"Kikyo!?"
Ema Sakuraba's eyes widened, filled with wavering emotion.
Her good Friend, Kikyo, why was she attacking her!
Could it be that this so-called friendship was actually fake?
So I am still all alone.
Why does everyone hate me for no reason...
The corners of Ema Sakuraba's pink eyes grew moist, and her gaze turned slightly hollow.
"Kushida, Ema-san might not necessarily be lying."
Xia You knew Ema Sakuraba's past; she had been victimized by the naturally evil Great Witch and indeed had no friends. Unable to stand by while Kushida Kikyo bullied a good child, he spoke out justly:
"It's possible that Ema-san has a past she's unwilling to reveal. Does having a cute face mean one must have friends?"
"I consider myself quite handsome, yet I don't have friends either. What about you, Yukino?"
Kushida Kikyo suddenly looked at Xia You, her eyes widening slightly as she began to feel angry:
Argh, Rurikawa Natsuyu, you're actually helping Ema instead of me!
Yukinoshita Yukino's expression stiffened, but she said calmly and seriously, "First of all, please define to what extent one is considered a Friend."
Xia You leaned back tactically, looking at her from the corner of his eye.
Such a classic line.
Only people without friends would talk in such a roundabout way.
Those with friends only need to answer with a single "Yes."
Right, friendless Hiranon?
Yukinoshita Yukino sensed Xia You's seemingly offensive gaze. She narrowed her eyes slightly, brushed back her long hair, and wore a smile, though her words were sharp:
"I know I'm cute, but I'd ask Mr. Central Air Conditioning to stop staring at me. I only need to be with those I'm close to; I don't care about my relationship with others."
Yukinoshita Yukino, who had no friends, had been poked in her weak spot by the AoE and began to hiss like a cat.
Xia You smiled back. "Fine, I get it. You can't make friends."
Yukinoshita Yukino smiled as well. "I simply have no need for those hypocritical friends."
"Alright, alright."
Kiana quickly spoke up to interrupt the quarrel, speaking with kindness toward Ema Sakuraba, "I've been traveling everywhere these past few years. Although I've met people I could talk to, we always ended up parting ways. I suppose that counts as having no friends."
Kushida Kikyo found it hard to believe:
Even if a person is stupid, is it possible to not have a single friend by age fourteen?
And four of them showed up all at once!
That's 80% of the people here!
"Everyone..."
Ema Sakuraba's hollow pink eyes trembled as the light returned to them, her eyes brimming with tears:
"Thank you, Rurikawa-kun. Thank you everyone for comforting me."
"I... actually..."
Ema Sakuraba lowered her head, clutching the edges of her tights, her fingers fidgeting constantly as she explained softly:
"Since that day, for some reason, everyone has hated me. Even Hiro-chan, my best Friend who I grew up with, became incredibly cold to me after that day."
"No one would be my Friend. They used compasses to scratch my desk, tied me up with ropes, poured buckets of water over my head while laughing mockingly..."
"Kushida-san, I really didn't lie to you. I'm really not a bad girl. Please don't hate me."
Recalling her painful past, Ema Sakuraba looked as if she were about to burst into tears, making one feel immense pity for her.
"They went too far!"
Kiana brandished her fist. "Ema, if anyone tries to bully you again, I'll definitely help you drive them away!"
Yukinoshita Yukino watched Ema Sakuraba for a moment before saying coldly:
"Humans are weak and ugly inside, easily driven by envy to harm others. That is where the error of society lies. Someone as excellent as myself has also experienced having my talents envied by the weak."
"Ema-san, you are not wrong; they are. You simply do not yet possess the power to change this world."
Xia You looked askance:
I get that you're a Literary Girl, but your words of comfort are so roundabout. What a twisted personality.
Xia You kept it simple. He took the direct approach, smiling at Ema Sakuraba and saying softly:
"I'll be your Friend, Ema. If anyone dares to bully you in the future, tell me. I'll protect you."
Deeply moved by the consecutive comfort from the three of them, Ema Sakuraba clenched her small fists and nodded vigorously with a smile. "Mm! We are friends!"
Ema... Sakuraba...!
Kushida Kikyo gnashed her teeth inwardly. Seeing Ema Sakuraba playing the pity card and receiving concern from Xia You and the others—stealing her status in an instant—made her incredibly angry.
However, Kushida Kikyo gave up on the idea of finding more ways to attack Ema Sakuraba.
Hmph, I admit you're pitiful.
But in the future, if I need to suppress you, I still will.
Ema Sakuraba, the person who becomes good friends with everyone first, the most important person in everyone's hearts, will definitely be me.
You can only be second.
As long as you're sensible enough, I might guarantee you won't be bullied.
While Kushida Kikyo was still fuming in her head, her body acted first. She pressed her hands together, ran in front of Ema Sakuraba, and bowed deeply:
"So sorry, so sorry! It was my fault for making Ema remember such unhappy things."
"We're all your friends! Those things are in the past now, so look forward!"
Ema Sakuraba was moved. "Kikyo-san..."
Kikyo must have been unintentional just now.
Yes, that's right. How could Kikyo have bad intentions?
Ema Sakuraba smiled through her tears. "Mm, we're all friends!"
Finally, I'm not alone anymore. I have friends!
Everyone is a good person.
But if I had to say who I want to be friends with most...
Ema Sakuraba's misty pink eyes quietly glanced at the gentle-faced Xia You beside her.
Rurikawa-kun had reliably comforted her when she was terrified by the corpse, helping her stop feeling afraid.
He had also quickly taken control of the situation, leading everyone to cooperate and start introductions so they could get to know each other.
And just now, he promised to protect her.
He really is gentle and reliable, just like how Hiro used to be—always protecting me, always accepting me...
Ema Sakuraba hoped to become Xia You's best Friend, but due to the barrier between boys and girls, she hid her little thoughts deep in her heart, shyly withdrawing her gaze and not daring to look more.
Kiana looked at Xia You and said frankly, "I'll introduce myself next. Since you're the only boy, you can do the finale."
Xia You casually corrected her, "The last act is the grand finale. The 'finale' is actually the second to last."
Kiana blinked her large sky-blue eyes. The knowledge went in one ear and out the other; she didn't care.
She had already decided that aside from Kushida Kikyo, everyone was a good person. Most of her initial wariness had vanished. She cleared her throat, puffed out her chest boastfully, and began:
"This Young Lady is named Kiana Kaslana. I haven't attended school before, but I'm about to go to Nagazora City to become a student at Chiba Academy."
"Mm~ Ema just shared her secret. In exchange, I'll share a bit more too; that's only fair."
"The mysterious voice in my head tricked me by saying I could find my stinky old man here, so I agreed. Turns out it lied to me."
"Curse it! This Young Lady already guessed it was a liar."
So it's Kiana from the period before she joined Chiba Academy.
Xia You realized, then facepalmed speechlessly:
Kiana guessed the suspicious voice was a liar but still agreed to it, choosing "Yes" just like Kushida Kikyo.
Doesn't that make her look even more like an idiot?
Kiana, go sit at the same table as Kushida Kikyo.