An Accident

Yuto left the café to find that the sky had already grown much darker.

He followed the same route back. Their conversation was still circling in his mind—Horikita's invitation, her analysis, Ayanokoji's sudden interjection. Both of them had been sharper than he had expected, especially Ayanokoji. He did not say much, but every word hit the mark. Being seen through did not feel good, but it confirmed one thing for him—there were more intelligent people in this class than he had imagined.

He left the school grounds and headed toward the dorms along the shopping district. The evening breeze still carried a trace of warmth. He recalled Horikita's final words: "You won't always be able to take it this easy." She was right. His peaceful life rested on a fragile foundation. Once Class D's situation worsened, he would not be able to stay untouched. Even so, he had no intention of working with her. Not out of spite, but because he needed to do things at his own pace rather than be pushed along by someone else's plans.

There were far fewer people in the shopping district than there had been that afternoon, and most of the shops had already turned on their lights. As he passed the cake shop, he glanced inside—Miki was tidying up behind the counter, and there were no customers left. He had messaged her that he would arrive late today, but business hours were already over. He would explain it to her tomorrow.

He walked a few more steps and turned into an alley connecting the shopping district to the dormitory area.

Then he heard something.

It was not the sound of ordinary conversation, but a restrained, emotional voice, as though someone were venting their frustration at another person. It came in fragments from deep within the alley.

Yuto slowed down.

He was not deliberately hiding to eavesdrop, but the voice was coming from the very path he had to take. And that voice... sounded somewhat familiar.

He walked farther in, rounded a corner, and saw a figure.

The person had her back to him, standing against the wall at the end of the alley. One hand was braced against the wall, while the other hung at her side in a fist. Her shoulders trembled slightly, as though her emotions had reached their limit.

Her long golden hair remained conspicuous even in the dim light.

Kushida Kikyo.

Yuto stopped.

He recognized that back, and he recognized that suppressed voice—she was cursing someone.

"...I'm so sick of this. Every last one of them is so stupid, and I still have to smile at them. That idiot Matsushita was bragging about her new bag again today. Who even cares? Karuizawa too, following me around all day. Does she really think she's my friend? If she weren't close to Hirata, who would even bother with her..."

Her voice was very quiet, but in the silence of the alley, every word came through clearly.

"...And that moron Sudo never thinks before he speaks, so I have to smile and smooth things over for him. Ike and Yamauchi are even worse, those two little hangers-on. Hirata is easy enough to deal with, but he's too easygoing. No matter what you tell him, all he does is nod. And that ice queen Horikita has never once given me a pleasant look..."

She took a breath, and there was a faint sob in her voice.

"...I'm so tired. Having to pretend to be like that every day. If only I could be like Lin, just stay quiet whenever I wanted without anyone calling me antisocial. I want that kind of freedom too, but I can't do it... I've been pretending for too long. I can't go back anymore..."

Hearing that, Yuto's heart skipped a beat.

She had not noticed him. But that was not the problem. The problem was that he was standing here now, caught in a dilemma. If he turned around and left, the sound of his footsteps might draw her attention. If he stayed where he was, she could turn around at any moment.

And in the original story, someone else should have been the one to stumble upon this scene.

Not him.

Yuto thought quickly for two seconds and decided to back away as quietly as possible.

But just as he took half a step back, Kushida suddenly spun around.

Their gazes met in the dim light.

Kushida's expression froze in that instant. Her eyes were slightly red, and her face still bore the fierce expression she had not managed to hide—a look utterly unlike the sweet smile she wore in the classroom. It was as if someone had suddenly torn away an exquisite mask, exposing the real skin beneath.

"...Lin...?"

Her voice trembled slightly.

Yuto stood where he was without moving. He neither left nor tried to explain. He knew that at a time like this, nothing he said would help. She had already seen him standing there, and he had indeed heard everything she had just said.

"...How much did you hear?"

Kushida's voice lowered. It was no longer trembling or panicked, but had taken on a more dangerous, calmer tone.

Yuto was silent for two seconds.

"Everything."

Kushida stared at him for a long while. Then she lowered her head, covered her face with both hands, and took a deep breath.

When she raised her head again, her expression had completely changed. She was no longer panicked or angry. Instead, she was calm, like someone who had laid all her cards on the table.

"What are you going to do?" she asked. "Tell everyone? Tell them that Kushida Kikyo is actually two-faced?"

There was a note of reckless resignation in her tone, but also vigilance—she was testing him, trying to see how he intended to use this leverage against her.

Yuto did not answer immediately.

He knew how this should have gone. In the original story, Kushida would force the person who had seen her true nature to leave a fingerprint and sign a confidentiality agreement, using it as leverage to ensure they would not tell anyone. But the one standing here now was him, not Ayanokoji.

This was an accident. He had not intended to get involved in Kushida's storyline this soon.

But since he had run into it, he could not follow the original story's pace. He could not let her take the initiative.

"I'm not planning to tell anyone," he said.

Kushida froze for a moment, clearly not expecting that answer.

"You... aren't planning to?" she repeated, as if confirming she had not misheard.

"Yeah."

"Why?" Kushida asked, distrust in her voice. "You heard what I said. You should know that the way I act in class is all fake. Don't you think everyone deserves to know the truth?"

"And what then?" Yuto asked. "They find out that Kushida Kikyo is not the perfect girl they imagined? And then what? Do you think they would care?"

Kushida said nothing.

"They wouldn't care," Yuto said. "Even if they found out, most of them would be surprised for two days, then things would go on as usual. Their image of you would not collapse over something like this, because what they care about is not the real you. It's the version of you they imagined."

Kushida stared at him, as though she were trying to process the meaning of his words.

"...Don't you think I'm disgusting?" she asked, her voice much quieter than before.

"No."

"Why?"

"Because I'm pretending too," Yuto said. "I just do it differently from you. You pretend to be someone everyone likes, while I pretend that nothing matters to me. At heart, there isn't much difference."

Kushida was silent for a long time.

Then she suddenly laughed. It was not her usual sweet, practiced smile, but a genuine one tinged with bitterness.

"Lin, you really are different from everyone else."

"Lots of people have said that."

Kushida leaned against the wall, folded her arms across her chest, and looked at him.

"So how are you going to handle this?" she asked. "You already know my secret. You have leverage over me. You could use it to threaten me."

"Why would I threaten you?"

"Because then you could make me do things for you," Kushida said. "I could help you with anything you wanted, as long as you did not tell anyone about today. That would be the most normal thing to do, wouldn't it?"

Yuto shook his head.

"I don't need to threaten you," he said. "What I want cannot be obtained through threats."

"Then what do you want?"

Yuto thought about it and decided to say it directly.

"I want an assistant."

Kushida narrowed her eyes slightly.

"What kind of assistant?"

"Someone with extensive connections in class, who knows what is going on and can earn other people's trust," Yuto said. "I need to sell some information, but I can't do it alone because I have too little presence in class. No one would come to me to buy anything."

"Sell information?" Kushida raised an eyebrow. "What information?"

Yuto was silent for a moment.

"Do you know the relationship between class points and the personal points we receive every month?"

Kushida paused. "...Relationship? Are they connected?"

"The school did not tell you, but the two are linked," Yuto said. "The higher the class points, the more personal points everyone receives. It's only the start of the school year, so everyone thinks they get a fixed hundred thousand points every month. But that will change next month. When it does, Class D will receive far fewer points than it does now."

"Do you think everyone will believe that?"

"They don't need to believe it," Yuto said. "As long as they think it might be true, someone will be willing to pay for certain information."

Kushida's expression turned serious.

"How do you know all that? The school has never announced it."

"I have my own sources," Yuto said. "But I can't sell this information by myself. I need someone socially capable to help spread it."

"You mean you want me to help you sell this information?"

"Yes," Yuto said. "You find the buyers, and I provide the information. We split the points we earn fifty-fifty. You can be your social queen, and I can be my information broker. We will not interfere with each other, and we will both get what we need."

Kushida did not answer right away.

Leaning against the wall, she studied Yuto as though reassessing him from scratch.

"Lin," she said, "you're much more impressive than I thought."

"You flatter me."

"But have you considered this?" Kushida said. "What if I refuse, then turn around and use your secret to threaten you instead?"

"You could do that," Yuto said. "But I don't think you will."

"Why are you so sure?"

"Because you need someone you do not have to pretend around too," Yuto said. "You can't keep acting forever. You need at least one person who knows what you are really like, or you will never be able to catch your breath at this school."

Kushida fell silent.

Several seconds passed before she softly said, "You really know how to talk."

"I guess."

Kushida straightened up and walked toward him. She stopped less than half a step away.

"I can agree to this," she said. "But I have one condition."

"What condition?"

"You have to leave a fingerprint."

Yuto paused. "...A fingerprint?"

Kushida did not take out her phone. She simply grabbed his wrist.

"Press it here," she said, pulling his hand toward her.

Before Yuto could react, his palm touched somewhere soft. He lowered his eyes and froze—her hand was pressing down on the back of his, holding his palm against her chest.

He instinctively tried to pull away, but she held him firmly.

"If you ever reveal my secret," Kushida said in a low voice, "I'll say you groped me. Your handprint will be on my chest. Do you think you'll be able to explain your way out of that?"

Yuto looked at her without struggling.

That was indeed ruthless. Much more effective than signing any agreement.

"But as long as you don't tell anyone, no one will ever know about this handprint," Kushida said, her tone returning to one with a touch of slyness. "So it goes both ways. You protect me, and I protect you. Fair, right?"

Yuto was silent for two seconds.

"Fair."

Kushida released his hand.

Yuto withdrew it. A faint, unfamiliar sensation still lingered between his fingers, making him feel slightly uncomfortable. But he did not show it and merely slipped his hand into his pocket.

"Alright, now we each have leverage over the other," Kushida said.

"Leverage over each other?"

"Yep." Kushida waved the hand she had used earlier. "You have my secret, and I have your handprint. Now it's fair."

Yuto looked at her and silently thought, This woman really is no simple matter.

"So our partnership is settled?" he asked.

"It's settled." Kushida held out her hand. "I look forward to working with you, Lin."

Yuto took her hand. Her hand was soft, but her grip was steady.

"I look forward to working with you too, Kushida."

After they released each other's hands, Kushida looked around to make sure no one was passing by. Then she took a deep breath, as though setting down some burden.

"Honestly, I never thought it would be you," she said.

"What do you mean?"

"I imagined many times who it might be if someone discovered me one day. Maybe Ayanokoji, since he's always so quiet. Maybe Hirata, because he's too perceptive." She paused. "But I never thought it would be you."

"So I disappointed you?"

"No." Kushida smiled. "You made me feel relieved. Because if it's you, I don't have to pretend so hard."

Yuto looked at her but did not respond.

He knew Kushida meant it. Before today, she had been acting in front of everyone, including him. But from now on, at least around him, she no longer had to pretend.

That was what an alliance meant.

The two stood in the alley a little longer before walking toward the dorms together.

All the lights along the shopping district had come on, warm yellow light spilling across the sidewalk. A few students passed them and glanced over, but paid them no further attention—two classmates walking back to the dorm together was perfectly normal.

"By the way," Kushida asked as they walked, "when are you going to start selling that information you mentioned?"

"I'll tell you when the time comes," Yuto said. "It's not time yet."

"Then I'll keep an eye out for people who care more about the points situation."

"Alright."

When they reached the dormitory building, Kushida stopped.

"Lin."

"Yeah?"

"Thank you."

Yuto looked at her. Her expression was earnest. She was not acting.

"What for?"

"Thank you for not seeing me as a monster," Kushida said. "You're the first person who could still speak to me normally after learning what I'm really like."

Yuto was silent for two seconds.

"You're not a monster either," he said. "You're just someone who doesn't want to be alone."

Kushida froze for a moment, then lowered her head and smiled.

"You're pretty good at saying things like that."

"I just said whatever came to mind."

"Then I'm going up." Kushida took two steps toward the dormitory building, then turned back to look at him. "See you in class tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow."

Yuto stood where he was, watching her back disappear into the dormitory entrance.

Then he turned and headed toward the building where he lived.

More had happened today than he had expected. Horikita's invitation, Ayanokoji's appearance, Kushida's secret... His once-peaceful life had been ripped open in several places within a single day. None of those things would have been a big deal on their own, but crammed into the same day, they gave him the feeling that a storm was coming.

But he was not flustered.

Though these events had come suddenly, they were all within his ability to handle. He had formed an alliance with Kushida and gained access to a social network that could reach the entire class. The price had been handing his fingerprints over to her, but overall, it was a worthwhile trade.

Besides, he had confirmed one thing. Kushida was far smarter than he had imagined. She knew how to protect herself, and she also knew how to seize the initiative in an unfavorable situation. Someone like that was much better as a partner than as an enemy. If she ever ended up on the opposing side, that would be the real trouble.

He pushed open the dormitory door, changed his shoes, and lay down on the bed.

Taking out his phone, he saw an unread message—from Kushida.

"Good night, Lin. Thank you for what happened today."

Yuto looked at the words on the screen and replied, "Good night. Starting tomorrow, keep an eye out for who's interested in the matter of points."

A few seconds later, she sent another message. "Got it. Good night."