"Not a bad threat."
"Using yourself as a weapon, not hesitating to tarnish your own name to build a line of defense…"
Natsuki Subaru didn't immediately pull his hand back, and Kikyō Kushida had no intention of letting go.
Feeling Kikyō Kushida's quietly accelerating heartbeat, the smile on Natsuki Subaru's face became even more pronounced. He commented, "Kikyo-san, you're even more excellent than I imagined."
'If only she could completely cast off that meaningless baggage…'
Natsuki Subaru believed that Kikyō Kushida truly possessed greater potential than Hiyori Shiina.
"Natsuki-kun."
"I just want one thing from you."
Kikyō Kushida released Natsuki Subaru's hand and took two small steps back.
Looking at Natsuki Subaru, who had shown almost no emotional fluctuation from the start, she continued in a cold tone, "Can you swear that you won't tell anyone what happened today?"
Kikyō Kushida's eyes were still fixed on Natsuki Subaru.
Even at this point, Kikyō Kushida still felt nervous about what had just happened. Her threat to Natsuki Subaru was truly a last-ditch effort.
"If that's what Kikyo-san wants."
"Of course I can keep a secret for Kikyō Kushida."
Looking at Kikyō Kushida, who appeared cold but was actually incredibly nervous, Natsuki Subaru just gave a gentle smile and said, "Besides, didn't Kikyō Kushida already pay such a huge price for this?"
"As Kikyo-san's number one friend, I swear, I will definitely not tell anyone else what happened today."
"Although, compared to the Kikyo-san from before, I actually like the current Kikyo-san much more."
As he spoke, Natsuki Subaru made a swearing gesture to Kikyō Kushida.
"I understand."
After hearing Natsuki Subaru's reply, the expression on Kikyō Kushida's face didn't change much. She simply turned her back and said flatly, "I believe you."
Letting out a soft sigh, Kikyō Kushida felt even more irritated by what had happened today.
This whole time, she had already been feeling incredibly annoyed by the eccentrics in Year 1, Class D, but Kikyō Kushida quickly brought her emotions under control.
When she turned back to Natsuki Subaru, Kikyō Kushida had once again resumed her energetic appearance.
"Alright!"
"Number one friend~"
Kikyō Kushida looked at Natsuki Subaru and said with a grin, "We have our own little secret now~"
'How regrettable.'
'It seems, Kikyō Kushida, that you won't be able to let go of your baggage anytime soon.'
Watching Kikyō Kushida's natural control over her expressions, Natsuki Subaru actually sighed slightly in his heart.
For a moment there, Natsuki Subaru had really thought Kikyō Kushida was going to completely drop her disguise and show her truest self. Now, it seemed there was still a long way to go.
However, looking at the sweetly smiling Kikyō Kushida before him, Natsuki Subaru quietly increased her weighting in his mind once again.
At the very least, showing her true self, even if only in front of him, was a huge step forward for Kikyō Kushida.
Perhaps, she had reached the level of a 'substitute'.
"Don't worry."
"I will guard the secret that belongs to me and Kikyo-san."
"It's so great to be friends with Subaru-kun."
Kikyō Kushida intimately linked arms with Natsuki Subaru and said with a laugh, "Just as I thought, I'll definitely be able to create wonderful memories with everyone at this school."
The rest of the matter naturally became simple.
Although Kikyō Kushida appeared to act with exceptional decisiveness, her heart did not feel the same. Kikyō Kushida only felt that today had been exceptionally unlucky. After chatting with Natsuki Subaru for a couple more sentences in her sweet voice, she walked back to the dormitory building with him.
Right now, Kikyō Kushida needed to properly calm her mood in her own dorm room.
If nothing unexpected happened, after today's incident, Kikyō Kushida would not be coming back to the seashore to vent her emotions for a very long time.
As for Natsuki Subaru.
Aside from his eyes lighting up for a moment when Kikyō Kushida completely dropped her act, he showed no other emotional fluctuations.
Whether it was Kikyō Kushida's threat or the matter of having his hand pressed, it was all insignificant.
Perhaps to his peers, Kikyō Kushida's performance was already commendable.
But to Natsuki Subaru, it was still far too naive, seeming so trivial that it didn't even register, and was even a little cute.
Besides, about the hand-pressing thing, Natsuki Subaru admitted that Kikyō Kushida was a very charming girl; whether it was her figure or her looks, both were very good.
But, it was a great pity. What kind of days had Natsuki Subaru lived before?
Putting aside everything else, Natsuki Subaru was the type to sleep while holding Emilia whenever he felt like it. The Emilia back then had color; she was an undeniable symbol of the genuine in Natsuki Subaru's eyes.
On this point alone, the current Kikyō Kushida could not compare.
Perhaps when Kikyō Kushida gained her own color in Natsuki Subaru's world, on that day, Natsuki Subaru might be moved by her.
In short!
In Natsuki Subaru's mind, even breasts, if they didn't have color, couldn't be considered breasts!!!!
...
Meanwhile.
At this moment, from Natsuki Subaru's perspective, Arisu Sakayanagi, who had been quiet for a long time, was chatting with Masumi Kamuro, whom she had sent out to investigate earlier.
Masumi Kamuro: [Natsuki Subaru's relationship with Hiyori Shiina is personal. He hasn't had contact with Year 1, Class C itself.]
Arisu Sakayanagi: [Oh? No connection to Year 1, Class C?]
Masumi Kamuro: [Yeah.]
Arisu Sakayanagi: [What about the investigation into Year 1, Class B?]
Masumi Kamuro: [I couldn't find out anything about Year 1, Class B, except that they're all being rather restrained.]
"I see."
"So he did make a deal with Year 1, Class B, didn't he?"
After seeing Masumi Kamuro's reply, Arisu Sakayanagi's face broke into her signature 'unfathomable' smile.
Although Arisu Sakayanagi was exceptionally interested in both Natsuki Subaru and Kiyotaka Ayanokōji, she wouldn't focus all her energy on just those two.
Just as Natsuki Subaru assigned weightings to the people around him in his mind, Arisu Sakayanagi had a similar practice.
The proportion for Natsuki Subaru and Kiyotaka Ayanokōji might be relatively high, but Arisu Sakayanagi would still observe other people and classes.
___
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