Ayanokouji remained expressionless, but his tone implied a slight sense of guilt.
"Horikita is looking for you..."
Ryunosuke was briefly stunned. "Horikita? Which Horikita? Student Council President Horikita Manabu or Suzune?"
Ayanokouji didn't dare call the first name directly. After mentioning that the gender was female, Ryunosuke immediately knew who was meant. He immediately put his arm around his shoulder and left from there.
Leaving Shizuka alone frozen in the middle of the wind's breeze.
She was currently still thinking about that expressionless kid earlier who could stop her Hokuto Shinken technique so easily. She nodded with satisfaction.
"This school is really interesting, many great people here."
Her lips curved into a smile. "Seems like I won't be bored at this school."
Shizuka picked up the white lab coat she had thrown carelessly earlier, put it on, and walked away with upright steps. Clearly her mood was very good.
◆━⊰✿✧✿⊱━◆
On the other side, Ryunosuke's sole felt slightly numb, his walk was somewhat limping.
Earlier because Shizuka was at the location, the stubborn Ryunosuke didn't want to show it. Now that the person was gone, he no longer acted and walked with a limp.
If not for Ayanokouji's help supporting him, he might not be able to walk at all.
Ayanokouji secretly began to admire him.
"That female teacher's punch earlier was close to 1,100 kilograms. Pretty impressive you could stop it..."
"You shouldn't have strength that great, how did you do it?"
Facing that question, Ryunosuke didn't hide anything and told the truth.
"I also don't know what the principle is..."
"I call this condition Chuunibyou Mode, it seems it can increase my physical quality."
Ayanokouji stroked his chin while thinking hard.
"That should be because of adrenaline hormones that give you momentary explosive power. How long can you maintain it?"
"About a week, but the duration feels increasingly shorter," Ryunosuke said resignedly.
This made Ayanokouji feel even stranger.
What kind of adrenaline could last for a week? Being able to last normally for a few hours was already extraordinary. Really strange body structure...
He had thoughts of dissecting this friend of his, but Ryunosuke didn't know. If he knew, he would surely beat this person up, although not necessarily win.
Ayanokouji brought him to the balcony. There, Suzune was waiting with arms crossed.
Once Ryunosuke arrived at the balcony, Ayanokouji immediately closed the only exit door and left. Clearly his task was done, and after giving his report, it was time for him to go.
Ryunosuke felt something was wrong.
Sure enough, a moment later, Suzune held out her homemade lunch box and forcibly fed food using chopsticks into his mouth.
Ryunosuke felt strange, but he still tasted it carefully and gave an assessment.
"Tastes good. The outer layer of the rolled egg is brushed with honey, tastes sweet and not oily."
"The small sausages are also cut to resemble cute little octopuses, plus sliced green onions to eliminate greasiness. Hmm, very good."
"Didn't expect your cooking to be this delicious, Suzune."
Ryunosuke didn't realize that this time Suzune didn't object when he called her first name directly. After he finished eating, he gave high praise.
Suzune flipped her beautiful long black hair with a proud expression.
"Of course. My family runs a chain store business, our control over food quality is number one."
Ryunosuke nodded in agreement while taking a tissue to wipe his lips. But at that moment, Suzune began executing her plan.
"Since you've eaten my food, you have to do something for me, Akasaka-kun."
Suzune crossed her arms. Clearly her plan succeeded, and she no longer pretended.
Ryunosuke's expression froze, then he immediately realized his situation and felt helpless.
He just understood why Ayanokouji ran away earlier. Most likely he was also trapped by Suzune's trap and forced to do something for her.
There's a saying: after eating someone's gift, your mouth is locked; after receiving someone's goods, your hands are tied.
"Haa..." What else could Ryunosuke do? He could only resign himself. "Tell me, what do you want me to do?"
Suzune's lips formed a beautiful curve. Ever since she first showed a little emotion to him during the remote island exam, she would occasionally show a smile like this. Ryunosuke didn't notice the oddity and listened to her request patiently.
Suzune cleared her throat and acted mysteriously. "I want to join the Student Council to help Nii-san."
"I refuse!" Ryunosuke immediately turned to leave without thinking, but he found the door locked. That was Ayanokouji's doing.
Behind the door, Ayanokouji used his body to hold the door, while his hands were already busy eating the bento Suzune gave as a bribe. Clearly he had been bought off.
There were only two things that could attract the interest of that White Room "Masterpiece": things beyond his expectations, or delicious food. And Suzune's delicious homemade bento clearly met the second requirement, so he firmly betrayed his friend.
Besides, Ryunosuke once said that friends exist to be betrayed, so Ayanokouji didn't feel guilty at all.
Seeing the door being held, Ryunosuke knew that damn Ayanokouji must be blockading the door from outside. He gritted his teeth in annoyance.
(This bastard! Just because of one portion of food you immediately betray? You have too little self-respect! Is your friend only worth one portion of food?!)
(That's right, you are indeed only worth one portion of food,) Ayanokouji thought in his heart.
Ryunosuke finally stopped struggling, turned around, and said full of resignation, "The Student Council isn't short of people, Suzune~"
Suzune this time didn't object to that familiar address, but she crossed her arms with a serious expression that clearly meant: I don't want to hear your excuses.
Ryunosuke was silenced again. Forced to, he brought her to the Student Council office to try his best.
Suzune followed behind him without saying a word. Clearly she felt nervous because she would soon meet her older brother. Ryunosuke deliberately slowed his pace to walk beside her.
"Why? Nervous?"
Suzune furrowed her brows and didn't answer, but her hand tightly gripped the hem of her skirt.
Clearly his words hit the mark. Ryunosuke tried to find an excuse, "If you're nervous, it's better we go another day."
Finished speaking, he turned to run away, but his collar was pulled by Suzune and he was forcibly dragged.
Ryunosuke felt his soul had already floated away when he arrived in front of the Student Council office. There, they coincidentally met Yukino who also came to the Student Council.
Yukino came to submit an application to create the Service Club, and she crossed paths with Ryunosuke and Suzune.
The three stared at each other. Especially Suzune and Yukino; their eyebrows furrowed deeply.
They both saw reflections of themselves in each other. Similar, really very similar. Not about faces, but the aura and dignity emanating from their bodies.
Yukino crossed her arms, in her hand holding a club application form. She had heard rumors that the current Class C leader was very similar to her. Initially she didn't care, but now it seemed the rumor was true.
Suzune furrowed her brows.
(Who is this person? Why is she staring at me?)
Like the saying "those involved don't realize," they both didn't notice the facial resemblance, only felt the aura similarity.
Ryunosuke's expression was the most dramatic.
(Hiratsuka Shizuka, Hikigaya Hachiman, Yukinoshita Yukino... Hehe, one more person and they can play mahjong together. Did I just uncover an Oregairu character nest? Why are they appearing one by one?)
However, on the surface, he had to pretend not to know so as not to look strange. So he chose to... act.
Ryunosuke stood in front of Suzune, pretending to be shocked while looking to both sides with a shocked expression, then he covered Suzune's eyes with his hand.
"Horikita don't look! That's a Doppelgänger!!!"
(Note: In Japan there's a legend that if someone sees their doppelgänger, that person will soon die. Ryunosuke covered Suzune's eyes as if saving her.)
Suzune's and Yukino's foreheads showed black lines (annoyance). As locals, they of course knew that legend.
Suzune gritted her teeth and said word by word:
"A-ka-sa-ka-kun, are you playing with me?!!!"
At that moment, Hiyori also came and happened to see this incident. Suddenly her mischievous nature emerged, she also covered Yukino's eyes.
"Don't look! Yukinoshita-san, this is a Doppelgänger attack."
Yukino expressionless, her hand clenched then went limp again. Finally she resigned herself and sighed.
"Your reaction that's exactly the same as a certain person really makes my blood boil."
Ryunosuke and Hiyori looked at each other in the air while still covering the eyes of the people in front of them, and simultaneously stuck out their tongues mischievously. These two were really compatible; their way of acting and thinking were exactly the same.
They finally released their hands from Yukino's and Suzune's eyes, then entered the Student Council office together.
Ryunosuke approached Hiyori, "What did you come to the Student Council for?"
Hiyori answered honestly, "Helping Yukinoshita-san submit a club creation application. It's just that Yukinoshita-san's club name is a bit... well, anyway I'm worried it won't pass censorship, so I came along."
Ryunosuke nodded in understanding. The Service Club name could indeed cause misunderstanding...
Once the four entered the Student Council office, President Manabu was busy working. Although he heard someone enter, he didn't respond.
Suzune took a deep breath and called softly. "Nii-san..."
Manabu stopped his work. It seemed that "Big Brother" call he hadn't heard in a long time triggered his reaction. He reflexively looked up and saw the most terrifying thing in his life.
"There are two Suzunes?!!!"
Manabu for the first time lost his composure. He glanced at Yukino, then glanced at his own biological sister. After looking back and forth, he distinguished his real sister through chest size, then shouted in panic:
"Don't look, Suzune! That's a Doppelgänger!!!"
Suzune felt for the first time how suffocating it was to have anger that couldn't be vented. But because the opponent was her own brother, she could only be patient.
"Pfft!" Hiyori and Ryunosuke turned their faces away while holding back laughter.
"Tsk." Yukino and Suzune clicked their tongues in annoyance simultaneously.
At that moment, Tachibana Akane entered carrying a pile of documents. She saw that scene and was also shocked.
As someone who harbored feelings for Manabu, Akane cared very much about this "sister-in-law" on the surface. She put down her documents, and without much talk, she also distinguished her sister-in-law through chest size, then covered Suzune's eyes while shouting loudly:
"Don't look! This is a Stand Attack!!!"
Dragon-like veins appeared on Suzune's forehead. Clearly she was very angry, but she couldn't possibly hit a Senior. She had a premonition that this person might become her sister-in-law in the future, so she chose to vent her anger on Ryunosuke who was laughing quietly beside her.
Ryunosuke who had his back to Suzune while chuckling didn't notice the danger. He only felt a shadow standing behind him. He reflexively looked up and saw Suzune's unfriendly gaze.
A moment later...
After Suzune vented her frustration, she let out a long breath, looking much more relieved. Meanwhile Ryunosuke, who was used as a punching bag and stepped on several times by Suzune, gritted his teeth enduring the pain.
Manabu who saw that scene showed wise eyes, he adjusted his foggy glasses.
"Your relationship is really good... It seems my sister really trusts you."
Suzune was just about to refute her brother and say she wasn't that close with this man, but Manabu cut her off with a wave of his hand and a serious gaze.
"Enough, Suzune. What's your purpose coming to the Student Council?"
Suzune suddenly felt a bit intimidated. She gripped the hem of her skirt, took a deep breath, gathered courage, looked up, and stared directly into her brother's eyes.
"I want to join the Student Council, help Nii-san's work!"
Manabu sighed. "I appreciate your good intentions, Suzune... But now isn't the time yet, you still need to develop. Regarding your application to join the Student Council, I refuse. Go home."
Suzune showed a disappointed expression, she lowered her head and remained silent.
Manabu actually had no other choice. In his Student Council there was a perverted person like Nagumo Miyabi; he couldn't bear to let his sister enter there. Unfortunately, Suzune didn't know this and thought her brother didn't need her, so her mood was very down.
Ryunosuke didn't say anything. He also knew that with Nagumo there, the President couldn't possibly let his sister join. Even Akane was occasionally harassed by Nagumo, let alone Suzune.
Ryunosuke felt the Student Council President was right, it's just...
He saw Suzune's disappointed expression and complained in his heart: Explain it honestly, Mr. President. If it's unclear like this, it's very easy to cause misunderstanding.
Meanwhile, Nagumo was currently still in the infirmary because of Shizuka's punch and hadn't recovered until now.