"What do you mean?"
Hikigaya immediately picked up on something strange in Sakura's words.
What did she mean by "not causing trouble"?
Sakura looked like she was about to cry, guilt all over her face.
"It's all my fault. I shouldn't have brought this camera with me… I'm really sorry. I-I can't let you get in trouble because of me! This is all my fault!"
"Wait, Sakura, calm down. Tell me everything from the beginning."
Hikigaya quickly tried to comfort the girl.
Then, from Sakura's fragmented words, he finally pieced together the truth.
"You're saying that someone sent you an anonymous message saying, 'Because of this camera, I got into trouble,' and that's why you agreed to be a witness for this hearing?"
Hikigaya frowned.
Sakura nodded and showed him the message. The content was simple—it implied that the camera in her hands had put Hikigaya in danger of being targeted by Class C. If she wanted to help him, she had to testify as a witness in Sudou's hearing.
Coincidentally, Sakura had seen everything that happened that night when Hikigaya dealt with Ryuen. She mistakenly thought Class C was trying to take revenge on him.
Her concern made her panic.
Then, Ayanokouji visited her in Horikita's name, asking her to help a classmate. In her flustered state, she agreed without thinking it through.
"I-I'm sorry," Sakura said remorsefully. "I didn't think too much at the time… I was worried that you might really be in trouble, so… so…"
Hikigaya picked up the camera and finally understood the problem. This was the camera he had given Sakura—it was a luxury item he had bought at the Keyaki Mall shopping center for 300,000 private points.
At the time, he hadn't thought much about it. It wasn't like he could return it within seven days, so instead of letting it gather dust, he had given it to Sakura, thinking at least it wouldn't go to waste. But he never imagined it would end up causing her trouble.
After all, most students couldn't afford such an expensive camera, especially not Class D, which had lost all their class points in the first month. That made the camera a perfect excuse for their enemies to target Sakura.
And since hardly anyone could afford it, it wouldn't take much effort to dig up clues at the mall about who had bought it.
"Sakura, this isn't your fault—it's mine."
Hikigaya reassured her while blaming himself for his carelessness.
At the same time, he was surprised that Ayanokouji had managed to pick up on such a tiny clue from Sakura and use it to set a trap.
Hikigaya picked up the camera and walked over to her, placing it back in her hands.
She looked up at him, worried. "B-but…"
"Don't worry. It's fine. You don't have to stress about the points or where the camera came from."
He calmly explained, "The main issue was my oversight. I should've explained things to you clearly back then. In any case, there's no need to be so on edge about this. And if anyone asks where the camera came from, just tell them the truth—that I gave it to you."
"I'd like to see who has the guts to question me about it."
His eyes turned cold, with a faint glint of hostility.
Hikigaya hadn't wanted to drag Sakura into this mess, but in the end, it was his fault that she got caught up in it. The thought made him clench his fists tightly.
"U-um, Hikigaya-kun… isn't this a little too close?"
Sakura's face turned bright red, and she stammered as if she could barely breathe.
Her words snapped him back to reality—he suddenly realized that there was barely a fist's distance between them. It was an undeniably close and intimate position. Hikigaya quickly stepped back and apologized.
Sakura let out a small breath, relieved, but at the same time, she felt a strange sense of disappointment.
"U-um, Hikigaya-kun… we're friends now, right?"
"Hm? We've always been friends."
"S-so… could you, um, like Hiyori… I mean, um…"
Sakura's voice grew quieter and quieter until Hikigaya could barely make out what she was saying.
"I-I mean… can you… c-call me Airi? I-it's okay if you do!"
She stammered and gasped, struggling to get the words out. It took a moment, but Hikigaya finally understood what she meant.
"You want me to call you Airi, like how I call Hiyori by her name?"
Sakura flinched at the sound of her name. Her face turned as red as an apple, and she couldn't even look him in the eye. All she could do was give a stiff nod.
"Sa, Airi, are you okay? Your face is so red! But the air conditioning is on!"
Hikigaya had long noticed that Sakura blushed easily, so he was used to it. But this time, her face looked completely different—it was as red as dripping blood!
He couldn't help but think about how Sakura would sometimes shiver. Did she actually have some kind of illness?
...
After leaving Sakura's room, Hikigaya soon received an "OK" message from Kushida. A cold expression flashed across his face.
The next day at school, after entering the classroom, Hikigaya noticed that Horikita had been staring at him.
"Can we talk for a bit during the break?"
Horikita suddenly spoke.
Hikigaya thought for a moment. There was still enough time, so he nodded.
During the fifteen-minute break, Hikigaya and Horikita went to a gazebo in the courtyard.
"About Sakura... I'm sorry. It was Ayanokouji who—"
Before she could finish, Hikigaya raised his hand to cut her off.
"If that's all you wanted to say, then there's no need. I can judge for myself whose idea it was."
Hearing this, Horikita didn't say anything else and instead shifted the conversation to the current situation.
"Hikigaya, since Sakura has already been dragged into this, that gives us an even stronger reason not to lose. Otherwise, her sacrifice would be meaningless."
"I get what you're saying."
Hikigaya's expression remained unchanged.
"We've already put in so much effort and paid such a high price. If all we can do is lessen the suspension penalty, even I wouldn't be satisfied. So you don't need to explain."
Just as Horikita was about to breathe a sigh of relief, she suddenly heard Hikigaya continue.
"But if you think just being unwilling to accept defeat is enough to change the outcome, then I suggest you stop now. That would be the better choice."
---
一 一 一 一 一
You can read 30 advanced chapters on
pat reon.com/GMadman
一 一 一 一 一