Time slipped away like sand through fingers amidst the continuous discussions. In the blink of an eye, the final day before the midterm exams arrived.
In the Class D classroom early that morning, the air was thick with a sense of impending battle, a heavy mix of exhaustion, tension, and last-minute cramming.
Natsukawa entered the classroom at his usual time, neither early nor late. His expression remained calm, completely out of sync with the tense atmosphere around him. Instead of heading to his seat, his eyes scanned the room, finally landing on Kushida Kikyo, who was currently surrounded by several girls.
He didn't walk over to interrupt their conversation. Instead, he picked up his personal terminal and sent a message to Kushida.
Kushida was chatting happily with her female classmates when she suddenly saw Natsukawa enter from outside the classroom, immediately diverting some of her attention to him. She watched Natsukawa walk in, glance at her, and then pull out his personal terminal. Almost the moment he lowered his hand, her own terminal signaled a new message.
While the topic shifted away from her, she pulled out her terminal to check it. The content of the message brought her a pleasant surprise:
"Kikyo, distribute the original printed exams now."
The corners of her eyes curved slightly upward, seemingly pleased that her previous efforts hadn't been in vain. She offered the girls beside her a slightly apologetic smile: "Sorry, please wait a moment. I have something very important to do."
She turned and walked toward her locker, swiftly pulling out the stack of original exam papers that Natsukawa had instructed her to keep safe and wait for the right moment. Facing this stack of paper again, her mood was fundamentally different from the eager excitement she felt when she first printed them, wanting to take credit.
She stood at the front of the classroom, took a deep breath, and habitually put on her flawless, sweet smile. She clapped her hands to draw the attention of the entire class.
"Everyone! Please quiet down! Before the exam, I have something I need to distribute to all of you!" Her voice was clear and carried a reassuring strength.
Everyone's gaze instantly focused on her and the stack of papers she was holding.
"This is news I received and confirmed from a Second-Year Senior I know—" Kushida raised her voice, ensuring everyone could hear clearly, "The midterm exams for the first semester at our school do not change every year! Therefore, what I have in my hands are last year's original midterm exam papers!"
*Whoosh—!*
Like cold water dropped into a hot oil pan, the entire classroom instantly erupted!
"Is that true?!"
"Kushida-san! That's amazing!"
"This is great! As long as we have the original papers! As long as..."
"We're saved! We're truly saved!"
The cheers of relief nearly blew the roof off. Dozens of looks of gratitude, admiration, and relief shone on Kushida like spotlights. Even the usually indifferent Horikita looked up briefly, though she quickly lowered her head again, seemingly satisfied with the results of her tutoring and unconcerned about the papers; Sudo and the others were so excited they nearly jumped up and down.
The papers were quickly distributed. Everyone clutched them tightly as if they were precious treasures, like life-saving talismans leading to the passing grade. Cries of "Thank you, Kushida-san!" and "Little Kikyo, you're an angel!" were endless.
However, standing at the center of this wave of gratitude that she herself had ignited, while Kushida Kikyo maintained her flawless smile and repeatedly responded with, "I'm glad I could help everyone~," and "Good luck, everyone!", she felt a sense of... slight emptiness she had never experienced before.
Those sincere thank-yous, the sense of affirmation that usually nourished and pleased her, now sounded slightly muffled, as if filtered through a transparent film. They could no longer easily stir strong ripples in her heart as they once did.
Uncontrollably, images from the past week and a half flashed through her mind: in that quiet corner of the Library, she shed all her disguises, complaining wearily, even revealing her dark thoughts. And that man simply listened calmly, occasionally casting a glance that seemed to pierce through all her acts, reaching her core. He offered no cheap comfort, sometimes even using sharp words to expose her superficiality, yet every conversation with him brought a deeper, more profound sense of affirmation.
She was starting to crave the feeling of being near him. That sense of relaxation where she didn't need to pretend, where she could be completely seen and allowed to be genuine, that stimulating feeling of having her thoughts guided and her horizons broadened—it was far more profound and... intoxicating than the superficial praise aimed at her angelic mask filling the classroom right now.
Subconsciously, she cast her gaze toward the instigator.
Natsukawa sat at the back of the classroom, resting his head on one hand, watching the commotion triggered by his behind-the-scenes direction with a detached expression. His gaze was calm and unperturbed, as if none of this concerned him.
However, when his eyes inadvertently met Kushida's, he gave her an extremely slight nod.
It was just that one small gesture.
In that instant, Kushida felt as though her heart had been gently squeezed by a warm hand. A strange, warm current, mixed with sourness, elation, and immense satisfaction, surged through her limbs. Her cheeks involuntarily flushed slightly, and her ears turned a faint red. This feeling was so unfamiliar, yet so intense.
She hurriedly lowered her eyes to conceal the complex emotions swirling within them, her fingers unconsciously curling up and gripping her skirt hem. All the gratitude and praise from her classmates couldn't compare to his single, silent affirmation. This realization made her feel both flustered and intoxicated—flustered that her emotions could be so easily swayed by a man, yet intoxicated by this unprecedented sense of security and excitement, as if she had found her true home... At the other end of the classroom, Horikita Suzune quickly skimmed the original papers she had just received. After confirming they matched the version Natsukawa had given her earlier, she set them aside. Her gaze shifted past the excited crowd and landed on Natsukawa, who was sitting diagonally ahead, perfectly composed.
'As expected... he's still relying on these opportunistic tricks,' Horikita mused inwardly, a flicker of imperceptible disdain flashing across her reddish-purple eyes.
She hadn't been without curiosity before. Seeing that Natsukawa never participated in any study groups, she had previously used the excuse of researching materials on the other side of the Library to secretly observe him a few times from behind the bookshelves. What she found was that he wasn't reading any textbook; instead, he had novels like *The Two-Sen Copper Coin* and *The D-Board Murder Case* spread open, looking so relaxed as if the upcoming exams had nothing to do with him.
This further solidified Horikita's judgment: Natsukawa Sosuke was merely relying on a bit of cleverness to acquire the exam information early, allowing him to be so composed. His "strength," perhaps, was limited to just that. A true powerhouse should be like her older brother, crushing everything with absolutely solid knowledge, not relying on underhanded methods.
She withdrew her gaze and refocused on her own notes. She had absolute confidence in the upcoming exam, whether relying on the original papers or her own accumulated knowledge.
In the afternoon, the dismissal bell sounded particularly heavy yet highly anticipated.
The next day, the first semester midterm exams at Tokyo Koudo Ikusei High School officially began.
...
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