After Horikita Manabu and Tachibana Akane left, only Kaoru Mitoma and a few of the B Class students were left in the meeting room.
"Um... about earlier, thank you for speaking up for me!"
Amikura Mako suddenly bowed to Kaoru in thanks. When she lifted her head, her pretty face was clearly tinged with a blush.
"Rather than thanking me, I think you all should focus on figuring out what really happened,"
Kaoru kindly reminded the girl. Amikura Mako looked troubled at his words. She really had no idea what was going on with that bracelet.
"There was nothing at the seat at all. I had just sat down when they showed up."
The other B Class students nodded, especially Ichinose Honami, who was sitting right next to Amikura Mako. If Amikura had done anything, there was no way she could have hidden it from her.
"So, this incident might have been a move by C Class targeting you," Kaoru said, showing a worried expression for them.
"I heard that C Class Ryuuen is a notorious delinquent. In order to climb up to a higher class, he might resort to any means to attack other classes."
Amikura Mako and the others expressions changed. This was just too shocking—they had never even considered the possibility of being attacked like this.
Targeting individuals, and then affecting the whole class?
From the way Horikita Manabu spoke just now, if the punishment is enforced, their Class B will definitely lose class points. They don't know how many class points they'll lose, but this kind of underhanded attack is really hard to accept.
Amikura Mako stared blankly at Kaoru, unable to imagine that someone would actually do something so excessive.
"Doesn't the school care?" Shiranami Chihiro asked weakly.
"If the school got involved, there wouldn't be over a dozen expulsions in the second year. As long as they cover their tracks and leave no evidence, neither the school nor the student council will step in."
Crap, doesn't that mean they're totally screwed?
"But I never took her bracelet... "
Amikura Mako felt incredibly wronged.
"It might not have been you. Maybe someone put it in your bag," Kaoru said quietly.
Amikura Mako froze, then suddenly remembered something.
"Could it be that girl from today!?"
"Who was it?"
Ichinose Honami asked anxiously.
"I accidentally bumped into a girl in the hallway today. I fell to the ground along with my backpack, and she was the one who helped me pick it up."
"What's her name?" Kaoru asked.
"I don't know. I just remember she had short hair, wasn't very tall, and didn't seem like someone easy to get along with." Amikura Mako tried hard to remember.
"I apologized to her at the time, but she didn't say anything and just walked away."
"Other than her, did anyone else touch your backpack?"
"Probably not."
"Looks like the clue might be with her."
With Kaoru patient guidance, they finally found a lead, and Amikura Mako looked at Kaoru with a face full of gratitude.
"It's a good thing you were here today, thank you so much!"
Getting blamed and wronged for no reason—anyone could imagine how the girl must have felt. The fact that she didn't burst into tears right away was proof of how strong-willed she was.
Especially when Ichinose Honami messed up, Kaoru showed up just in time and helped her out, so of course she was incredibly grateful.
That being said, ever since a moment ago, Kaoru had noticed Ichinose Honami staring at him without blinking. Her silence made it impossible to guess what she was thinking.
"Maako-chan, Chihiro-chan, could you two wait for me outside for a bit? I have something I want to say to Mitoma-kun,"
Ichinose Honami suddenly said, sounding apologetic. Amikura Mako looked a little reluctant, but still nodded.
"Alright, we'll wait for you outside."
Once the conference room door closed, only Kaoru Mitoma and Ichinose Honami were left inside. A heavy silence hung between them. She didn't speak, and Kaoru Mitoma wasn't about to start the conversation himself.
"What exactly is your relationship with Class C?"
"Why are you asking me that?" Kaoru Mitoma replied calmly.
"Ever since you showed up, Manabe-san has had the biggest reaction to you. She can't help but keep her eyes on you, and when you shared your thoughts, her expression was one of total shock—like she was angry and couldn't believe what she was hearing."
It seemed that Shiho Manabe micro-expressions didn't escape Honami Ichinose notice—or maybe the latter was just that observant to begin with.
"It's just your imagination."
"I think I'm probably overthinking it too, but then why did you suddenly ask the president about missing exams just now?"
Honami Ichinose tried to keep her emotions in check, but her eyes were turning red.
"You were clearly reminding me that if Mako-chan gets suspended, she'll miss next week's midterms, and she might even get expelled for missing them."
"I was just being nice, giving you a heads-up." Kaoru Mitoma smiled.
"That's... too much." Honami Ichinose muttered.
Kaoru Mitoma said quietly, "You're on the student council too, so you should know the president only cares about the facts. If you don't want to see your friend punished, then you'd better work hard to prove her innocence."
Ichinose Honami was silent for a moment.
"What's in it for you?"
Under his gaze, the girl eyes were like a misty lake, rippling with an emotion he couldn't quite describe.
"Didn't I promise you I'd do whatever you said? Why are you still deliberately doing this?"
After all, as the leader of a class, Ichinose Honami could sense that something was off.
"It's been a month. Where's your sincerity? Do I have to come find you myself? Or are you just avoiding me?"
Even Horikita Suzune was willing to make him a bento, but Ichinose Honami hadn't done anything at all. That really disappointed him.
Faced with Kaoru Mitoma questioning, Ichinose Honami eyes flashed with panic.
"It's not that, I thought... I just didn't know what to do, I wasn't trying to avoid you."
"Don't you think that's a pretty weak excuse?" Kaoru Mitoma said coldly.
"Don't forget, what I want is your loyalty. Whether I need you or not, you should always be thinking about whether I need you."
Ichinose Honami pressed her lips together and stayed silent.
"As I promised you, I won't have any lewds thoughts about you. In return, you need to promise me your complete loyalty. At the very least, you have to report to me every day about what you did."
At this point, Kaoru Mitoma let out a cold laugh.
"Isn't that just common sense? The fact that I even have to remind you is really disappointing, Ichinose."
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