Chapter 223: They're Fighting

Click— Clack—

"It won't open from the inside." Gazing at the white door that remained utterly unmoved before him, Fuyuji Mikage slapped his palm against it a couple of times. Expressionlessly, he read aloud in a flat tone. "What a sturdy door this is..."

The RFID access control system, also known as a contactless smart door lock, normally allows users to unlock the door by carrying a sensor card and verifying their identity.

Under normal circumstances, when inside the room, one can simply twist the door handle to open the door and exit.

"What the hell are you getting all sentimental about?!"

"Fuyuji-kun, do you need me to help wash out your brain?"

On the matter of disdaining Fuyuji, the two girls were, at this moment, in rare and remarkable unison. Standing on either side, both shot him an exasperated sidelong glare in perfect synchronization.

"Fine." Fuyuji shrugged. "In that case—we can only slip the key card through the gap under the door and have someone outside try to open it. Of course, the premise of this plan is..."

He turned his head back and cast a pitying glance at Horikita Suzune, whose face was already coated in frost.

Everything was conveyed without words...

As though grasping Fuyuji's meaning, Horikita's expression cycled through shades of blue and white. Lowering her head, she stared at the screen of her phone and spoke with stubborn defiance.

"Sorry to disappoint you. I also have—"

She had just been about to dial and call her brother for help when, in the very next second, she abruptly shut her mouth.

If the door truly couldn't be opened—if her brother found out that this guy was in her room, and that there was still a faint red mark on her face...

[Suzune, you're still only in your first year of high school. You still have two full years of high school ahead of you. There's no need to rush into that kind of thing.]

Nn! No!

Her cheeks burning hot, Horikita violently shook her head a couple of times. Her jet-black hair swayed and rippled behind her.

"Heh..."

Having witnessed the entire process of Horikita going from confidence to surrender, Kushida Kikyo let out a merciless scoff.

"A certain woman who's absolutely convinced she can accomplish everything—actually stumped by such a trifling matter. As expected, utterly useless. I'll handle it. The very thought of sharing the same air as you in this space—I can't bear it for even a single second longer..."

With that, Kushida pulled her own phone from her bag and rapidly tapped at the screen.

"Kushida-san, I'm not—"

"Shut up!"

The phone rang a few times before connecting. Horikita reluctantly shut her mouth.

"Good afternoon, Mii-chan~ Are you free right now?" Kushida donned her sweet smile.

"Ah, it's like this. I've run into a bit of a troublesome situation. Could you come over to Room 1201? It's a little embarrassing to say—I'm trapped."

"Yes. Oh~ You mean that? It is indeed Horikita-san's room. She called me over to discuss the special exam, and it seems the door lock is broken."

"Mm, mm. Alright. Thank you."

...

Beside her, Horikita stood rooted in place, having witnessed Kushida demonstrate what was known as the art of social maneuvering.

Lowering the phone from her ear, Kushida lifted her refined chin slightly and cast a provocative glance at Horikita.

"After all... I'm not like certain people..."

"On that matter." Horikita inclined her chin lightly and folded her arms, speaking with cool indifference. "I admit that Kushida-san is the more capable one."

"Horikita-san—that tone of yours—are you looking down on me?"

"I meant no such thing." Horikita furrowed her brow. "I was openly and frankly acknowledging your ability."

"Acknowledging my ability." Kushida sneered coldly. "How truly condescending of you..."

Horikita pressed a hand to her forehead, as though utterly baffled by Kushida's unreasonable, pestering behavior. "Kushida-san, I am merely stating facts."

"There it is again."

Just as the two were locked in their endless dispute and the atmosphere on the scene was growing increasingly heated, Fuyuji swiftly inserted himself between them, forcibly cutting off their spark-filled stare-down.

"Alright, alright. Stop arguing for now. That Wang-san will be here soon. This kind of behavior isn't good for class unity."

As expected—Class D's defining trait really was infighting, wasn't it? Just like Class C's violence and Class B's unity—all essential flavors of the first-year class competition that simply had to be sampled.

Class A's mastermind was truly wearing himself out worrying over Class D's class harmony.

The two of them shut their mouths in unspoken unison and turned their heads away with tacit understanding.

"Hmph!" x2

Ten minutes later, Kushida's friend arrived. Fuyuji quietly made his way toward the bathroom door. If they were putting on a show, they had to go all the way.

"Mii-chan, can you see it?" Kushida bent down and slipped the key card through the gap under the door. Her pale yellow dress traced the elegant curve of her hips.

"Mm... hold on. Alright, got it."

"That's good."

A few seconds later, several successive beeps from the door lock rang out. Then came the sound of the door handle being twisted several more times. Yet the door still refused to open.

"Eh? That's strange. Why won't it open?"

A faintly puzzled voice drifted through the gap in the door and into the room. The hearts of both people present simultaneously lurched. An ominous premonition surged up within both of them at the very same moment.

Over the next few minutes, the Class D Miss Wang outside tried several more times. Yet the room door, as though welded shut, showed absolutely no response whatsoever.

Left with no other choice, Kushida could only ask the other party to leave first, explaining that she would resolve it herself and requesting that the other party not tell anyone else.

Gradually, an oppressive atmosphere spread throughout the room.

After pondering for a moment, Horikita pulled out her phone with a grim expression. "At this point—we can only call the school's facilities management staff."

"How truly rare." Kushida forced a strained smile. "For us to actually agree on something."

Gazing silently at her phone for a moment, Horikita extended her fair hand and indifferently offered it out.

The smile on Kushida's face froze for an instant. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Didn't Kushida-san say she was better at communication?" Horikita shot a cold glare at Fuyuji—who had already sat down and given up entirely. "Surely you're not going to make this guy do it? This is the girls' dormitory."

"No need to tell me what to do. And don't order me around."

Kushida let out a coquettish huff. Snatching Horikita's phone from her hand, she resolutely dialed the number.

Five minutes later.

Around the low table by the door, three people once again sat gathered. Regrettably—compared to the confident, spirited demeanor the two had displayed during their earlier conversation—the expressions on both young ladies' faces at this moment were as grim as though they'd just swallowed a dead mosquito raw.

"Um... I'm sorry. I don't think I quite caught that just now. You're saying the staff member responsible for unlocking doors has already gotten off work early today?"

"Hontou ni sumimasen. His wife went into labor today. He left over an hour ago. Tomorrow, without fail, we will send someone at the earliest possible moment to replace it for you."

"N-no, it's fine. This kind of thing—it's perfectly understandable..."

"Then," a cautious voice came from the other end of the line, "is there anything else I can help you with?"

"No. Nothing else."

Kushida could no longer even maintain her usual, exceedingly polite, sweet honorifics. Lowering her head, she slumped powerlessly against the table.

"Then I wish you a pleasant day. Goodbye."

The phone snapped off with a sharp click. The busy tone—du, du, du—echoed throughout the deathly silent room.

The sunlight had lost its earlier brilliance. The pale curtains hung still and motionless against the corner of the wall, no longer able to lift themselves.

The silence, like sticky syrup, smothered the entire space.

Horikita and Kushida stood rigidly in place. After a brief moment of blank bewilderment, their gazes inevitably collided.

After a moment of silence...

"Tonight—how about a temporary truce?" Horikita was the first to propose a suggestion. "At most, this will be resolved by tomorrow."

"Heh..."

Kushida was the first to let out an undisguised, disgusted nasal huff. In a few strides, she walked to the wall furthest from Horikita. Folding her arms, she slid down against the wall and sat on the floor. Her two legs, wrapped in white knee-high socks, parted slightly—losing just a touch of the carefully maintained ladylike poise she usually upheld.

"Do you really think that's possible? What awful luck. To actually be trapped together with the person I detest most."

"Didn't we also spend several days together on the uninhabited island?"

"In truth—I was so disgusted those few days I nearly threw up." Kushida made no attempt to conceal her malice.

Gazing coldly at Kushida's posture of having completely abandoned all pretense, Horikita shook her head lightly. "Forget it. With that attitude of refusing all communication, any further attempt at dialogue is meaningless. Let's leave it at that."

With that, she rose and walked over to her desk, seating herself in the chair. Pulling a thick stack of test papers from the drawer, she lowered her head and began writing.

"Easy for you to say. Isn't that exactly how you treat others normally? How come you've forgotten all about it now?" The moment this topic came up, Kushida's anger surged uncontrollably. Back then, she had pressed her warm face against a cold backside, trailing after Horikita without receiving any response. Now that she no longer wanted anything to do with this bitch—now, on the contrary, Horikita was the one proactively engaging.

This tone—so not cooperating was wrong?

You think you're so noble? You think you're so impressive?!

"That's because you've always harbored hostility toward me." Horikita didn't even raise her head, continuing to focus on the test papers in her hands. "Still—Kushida-san in this state is far more pleasing to the eye than that hypocritical, smiling face you usually wear."

"Ha?" Kushida abruptly shot to her feet. Her gaze stabbed toward Horikita. "That's still better than your perpetually condescending, perpetually deadpan expression, Horikita. Just looking at it pisses me off! What gives you the right to always act like everyone should follow your orders?"

"I'm merely stating facts and the optimal solution. As for you, Kushida-san—always wearing a mask when interacting with others. Don't you ever get tired?" Having been incessantly berated by Kushida's aggressive tone, Horikita's cool, indifferent facade could no longer hold. She returned the favor in kind.

"Shut up!" Like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, Kushida abruptly strode over beside the desk. "What right do you have to judge me?! You self-righteous, conceited woman who doesn't even understand basic human interaction—you've been this way since middle school. Always alone. Always looking at others like they're something filthy!"

"Before—I felt I didn't need it. Solitude, at the very least, allows one to remain clear-headed." Horikita slowly rose and stared directly into Kushida's eyes. "Now—I feel there's a need to selectively interact with others. Kushida-san—you are one of those people."

"What do you know?!" Kushida's voice suddenly spiked. "All you do is stand on your moral high ground and point fingers! Efficiency? Optimal solutions? You talk as if you can solve every problem! Heh... If that were true, you wouldn't have been assigned to Class D either. Your brother is in Class A—the most outstanding Student Council President in history. You've truly brought shame upon your brother's name."

"What did you say?!" Horikita's expression instantly turned icy. "Kushida-san, my patience has its limits!"

"Then come at me! I've been putting up with you for far too long!"

Kushida's hand shot up with a sharp whoosh and went straight for Horikita's snow-white cheeks. Seizing hold in an instant, she pulled and stretched outward with all her might.

"From the very first day I laid eyes on you—I've wanted to do this!"

"Ah'll ghib you da shame in gind!"

Distorted, garbled syllables emerged from Horikita's mouth. She likewise extended both hands and seized Kushida's cheeks.

"Gettin' to shee dat ugly face of yours is already wirth it."

"Yours ain't any better!"

The two of them exchanged words back and forth. Their pace of speech grew faster and faster. Their voices grew louder and louder. Their strength grew greater and greater.

Years of pent-up resentment now poured forth like floodwaters through an open sluice—unrestrained, without disguise, without pleasantries, without logic. Only the most direct, most primal personal attacks.

Thud—!

The two of them—still locked in their stalemate, gripping each other's cheeks—crashed heavily onto the floor. The pencil case slid off the edge of the desk. Pens and rulers scattered everywhere.

Leveraging her advantage in strength, Horikita flipped over and pinned Kushida beneath her. One hand attempted to restrain Kushida's flailing, clawing wrists. Kushida, in turn, bent her knee and drove it forcefully toward Horikita's side. At the same time, with her not-yet-fully-restrained hand, she clawed viciously toward the other's fair, pale neck.

One second, Horikita was on top of Kushida. The very next second, Kushida had flipped her over and thrown her to the ground.

A few dozen seconds later—her loose lounge wear had been pulled down on one side during the struggle, revealing Horikita's snow-white shoulder. The strap of her white bra hung limply to the side. The black bow on Kushida's dress had long since vanished to who-knew-where. The hem of her skirt was bunched and tangled, revealing thighs that appeared all the more fair and tender beneath the sunlight.

Locked in their stalemate—the room echoed with the sound of their ragged breathing. Mingled together were panting breaths of fury and faint, sharp intakes of air from the sting of pain.

A thin wisp of steam rose from the center of the room. Fuyuji sat at the very middle of the table. Slowly, deliberately, he poured himself a cup of hot tea. Both hands cradled the cup with reverent devotion.

"Ah~" A sigh of bliss—so deep it seeped into his very bones—spilled from his throat.

Looking left and right at the two locked in their stalemate, Fuyuji tentatively opened his mouth.

"Two beautiful young ladies—calm your anger. How about a cup of hot tea first, before you continue?"

"Stay out of this!" x2

Two rebukes—thick with fury—shot toward him like arrows.

Horikita Suzune and Kushida Kikyo had, against all odds, displayed a startling synchronicity. Even the glares they shot toward him were identical.

"..."

Amidst the fierce clamor, he shook his head with considerable helplessness.

Silently, Fuyuji rose from his seat. Stepping around the two girls—now locked in inextricable combat and having completely disregarded his existence—he made his way to the small refrigerator in the corner of the room. Opening the refrigerator door, he deftly pulled out a popsicle, two tangerines, a bottle of juice. Then, rummaging through the kitchen cabinets, he even managed to find two bags of potato chips he had brought over last time, along with some other scattered snacks.

Mm... no cola, though. Suzune truly doesn't know how to enjoy life.

His arms full of goods, Fuyuji returned to his seat. Tearing open the packaging, one hand popsicle, one hand chips, the occasional gulp of juice, he calmly settled in to watch the show.

This melon—so big, so white...

Also—I love watching girls fight the most.

-----------------------------------------------------------

If you want to Support me, you can Read Extra Chapters on : [email protected]/Yuni_TL

50 [Power Stones] = Bonus Chapter!