"What? Did Sakamoto tell you to do this? Or did you, yourself, insist on clinging to him as his shadow?"
Kamuro Masumi's face turned from ashen to flushed.
Ryuuen's words were venomous and precise, each one attempting to tear open her disguise and probe the ineffable connection between her and Sakamoto.
But he was fishing for information!
An alarm blared in Kamuro's mind.
He wasn't certain of the exact nature of her relationship with Sakamoto; he was merely using this insulting probing to
observe her reaction and thereby gauge Sakamoto's 'level of concern' for her!
She couldn't fall for it.
Kamuro took a deep breath, her voice tinged with a forced coldness and detachment:
"Student Ryuuen, I don't know what you're talking about.
My personal preferences, it seems, do not need to be explained to you.
This is a school, please move aside, I'm returning to my dorm."
This is Koudo Ikusei High School; no matter how arrogant Ryuuen is, he wouldn't openly do anything outrageous to a student, right?
Ryuuen Kakeru's gaze flickered slightly.
Kamuro Masumi's reactions, from initial fear and anger to her current feigned calmness and detachment, were all within his expectations.
Her denial and resistance precisely confirmed that her relationship with Sakamoto was far from ordinary student acquaintances.
That 'concern,' whether it was Sakamoto's for her or hers for Sakamoto, was enough to become the leverage to move Sakamoto.
Phase One, probing and confirmation, was essentially complete.
Ryuuen Kakeru sneered inwardly.
He stopped pressing her and instead changed the subject, beginning to subtly inquire about irrelevant matters, his tone deliberately flippant and teasing:
"Oh? Going back to the dorm? So urgent? Could it be... you're rushing back to text Sakamoto to report the situation? To tell him you were cornered by us in an alley?"
"Or perhaps, you're afraid of returning late and missing the end of his part-time work?"
"Kamuro-san, you 'report' so punctually every day; does Sakamoto know how 'devoted' you are?"
Ryuuen Kakeru's speaking pace was not fast, his voice deep, each sentence drilling into Kamuro's mind, attempting to disturb her composure.
Kamuro Masumi pressed her lips together, saying nothing.
She knew Ryuuen Kakeru was deliberately trying to provoke her and disrupt her thoughts.
She forced herself to calm down, her gaze sweeping towards the alley entrance.
Ishizaki Daichi and Yamada Albert stood like two guardian gods, firmly blocking the way, cutting the light from the alley entrance into a narrow slit.
Trying to force her way out would be like trying to smash a rock with an egg.
She could only stand there, enduring Ryuuen Kakeru's verbal torment, praying that a passerby would come and break this suffocating stalemate.
Time passed minute by minute.
The atmosphere in the alley grew increasingly oppressive.
The teasing expression on Ryuuen Kakeru's face gradually receded, his brows furrowing almost imperceptibly.
He was also waiting.
Waiting for the figure he expected to 'come rushing at the news.'
According to his calculations, after Sakamoto received that message,
given his 'special attention' to Kamuro Masumi, he should have rushed over immediately.
Why hadn't he arrived yet?
Could it be... a miscalculation?
Sakamoto's level of concern for Kamuro Masumi wasn't as high as he had anticipated?
A trace of irritation quietly crept into Ryuuen Kakeru's heart.
If Sakamoto didn't come, this meticulously designed trap would lose its most crucial link.
Just then—
Outside the alley entrance, in the previously relatively quiet environment, an unusual commotion suddenly erupted!
It wasn't scattered footsteps,
but... the clamor of a crowd?
Conversations?
And even... faint whispers and sounds of movement, like those made when people are queuing?
How could this be?
This was deep in a secluded alley leading to the student dormitories; on a weekend afternoon,
students were either resting in their dorms or out, so who would gather in a place like this?
The four people in the alley, including Ishizaki Daichi and Yamada Albert who were blocking the entrance, instinctively turned their heads towards the alley entrance, their faces showing varying degrees of astonishment.
A flicker of surprise and doubt crossed Ryuuen Kakeru's eyes.
He immediately shot a glance at Ishizaki Daichi.
Ishizaki Daichi understood, immediately poked his head out, and cautiously peered outside the alley.
A few seconds later, Ishizaki Daichi pulled his head back, his expression becoming extremely strange,
mixed with surprise, confusion, and a hint of disbelief.
He quickly walked to Ryuuen Kakeru's side, lowered his voice, his tone urgent and bewildered:
"Ryuuen Kakeru… it's Sakamoto! He's here! But… there are so many people outside! They're queuing!"
"Queuing?" Ryuuen Kakeru's brows furrowed tightly, thinking he had misheard.
When Kamuro Masumi heard the name "Sakamoto," her heart skipped a beat!
An indescribable sense of relief instantly dispelled some of her fear.
He came, he really came!
But—queuing?
What does that mean?
The clamor outside the alley entrance became clearer and clearer, and even moving figures could be seen.
Clearly, the crowd gathered outside had already approached the alley entrance, and the situation inside the alley was about to be exposed to public view.
Ryuuen Kakeru's face instantly darkened.
His meticulously designed private 'trap' was about to turn into a public farce.
But then, a hint of relief flashed in his eyes.
Sakamoto came!
Although the method was unexpected, the target person appeared!
Phase Two, complete!
"Go!"
Ryuuen Kakeru made a swift decision, no longer hesitating.
He didn't spare Kamuro Masumi another glance, waved at Ishizaki Daichi and Yamada Albert, and took the lead, walking towards the alley entrance.
Ishizaki Daichi and Yamada Albert immediately followed, like two moving iron towers, clearing the alley entrance.
Kamuro Masumi was completely bewildered.
They had blocked her for so long, said so many unpleasant things, and then as soon as Sakamoto arrived, they just left?
What exactly was going on?
She didn't have time to think, and quickly followed them out; she urgently wanted to see Sakamoto, to confirm his safety.
Stepping out of the narrow, dark alley, the dazzling sunlight made Kamuro Masumi instinctively squint her eyes.
The sight before her instantly made her freeze on the spot!
Outside the alley, on this relatively secluded path leading to the dormitories, a winding long queue had actually formed!
The queue was made up of students in various colored clothes, extending all the way to the corner of the path, with no end in sight.
The students were talking in low voices, their faces filled with curiosity and anticipation, their gazes all directed towards the same direction—
In a small open space near the dormitory entrance on the path, a large parasol was opened, and a simple folding table was set up underneath.
On the table, dozens of pre-packaged coffees were neatly arranged, with labels on their cups, emitting a rich aroma.
And standing behind the table, systematically handing out cups of coffee to the queuing students,
was none other than the tall, black-haired youth in the burgundy school uniform—Sakamoto!
His movements were fluid, his posture elegant, his face showing a calm, unruffled expression,
as if the sudden long queue and the crowd of onlookers were nothing more than an ordinary scene.
"Student, your latte."
"Americano, please take it carefully."
"Cappuccino, mind the heat."
A clear, calm voice distinctly reached everyone's ears.
Kamuro Masumi's purple eyes were wide open, her mouth slightly agape, completely unable to comprehend what was happening before her.
Sakamoto was selling coffee at the dorm entrance!?
And he attracted so many people to queue?!
Ryuuen Kakeru, with Ishizaki Daichi and Yamada Albert, walked straight through the queuing crowd, ignoring the curious and scrutinizing glances of the surrounding students, and arrived at Sakamoto's stall.
He looked at Sakamoto's composed and seemingly in-control demeanor, a cold anger flashing in his eyes.
His meticulously designed 'hero saves the beauty' trap had actually been turned by Sakamoto into a ridiculous 'coffee takeout spot' in this manner.
"Heh,"
Ryuuen Kakeru sneered, his voice low but carrying a bone-chilling coldness,
"Sakamoto, you play your little tricks well.
Temporarily setting up a coffee stand to attract so many people to watch? Do you think you can get away with it like this?"
"However, you have officially fallen into my trap.
Open your phone and take a look again, won't you? My 'surprise' for you isn't just this one."
Sakamoto seemed not to have heard Ryuuen Kakeru's words.
He continued to systematically hand a cup of coffee to the student in front of him, his movements not pausing in the slightest, his expression not changing at all, not even an eyelash trembled.
He spoke calmly, his voice clear:
"Next student, please."
He completely ignored Ryuuen Kakeru's presence.
The muscles on Ryuuen Kakeru's face twitched almost imperceptibly.
He stared intently at Sakamoto's calm, unruffled face, his gaze so sinister it almost seemed to drip with venom.
"Hmph!"
Ryuuen Kakeru let out a cold snort through gritted teeth, no longer lingering, turned and left with Ishizaki Daichi and Yamada Albert, without looking back.
His retreating figure exuded suppressed rage.
The objective had been achieved.
Sakamoto appeared, and in plain sight, became linked to Kamuro Masumi's 'predicament.'
Although the process was unexpected, the result was the same.
The message he sent was the Stage Three time bomb buried beside Sakamoto.
Sakamoto... just wait.
I will personally tear down that condescending attitude of yours and trample it underfoot.
Ryuuen Kakeru's figure disappeared at the end of the crowd.
Kamuro Masumi stood rooted to the spot, looking at Sakamoto's busy figure under the parasol,
then looked in the direction Ryuuen Kakeru had left, her heart filled with bewilderment and an indescribable flutter.
How did Sakamoto even do it?
And what was he thinking?
The sunlight fell on Sakamoto's tall figure as he calmly handed out another cup of coffee, his movements elegant and fluid, as if the malicious confrontation that had just occurred had never happened.