Learning from past lessons, Airi Sakura was being very cautious. She wore an overcoat, a mask, and a hat, doing her best to minimize her presence.
However, her luck wasn't great.
The elevator she was in stopped on the fourth floor, and as the doors opened, the voices of several boys immediately flooded in, startling her and making her instinctively retreat to the corner.
"We're definitely having barbecue today! It's been so long since we had a proper feast!"
"Damn it, after all our hard work, we only got 191 points. Just how blissful must life be for those Class A bastards?"
"Stop complaining. If it weren't for Horikita, our class would still be at zero points."
"I admit it now—Horikita is the prettiest girl in our class!"
"Of course she is! She's our last hope. Even our little angel has fallen into the clutches of the Harem King. Damn it!"
"Even Karuizawa betrayed us! That damned Harem King!"
There was no mistaking these voices—they belonged to Sudou Ken, Ike Kanji, Yamauchi Haruki, and the ever-inconspicuous Ayanokoji Kiyotaka from their class.
Seeing them enter, Airi immediately regretted her decision.
Should she have taken the emergency stairs instead?
But the girls' dormitory was generally on the higher floors, and Airi lived on the 11th floor. If she had to climb all those stairs, her stamina would probably give out halfway.
Sudou didn't pay any attention to Airi. Ike glanced at her, slightly puzzled by the combination of an overcoat and mask, but he didn't dwell on it.
Compared to Airi, Ike was far more preoccupied with Kushida.
His little angel had actually been on a date with Kaoru recently!
And when questioned by everyone, Kushida neither admitted nor denied it, maintaining an ambiguous attitude and simply saying she had a good relationship with Kaoru.
Yamauchi Haruki had once told him that their little angel might have already become Kaoru's "cream puff," perhaps even posing with a peace sign.
Ike Kanji nearly got into a fight with him over that, refusing to let him insult his little angel like that.
How could such a pure and cute girl possibly do anything indecent?
If anyone was going to teach her about those things, it should at least be him!
"Hey, hey, Ken, why don't you hurry up and confess to Horikita?" Ike said loudly. "I think she'd definitely accept you. She doesn't even acknowledge the Harem King, and she always turns to you for things—she must like you!"
Sudou was also tempted.
In their eyes, Horikita Suzune did treat them a little differently—she tutored them, cared about his club activities, and even supported him as a leader during the sports festival.
The only regret was that he hadn't secured the title of grade-level MVP during the sports festival, missing the chance to deepen their relationship.
"No, no, that's too rushed. I want to confess to her properly," Sudou said.
He knew Horikita Suzune was fixated on reaching Class A, so he planned to wait until they defeated Class A or until Class D rose to a higher position before confessing. He wanted to tell her she wasn't fighting alone.
"If I were you, I would've confessed long ago, Kikyo-chan. Both Karuizawa and Hasebe are involved with the harem king, only Horikita remains unmoved—she must like you!"
The so-called "harem king" in Ike Kanji's words was none other than Kaoru.
Even perverts like them found it outrageous how he could openly maintain a harem, and they couldn't help but feel envious deep down.
However, they were completely unaware of Horikita Suzune's situation.
After all, she always maintained an aloof demeanor and seemed to have no connection with Kaoru. Whenever his name was mentioned, she would frown as if harboring some deep-seated grudge.
Not just Ike Kanji, even Sudou believed Horikita Suzune would never yield to anyone.
What they didn't know was that the only reason Horikita tutored them was because they paid tutoring fees—fees she then transferred to Kaoru as part of her debt repayment.
Her concern for Sudou Ken's club activities was also tied to Personal Points, as the student council rewarded outstanding club performances.
While they thought Horikita was cold toward Kaoru, they had no idea she and Kushida had simultaneously become cream puffs.
Horikita didn't want to hear Kaoru's name for a simple reason: she was determined to prove her worth beyond just being a cream puff.
Despite this, unbeknownst to everyone, she still honored their agreement by spending a few days each month as a cream puff—even forcing herself on him when he resisted.
Meanwhile, as they chatted, Airi felt immense pressure under Yamauchi Haruki's persistent gaze.
"Y-you're Sakura, right?"
Airi's soul nearly left her body in fright. How had this guy recognized her?
"N-no, I'm not!"
Yamauchi's eyes lit up—he'd only been suspicious before, but that bust size and voice could belong to no one else.
"Heh, I knew it was you. From what I've heard, there aren't many girls in school who can rival you."
Smacking his lips, he added, "Though Hasebe might be slightly bigger."
"Haruki, who are you talking to?" Ike asked, confused. "Who's Sakura?"
Just then, the elevator reached the first floor. Seizing the moment while Yamauchi was distracted, Airi kept her head down and bolted out.
"W-wait, Sakura! Where are you going?"
Yamauchi's initial excitement turned to panic as a terrible thought struck him—was Airi Sakura about to fall into the harem king's clutches too?
Ignoring his shouts, she sprinted out of the dormitory until she was completely out of sight.
"Sakura... that name sounds familiar," Sudou mused before suddenly realizing, "Wait, that glasses girl?"
"Yeah, her! A bit plain-looking, but great body," Yamauchi admitted, regretting not blocking her escape in the elevator.
"Oooh, didn't she confess to Haruki once?" Ike said enviously. "If it were me, lights off—all girls are the same!"
Haruki Yamauchi laughed awkwardly.
In truth, he had been bragging—Airi Sakura had never paid him any attention, let alone confessed to him.
But at this point, there was no way he would admit that and embarrass himself.
"She ran off so fast—was she too shy to face you?"
"Ah, women are so troublesome. Honestly, I would've considered saying yes. Feelings can grow over time, but she just bolted too quickly."
"Damn, I'm so jealous of you, you bastard!"
Under Ike Kanji's envious gaze, Haruki felt his confidence returning.
He was convinced that sooner or later, he'd win Airi over.
He'd been observing her closely lately and noticed that Kaoru hardly ever spent time with her—their interactions were practically nonexistent.
Plus, with all the rumors about Kaoru being involved with multiple girls, Airi had probably grown to dislike him.
Haruki was sure his chances were high.
Just imagining the body hidden beneath her baggy clothes sent a rush of heat to his lower abdomen.
Like Ike said, Airi's outward appearance was plain, but in the dark, it wouldn't matter. He didn't care.
Once he started dating her, he'd finally lose his virgin status!
Still, a flicker of unease nagged at him.
Airi covered herself up so thoroughly—it didn't seem like she was just cold. More like she was hiding something.
Was she meeting someone?
So he came up with a flimsy excuse, claiming he'd forgotten his phone, and told Sudou Ken and the others to go ahead and secure seats at the barbecue place—he'd catch up soon.
Sudou and Ike didn't think much of it, slinging their arms over each other's shoulders as they left the dorm.
After months of frugality, they planned to splurge with their newly issued Personal Points.
No one noticed Ayanokoji standing nearby, expressionless as he sent a message to someone.
"Hey, Ayanokoji! Hurry up! You can't miss out on this barbecue!"
At Ike's shout, Ayanokoji pocketed his phone and silently followed.
He knew the only reason they invited him was to split the bill.
After they left, Haruki reappeared in the dorm lobby, sneaking off in the direction Airi had gone.