In the infirmary, the afternoon sunlight filtered softly through the curtains. Kushida Kikyo stood by the bed, wearing her trademark perfect smile as she reported the results to Wu Qiao, who was propped up against the headboard.
"Wu-kun, it's all taken care of." Kushida Kikyo clasped her hands behind her back, her tone bright. "Hirata-kun and I worked together and used the pressure from the rumors to get 800,000 personal points from Class A as compensation for you. They wanted to calm things down and keep the matter from getting bigger, so they agreed pretty readily."
Wu Qiao, who had been pretending to sleep, finally opened his eyes at the figure. He leaned back against the bed. Although he was wrapped in bandages, he seemed to be in good spirits. He nodded, a satisfied smile tugging at his lips. "Not bad. I wasn't expecting much, but that's a decent amount. Looks like Class A's elites are willing to pay up."
Karuizawa Kei, standing nearby, looked at the layers of bandages covering Wu Qiao and went pale. She couldn't help asking in a quiet voice, "Are you really okay, Wu-kun? You're so badly hurt... It looks like it must really hurt."
Wu Qiao turned to look at Karuizawa Kei's worried, frightened expression and gave a small nod. "Yeah, it's a bit worse than I expected. That guy really didn't hold back. But it's no big deal. I'm the one who got hurt, not you. What are you scared of?"
He paused, his tone softening with a hint of reassurance. "Come on, Kei. It's not like I'd make you do something like this. You just have to bring someone over when the moment comes. Leave the rest to me. These minor injuries are a good trade for making Class A pay."
Watching the two interact, Kushida Kikyo had a complicated look in her eyes for a fleeting moment. But she quickly returned to her gentle, considerate smile. "Honestly, Wu-kun, you're injured this badly and you're still thinking about points. Hirata-kun also asked me to send his regards and tell you to get plenty of rest."
"Tell Hirata thanks. I couldn't have done it without his help." Wu Qiao waved a hand, then seemed to remember something and looked at Kushida Kikyo. "By the way, Kushida, did Class A say anything?"
"They're obviously unhappy, but the evidence is conclusive. There's the surveillance footage, and the witnesses Ichinose-san found. They can't deny it." Kushida Kikyo shrugged. "Kito Hayato probably isn't having an easy time in his class right now, since he was the one who pushed you down himself."
Wu Qiao chuckled, a cold glint in his eyes. "He deserved it. He was the one who took the bait."
Karuizawa Kei listened to the two of them talk about their schemes and maneuvering. She was still a little scared, but seeing how calm Wu Qiao was helped her relax a little. She knew that this seemingly ordinary boy was far more dangerous than she'd imagined.
"All right, you two can head back. I want to sleep a little longer." Wu Qiao yawned and lay back against the pillow. "We'll deal with the rest after I'm discharged."
Kushida Kikyo and Karuizawa Kei exchanged a glance, nodded, and left the infirmary.
Not long afterward, the infirmary door eased open, and Ayanokoji Kiyoha walked in carrying a bag of freshly grilled skewers.
She pulled a chair over and sat down by the bed. When she opened the takeaway box, the rich aroma of cumin and meat quickly drove away the sterile smell of disinfectant.
"I just bought these. Eat them while they're hot." Ayanokoji Kiyoha handed him a skewer, her expression so calm it was as if she'd only come to chat with a friend.
Wu Qiao accepted it without hesitation. The bandages covering him did nothing to dampen his appetite. The two ate their skewers in silence. Only when the food in the paper bag was gone did Ayanokoji Kiyoha take out a tissue to wipe her hands and break the silence.
"Why did you do it?" She raised her eyes, fixing them on Wu Qiao. "I don't believe you did all this just for those 800,000 personal points, especially when you ended up getting yourself so badly hurt."
Wu Qiao swallowed his last bite of meat and tossed the bamboo skewer into the trash. He gave a couple of quiet snorts. "Ichinose knew about Class Points from the start of the school year, and a clever person like Sakayanagi Arisu has probably figured out some of the rules by now too. After I took such a big chunk out of Class A, they must've lost a lot of Class Points. That means Class A and Class B's points will soon be neck and neck. They might even end up tied."
He paused, a shrewd glint in his eyes. "When the points of two classes get this close, Class A will put most of its effort into keeping Class B in check so it can hold on to the top spot. As for our Class D? Our Class Points will be reset to zero next month. The gap between us and them will become huge. Before they target us, they'll have to think carefully about the cost and the potential gain."
At that, Wu Qiao turned to Ayanokoji Kiyoha and raised an eyebrow. "Besides, this gives you a shield. If Sakayanagi comes after you again or challenges you to something pointless, just tell her to beat Wu Qiao first. With me drawing the fire, you'll have some peace and quiet."
Ayanokoji Kiyoha listened in silence, her eyes flickering slightly. She hadn't expected Wu Qiao's scheme to reach all the way to the class's overall strategy. He'd even made himself a target for everyone just to give her a more peaceful environment.
After a long while, she sighed softly, her voice carrying a hint of helplessness and curiosity. "Wu-kun, I still don't understand. Why go this far? Was it really worth taking such a big risk for a reason like that?"
Wu Qiao was taken aback, then answered as if it were only natural. His tone was as casual as if he were saying the skewers tasted good. "Because I promised you I'd make sure you had a good school life. If we weren't at this damned school where strength rules everything, I wouldn't have to go through so much trouble."
Ayanokoji Kiyoha was taken aback. Looking at the boy in front of her, still covered in injuries, she felt something warm gently strike the block of ice in her heart. She lowered her eyes to hide her feelings and murmured, "...Idiot."
"Huh? Who are you calling an idiot?"
"Nothing." Ayanokoji Kiyoha stood and gathered up the empty takeaway box. "Get some rest. I'll keep an eye on the rest for you."
Ayanokoji Kiyoha quietly closed the infirmary door, shutting away the boy, covered in bandages yet still grinning carefree, on the other side. The corridor was silent, with only her steady footsteps echoing through it.
She slowed down, but the boy's matter-of-fact expression kept coming back to her mind. "Because I promised you I'd make sure you had a good school life."
What an absurd reason.
Ayanokoji Kiyoha looked down at her clasped hands, but her thoughts drifted back to that cold, pale place without a trace of warmth: the White Room.
There, everyone she met, every word she heard, even every glance, had been precisely calculated.
The strong devoured the weak; survival of the fittest was the only truth. Her father had honed her into the perfect tool, but he had never taught her what a promise was. He had never taught her that someone might get themselves covered in wounds for something so intangible.
That boy named Wu Qiao was a walking contradiction.
He did as he pleased and acted unpredictably, never playing by the rules of logic. He seemed to exist outside the rules, yet he could always use them with pinpoint precision to deal his opponents a fatal blow.
He appeared laid-back and lazy, but every move he made was calculated. His composure, as if he had seen everything coming, even made this masterpiece of the White Room feel a strange sense of pressure.
Most unbelievable of all, this boy full of secrets seemed to know everything about her.
He didn't need her to speak or explain, or even make a single expression. He could accurately guess what she was thinking and sense the true feelings buried deep beneath her calm mask. The boy was like a spectator who had already read the script, while she, the actor, seemed to have nowhere to hide from him.
And yet...
Ayanokoji Kiyoha stopped and turned slightly, looking toward the infirmary through the corridor window.
She knew nothing about him.
Where had he come from? What was his true personality, hidden beneath that face that always wore a carefree smile? What did he care about? What was he afraid of?
A feeling she had never known before—longing—was like a tiny seed silently breaking through the soil of her heart, so long accustomed to being frozen.
"Wu Qiao..."
She murmured his name. Her eyes held less of their usual indifference and a little more curiosity and warmth, though she hadn't noticed it herself.
Perhaps it was time to find out what kind of person this idiot was—the one who would dare drag all of Class A into trouble over a single promise.