The screen went dark.
A heavy silence filled the principal's office—a silence that seemed to press against the very walls. The three remained standing before the desk, their eyes still fixed on the black screen, as if that moment—the moment of the fall and the jump—were still replaying before them.
Then, the principal's voice rose suddenly.
Principal (with intense anger):
"Honoka!"
Her body shuddered instantly. The principal struck the desk with his fist.
"What were you thinking?! Do you realize the gravity of what you have done?!"
Honoka's head lowered slowly until her hair nearly obscured her face entirely. Her fingers were trembling, yet she could not lift her eyes.
The principal continued in a sharp tone:
"This isn't just recklessness! This could have ended in a tragedy within this school!"
He pointed his hand toward the screen.
"And if Ahmed hadn't jumped—"
He stopped suddenly. He looked directly at Ahmed. His gaze was sharp, filled with anger and astonishment at the same time.
Principal:
"Do you also realize what you have done?!"
A brief silence followed. Then, Ahmed took a step forward. He stood beside Honoka. Immediately after him... Misaki stepped forward. The three of them stood side by side, as if they were a single wall.
Ahmed lifted his head calmly, his eyes steady.
Ahmed (in a calm but powerful voice):
"Mr. Principal..."
He paused for a moment. Then he said the sentence that changed everything:
"Honoka did not do this without a reason."
The principal's brows furrowed. Before he could speak—
Ahmed added:
"She was being bullied."
The air inside the room froze.