Was it because she'd gotten bored sitting alone in the Service Club and wandered over to the main building?
That thought crossed Lin Ye's mind.
The familiar silhouette with long straight black hair appeared in the classroom doorway. Her eyes swept across the room in a single glance, and her gaze quickly cut through the crowd to land directly on Lin Ye.
"Found you."
Her lips barely moved as she spoke — but the only person who could hear her voice was Lin Ye.
Lin Ye realized she had come looking for him.
But what was so important that she'd come find him now, in the middle of class?
Just as Lin Ye was about to raise his hand to ask for leave, Mai Sakurajima stepped into the classroom with light, unhurried footsteps.
She walked past the lectern, made her way down the aisle between the desks, and as she passed Yukino Yukinoshita's seat, her eyes lingered there for a beat longer than necessary — before she finally came to a stop beside Lin Ye's desk.
Lin Ye looked up, and with a silent movement of his lips, asked Sakurajima Mai what she was here for.
She looked perfectly calm and showed absolutely no inclination to answer.
Just as Lin Ye was about to scribble a note asking her directly, he suddenly watched the girl seat herself right on top of his desk — her stocking-clad curves and long legs filling his entire field of vision.
Hey, hey, hey.
Senpai,
What do you think you're doing?
Isn't this a bit much?!
How am I supposed to study like this?
I'm a good student — class time is precious learning time, not playtime with you.
Lin Ye couldn't stop the internal monologue from running wild in his head.
He let his gaze travel slowly upward along the girl's captivating figure until his eyes met hers. Sakurajima Mai was propped up on both hands, her gaze directed out the window, looking for all the world as though Lin Ye didn't exist.
Senpai,
What exactly are you trying to pull here?
"Punishment,"
Finally, Sakurajima Mai spoke.
"Retaliation. For the joke you pulled on me at lunch."
So that's what this was about.
But wasn't this retaliation a little too stimulating — a little too inappropriate? He was in class, for crying out loud.
Sakurajima Mai paid him no mind and continued sitting on his desk, perfectly at ease doing whatever she pleased.
With her so close, every breath Lin Ye took carried her scent — light, clean, and infuriatingly pleasant.
"Student Lin Ye, the blackboard isn't on the ceiling,"
The teacher at the front of the class spoke up.
He had clearly noticed Lin Ye zoning out.
"Sorry, Sensei. I'm feeling a little unwell — may I be excused to visit the nurse's office?"
Lin Ye put in his request.
With Sakurajima Mai sitting right on his desk, there was absolutely no way he could concentrate on the lesson — he couldn't even look at the board, let alone focus on it. Everyone else couldn't see her, but he could. Every time he looked forward, all he saw was this gorgeous girl practically right in front of his face, smelling wonderful.
If Sakurajima Mai wasn't going to leave for the rest of the afternoon, he wasn't going to sit here and suffer through it.
The teacher clearly didn't buy it, but didn't call him out on it either — just waved a hand in dismissal. "If you're not feeling well, don't push through it. Health comes first."
"Thank you, Sensei."
Lin Ye rose and bowed.
As he did, he caught Yukino Yukinoshita's gaze from across the room, turned in his direction.
The cool girl's dark navy eyes were clouded with faint, puzzled curiosity.
She too had noticed something off about Lin Ye's behavior. Was he bored and staring at the ceiling?
Her instincts told her that wasn't it — but what other explanation was there?
Yukino Yukinoshita thought it over and couldn't come up with an answer.
After Lin Ye left the classroom, Sakurajima Mai didn't linger either — she followed him out into the corridor.
Tap, tap, tap…
Crisp, light footsteps.
A few minutes later, Lin Ye and Sakurajima Mai arrived at the nurse's office.
Lucky — the school nurse was out.
And there was no one else there, either. Just the two of them.
With no one around to accidentally overhear things that weren't meant to be known, Lin Ye relaxed. "Senpai, even if you're getting revenge, you've got to pick your moments. What if someone happened to be able to see you? Your reputation—"
"Only you can see me."
That sentence stopped him cold.
"On the off chance — I'm saying on the off chance—"
"There is no off chance."
She gave a small, quiet smile and continued, "You seemed to enjoy it just now, didn't you? Your body language doesn't lie."
"That was instinct. Don't read into it."
Lin Ye stated firmly.
"Excuses."
"Senpai can think whatever she likes."
Sakurajima Mai had expected Lin Ye to keep wriggling and trying to defend himself, argue with her a little — but instead he just flopped over and accepted it without a fight.
It robbed her of the fun of teasing him further.
She had been planning to keep needling him a bit to lighten her mood — but now the opportunity had vanished.
"Just now, during class — what were you feeling?"
Sakurajima Mai asked.
"Nothing in particular."
Nothing in particular, he said.
"I see. Looks like next time I'll have to show up in a bunny girl outfit with black stockings."
"No. Absolutely not."
Lin Ye objected immediately.
"Senpai wearing a bunny girl outfit with black stockings — I'm the only one who gets to enjoy that. Senpai promised me herself."
"I promised to wear the bunny girl outfit. I never promised it would only be for your eyes."
"Oh? Is that so?"
Lin Ye feigned surprise.
He was acting. When she had agreed to the request at the time, Sakurajima Mai had indeed only committed to wearing the bunny girl outfit — she had made no guarantee about exclusivity.
"Exactly. And if Student Lin ever finds himself forgetting things, I wouldn't mind helping him remember. Help restore those memories, so to speak."
"Then please, Senpai, feel free to help restore my memories while wearing said bunny girl outfit with black stockings."
"That depends on your behavior,"
Sakurajima Mai curved her lips into a smile.
But Lin Ye knew this was still Senpai's way of showing she wasn't at ease — that she harbored anxiety about whether his plan would succeed.
"Senpai, you'd better start mentally preparing yourself to wear that bunny girl outfit."
Lin Ye stepped forward boldly and patted Sakurajima Mai on the shoulder.
"Taking liberties again,"
"Then let me take a few more — like this—"
Sakurajima Mai let out a huff and swatted his hand away.
"Watch yourself. We are just Senpai and kouhai."
"We literally slept in the same bed together."
Sakurajima Mai: "..."
He'd brought that up again.
"Once Senpai is back to normal, I'm going to use that to hold over your head every single day — make Senpai do all sorts of things for me…"
The playful words made Sakurajima Mai fume, a faint flush rising to her pale cheeks.
She knew Lin Ye was joking.
If Lin Ye truly had those kinds of intentions — if he were actually that kind of man — he could have done whatever he wanted to her right now. She could scream herself hoarse and no one would hear. There'd be nothing she could do to stop him.
"I'll call the police."
"Heartbreaking. Senpai would actually call the police on me."
Lin Ye performed his solo pity show.
Sakurajima Mai knew perfectly well he was acting — and yet somewhere in the depths of her heart, an inexplicable urge to reassure him surfaced anyway.
Without her realizing it, she had come to understand clearly just how much her feelings toward Lin Ye had changed.
But he was Yukino Yukinoshita's quasi-fiancé. He and Yukino Yukinoshita were made for each other, a perfect match. She shouldn't be thinking about this.
Sakurajima Mai reminded herself internally.
"Senpai, take a nap."
Under Lin Ye's prompting — and half-insistent urging — Sakurajima Mai lay down on the bed, closed her eyes, and rested.
Lin Ye had sensed her exhaustion.
Because of his slip-up this morning, the girl had spent the entire day living in anxiety and worry.
The best thing he could do now was get her anomaly resolved as quickly as possible and restore her to normal.
The nap lasted about half an hour. The girl slowly stirred and woke.
She rubbed her temples, pulling herself back to full awareness.
When she opened her eyes, she found Lin Ye sitting beside her with his eyes closed, resting.
He had stayed here the whole time.
Sakurajima Mai felt a warmth stir in her chest.
She carefully sat up, trying not to disturb him. Lin Ye heard the sound and opened his eyes anyway.
"Senpai can sleep a little longer."
"It's fine. Sleep too long and I'll end up with a headache,"
She'd learned that the hard way. Back when work would wear her out, she'd intentionally take long naps — and instead of recovering her energy, she'd wake up feeling even more drained and exhausted than before.
"Let me get you some water."
As he said it, Lin Ye stood and poured a cup of water for Sakurajima Mai.
The girl accepted it and took a small sip. "Thank you."
She got up as well.
A nap in the nurse's office — that was an experience she hadn't had since elementary school.
"Aren't you going back to class?"
"I've got leave. Not going back this afternoon."
That decision caught Sakurajima Mai off guard.
But she didn't lecture him about it — didn't tell him he should go back to class.
Knowing Lin Ye's situation as she did, she understood that his continued attendance at school was probably just a way of keeping himself anchored to normal life, maintaining his social connections in the real world.
In this world, where Strange entities ran rampant, someone as powerful as Lin Ye was a coveted asset for every faction out there.
If he wanted, he could be hired at an astronomical salary. There was no practical reason for him to still be at Sobu High, studying for college entrance exams, trying to change his life the ordinary way.
If he were willing to join Japan's official organization, they'd have no qualms about arranging his admission to a top university. Tokyo University wouldn't be out of the question.
His abilities were simply that formidable.
Even though the only player Sakurajima Mai had ever personally witnessed was Lin Ye himself, his performance at Chiba Park had left an indelible impression on her.
There might be people out there stronger than Lin Ye — but not many.
"Since Student Lin is taking the afternoon off, I, as your dutiful Senpai, suppose I have no choice but to spend a bit of time keeping you company through the rest of this afternoon."
Lin Ye privately thought it was the other way around — that Sakurajima Mai was the one who needed him around to take a walk and pass the time, to ease the emotions pressing on her. Not that she'd ever say so.
"Perfect. Another opportunity presents itself."
What opportunity?
Before he even needed to explain, Sakurajima Mai read it in his eyes and made a guess. "Dream on. I'm not letting you get away with anything."
"That remains to be seen."
The two of them left the nurse's office and walked side by side along the tree-lined path through Sobu High's campus.
Whenever Lin Ye drifted a little too close, Sakurajima Mai would step aside to create distance — but after the third or fourth time, she gave up and stopped bothering.
Interestingly, the moment she stopped resisting, Lin Ye also stopped pressing. He fell back to a normal distance and walked quietly beside her.
A peaceful afternoon at Sobu High.
The sound of teachers' voices and students reciting lessons drifted from the classrooms.
At Sakurajima Mai's request, Lin Ye accompanied her on a stroll around the school grounds.
But the scene didn't go unnoticed — a few students glanced out the windows of their classrooms at the walkway below.
Yukino Yukinoshita was one of them. She was sitting by the window, and one glance outside was enough to see Lin Ye below, walking alone.
She frowned slightly, unable to make sense of why he was strolling through campus by himself.
And the way his lips moved as he walked — like he was talking to someone — only deepened her puzzlement.
"It almost looks like… he's having a conversation with someone,"
But with whom?
The moment that question surfaced, Yukino Yukinoshita's frown deepened further.
A faint, nagging sense of hesitation and familiarity crept over her. She felt like she should be able to figure this out — but no matter how hard she racked her brain, she couldn't grasp what it was.
She couldn't remember.
"It's probably just something else Lin Ye hasn't told me about yet,"
She'd just have to wait until he brought it up himself.
Either way, that guy wasn't going to wriggle out of it. Absolutely not.
Yukino Yukinoshita resolved.
...
Iroha Isshiki, also sitting by a window, had seen it too.
And she was considerably more excited about it.
Having already noted earlier in the week that Lin Ye seemed to be speaking to some unseen presence, Iroha Isshiki was now even more firmly convinced her theory was correct.
"Senpai must be communicating right now with that invisible presence,"
"And if he stops talking to it, will it start endangering the school?!"
In other words — Senpai was protecting the school. Protecting every teacher and student at Sobu High.
Sacrificing himself for everyone.
Wow.
Hero.
Those two words blazed to life in Iroha Isshiki's mind.
She was convinced that was exactly the kind of person Lin Ye was.
And that invisible presence — it had to be female, right?
Why else would it fixate on Senpai?
Iroha Isshiki couldn't suppress the smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.
"Just you wait, Senpai!"
She was going to make him come clean about all of it.
She had leverage over him now. She was going to use it.
Ding-ling-ling…
The bell rang.
Iroha Isshiki tidied up her desk, reined in her excitement, and made her way to the Service Club.
Knock knock knock…
"Come in."
"Good afternoon, Senpai, Senpai…"
Iroha Isshiki greeted them with a cheerful smile — but when she scanned the room, she found only Yukino Yukinoshita and Yui Yuigahama. Not a trace of Lin Ye.
"Good afternoon, Iroha-chan,"
Yui Yuigahama was the first to respond. Yukino Yukinoshita gave her a standard greeting in return.
"Is Senpai not here yet?"
"Student Lin Ye took the day off — he won't be joining club activities today."
"Eh? Ehh??"
Iroha Isshiki let out a stunned sound. "He took — took the day off… is Senpai feeling sick?"
"He… probably is?"
Yui Yuigahama wasn't entirely sure.
But then Yukino Yukinoshita spoke. "During afternoon classes he made a leave request to his teacher and didn't return to the classroom."
Buzz buzz buzz…
Yukino Yukinoshita's phone vibrated.
She checked the notification.
It was a text message from Lin Ye.
"He's not coming."
Iroha Isshiki immediately understood — Lin Ye had already messaged Yukinoshita-senpai to say he wouldn't be attending club activities.
Wow!
How could he.
She had been all geared up to make her move — ready to use her leverage to pressure Senpai into satisfying her curiosity — and now Senpai had simply opted not to show up to the Service Club at all.
Had he seen it coming and anticipated her threat?
"No, no — how could Senpai have predicted that? He'd have to be a mind-reader. It's definitely a coincidence. It has to be a coincidence,"
She nodded to herself, fully satisfied with her own analysis.
"Senpai, I have something to take care of — I'll be heading out."
With that, Iroha Isshiki gave a small bow to both Yukinoshita and Yuigahama and turned to leave.
Thud…
The Service Club door clicked shut again.
The small room was once again left with only Yukino and Yuigahama.
"Just the two of us again, Yukinon."
Yukino responded with a quiet nod.
"Yukinon, Iroha-chan definitely came today because of something she wanted from Student Lin Ye — what do you think it was?"
Yui Yuigahama was fairly certain that Iroha Isshiki's visit today had been all about Lin Ye. In the past, even when Lin Ye wasn't there, Iroha would still stick around for a while. But today, the moment she'd found out he wasn't here, she'd left immediately.
That told Yui quite clearly that whatever Iroha Isshiki wanted from Lin Ye was something genuinely important.
"No idea,"
"Should I go do a little digging?"
"She's already gone."
"Oh… I suppose she is, huh."
Yui Yuigahama slumped.
Even if she ran out now, she wouldn't know how to bring it up naturally.
"Could it be that Iroha-chan is planning to confess to Student Lin Ye?!"
Yui Yuigahama suddenly floated the idea.
Under Yukino Yukinoshita's scrutinizing gaze, Yui immediately panicked, waving her hands frantically and rushing to explain. "W-wait, it's just — Iroha-chan has always been so warm and forward with Student Lin Ye, and there's this kind of… flirty tension between them sometimes,"
"If she didn't like him, she wouldn't act like that, right?"
"Personality,"
That was Yukino Yukinoshita's answer.
But in her heart, she found herself conceding a certain degree of acknowledgment to Yui's reasoning. If Iroha Isshiki didn't have feelings for Lin Ye, then why was she so consistently warm and forward with him?
A simple "that's just her personality" wasn't nearly enough to explain it.
Yukino Yukinoshita's thoughts drifted back to something that had happened earlier in the day.
Lin Ye's response at the time had essentially amounted to: 'turning Isshiki down, while being devoted to her.'
That had probably given Iroha Isshiki a jolt of both urgency and anxiety.
If that was the case, then the possibility Yui was hinting at was very much on the table.
"Y-yeah, true! Iroha-chan is so bubbly and outgoing — it's not that weird for her to be a little warmer with guys, haha, I'm definitely reading too much into it. There's no way Iroha-chan would actually like Student Lin Ye, let alone confess to him, hahaha…"
But the more Yukino Yukinoshita listened, the more a quiet unease settled in her chest.
She steadied herself, redirected her attention back to the book in her hands — only this time, her thoughts kept drifting unbidden toward Lin Ye, and toward the outgoing kouhai who had just walked out the door.
Yui Yuigahama couldn't have actually called it, could she?
Yui Yuigahama suddenly felt a mysterious chill run down her spine.
Why did she suddenly feel a cold draft blowing against her back?!
What was going on?
It's May — Chiba isn't even cold!
...
...
After leaving the Service Club, Iroha Isshiki immediately found a secluded corner, took out her phone, and called Lin Ye.
Beep…
Beep beep beep…
"Senpai, don't you dare not pick up!"
The dial tone droned on without any sign of connecting. Iroha Isshiki's anxiety was rising.
If Senpai didn't answer, it meant he really was dodging her!
He was way too sharp — how had he even noticed? She hadn't even had that plan in mind at the time; the idea hadn't occurred to her until she was sitting in class.
"Beep…"
The call connected.
Iroha Isshiki's heart instantly relaxed.
Just as she'd thought — she'd been overthinking it. Senpai hadn't rejected the call.
"Senpai, Senpai, what happened to you? Yukinoshita-senpai said you weren't feeling well — how are you doing now?"
Iroha Isshiki's face was full of concern, her voice soft, radiating all the gentle warmth a girl could offer.
Any ordinary guy would melt under the care of such an adorable kouhai — might even fall right into the cozy web she'd woven, maybe even start wondering, 'Does she like me?', which ranked among the top three greatest self-delusions known to mankind.
But Lin Ye was not among those ordinary guys.
"I'm fine."
"Don't lie to me! If Senpai isn't feeling well, I — your adorable kouhai — am willing to take time out of my very precious schedule to take care of you. Don't be shy!"
Iroha Isshiki made her intentions clear.
What she wanted was a face-to-face meeting with Lin Ye.
"I'm really fine. I've mostly recovered by now. Isshiki — thanks for your concern."
"A kouhai caring about her Senpai is only natural!"
Iroha Isshiki chuckled, gripping her phone a little tighter.
"If there's nothing else—"
"There is!"
Iroha Isshiki cut in immediately. "Doesn't Senpai feel moved at all? I was willing to come take care of a sick, unwell person like you."
Something's off here.
Lin Ye had a sharp feeling that Iroha Isshiki hadn't called just to check on his health.
"Just say what you want to say."
He cut to the chase.
"What? There's nothing to 'say' about anything!"
"I'm hanging up,"
"Senpai has zero sense of romance, doesn't understand girls at all — no wonder you still don't have a girlfriend,"
Iroha Isshiki launched into her critique.
Honestly, though — she genuinely thought a guy with Lin Ye's personality and communication style would have a hard time getting a girlfriend. Then again, remembering what Yukinoshita-senpai had said earlier in the day, and thinking about Miss Ryou Fujibayashi, she figured it probably wasn't all that difficult for Lin Ye after all.
It just came down to whether he was willing.
The moment that thought crossed her mind, Iroha Isshiki found herself mentally rolling her eyes even harder. All he had to do was confess to Yukinoshita-senpai and they'd be together — where exactly did 'willing or not' even enter into it?
Just go for it already.
But then, the fact that Senpai hadn't joined the club after school made her think he didn't actually have much interest in confessing to Yukinoshita-senpai.
After school was prime time for getting close to someone. If Senpai had already left Sobu High without even dropping by — wasn't that a pretty clear statement about his intentions?
"Whether I have a girlfriend is none of your concern, Isshiki."
"How can it not be? I am your most adorable kouhai — worrying about Senpai's lifelong happiness, wondering if Senpai has a girlfriend, that is exactly what a kouhai like me should be thinking about."
"Oh, really?"
"Of course!"
"Then what if I can't find one? Will you step up and introduce someone?"
Lin Ye let a grin creep into his tone as he teased.
"Naturally! If there's any girl at Sobu High that Senpai has his eye on, I'll make the introduction."
She patted herself on the chest with great solemnity. "My network at Sobu High is pretty solid. I can definitely get you connected — trust me."
"Guaranteed?"
"No guarantee,"
"Then forget it. What's the point if you can't even guarantee it."
"..."
Iroha Isshiki was left completely speechless. Since when did introductions like this come with guarantees?! Unless she was nominating herself!
"Senpai, a thing like this…"
"No guarantee, no deal,"
Iroha Isshiki gritted her teeth. She was certain this was Lin Ye's sneaky way of wriggling out of the conversation.
"Senpai, where are you right now? I'll come find you — let's talk in person. Just say yes, let's do this in person."
At the end of the day, she needed to see Lin Ye first.
Some things were harder to say clearly over the phone.
Her leverage didn't carry quite enough threat over a phone call — she needed to be face to face for it to really land.
"If you've actually got something to say, just say it. Stop dancing around it."
"In person."
Under Iroha Isshiki's repeated pleading, Lin Ye agreed.
"Fine, come on over. I'll treat you to an all-you-can-eat buffet while I'm at it — call it a thank-you for worrying about me."
Iroha Isshiki's eyes lit up. "Senpai really does know how to treat people well — you do understand girls after all. I hereby solemnly promise you, Senpai, you will absolutely find a girlfriend someday."
Lin Ye then gave Iroha Isshiki the location of the buffet restaurant.
The call ended.
Lin Ye and Sakurajima Mai stepped off the train and walked toward the restaurant.
Most of Lin Ye's exchange with Iroha Isshiki had been audible to Sakurajima Mai.
"That kouhai of yours really likes you,"
"It's just her personality."
"I don't think so."
Sakurajima Mai shook her head. "As a fellow woman, I can tell you with certainty that what she feels toward you goes well beyond ordinary friendship."
"Maybe."
"Just now you should have said, 'Then why don't you be my girlfriend?' — there's a very high probability she would have said yes."
Sakurajima Mai said it with complete seriousness.
"Senpai, we talked before about your ideal use in this situation — and I have to say, this particular analysis and suggestion isn't one of your stronger offerings."
"I'm just giving analysis as requested."
"Don't bother with the analysis, then. Isshiki is an unpredictable type — not nearly as straightforward as that, Senpai."
Sakurajima Mai thought it over and conceded there was some truth to what Lin Ye said. After all, she knew Iroha Isshiki far less well than Lin Ye did.
But she still had a little bit of confidence in her own read of the situation.
Twenty minutes later, Iroha Isshiki and Lin Ye met up.
The buffet began.
Sizzle sizzle…
The yakiniku grill fired up. The small hot pot started bubbling away, steam curling lazily into the air.
Iroha Isshiki didn't rush into her questions.
Once they'd both started eating and the mood had loosened up a bit, she spoke.
"Senpai, shouldn't you be thanking me for this morning?"
"Hm?"
"Because of me, you now have a chance to get together with Yukinoshita-senpai. If it weren't for me, you'd have had no idea how she felt about you."
"So, what do you want out of this?"
Lin Ye picked up a piece of meat and put it in his mouth.
Beside him, Sakurajima Mai caught the flavor of the grilled meat through their shared sense — pulled in again by that involuntary link.
There were other people here — so why was it only him she shared with, and not Iroha Isshiki?
"Senpai, there's no 'want out of this' about it."
Iroha Isshiki waved the suggestion away with a slightly flustered air.
"Oh. You don't want anything. Fine, drop it then."
"I mean — there is one small little request,"
She looked at Lin Ye and continued, "Does Sobu High have something… unclean in it?"
That sentence instantly caught both Lin Ye and Sakurajima Mai's full attention.
"What?"
"Senpai, stop playing dumb. I've seen it,"
Seeing that Lin Ye's reaction wasn't what she'd expected, Iroha Isshiki went straight for the direct approach.
"I've seen it. You've been sitting by the flower bed several days this week, talking to yourself — except it's not actually talking to yourself. You're communicating with something invisible, aren't you?"
"And this afternoon too — you were walking through campus alone, lips moving. You were talking to something unseen again, weren't you?"
It was only now that Sakurajima Mai understood what Iroha Isshiki had meant by 'something unclean.'
She was the 'something unclean.'
Her feelings about that were complicated.
How had she been described in such terms.
"No."
Lin Ye denied it.
His first instinct had been that Iroha Isshiki had spotted one of the Strange entities at Sobu High.
"Senpai, I'll keep your secret. I can even help you with things within my abilities to do — that invisible presence is a female, right? As a girl myself, I can definitely be of use. Like buying certain… sensitive items."
Iroha Isshiki laid out her value proposition.
Lin Ye caught a faint echo of how Yukino Yukinoshita had once approached this — the same shape to it.
"You've got it wrong. I was just mumbling to myself out of boredom."
"Senpai,"
Iroha Isshiki fixed him with a stare.
"You're forcing my hand here. I didn't want to use this — but you leave me no choice."
She was bringing out the leverage.
"Senpai, you wouldn't want the truth about what happened this morning to reach Yukinoshita-senpai, would you?"
Her voice drifted over, low and meaningful, laced with a trace of a smile that was there and not-quite-there.
"Senpai — if Senpai finds out the truth, you'll lose your chance to confess and get together with her. So…"
"She already knows."
Crash. Iroha Isshiki's jaw dropped.
Wait, seriously?
"Yes. You can call Yukinoshita right now and confirm it."
"Wait, what?! That's not fair!"
"Yukino asked me about it at lunch. So I told her."
Sakurajima Mai was completely at a loss for words.
"Clueless straight guy. A man like you — you absolutely do not have a girlfriend. Guaranteed."
If a dense guy like Lin Ye somehow ended up with a girlfriend, what hope was left for other men?
Iroha Isshiki now realized she was the real fool here.
That leverage had never had any power to begin with.
Lin Ye didn't answer. He did not, technically speaking, have a girlfriend — but he did have a quasi-fiancée, and several other relationships hovering in an ambiguous orbit around him.
He decided not to say that out loud and give Iroha Isshiki a heart attack.
"Senpai, just tell me already."
"There's nothing to tell."
"Tell me and I'll introduce you to a girlfriend — guaranteed."
This time,
She made the promise outright.
That 'guaranteed' isn't herself, is it?
The thought floated through Lin Ye's mind.
...
...
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