“Huh? Izumi-cchi?”
Turning towards the voice—as expected, it was Amane.
She had a cafeteria bag in her hand, so she had likely bought her lunch there like Izumi.
“Oh, Amane. It’s rare to see you up here.”
Amane usually ate in the classroom with the other girls.
“Yeah. It’s such a nice day, I felt like it, you know?”
“The breeze does feel nice. I get that feeling.”
“But you, Izumi-cchi…”
Amane’s gaze turned to Nanao beside him.
She smiles her usual idol smile and calls out to her.
“Hmm. So Nanao was here too, huh~”
“Hello, Amane-chan.”
For a moment, it felt like a tense spark ran between them…or so it seemed.
No, it must have been Izumi’s imagination, he thought. For some reason, his instinct told him not to pursue that point any further. So there was nothing he could do about it.
And then, with Izumi between them, Amane plopped down next to him.
“Amane, let’s eat together~♪”
“Oh, yeah. But aren’t you alone today?”
“Yup~ Sometimes it’s like that, you know~”
“I see, I guess so.”
There was an odd tension in the air.
For some reason, ever since the study session the other day, Amane had been shooting Izumi those intense stares more frequently.
Izumi felt a cold sweat trickle down his back as he pondered the reason.
(Could it be…that she’s still holding a grudge about me leaving her behind at the study session?)
His speculation was way off the mark, as usual.
While that was certainly a factor, the more pressing issue was Nanao’s existence.
Over the past few days, Amane had witnessed Izumi and Nanao together time and time again. Her heart was far from calm about it.
On the surface, Amane wore a gentle smile, but inwardly, she was gritting her teeth tightly.
(Why is Izumi-cchi hanging out with her when he doesn’t even like her?! At this rate, it’s not weird for her to misunderstand and think she has a chance!)
A massive boomerang had struck the back of her head, but ignoring any inconvenient facts was Amane’s way. As expected of a true idol.
As Amane sipped her milk carton while closely observing the duo, Nanao tilted her head.
“Amane-chan. Could it be you were looking for Izumi-kun?”
“Bfuh————!!”
Bull’s eye.
The sharp arrow that pierced her right in the mark gouged out Amane’s guilt. For a moment, she trembled violently as sweat gushed out like a waterfall.
“Wh…wh…wha…what are…you…s…s…say…saying…!?”
“Oi Amane!? You’re looking like one of those over-processed live stream videos that went wrong!”
Izumi looked worried, but Amane brushed him off sharply.
“Shut up! This has nothing to do with you, Izumi-cchi!”
“Nothing to do with me!? But I can’t ignore it when you’re spilling milk everywhere like that!”
Then Nanao giggled mischievously.
“Izumi-kun. You shouldn’t say such insensitive things, you know?”
“Was I the one in the wrong just now…?!”
Although Nanao’s initial comment had started it all, Izumi chose not to mention that.
(As I thought, she really is a black Nanao…)
Recently, she had been particularly harsh towards Amane, or rather, her pranks were going too far. While she avoided explaining the reason, it seemed she didn’t like having their alone time interrupted.
(Why does she like me so much, anyway…)
The reason was completely incomprehensible to him.
Could it be that Satou’s claim about Izumi’s harem empire from elementary school was actually true? As he racked his brain for any such non-existent memory, another figure suddenly appeared.
“Everyone seems to be lively.”
That crisp, bell-like voice.
Everyone present turned around with a start.
It was the student council president with the nickname “Ice Princess” – Shiragiku Hakua. The wind blowing up to the rooftop danced through her beautiful hair. She brushed away the strands tickling her ear.
Embodying her nickname, she graced Izumi with an elegant smile and greeted him.
“Good afternoon, Izumi-kun.”
“Eh? Ah, yeah…”
Izumi was dumbfounded.
He had thought they avoided talking at school for some reason. Not that he minded too much, given how clingy she was at home… But he figured Hakua wanted to keep their relationship a secret.
(Hakua-neesan is having lunch too, I guess?)
He had heard she usually ate with the other student council members in the council room. But perhaps she came up to the rooftop since the weather was nice today.
Amane hurriedly whispered in his ear.
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“Izumi-cchi!? Did she just address you!?”
“Ah, um. With Shiragiku-senpai, it’s…”
Now, how should he put this?
No, there was no need to overthink it. She had simply greeted him, so he could just casually explain that she was an acquaintance from home. His family situation was already well-known, so a brief explanation would suffice. Just keep it light.
…Or so he thought, until Hakua smiled and replied.
“I’m Izumi-kun’s fiancée.”
“Hakua-neesan!?”
Oops, the casual way he addressed her had slipped out, which was a mistake.
Amane let out a “Gyaah!” while the other students who had turned to look at the new arrival also cried out “Gyaah!” The duet of screams set off a chorus of shrieks around them.
The usually cool Hakua was bearing such a serene smile. That only added credibility to her statement.
Amid the commotion caused by this huge scandal, only Nanao seemed unable to grasp the situation as she tilted her head in confusion. Having just transferred, she didn’t yet understand Hakua’s significant presence at this school.
Addressing the puzzled Nanao, Hakua explained:
“You must be Nanase-san, the new transfer student. I’m Shiragiku, the student council president here.”
“Ah, yes. Nice to meet you. I’m Nanase.”
They shook hands naturally.
But shattering that natural flow, Hakua added:
“Izumi-kun here has been under my care.”
It was a massive power move!
Feigning nonchalance while making no attempt to hide her hostility, this was a bold strike. She had revealed her extraordinary relationship with Izumi, and immediately followed up by staking her claim in front of everyone – asserting that Izumi still belonged to her.
The impact of that strike…was tremendous. The surrounding students…even Amane…could only turn beet red and stand dumbfounded.
And the one responsible for this situation – Hakua – was inwardly celebrating her victory.
(I won…!)
Of course, her slip in calling herself the “fiancée” rather than “ex-fiancée” was intentional calculation.
An intellectual groomed with the finest education as the heiress to a global conglomerate. Her brilliant mind was honed not just for academics.
A panoramic strategic perspective.
A ruthless command over human psychology.
The ability to have even the gods ally themselves with her at times.
Hakua had breathed in all these qualities as naturally as breathing itself – the innate obligations of someone born to be a winner.
That winner’s instinct she was born with told her that her victory was now assured.
She had successfully rewritten the narrative.
No one would even remember the shocking “I like you♡” bomb she had dropped in the shoe locker area the other day. By making her true feelings known without explicitly stating them, she had seized ownership of Izumi.
Underhanded tactics?
No, this was a battle of wits. A high society survival strategy to obtain maximum returns with minimal risk!
(Fufu. I may have gone a bit overboard.)
With an amused smile, Hakua turned her eyes to observe Nanao’s reaction.
Yes, to witness the result of her victory with her own eyes–
–Gah!
“Wow, that’s impressive!”
“Impressive, you say!?”
Nanao simply opened her eyes wide in admiration, cheerfully addressing Izumi.
She doesn’t pay attention to Shiragiku, who’s giving her a dirty look, and is happily talking to Izumi.
“Izumi-kun. You had a fiancée?”
“Ah, yeah. An ex though.”
“An ex, huh. But that’s way more exciting!”
“Exciting? More like a dumpster fire if anything?”
And just like that, the truth was so casually revealed!
Hakua was stunned.
To have a fiancée, even an ex – that fact alone should shatter any normal person’s sanity when it involved the one they loved.
Putting on her practiced poker face, Hakua forced an icy smile.
“You may have heard the rumors about her, but…”
She leveled a piercing gaze at Nanao as she quietly asserted:
“She’s my fiancée, you know?”
In response,
Nanao simply nodded with her usual friendly smile.
“Yes, an ex-fiancée, right?”
–Bachi! An invisible spark seemed to crackle between them.
Hakua’s tempered powerful aura…yet Nanao didn’t budge an inch.
In all of Hakua’s experience, she had never encountered someone like this before. Even accounting for Nanao’s ignorance of Hakua’s background and position at the school, this was an abnormal situation.
Hakua gulped audibly.
(S…So this is Nanase Nanao…)
A trickle of sweat rolled down her forehead.
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