Staring at the newly refreshed prompt before him, Sasaki Fuyumi was dumbfounded. Route One was undoubtedly a scumbag option—forcing a girl to go on a date with him was utterly despicable.
But Route Two was even harder for Sasaki Fuyumi to swallow. It wanted him to kneel and ask to kiss Sato Ruri's toes. If he actually did that, at least in Sato Ruri's eyes, he'd be forever branded a complete pervert. Sasaki Fuyumi couldn't accept that outcome, and his dignity wouldn't allow him to make that choice.
Sasaki Fuyumi's gaze wandered between the two routes. Whichever option his sight fell on would light up.
Sasaki Fuyumi took a deep breath and finally chose Route One.
The subtitles shifted again.
"Seeing the beautiful and captivating Sato Ruri, your lustful heart ultimately stirs, and you decide to become a scumbag and mess with her."
The corner of Sasaki Fuyumi's mouth twitched. Is that what I meant? System, don't you slander me!
Back in the classroom, Sato Ruri had thoroughly rummaged through Egawa Mitsuki's backpack. Having fully satisfied her perverse curiosity, she began putting the items back one by one.
Sasaki Fuyumi quietly tucked away his phone and slipped away from the scene without a sound.
He ran all the way to the sports ground. Before he could even catch his breath, he heard the P.E. teacher's voice ring out.
"Latecomers, run two laps. On your own."
Sasaki Fuyumi had no choice but to start jogging around the track. The P.E. teacher didn't like tardiness and always punished those who were late. Still, the punishment wasn't too severe—just two laps. After all, if he made them run too much, the teacher would worry about something happening.
Seeing Sasaki Fuyumi obediently start running, the teacher nodded. He then called out a few athletic students and dismissed the rest to activities freely.
The teacher was leading the athletes towards the basketball court when another late student jogged over, slightly out of breath. "Sensei, I wasn't feeling well earlier."
The teacher asked her, "Can you run? If not, don't push yourself."
Sato Ruri knew the teacher's rules. She nodded. "I'm okay now. I'll go run my two laps."
Having informed the teacher, Sato Ruri headed to the track. Seeing a figure jogging slowly in the distance, she paused briefly, recognizing him as Sasaki Fuyumi, the one who had nearly bumped into her earlier.
"Why was he late? He had plenty of time to get here. Did he slack off somewhere?"
The thought crossed her mind, but Sato Ruri didn't dwell on it. She started running. As she ran, her gaze fell upon a solitary, aloof figure in the distance, and a flicker of disdain appeared in her eyes.
Sasaki Fuyumi noticed that Sato Ruri was also being punished with laps, running not far behind him. Feeling a bit guilty, he quickened his pace, finished his two laps hastily, and then walked over to the edge of the basketball court. He watched people play, all the while pondering how to carry out his mission.
Thinking about the task gave him a headache. Since he chose Route One, he had to use the video he recorded to threaten Sato Ruri into agreeing to a date with him.
This meant he not only had to confront Sato Ruri but also had to do some pretty scummy things.
He could already imagine the expression on Sato Ruri's face when he confronted her. But Sasaki Fuyumi had to do it; he didn't want to be a pervert. And although forcing a girl into a date was a bit scummy, he could exercise restraint during the date itself. He'd just treat it as the two of them going out for a stroll.
Thinking this, Sasaki Fuyumi turned his head to look into the distance. Sato Ruri and some girls from class were kicking a shuttlecock in the shade. She was laughing brightly, her charming appearance drawing the attention of many boys. But considering what she had done and her peculiar hobbies, Sasaki Fuyumi felt the scene seemed somewhat unreal.
After P.E. class, Sasaki Fuyumi returned to the classroom and sat down. His seat was at the back, giving him a good view of the classmates in front. Sato Ruri was seated near the middle in the adjacent row.
After exercising, the girl's profile was flushed. A few strands of hair clung to her slightly damp cheeks, adding a touch of vividness to her appearance.
Sasaki Fuyumi secretly observed her. Just then, a waft of fragrant wind passed by him, and the few people chatting animatedly at the front desk also fell silent, as if feeling uncomfortable.
Sasaki Fuyumi turned his head. A strand of hair brushed past the tip of his nose, carrying a faint, delicate scent. The girl with flowing long hair walked past him expressionlessly, exuding an aura that said "keep away."
Sasaki Fuyumi looked at her graceful back, his expression strange.
Egawa Mitsuki reached her seat. Just as she was about to sit down, her expression froze. She then turned her head to look at Sato Ruri, and immediately afterwards, her gaze shot towards Sasaki Fuyumi.
Sasaki Fuyumi had been observing Egawa Mitsuki. When he noticed her looking his way, he instinctively lowered his head, inwardly startled. Could Egawa Mitsuki have sensed that her backpack had been tampered with?
She only looked at him and Sato Ruri because they were the only ones late for P.E. class, right?
Frowning internally, Sasaki Fuyumi pretended to act naturally, lifting his head. But he found Egawa Mitsuki had already sat down, as if her earlier glance had been merely casual.
Sasaki Fuyumi carefully studied her expression. If a classmate had discovered something so embarrassing, an ordinary person couldn't possibly act as if nothing had happened. But right now, there wasn't a trace of shyness or guilt on Egawa Mitsuki's face. So, she hadn't realized her backpack was touched?
Sasaki Fuyumi felt slightly relieved.
...
Time quickly arrived at dismissal. After the bell rang, Sasaki Fuyumi got up and walked out of the classroom.
Egawa Mitsuki, who was packing her things, lifted her head and stared at his retreating back, her gaze turning cold.
Sasaki Fuyumi didn't notice this. He had hidden himself in a bathroom stall, staring at his phone with an indecisive expression. Finally, steeling himself, he clicked to send a friend request.
Their class had a group chat on a certain app, and almost everyone was in it. Naturally, Sato Ruri's contact was there too. Sasaki Fuyumi was applying to add her as a friend.
But normally, she wouldn't accept friend requests from classmates—some boys had already demonstrated that. So Sasaki Fuyumi added a message.
In the classroom, Sato Ruri was secretly watching Egawa Mitsuki. Seeing that she was completely unaware her backpack had been touched and just left the classroom with it, Sato Ruri breathed a sigh of relief.
Just as she was about to get up and head home, her phone suddenly vibrated. She took it out and glanced at it casually, her expression turning extremely vivid.
"I saw everything at noon."
Sato Ruri stared intently at the phone screen. She could see the friend request came from the group chat, but since there was no note, she didn't know who it was specifically. But the moment she read those words, a face automatically surfaced in her mind.
Sato Ruri's expression flickered uncertainly. She quickly gritted her teeth and accepted the friend request.
"You're Sasaki Fuyumi, right? What do you mean by adding me and saying this?" Sato Ruri clung to a sliver of hope, feigning ignorance in her reply.
But in the next moment, Sasaki Fuyumi sent her a video.
Sato Ruri's heart trembled. She had a bad feeling. After checking that no one was around, she clicked play. When she saw herself in the video, her eyes filled with disbelief.
Her wrongdoing had been filmed! That guy had been hiding at the back door!
Despicable!
Sato Ruri felt both shame and embarrassment, along with intense panic and fear. Biting her lip, she typed, "What exactly are you after?"
Thinking about how he had video evidence of her misdeed made Sato Ruri extremely nervous.
"If you don't want anyone else to see this video, come to this address right now." The other party sent a location.
Sato Ruri's heart clenched. She stared at the message for a long moment, then finally typed back through gritted teeth, "My family's waiting for me to come home for dinner. What do you want?"
But her message was met with silence.
Sato Ruri sent several more messages in a row, but Sasaki Fuyumi didn't reply to a single one. Her expression gradually darkened.
"Ruri, what are you spacing out for? Time to go home." Suddenly, someone tapped her on the shoulder, a familiar voice sounding beside her.
Sato Ruri flinched. Recognizing her friend's voice, she turned and managed a weak smile. "You go ahead. I need to go somewhere first."
Her friend didn't ask why, just nodded and left the classroom.
The classroom was now empty. Sato Ruri got up, walked to the window, and gazed towards a certain direction outside, her eyes filled with unease.
The other party clearly had bad intentions, calling her for a meeting. Sato Ruri wanted to refuse outright, but whenever she remembered his threat, the courage she just mustered instantly deflated like a punctured balloon.