The Cursed One

"Hirata, may I ask what the point of this question is? Surely you aren't having a falling out with Karuizawa and coming to me to vent? If that's the case, I'm afraid I can't help you; I'm still single myself, after all."

Faced with the question Chiba Yu tossed back at him, Hirata gave a wry smile before speaking with a helpless tone: "If I said I was simply curious about your opinion of Karuizawa, would you believe me?"

A silence followed.

Chiba Yu let out a slow breath, the answer already forming in his mind.

"If I had to be blunt, I think Karuizawa's behavior is actually quite strange. When you're around, her personality becomes unusually aggressive. But if you aren't there, or if she's acting alone, she becomes reticent, even using that aggression to shut out conversations with others—especially people she doesn't know."

Drawing on his memories of Karuizawa's past from his previous life, Chiba Yu began to describe the Karuizawa Kei he knew.

"In common parlance, she's putting on an act. To put it less kindly, she's clinging to you."

As his words fell, a long silence ensued. The air seemed to sense the atmosphere, growing heavy.

"Haa..." Hirata took a deep breath and turned his gaze back to Chiba Yu. His entire demeanor was one of helplessness, though a hint of relief seemed to linger on his face.

"I knew it. Chiba-kun is different from the others."

"Since we've reached this point, I think Chiba-kun has probably already figured it out, right?"

Hirata didn't finish his sentence, but Chiba Yu understood his meaning and gave a faint nod. "More or less."

The next second, Hirata smiled bitterly and slowly laid everything out.

This included how Karuizawa Kei had approached him after school started, told him about being bullied in middle school, and asked him to pretend to be her boyfriend to help her build status in the class, find hope in life, and protect her.

It was a transaction between Hirata and Karuizawa Kei, a commission of sorts—a deal to help her step out of the shadows of her past.

"But..." Hirata continued, "I know deep down that something will go wrong sooner or later. I know I can't handle this perfectly. I can only help her within my own capabilities, but I can't save her from the root."

"Mm, I think I understand the situation." Chiba Yu indicated he had a general grasp of the events, but then asked, puzzled: "So, Hirata, are you telling me this simply because you trust me and wanted to vent?"

Hirata remained silent for a long time at Chiba Yu's question. Finally, he slowly turned his head, a faint smile tugging at the corners of his mouth as he looked at him with steady eyes.

"If I was only half-convinced before, I'm even more certain now."

"Certain of what?" Hirata's words had cut off mid-sentence, forcing Chiba Yu to ask again.

Strangely, Hirata just smiled at him. "Nothing. Speaking of which, it's getting quite late. I should probably head back."

"Seriously, why do you have to leave things half-said?" Chiba Yu let out a long breath, feeling that Hirata was being a bit unfair.

He had said so much, and yet Hirata just stopped mid-sentence. Didn't he know how frustrating that was?!

But since the other party didn't want to elaborate, Chiba Yu naturally wouldn't press him. If he wanted to tell him, he would. For now, it was better to focus on finding a vending machine.

"I'll head back then. You should go back too once you've bought your drink, Chiba-kun." Hirata gave a light smile, walked over to pat Chiba Yu on the shoulder, and then, under Chiba Yu's watchful gaze, headed toward the dorms, leaving him standing alone in the wind.

"Vending machine... vending machine..."

Discarding all distractions, Chiba Yu just wanted to finish his purchase and return to the dorms as quickly as possible. At the very least, he hoped not to run into any more troublesome matters.

Finally, after searching for a while, Chiba Yu found the vending machine he had been longing for. Just as he was happily preparing to walk over, he realized, to his dismay, that a man he least wanted to see at that moment was standing right in front of it.

There was no helping it; for the sake of his drink, Chiba Yu compromised.

He walked over with a look of resignation, but the closer he got, the more strange he found the situation.

"Hm? Ayanokoji is doing..."

It was nothing else but the fact that Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's behavior was truly odd. He was watching his surroundings with extreme caution, yet his eyes remained fixed in one direction.

Following his gaze, Chiba Yu noticed two figures standing in the dark alleyway he was looking at.

As Chiba Yu carefully crept closer and squinted, he realized one of them was someone he knew well: his desk neighbor, Horikita Suzune. As for the other, Chiba Yu searched his memory for the figure and finally recalled who it was.

The student council president of this school—Horikita Manabu. He was also, in all likelihood, Horikita Suzune's brother.

After all, they shared the same surname and looked somewhat similar; how could he not recognize him?

I see. A classic scene of an older brother lecturing his incompetent younger sister.

Just as Chiba Yu was reminiscing, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, who had been vigilant of his surroundings, noticed Chiba Yu approaching. Although Chiba Yu had deliberately tried to mask his footsteps, it was easy for someone of Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's caliber to notice him.

"You..."

"Shh!" Just as Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was about to speak, Chiba Yu pressed his index finger to his lips, signaling him to stay quiet. However, Horikita Manabu's keen hearing had already picked up on the commotion.

"Who's there?"

In an instant, Horikita Manabu released his grip on Horikita Suzune and turned to look at them with vigilance. Even though the two of them had tried to hide in the shadows as quickly as possible, they both knew that Horikita Manabu had already spotted them; hiding was useless.

Resigned, Chiba Yu and Ayanokoji exchanged a glance and slowly stepped out from the shadows.

Upon seeing the two of them, Horikita Suzune's eyes widened, her voice trembling slightly.

"Ayanokoji? And... you're here too?"

Hearing his sister's surprised tone, Horikita Manabu immediately understood that the two people before him were likely his sister's classmates.

Yet, the two in front of him didn't seem intimidated by his status as student council president; their expressions remained calm and indifferent.

The next second, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, standing beside Chiba Yu, glanced at him first. After confirming something, he spoke slowly: "Tell me, you were really planning to jump in just now, weren't you?"