"Oh? So you're saying you've steeled your resolve now?"
Sakayanagi Arisu smiled, though the corners of her lips twitched almost imperceptibly.
What on earth was she talking about?
What did she mean by only seeing the surface of things?
What did she mean by failing to recognize the other's kindness?
What was with this condescending attitude?
Wasn't she the one holding leverage over you?
"Isn't this exactly what you wanted to see?" Ichinose Honami took a deep breath.
"I won't deceive anyone, nor will I wear a hypocritical mask. Even if some people end up disliking me for it, I'll bare my true self openly. The only thing I can do is strive to make up for my past mistakes."
"So, you admit you committed unforgivable sins in the past?" Sakayanagi Arisu felt somewhat flustered.
She had anticipated this moment, but she hadn't expected Ichinose Honami's resolve to be so unshakable.
Even if Kaoru Mitoma had used hypnosis on her, the effect was far too strong.
The so-called leverage depended entirely on the target's capabilities.
If the target had already surpassed the power of that leverage, all she could do now was watch helplessly.
Ichinose Honami was the core of Class B. If she were to falter, the atmosphere of Class B would shift dramatically.
None of the others had the ability to take up the mantle of leading the class.
Perhaps Kanzaki Ryuji from previous years might have had the potential, but Sakayanagi Arisu knew this childhood friend of hers well—he wasn't suited for the task.
Sakayanagi Arisu had no intention of destroying Class B now.
As she had mentioned earlier to Ichinose Honami, she needed forces beyond Class A.
The moment she learned of this leverage from Nagumo Miyabi, she had strongly sensed that Ichinose Honami had to break free from this dark past.
Unlike Kaoru therapeutic conversation, Sakayanagi Arisu's methods were extreme—she simply let the sword of Damocles fall decisively upon Ichinose Honami.
If she could endure it, everything would be negotiable.
If Ichinose Honami couldn't withstand it, it would prove she lacked the will and character to keep up with Sakayanagi Arisu in the coming actions.
That was Sakayanagi Arisu's reasoning.
However, it seemed she had underestimated the influence Kaoru Mitoma had on Ichinose Honami—and had vastly underestimated Ichinose Honami's own resolve.
"Unforgivable sins?" Ichinose Honami chuckled softly, a strange light flickering in her eyes as if recalling something.
"Actually, not long ago, I thought the same way. But someone told me that many things in this world can be seen from a different perspective."
"Honami-chan?" Shiranami Chihiro tugged at Ichinose Honami's sleeve, her face full of worry as she sensed the situation taking a strange turn.
Their conversation had drawn the attention of several students on their way to class.
Recognizing the subject of the rumors, their eyes lit up, and they began whispering among themselves.
"Is it true? She looks so cute, but behind the scenes, she's manipulating everyone? That's just too much."
"Well, she's so adorable—even if it's true, it doesn't really matter. Besides, given her looks, cutting her some slack shouldn't be a problem."
"That's not the point. We worked so hard to get into this school—why should we have to share a space with someone like her?"
"That's right, she's from the upper class. Things like college and employment are probably easily within her reach. It's really unfair."
"..."
Listening to the voices around her, Sakayanagi Arisu's lips curled slightly.
This was the power of public opinion—it could turn white into black.
Besides, Ichinose Honami had her own issues to begin with.
"Everyone, please listen to me."
However, unexpectedly, Ichinose Honami said something she absolutely should not have said in front of everyone.
"I... I'm sorry to everyone in Class B. I've betrayed your trust. And I also want to apologize to all of you."
The sudden action of the girl left everyone stunned—not just her friends like Kobashi Yume, but even Sakayanagi Arisu froze for a moment.
"W-Wait, Honami-chan, what are you saying!?"
"The rumors that have been spreading about me these past two days... I want to say—they're not rumors."
In an instant, silence fell over the crowd.
As Ichinose Honami confessed that she had once stolen a hairpin to celebrate her sister's birthday, everyone exchanged glances, unsure how to react.
When they heard that she had knelt and apologized in front of the store clerk, the atmosphere grew even heavier.
Sakayanagi Arisu gradually lost her smile.
The situation had spiraled completely beyond her control.
Did this girl not understand what she was doing?
At the very least, she should have said this to her own class first, shouldn't she?
And before explaining, shouldn't she have given her closest allies a heads-up?
Just by looking at the expressions of Shiranami Chihiro and the others, it was clear that Ichinose Honami hadn't breathed a word of this to them—not even Kanzaki Ryuji seemed to have any idea.
"At the time, my homeroom teacher recommended this school to me, so I thought... I could start over. Begin again from zero." Ichinose Honami forced a weak smile toward her friends.
"I'm sorry for making you all worry about me. But the truth is... I'm just a worthless, pathetic leader."
"Honami..."
Thud—
The sound of Sakayanagi's cane striking the ground echoed sharply, instantly drawing everyone's attention.
"Do you really think a half-hearted apology will make people forget your past? Who's to say you're not just fishing for sympathy? Or is this some kind of scripted performance by Class B?"
Her words cut in faster than anyone else's reaction, leaving no room for escape.
If it had been someone else in this situation, they might have broken down in tears.
"Sakayanagi-san, I'm not trying to gain sympathy. I know my past mistakes can't be undone, but the person I am today would never do something like that again. I just... want to get along with everyone properly."
Just as Sakayanagi was about to speak again, Kamuro Masumi beside her suddenly tugged at her sleeve, as if she had noticed something but hesitated to say it.
At that moment, Amikura Mako spoke up.
"Um... are you Sakayanagi from Class A?"
"I don't believe I need to introduce myself again, do I?" Sakayanagi frowned slightly, unsure what Masumi was trying to do—until she saw her mouth two words silently.
"Run away!"
Reading those words, Sakayanagi froze.
Run away? From what?
"Oh, I was just wondering if there were any other students in Class A with the surname Sakayanagi. Turns out it's only Sakayanagi-san. No wonder you're in Class A."
Amikura Mako flashed a dazzling smile, her words immediately drawing attention from those around them.
The whispers grew even more intense than before.
"Compared to Ichinose, Sakayanagi is way worse—typical privileged class."
"Ichinose-san just wanted to celebrate her sister's birthday and regretted it afterward. It was a small thing, but Sakayanagi-san is really hard to accept."
"Ugh, capitalism."
"She's probably just here to gild her reputation. After all, this is her family's school."
Sakayanagi Arisu could clearly feel her expression stiffen.
She realized all the discussion was now directed at her.
"Check your phone," Kamuro Masumi whispered to her.
Sakayanagi's face remained cold.
She didn't even need to look to know what had happened.
Without a doubt, only one person could be this adept at using her surname against her.
"She's cute and all, but getting in through connections? Even Class A has fallen."
"I heard Class 1-A has unusually high Class Points. Did she leak exam info?"
"That can't be possible, right?"
Listening to the surrounding voices and facing the strange glances, Sakayanagi suddenly smiled.
Tit for tat—was this meant to teach her a lesson?
"Honestly, Sakayanagi, you really didn't—"
Before Kamuro could finish, Sakayanagi turned and walked toward the Class A classroom.
"There's no point staying here. Even if I wanted to clear up these rumors, my presence alone won't help. Let's go back, Kamuro-san."
Kamuro glanced at Ichinose Honami across the way.
Overcoming her own darkness—how admirable.
She hoped the person they were talking about wasn't Kaoru.
With that thought, Kamuro followed Sakayanagi.
Meanwhile, Ichinose Honami stood frozen.
"Sakayanagi-san is the chairman's daughter?!" Shiranami Chihiro covered her mouth.
"No way!"
"Wait, so she's a nepo baby?!" Kobashi Yume's face was full of shock.
Amikura Mako turned her phone screen toward them and whispered.
"That's what the post says. It surfaced on the student forum this morning."
"It's true!"
The student forum was an auxiliary feature of the personal student system.
By opening their student ID, they could access the forum in the corner.
Normally, no one posted there—modern messaging apps were far more convenient.
But when scandals broke out, everyone suddenly took interest.
Like the night before last, when Ichinose was exposed as a thief.
Or this morning, when Sakayanagi was "confirmed" to be the chairman's biological daughter.
Amikura looked at Ichinose and noticed the latter was also staring at her, then quickly averted her gaze, her expression tense.
"Honami-chan, even if you've done something bad, I won't dislike you."
To Ichinose's shock, Amikura hugged her.
"Not only that, I want to be your friend—to graduate here together with you."
So this was what Kaoru meant by his words last night.
The moment he held her, he could immediately sense her trembling—she was afraid.
In response, Ichinose Honami bit her lip tightly, fighting back the urge to cry.
"I want to stay friends with Mako-chan too... I won't... I won't let anyone down again."
Amikura Mako could feel her emotions and hugged her even tighter, while Ichinose returned the embrace.
"Wah! Mako-chan, stealing the spotlight like that is so unfair! Don't forget about me!"
Seeing this, Kobashi Yume shouted and threw herself at the two, wrapping her arms around their waists.
However, in her excitement, she failed to notice how both of them stiffened at the same time, their expressions and bodies freezing unnaturally.
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