The person who likes me is a yandere.

Bright, beautiful, and refreshing mandarin oranges. But the mandarin oranges I own, once peeled, contain only black, poisonous juice inside.

“I can understand why you reprimanded her so harshly, but you should still consider her condition.”

I continued saying this. *Smack!* I continued to smear her.

I am truly despicable for using hypocrisy as a treasure.

I utterly despise those who treat trivial remarks as fashionable while secretly and incessantly touting their supposed incorruptibility. I loathe, loathe, and utterly despise them.

This guy's very existence is a mistake. He deserves to die. Starve, drown, or burn.

You can't express anything with words that have no substance.

This is not an emotion that can be simply expressed with those incoherent sentences.

"Whether she cried or not, breaking school rules is breaking school rules. There is no reason to allow only her to make a mistake."

When I asked her last time why she was so serious, she replied that letting those who make mistakes go unpunished is a betrayal of everyone who follows the rules.

But that—

"Tohka-san."

I have a dark desire to pour the "poison" that has been brewing in my heart onto her, and to try to destroy something that she values ​​deeply.

I stared into her beautiful eyes.

"Tohka, just because you're right, does that give you the right to criticize others at will?"

"That is……"

"Tohka, just because you're right, does that give you the right to easily make others cry?"

"........."

"Tohka, does being right give you the right to hurt others at will?"

“A brief statement…”

"Tohka, if someone does something wrong, does that mean they deserve all the blame? Even if they cry, it doesn't mean they can be forgiven? And that they deserve to get hurt?"

"........."

"Tohka-san, then, aren't you completely without fault?"

No one can confront others head-on like Tohka. It's not wrong to say the right thing correctly.

There must be many people like me who are bad at communicating with others and choose to escape. Such people are weak, terrible, and beyond redemption.

But do you think we can harm you just because of that? Attacking with verbal bullets cloaked in good intentions is the specialty of cowards. Only cowards can utter such words to those who champion justice.

Tohka remained silent, her head bowed as she stared at the floor.

I did feel a sense of pleasure after hurting her. It's a pleasure that only comes from hurting others. I couldn't help but linger in the afterglow, unable to pull myself away.

Tohka quickly left the classroom, knocking over several tables and chairs along the way.

Without any particular feeling, my relationship with her ended.

She didn't go back to the classroom that day.

Chapter Thirty-Eight seems a little unfamiliar

As October arrived, the weather suddenly turned cool, as if the previous heat was just a dream.

Perhaps it was because he personally experienced the wonder of the changing seasons that he had the illusion that Tohka hadn't appeared in the classroom for a long time.

She never came to school again after that day. The only reason she ever gave for leaving school, according to Ms. Yamada, was "feeling unwell."

"There's nothing we can do since the accident happened," everyone used this ambiguous reason to numb themselves, and no one touched anything related to her anymore.

Because of that incident, my classmates finally changed their opinion of me.

She stood up to protect the girl she was criticizing; that's about the extent of her actions.

This should be quite an interesting thing for someone who has always been afraid of Tohka.

I received a thank-you note from a female representative: "A boyfriend who scolds his girlfriend is a good boyfriend."

Especially within Tang Jing's small group, my evaluation seemed to have improved rapidly.

She often strikes up conversations with me now. For example, she'll invite me to hang out after school.

At first, I found it quite annoying, but after going there, I found it quite interesting.

Also, her hair still hasn't been dyed back. Kato Megumi stared at her with a frightening look several times.

But she ignored them all.

My school life is a little more lively than before.

"call……"

Are you tired?

During the break, Aki Tomoya, who was sitting in front of me, suddenly looked at me with a surprised expression.

I lowered my head, looking utterly exhausted, and answered in a muffled voice.

"Yeah, I've been a bit sleep-deprived lately..."

"Shall we go to the infirmary?"

"...That's true, but should I go or not? Well, going is not an option, and not going is also an option."

I took out my phone and checked it. No calls. I just drifted through my daily routine like that.

"Qianyu, do you have time after school?"

Mr. Tang invited me based on the premise that I had plenty of free time. He seemed to take it for granted that I was the one receiving his favor.

I couldn't help but smile wryly.

"Um, Ito suggested we all go to karaoke together. Can Asahi come too?"

"Karaoke—it's embarrassing to sing in front of everyone."

“He’s here, he’s here—he sings so well but he’s still being humble.”

"Hehe, because humility is a virtue."

I suddenly felt disheartened by what I had said casually.

If the entertainment program I'm watching is too boring, in order not to lose interest halfway through, I will naturally laugh when a prompt or symbol appears on the screen.

It wasn't funny at all, but I laughed as if by some nerve reflex. That's how I laugh now too.

"Let's go home together after school today."

"Yes, I'll go if I can."

"We can definitely go, right?"

"Yeah, I guess so."

I'm no longer working as a disciplinary committee member, so I'm actually quite free after school.

I joined in a rather strange way back then, so no one can criticize me for anything now.

In fact, my only remaining option was to go with my classmates, but I still didn't want to agree immediately.

Class, break, class, break, class, break.

The boring chain of events was finally broken during the final class meeting before school ended.

"Okay, that's all for today. Ah, Asahi-kun, could you come to the student guidance office after school?"

"what?"

"Then please. (It's decided then, lol)"

After saying that, Ms. Yamada left the classroom with her usual light steps.

For some reason, everyone's eyes were drawn to me, but then immediately looked away.

The room is for guiding student behavior, hence the name "Student Guidance Room." Does this mean I'll also receive guidance here?

The reason is obvious, even without asking.

"Excuse me..."

I greeted them timidly and stepped into the guidance room. I believe my deliberately lowered voice will also serve as my shield.

The room contained only a long table and a few stools, making it feel quite empty.

Mr. Yamada and Ms. Kato are already here. It's only natural that the former is here, but I find it strange that the latter is here.

"Oh, you're here! Please have a seat."

"Ok."

The teacher, as usual, urged me to sit down. The long table was about three meters wide, and I was facing the two of them across the table.

Compared to Mr. Kida, who looked relaxed with his hands resting on the brown table, Ms. Miyai next to him had a serious expression, and the two were quite contradictory.

"Are you nervous?"

"No, I'm just lamenting that I've become so bad that I'd be called to the student guidance office."

"Hey—, is there something wrong with your opinion? This room will also be used when discussing school admissions."

"But you didn't come here today to talk to me about further education, did you?"

"Hoo hoo, that's true."

Despite my surprise attack, the teacher's rhythm remained intact.

The atmosphere at the scene was just like a packed hospital waiting room. At first glance, everything seemed fine, but behind the scenes, there were all sorts of subtle movements.

Do you know why I called you here today?

"Is it because of Tohka?"

"Yes, that's a good answer."

Hearing her firm denial, I felt a tightness in my chest.