After shaking hands, Saionji Mao once again tried to steer the conversation back toward Shiginomiya.
She wasn't worried about Anri Hitomi—she knew Hitomi had always been exceptionally capable since childhood, perfectly able to handle her own affairs.
As the Student Council President, Mao felt it was her responsibility to be concerned about her classmate, Shiginomiya.
"Shiginomiya-san, since the start of this semester, you've missed a full week of classes. I've asked the teachers, but they haven't received any notice of you transferring or dropping out, nor any application for a leave of absence..."
Pausing briefly, her face showed genuine concern as she continued carefully:
"So, please forgive my bluntness, but is there a reason you haven't been attending school? Has something happened?"
"That's none of your business."
Shiginomiya's reply was icy to the extreme. She was still irritated about Akira shaking hands with this girl.
Listening from the side, even Akira couldn't help feeling sorry for Saionji Mao.
So ruthless, Shion-san... She's your classmate, you know. And she's genuinely concerned about you—couldn't you at least be a little nicer?
But Saionji Mao wasn't the type to back down after a single setback. Once more, she attempted to breach Shiginomiya's emotional wall:
"I'm aware you faced many rumors and malicious gossip at school. Some girls were openly unfriendly toward you and even engaged in passive bullying... So, I'd like to know, is this why you stopped attending classes?"
Passive bullying—indirect harassment through malicious gossip, cliques, and ostracization—was actually the most common form of bullying in schools. It wasn't limited to physical violence or theft of money; often, it was so subtle that teachers couldn't easily detect or resolve it, sometimes to the extent that students themselves didn't realize they were victims.
A girl as beautiful as Shiginomiya, attending a girls-only school, was undoubtedly an obvious target.
But Akira believed Shiginomiya genuinely didn't care about others' opinions. She'd long since grown accustomed to the consequences her beauty brought her.
"Saionji-san, we're not exactly friends. Why are you so concerned about my business?"
"As the Student Council President and your classmate, I have a responsibility to understand each student's situation. If you're facing any difficulty, I'll do my utmost to help you."
"I appreciate your kindness, Saionji-san, but I'm not facing any difficulties right now. And even if I were, it wouldn't be your place to help me."
Once a woman was jealous, she instinctively rejected all other women. Right now, Shiginomiya just wanted Saionji to leave quickly.
"I see... Then that's fine."
Though Shiginomiya's attitude remained unfriendly, Mao wasn't offended at all—on the contrary, it reassured her.
Because the Shiginomiya Shion she remembered was exactly this kind of stubborn, unyielding personality.
Even at Shirayuri High School—a place full of beauties that had produced numerous famous idols—Shiginomiya Shion was undeniably an unmatched-level beauty.
Precisely because of this, she inevitably became a prime target for envy.
Yet Shiginomiya had never complained about the injustice she faced, never bowed or compromised to anyone. She wasn't diplomatic or accommodating; rather, she was stubborn to the point of being blunt. Yet precisely because of her proud, solitary personality, many girls secretly admired her.
At Shirayuri, girls who met Shiginomiya fell into two categories—those who irrationally despised her, and those who became die-hard fans.
Mao admired her too, considering her a personal role model.
She was like the lily flower depicted on their school emblem: stunning, fragrant, independent, blooming gracefully alone in silence.
The conversation between them finally ended there. But immediately afterward, new voices joined in:
"Ryouta, what's going on here?"
Perhaps because Ryouta and Mao had been gone too long, the other two friends who'd been dining with them also got up and approached.
Why are more people coming now...?
"Oh, Souji, nothing's up. Mao and I just ran into some friends from school."
"Oh? Such a coincidence? Nice to meet you, I'm Mitsui Soujirou—a close friend of Ryouta and Mao."
This Mitsui Soujirou had a tall, muscular build and short-cropped hair, giving off an honest and dependable impression.
A few steps behind him stood a petite, timid-looking girl with a cute face and bob-cut bangs. She'd score around 85 points in attractiveness.
But why was she wearing a medical eye patch over her right eye? Could this kid actually have chuunibyou?
Looking closely, her outfit really did give off a strong chuuni-girl vibe: a baggy black hoodie paired with very short shorts that had numerous mysterious straps attached, practically screaming gothic lolita fashion.
But what drew Akira's attention most were her legs—specifically, the pink-and-black striped thigh-high socks she wore, matched with thick-soled leather shoes.
He'd bought Shiginomiya stockings mainly considering breathability and texture, but purely from a visual perspective, these opaque cotton socks had their own special charm.
But wasn't she hot wearing all that in summer? Her feet probably felt suffocated…
Judging from her shy, withdrawn expression, this girl was probably a gloomy chuuni type.
"Mirai, come over here. Why are you hiding so far away? They're friends of Ryouta and Mao—come say hi."
"Uh… I-I'm Takanashi Mirai... desu..."
So this was the Takanashi-chan Class Rep had mentioned before. She was also a fellow student from their school, same year as Akira.
Seeing that her friends had all gathered around, Saionji Mao suddenly realized she'd lingered here for too long. Running into Shiginomiya had only been a small detour—the primary reason for today's gathering still hadn't been addressed.
Mao had organized today's meeting of her childhood friends precisely because she'd recently heard from her younger sister that Takanashi Mirai had gotten into a serious fight outside of school. It had apparently escalated to physical violence, and Mirai's eye injury was caused by that incident.
Mao wanted to find out exactly what had happened, since in her memories, Takanashi Mirai wasn't the impulsive type who'd initiate a fight.
"It's about time we got back... Shiginomiya-san, I just want to ask you one final question. Will you ever come back to school?"
"I doubt it," Shiginomiya answered decisively.
"But you don't need to worry, Saionji-san. Not going to school was entirely my own decision—I plan to become a voice actress."
Saionji tilted her head thoughtfully, then glanced back toward Takanashi:
"A voice actress? Mirai-chan, your mother is a voice actress too, right?"
"Eh…! Mm…"
Takanashi Mirai didn't seem happy to have this topic brought up. She nodded stiffly, visibly uncomfortable.
"I see. You've found something you want to pursue," Mao said quietly.
"Yes. Staying in school won't help me achieve my goals. Honestly, there's nothing left for me to gain by attending classes anymore."
Who'd want to go to school anyway? Even if I did, it'd only mean something if I could go to Akira-kun's school!
"Then it's a shame... I'm sorry that school couldn't bring you happiness."
I always thought we might become friends one day… I guess fate just wasn't on our side.
But really... I envy you, already knowing exactly what you want to do at this age and pushing forward fearlessly.
She really hasn't changed at all—still the ever-willful Shiginomiya Shion.
---
T/N: hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm i need watah so bad
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