Chapter 63: Agreement Reached with Jeanne
"Even if I know where Lancelot is, I still won't tell you."
Black Jeanne said coldly.
But she still added one more sentence:
"But you don't need to worry about that perverted knight's condition either. He'll probably be released after the exam ends."
"I see."
Eikou nodded.
"So the reason you infiltrated our class was to sabotage us during the monthly exam, right?"
"What else would it be,"
Black Jeanne sat beside him, arrogantly crossing her legs, the full curve of her hips and her long, slender legs forming a flawless silhouette—she looked like someone who feared neither heaven nor earth.
But those beautiful golden eyes still couldn't bring themselves to meet his gaze.
"As if I wanted to make friends with any of you."
Seeing her avoid his eyes, Eikou wore a thoughtful expression.
"I really don't understand how Tristan actually thought you were Lancelot. He even gave you his favorite doujinshi about Yuki-onna."
"I never asked for that, not even a single word!" Black Jeanne said angrily.
But in the end, she relaxed her soft shoulders, and the white ahoge sticking up on her head drooped along with them.
"So, what are you planning to do?"
She looked out the window at the bustling flow of cars outside and asked.
"Planning to do what?"
"Don't play dumb! Don't act like this has nothing to do with you and throw the question back at me!"
Black Jeanne said irritably.
"Obviously I'm talking about reporting. If you plan to expose the fact that I'm spying, then I'll also expose the fact that you snuck into the women's hot spring. So how about we call it even—pretend everything that happened tonight never happened."
Eikou stayed silent for quite a while before finally speaking:
"Well, how should I put it… First of all, I still don't think I did anything wrong. It was just a staff error with the shift timing. Of course, it's normal if you don't believe me, but..."
He winked and smiled at her,
"But, this kind of threat doesn't work on me. I won't betray my teammates just because someone's got dirt on me, and I won't let my personal matters affect the whole group either."
"..."
"So regardless of whether you expose me or not, I'm still going to tell everyone the truth. Whatever you choose to do next has nothing to do with me anymore."
After saying that, Eikou stood up, waved at her, then walked toward the main door.
"..."
Black Jeanne bit her lip softly in sadness, silently sitting on the bench.
But before long, Eikou suddenly came back.
"Girl, not planning to beg me for mercy?"
"Why are you still here? Get out of my sight." Black Jeanne said with irritation.
"If doing so will make you annoyed, then I'll gladly sit here all night."
He sat down beside her.
"So why did you come back? To mock how pathetic I look right now?"
"Seeing you speechless was kind of funny, but the real reason I came back was because I felt like walking away just like that would be a little too cruel to you."
Eikou began to explain:
"It's obvious you're not suited to be a spy. You don't like it either. Honestly, being exposed might've even felt like a relief. But now you look really down. Let me guess—this is about credit points, right?"
"If you don't perform well in the mission, your credit score drops so low that you risk getting expelled?"
"..."
Black Jeanne didn't say a word.
She didn't deny it—seemed like he had guessed right.
Eikou scratched his head in frustration, thinking this had become troublesome.
"Even if I do get expelled, it's got nothing to do with you, right?" Black Jeanne said quietly.
"That's true. The reason your score got docked so badly is probably because you skipped classes, didn't do homework, got into fights, all that stuff—you brought it on yourself. This had nothing to do with me from the beginning, and the things that happened afterward, I didn't want to get involved in either, especially something as heavy as expulsion."
"But once you're dragged into something, you can't pretend you know nothing anymore."
Even though their relationship was short-lived, he wasn't the type to want to see Black Jeanne get expelled like that.
"I don't want you, after getting expelled and ending up tightening bolts in some shady workshop, to suddenly remember, 'It was that bastard who reported me and got me expelled—he ruined my life, cursed you, Mochizuki Eikou!!' carrying that kind of heavy grudge. I can't bear something like that."
"I'm not the type to hold grudges like that." Black Jeanne pouted.
"Haha, hearing that from someone with the Avenger class is really convincing."
Of course, the most important reason was… he had gone soft.
However, Mochizuki Eikou couldn't just sacrifice his class's interests for Black Jeanne, much less hand over their victory.
He really didn't know what the right move was.
If Black Jeanne had only targeted him, everything would've been simple. Eikou knew he had a bit of a sacrificial nature, and "sacrificing himself to protect others" was something he could accept. But the premise was: only he would be sacrificed—no one else, especially not the entire class, could be involved.
Otherwise, it would just be hypocrisy—the kind he despised the most.
"Whatever. We still have one more day, so we can think of a solution. There's definitely some way to preserve your credits without sacrificing my class."
Eikou smiled,
"Of course, let me say the harsh part first: if it really comes down to choosing one side, then I can only protect my class. When that time comes, don't blame me for being ruthless."
"No problem, I won't need your help by then anyway." Black Jeanne shrugged indifferently.
"Well, let's call it a night. I'm going back to sleep. If you want to bathe, go ahead—no one's going to sneak in this time for sure."
With that, he stood up and prepared to leave.
"Hey, wait—"
Black Jeanne suddenly called him back.
"What is it?"
She pressed her pink lips together like cherry petals, hesitated, and then spoke: "I still don't understand something… why are you helping me like this? Is it because you're afraid I'll report you?"
"I believe from the bottom of my heart that you couldn't possibly report me." Eikou said.
"Why not?"
If Black Jeanne hadn't been caught in a weak spot by him from the beginning, maybe she really would've gone and reported him.
But now that both of them were holding each other's secrets, she wouldn't do it anymore—not because she was being threatened, but because it felt like "getting involved in some nasty, dirty deal."
Because of her pride—both arrogant and stubborn—she didn't even want to take revenge by reporting him.
Her original suggestion had just been something she said on a whim. Even if Eikou really did reveal her identity as a spy, Black Jeanne wouldn't use that as an excuse to retaliate.
It was because he had realized that, that Eikou came back and decided to help her out.
Even though he never saw himself as a peeping tom, he still felt like he owed Black Jeanne some strange kind of favor.
And if he didn't repay it, he just couldn't feel at ease.
…Of course, none of this could be said to Black Jeanne—otherwise, with her incomprehensible tsundere personality, she might just "get pissed and beat him up."
"Because you're a really interesting person—blunt and easy to get a reaction from. Normally when I hang out with the others, I always have to be the straight man—the tsukkomi—but with you, I can just go wild and let you play that role instead. I think that's really fun, so…"
Eikou snapped his fingers loudly,
"I want to be around you a little longer, Jeanne Alter-san!"
"What the hell kind of reason is that? I don't get it at all!"
"Of course, it's not like I don't expect anything in return. After this is all over, you have to treat me to a meal—at least at a place where it costs 200 QP per person. And if possible, I wouldn't mind if you paid me back with your body, either. Hahaha, sorry, I went a little too far with that joke."
Black Jeanne quietly let out a sigh of relief in her heart.
He didn't plan to report her—for now—and was even trying to come up with a win-win solution.
Suddenly, she somewhat understood why that "White Onee-san" kept bringing up Eikou, the guy from the neighboring class, lately.
If she had to describe it more specifically… yeah, he was someone "like a calm and silent moon, radiating a kind of gentle and soft strength."
"After this is all over, you have to treat me to a meal—at least at a place where it costs 200 QP per person. And if possible, I wouldn't mind if you paid me back with your body, either. Hahaha, sorry, I went a little too far with that joke."
Eikou repeated the joke again.
"You bastard, I heard that! I just didn't want to waste my time responding! If you already know that joke didn't land, then don't bring it up again! What, are you trying to emphasize the second half? So you're saying you want me to repay you with my body? Dream on, you pervert!"
[You have received Black Jeanne's contact information.]
[You feel the trust and goodwill of the Dragon Witch toward you. You have received an Encouragement Dice.]