When they left the cafeteria and Kaoru was about to head back to the boys' dorm when Miki suddenly tugged at his sleeve.
"Thank you."
Her voice was soft, likely worried Haruka and Airi might hear, but the sincerity in her eyes was unmistakable.
Kaoru paused, then replied gently, "No need to thank me. Honestly, you were just dragged into this because of me."
"But... you've always helped me."
Miki whispered, "You knew from the start that I was Sakayanagi's person—that the only reason I teamed up with you was because she wanted me to monitor you. Yet you never blamed me and still accepted me."
She was referring to the final exams.
Given Kaoru's sharp perception, there was no way he wouldn't have noticed her usual academic performance. He must have deliberately turned a blind eye.
"Being monitored would normally make someone angry or resentful, but the monitor wasn't just anyone."
Kaoru averted his gaze. "Besides, did you or Sakayanagi ever actually try to harm me?"
His tone made it sound as if she were special to him.
Miki muttered under her breath, "B-but... what if I did something bad to Kaoru-kun?"
"That would depend on how you see me, Miki."
Kaoru's smile seemed to carry deeper meaning.
Perhaps sensing an inexplicable shyness from him, Miki grew flustered, but seeing his smile gradually steadied her heart.
Gazing at the boy right in front of her, she recalled the scene she had witnessed earlier.
Just as she mustered the courage to say something, someone suddenly tapped her shoulder from behind.
"Eh—?!"
Seeing the girl's flustered expression, Hasebe, who had initially moved closer, was also startled.
"Ah, s-sorry, did I scare you?"
"Ugh..."
Miki couldn't speak.
She glanced at Kaoru, then at Haruka, feeling her cheeks burn. "I—I'm going back!"
Haruka seemed thoughtful for a moment before nudging Kaoru with her elbow, a strange smile playing on her lips.
"For you, the girls here really are easy to handle, huh?"
As she moved, Kaoru could faintly sense a softness brushing against him, along with the delicate fragrance lingering in her hair—a scent unique to a girl.
"If they were that easy, I wouldn't be worried about you guys."
Kaoru sighed.
He really shouldn't have rushed things. "The worst outcome here is just expulsion. But outside, girls like Airi and Miki… I don't know how they'd handle social relationships."
Socially awkward creatures like them naturally exuded a gloomy aura, existing as outcasts beyond the social circle—something looked down upon in Japan.
Still, what comforted Kaoru was that Airi and Miki weren't completely averse to socializing.
They just hadn't built their own interpersonal connections yet.
"My, my, Kaoru-kun sometimes really acts like a fussy old mother."
"Actually, sometimes I'm a pervert too."
"Oh? Like eating one, holding onto another, and eyeing a third?"
"Exactly. If you keep bumping into me, I might just share my thoughts on oppai."
Hasebe seemed to realize belatedly and quickly pulled back, her face flushing as she stopped nudging him with her shoulder.
Sometimes, when a girl developed too well, she might accidentally brush against certain places, stirring a boy's heart.
"W-well, it can't be helped. Boys just have a lot of dirty thoughts."
Playing with her hair in an attempt to appear composed, she added, "Can't your girlfriend satisfy you, little H-kun?"
"What does 'little H-kun' even mean?"
Kaoru's face darkened.
Did he just get another nickname?
"Do I really have to say it out loud?"
Hasebe shot him a sidelong glance, lips slightly parted as she bit her tongue.
"Pe~r~vert~"
Her voice was almost a whisper, slipping quietly into Kaoru's ear, sending a ticklish shiver down his spine.
Kaoru stayed silent for a moment before replying, "How about you try stepping on me while calling me a pervert?"
Hasebe immediately backed away, her expression full of wariness.
"Somehow, I feel like Kaoru-kun just imagined me in some very… detailed scenarios. And the methods are way too perverted."
"Is it really that exaggerated?"
"Girls are naturally sensitive to boys' gazes. Someone as cute as me? I bet Kaoru-kun's head is full of nothing but dirty thoughts right now."
Looking at her confident expression, Kaoru felt a bit frustrated, but he couldn't really argue back.
After all, countless desires had flowed through her like water.
[Haruka Hasebe's big tits—lick, lick, lick!]
[Unspeakable desires]
[Lick Haruka Hasebe's feet until they're ruined],
[Unspeakable desires unspeakable desires unspeakable desires],
[Unspeakable desires unspeakable desires unspeakable desires],
[Please wear a maid outfit],
[A bunny girl outfit would work too],
[Find a way to turn her into little Popo—Honami can't lose here],
[Get beaten unconscious by her and taken back for unspeakable desires],
[Ask her out],
[Unspeakable desires],
[Unspeakable desires]...
Even so, Haruka didn't seem too bothered—she just wanted to tease Kaoru while she had the chance.
Girls do hate it when boys have lewd thoughts about them, but it depends on the situation.
"Are you heading back now, Kaoru?"
Haruka clasped her hands behind her back, leaning against the wall as she tilted her head to observe Kaoru's reaction.
"I still have some things to take care of today."
Kaoru paused. "Did you have something to say to me?"
Haruka studied him for a moment.
Miki and Airi had already walked off, leaving just the two of them.
Could he really not sense what this atmosphere implied?
After what happened last time, wasn't he even a little curious?
With their identities practically laid bare, wasn't he the least bit nervous?
"Nothing much. That CD you gave me last time was really nice to listen to."
Haruka turned her face away. "Actually, I'm a little envious of them. Whether they're happy or not, there's always someone by their side."
"Sometimes, reality isn't what you imagine it to be."
Kaoru knew his intentions had never been pure from the start.
However, Haruka shot him an annoyed glare.
"Are you trying to pick a fight with me? Don't say things without proof, thank you. Otherwise, I'll assume you're just another hater."
"..."
"By the way, I'm not their fan."
Haruka huffed in dissatisfaction. "You'd better not mention them in front of me. Yeah, from now on, don't act like you're the only one who understands them."
Kaoru touched his own face.
Was his expression really that strange?
"I'm a fan of the producer. Remember that."
Haruka's face remained blank. "In an utterly ordinary middle school era, an utterly ordinary middle schooler had a fateful encounter. That's all there is to this utterly ordinary story."
Even without using [Emotion Perception], Kaoru could tell she was sulking right now.
"Alright, I've said what I needed to say. Little H-kun is already eyeing his next victim."
Haruka brushed aside the bangs blocking her vision, and in the moment she turned away, she also blocked Kaoru's line of sight—he couldn't see her expression anymore.
This felt a little dangerous.
For some reason, Kaoru recalled that incident where an idol and a fan got tangled up in a mess, only for the fan to later sue the idol.
Back then, Toru Asakura had warned him with deep meaning—he absolutely couldn't touch underage fans.
Kaoru decided to put these thoughts out of his mind.
He planned to make a trip to the second-year dormitory.
...
At noon, Ryuuen ran into Nagumo and others in the school hallway.
"How are things with the girls' group?"
Nagumo asked directly upon seeing him.
Ryuuen glanced at the student beside Nagumo—someone he didn't recognize.
"Hello, I'm Ishikura."
The other party greeted Ryuuen with a faint smile.
In an instant, Ryuuen realized something, and an equally subtle smile appeared on his face.
"So it's Ishikura-senpai. I'm Ryuuen, a first-year."
The greeting left several students visibly displeased—his attitude toward an upperclassman was downright disrespectful.
"Ishikura will help your people drag down the scores, provided there are no issues on your end," Nagumo said coolly.
"I heard Mitoma has been in contact with the girls' group. It seems the target you picked has caught his attention."
Ryuuen shrugged indifferently. "So what if he finds out? I can make half the group slack off—can he stop that?"
Nagumo considered it and agreed.
They might not be able to compete in excellence, but when it came to dragging things down, leaving it to a delinquent like Ryuuen was the right move.
"The Mitoma-kun you're targeting doesn't seem to be in Class A's core group. Aren't you going to mess with the boys' side too?"
This Ishikura-senpai sounded puzzled.
Ryuuen thought for a moment. "Actually, I've been wondering about that too. Doesn't Mitoma realize how tempting his actions are?"
"What else could it be?" Nagumo sneered. "He knows I'm targeting him. If he hides behind his allies, he can't bait me into making a move. But if he steps out himself, he can divert my attention."
In Nagumo's eyes, Kaoru Mitoma was trying to lure him into attacking his group.
It seemed risky, but Kaoru himself was the group leader, and the members were handpicked from various classes, minimizing the danger.
Moreover, third-year Sato Keisaku was also connected to him, ensuring the upperclassmen wouldn't collectively slack off—further reducing the risk.
"Just focus on your own tasks. I'll handle Mitoma myself."
Nagumo had decided that no matter what Kaoru did, he would pretend to take the bait.
The real killing blow would be the open scheme targeting the girls' group.
Watching Nagumo and the others leave, Ryuuen leisurely made his way to the cafeteria.
Truthfully, he didn't have high hopes for Nagumo.
If Kaoru could swindle tens of millions of points from him, it was hard to believe Nagumo could defeat him.
But Ryuuen didn't care.
His goal was simply to squeeze as much as he could from Nagumo's sinking ship.
Whatever they did, as long as the points kept coming in, it was fine.
If Rika actually succeeded, Ryuuen wouldn't waste points to save her—that'd be too much of a loss.
Besides, Ryuuen planned to have Rika leave the school and contact certain people outside.
For example, he could have her hand over Kaoru's photos to Agency 283.
He had a strong feeling Kaoru looked way too familiar.
Though he didn't know the details, Ryuuen was certain there was something shady going on.