Damn it, how long is this going to take?
It's such a good opportunity, and precious study time is being wasted. I had planned to immediately do this (writing tests) and that (memorizing practice questions) with Furuhashi and Ogata as soon as we got back to the dorm.
The more Hayakawa Haku thought about it, the more annoyed he became, and his brow furrowed.
Just as he was irritated, Furuhashi Fumino suddenly reached out and gently patted his back, softly reassuring him, "Don't rush, Hayakawa-kun."
Hayakawa was silent for a moment, shaking his head to indicate he was fine.
How can I not rush? The exam is only a few days away! Every minute wasted felt like a drop of blood slowly draining from Hayakawa's heart.
"I'll look over there." Hayakawa muttered, heading toward a deserted side path. This was the opposite direction from where Itsuki had come. Hayakawa surmised that Itsuki had run away in a panic and that if Nino had run in a different direction, backtracking might reveal Nino's traces.
He started walking that way, hearing Furuhashi comforting Itsuki behind him.
"Itsuki-kun, don't worry…"
"Thank you."
Hayakawa didn't expect to see a completely different side of the forest after crossing the small path.
First, it was too quiet. The previous area still had faint whispers and laughter from students who had entered the forest, but after walking down this path, let alone the students' voices, even the expected sounds of the wind and cicadas seemed to have vanished. Only the occasional sound of his own footsteps echoed in the empty, earthy-smelling air.
Overcast clouds obscured the moon, shrouding the entire ground in darkness. The tree branches, which had previously looked menacing, were steeped in gloom, appearing desolate and powerless.
"..." Hayakawa looked up at the night sky, where the infinite deep blue was dotted with flickering stars. He searched in the dark jungle beneath those stars.
Then, he found the girl: a shivering, pink-haired girl curled up beside a rock.
She was trembling as if from the cold, her hands tightly covering her face, completely hiding her features. This suddenly made Hayakawa uneasy.
It's that horror movie trope… where someone reveals their face and it turns out to be shockingly grotesque, like having no features or empty sockets where their eyes should be…
However, after a brief hesitation, Hayakawa called out tentatively, "Nino?"
The pink-haired girl instantly stopped shaking when she heard the name. She lowered her hands and looked up, revealing her face.
The moment he saw her face, Hayakawa knew he had found her because the features were identical.
"Who… who are you?" Nakano Nino thought the person calling her was Itsuki and nearly jumped up excitedly. But when she saw a boy she didn't recognize, she immediately became wary, holding her hands out in front of her. "Are you a student at our school?"
"Yes," Hayakawa walked closer, calmly. "I consider myself Yotsuba's friend. I'm helping Itsuki look for you."
"Itsuki? Where is Itsuki now?" Nino asked, a little agitated when she heard Itsuki's name. "Did you find her?"
"Yes, she's fine. She's still over there." Hayakawa nodded, feeling a little sentimental inside.
They truly are sisters. Even after being left alone in this scary place, her first thought upon being rescued is her sister's safety. That's a little touching.
"Good, good, good. It's good that she's fine, but she won't be when I get out," Nakano Nino gritted her teeth, saying "good" three times, then adopted a vicious expression. "How dare she leave me here alone! I'm going to kill her! I'm absolutely going to kill her!"
Hayakawa: "..."
I take back what I said.
"I'll lead the way." Hayakawa didn't care what Nino would do to Itsuki. He instinctively wanted to lead Nino out.
"Wait a moment." Nakano Nino suddenly called out to Hayakawa. Hayakawa turned back, looking at her with a confused gaze.
"I…" A blush appeared on Nino's delicate pink face, visible even in the dark. She lowered her head and said in a tiny voice, "My legs are weak. Could I trouble you to help me up, classmate?"
"Uh…" Hayakawa frowned slightly, looking at the girl leaning against the rock.
She had soft, light pink long hair, the waist-length ends neatly trimmed. Two patterned hair ribbons were clipped to the sides of her temples, looking like two butterflies resting on her hair. This unique hair accessory would likely be the trait used to distinguish her later on.
Like Itsuki, she possessed an attractive figure: a slender waist, an admirable, upright chest curve, and a perky, firm bottom.
But unlike Itsuki, she was clearly more fashion-conscious. Many small, lovingly cared-for details were noticeable on her, such as the pink nail polish on her fingers, the faint eyeshadow, and the moisturized pink lips coated with gloss. Most noticeable were the white stockings wrapped around her legs. The smooth curves of her legs gleamed with an almost sacred light, tempting enough to make most leg fetishists want to embrace and lick them.
She truly is a succubus. Hayakawa Haku sighed internally. Anyone but this Emperor would surely fall into sin.
"Okay." Hayakawa extended his hand, letting Nino grab his arm to pull herself up.
"Thank you…" Nino's thank you was so soft it was almost inaudible. As soon as she stood up, her body swayed, looking as if she would immediately fall. Hayakawa quickly stepped forward to support her arm, preventing her from dropping back to the ground.
Her legs really are weak…
Hayakawa Haku was a little helpless. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine…" Nakano Nino's face was blood-red with embarrassment, and her pink-purple eyes reflected her shame. She quickly said, "It's just that I sat on the ground for too long, so my legs are weak."
It's clearly weak from fear.
Hayakawa Haku thought for a moment, then said casually, "It's good that you're fine. This part of the forest is quite strange. Honestly, it's too deserted, completely silent. It genuinely startled me when I arrived here."
The shame on Nino's face immediately lessened. She recovered a semblance of her imagined assertive demeanor and couldn't help but complain about the forest. "You're right! This forest is hopeless. There are even crows! It's simply incomprehensible!"
"Crows?" Hayakawa was a little astonished. A few crows with scarlet eyes standing on the branches of a tree late at night, staring at you with dead eyes, suddenly squawking now and then... The strange sound would resonate throughout the night sky.
Imagining this scene, Hayakawa suddenly felt he could slightly understand Nino. He would probably run too if he encountered that.
"Thank you, classmate. You're Itsuki's friend, right?" Nino was holding Hayakawa's shoulder. A faint, subtle fragrance continuously wafted from her, making one's gaze involuntarily follow her body, willingly being drawn to her.
"What is your name?" Nino whispered, lowering her head.
"Hayakawa…" Hayakawa said calmly. "Hayakawa Haku."