move, but in the end, thirst overcame his lethargy.

Putting on his shoes, Chiba Yu opened his dorm door and began to head toward the hallway.

He glanced at the door of the neighboring room, and his previously unsettled heart finally calmed down.

"Good, it seems the previous incidents were just coincidences. I knew it—curses and the like, how could they possibly be real?" Muttering to himself, Chiba Yu stepped into the elevator, heading toward the vending machine near the bottom of the dorm building.

"Move! Let me through!"

Just as Chiba Yu was about to step out of the elevator, a boy clutching a large crate of drinks rushed out. Unsurprisingly, they collided, and the drinks scattered across the floor.

"Ouch! Sorry! Are you okay?"

Compared to the other boy, who had fallen flat on his face, Chiba Yu had only stumbled, managing to stay on his feet.

"I'm fine. You're... from Class C, right?" Chiba Yu recognized the boy, whom he had met only once before, though he knew nothing about him other than his class.

"Yeah, I'm really sorry. I was in such a rush."

As he spoke, the boy crouched down to pick up the fallen drinks. Seeing this, Chiba Yu sighed and knelt to help. Within moments, the drinks were gathered.

"Thanks a lot."

"Try to be more careful next time." Chiba Yu patted the boy's shoulder, reminding him not to be so careless.

"Right. I've still got something urgent to take care of, so let's catch up another time." The boy, who looked somewhat rugged, smiled and then sprinted down the dormitory hallway. It was clear he was in a real hurry.

Ignoring this minor interlude, Chiba Yu continued toward the ground floor.

"Chiba?!"

Just as he reached the main entrance, Chiba Yu heard someone call his name. He stood still and looked back to see Hirata walking toward him from the right, looking as if he had just returned.

Could it be that today really isn't my day for going out?

"At this hour, what are you heading out for, Chiba?" Upon meeting, Hirata asked casually, noticing that Chiba Yu seemed to be just starting his trip.

"It's nothing, I was just thirsty and wanted to go to a nearby vending machine to buy a drink."

"It's probably best not to drink too many beverages; they aren't exactly healthy, after all."

What was with that tone, like a parent fussing over their child?

Still, Chiba Yu nodded in response. "I understand. By the way, did you just get back, Hirata?"

For some reason, the moment Chiba Yu finished that sentence, Hirata's expression seemed to shift, a bitter smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

"Chiba-kun, there's something I'd like to ask you. Do you have a moment?"

"..." Although he really wanted to say no, seeing the almost desperate look in Hirata's eyes, Chiba Yu couldn't bring himself to refuse. "Of course, I didn't really have anything to do anyway."

In this moment, I gained a new understanding of my own cowardice.

"I see. Then let's walk and talk."

The chirping of cicadas echoed along the quiet path as Chiba Yu and Hirata strolled slowly by the pond. Chiba Yu tried hard to locate the vending machine he remembered being nearby, while Hirata seemed to be contemplating how to begin.

Finally, after walking for who knows how long, Hirata's voice drifted over.

"Chiba-kun, what kind of person do you think Karuizawa-san is?" Faced with this sudden question, Chiba Yu was somewhat puzzled.

"Just tell me your own thoughts, Chiba-kun. Her personality, for instance."

"Hmm..." At Hirata's request, Chiba Yu began to search his mind for every memory he had of Karuizawa Kei.

"If I had to say, she's arrogant, I suppose. She has a strong personality and a lot of leadership within the girls' group." After careful consideration, Chiba Yu gave a response that sounded like an official statement—one that neither offended anyone nor felt too one-sided.

Hearing Chiba Yu's answer, Hirata seemed to freeze for a moment, then immediately broke into a smile of relief.

"If it's alright with you, I'd like to know your most honest thoughts."

Had this man in front of him noticed something? Chiba Yu wasn't sure. He had always believed his own behavior was beyond reproach, yet for some reason, this man named Hirata Yosuke seemed to see right through him.

He seemed to place an unhesitating trust in him, and, as if possessed, Chiba Yu began to rethink his answer once more.