The person who likes me is a yandere.

"Ah Hong, you're wavering quite a bit?"

"I feel perfectly calm. Touch my heart. It's perfectly normal, it doesn't even beat."

...That person is already dead.

"Ah Hong is sweating a lot... Are you hot?"

"It's very, very cool. Even the sweat is cold, isn't it?"

Shiratori's slender fingers brushed across his neck as if to caress Benimaru.

"...You're sweating...I mean, I...I can tell."

"What can you tell?"

"In my opinion... Ah Hong, you... are hiding something from me."

Shiratori spoke these words with a smile on her face, haltingly... Even as an observer, I couldn't help but feel a chill run down my spine. I learned that a girl's smile can both capture a boy's heart and freeze it in place.

"Hidden from you? No, no, I didn't."

A man who is excessively panicked is truly a pitiful sight.

Shiratori's smile was as alluring as a blade as she softly called out, "Asuna-san."

"Shiratori-kun, wait a little longer, the person with the plaster cast. After filtering through eight more people, I'll be able to find the culprit."

Without realizing it, the number of suspects grew to eight? ...The process by which she narrowed down the suspects to eight people is truly intriguing.

"I won't trouble you with the affair investigation... because I'm investigating it myself."

Even Miss Hyun-sook, who is in the same school year, undergoes such a dramatic transformation when she falls in love. Shiratori-kun's pupils dilate to the point of being almost hollow... It's terrifying.

"Come on, Ah Hong, I won't be angry. Tell me honestly... what are you hiding from me?"

Shiratori-san must be angry. In fact, she already is.

All the boys present thought so, but Benimaru was innocent.

"Actually, this is the last thing I want Xiaobai to know... but it seems I can't hide it anymore."

Hongwan took a small paper bag out of her schoolbag.

He handed the item, which appeared to be a gift, to Shiratori.

"……What's this?"

"It should be... a birthday present, right?"

"A birthday present? Whose is it? My birthday was three months ago!"

"That's right, Xiaobai's birthday was 86 days ago today. And my birthday is 86 days from today... which means today is exactly the midpoint between Xiaobai's and my birthdays."

"what?"

"So, if we really had to name it... how about 'Midterm Gift for the Two of Us' Birthdays'?"

……

A mid-term birthday gift for the two of them. No wonder they're known as a loving couple; they actually received such a gift.

"...Ah Hong, can I open it?"

"Yes, of course."

Shiratori unpacked the package, and inside the small box was...

Wow, it's so beautiful.

A ring. Shiratori immediately slipped the ring onto her ring finger.

"It seems the size is fine... Even if I saved up all my allowance, I could only afford this kind of silver ring. I'll get you a better ring next time."

"...I'm so happy...Oh, is it because you're short of money that you've been refusing to go on dates with me lately, all to buy this ring?"

"Yeah, I'm so useless, I'm sorry."

"Really, Ah Hong is such an idiot."

"But you're really going too far, actually suspecting me of being a womanizer. My heart only belongs to Xiaobai."

"Sorry, I'm such a jealous girl, hehe."

"It's okay, even Xiaobai's jealousy is cute."

The two were deeply in love. Ignoring their classmates, they started flirting and teasing each other. Someone please turn off the romantic background music.

"Actually, there's something else I'm keeping from Xiaobai... I have something to give you. I'm so sorry about earlier."

Benimaru once again took something out of her bag.

—Huh?

I was extremely surprised.

That's a gesture of posing with money, no, it should be described as a plaster cast hand making an OK sign.

"That's mine... why is it in Ah Hong's hands?"

"Although I wanted to give her a ring, I didn't know Xiaobai's size, so I used a plaster cast to investigate... Although I wanted to return it immediately, I didn't expect to need a plaster cast in today's class... So don't worry. No pervert has a crush on Xiaobai."

The case of the missing plaster cast hand was resolved in a way that surprised everyone.

"Everyone, that's it. I'm so sorry for causing such a commotion. Let's paint the plaster cast now."

Hongwan bowed her head and apologized to her classmates.

The desire to give a ring to one's lover sparked the incident. There were no bad people involved. Everyone gazed warmly at the happy couple in red and white.

As the cloying sweetness filled the air, only one person remained oblivious to the surrounding sounds. The beautiful girl, engrossed in her deductions, shouted:

"Alright, we've narrowed down the suspects to three! We'll be able to resolve this in a minute."

Which unlucky, introverted, and innocent guy was suspected? I really care about the names of these three people.

Shiratori, her usual gentle and virtuous demeanor completely transformed, answered softly:

"Asuna-san, the case is closed."

"Huh? The trap in the secret room has been broken?"

That's not that kind of case at all, okay? That's amazing concentration. The only person in this classroom who doesn't know the culprit's name is Asami... oh, and the teacher, focused on throwing clay.

"The person who took away the plaster cast was Ah Hong."

"Benimaru-kun was... framed as a criminal?"

There was no framing, there was no framing.

"I see. Because Benimaru loves Shiratori so much that she can't go home with him, she holds his plaster cast hand and goes home together. It's just like a case that happens when lovers are deeply in love."

My new book, "My Girlfriend Can't Be Hatsune Miku," is coming soon!

Chapter Sixteen has been discovered.

The detective actually started speculating about a motive.

It's common knowledge in our class that the seemingly icy beauty Asuna is actually a mediocre detective.

The boy who fell in love with Asuna on her very first day at school found out I was Asuna's ex-boyfriend and impulsively brandished a weapon at me... I didn't encounter such an outrageous misfortune—I was seriously on guard against it—and safely waited until school was over.

A few classmates remained in the classroom. I couldn't talk to Asuna unless we were alone together, so I spent twenty minutes in the library before returning to the classroom after school.

The classroom was empty.

Asuna-san hasn't arrived yet.

Asuna, the transfer student, is extremely popular. There are probably countless people, both male and female, who want to go home with her.

Could she refuse these invitations to come here?

No, she doesn't seem like the type to break promises.

Just then, an unpleasant thought flashed through my mind.

Is it dangerous for me to remain alone in the classroom?

If someone who doesn't like me, Asuna's ex-boyfriend—and Asuna even hopes to rekindle their relationship—were to appear here, they'd want to give me a good beating for being left alone in the classroom after school...

...That's possible.

If I were to live my usual unlucky life, nothing would surprise me. Being severely punished would be considered lucky. The worst that could happen is being half-dead—no, losing my life.

"We have no choice but to retreat before we are attacked by wild animals."

As I muttered this to myself...

"Who's the beast?" a voice came from the classroom entrance.

...It's Asuna-san.

"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting. A lot of girls asked me to walk home with them... so I invited everyone to walk home together. There were so many people that it felt like we were leaving school together. I'm so grateful for the warm welcome I received just because I'm a transfer student."

If it were such a beautiful girl, even if she wasn't a transfer student but from another school, everyone would still want to treat her warmly. However, in that situation, there wouldn't be much interaction between them.

"Asuna-san's invitation startled me. Because I really wanted to talk to you alone, this was a huge help—"

Asuna's expression made it impossible for me to finish my sentence.

She seemed to be imitating a pufferfish, her cheeks puffing out.

"A-Asuna-san?"

"........."

Was I ignored?

"Um, Asuna-san?"

"...Don't be so polite. If you're going to be so formal, I won't talk to you anymore."

Asuna, pouting as she spoke, made another pufferfish face.

Even when a so-called beautiful girl pouts in anger, her angelic cuteness remains undiminished. No, not at all. The combination of her naturally mature and dignified appearance with an expression that reveals childlike emotions is tantamount to transforming her delicate features into a devilishly endearing expression. And male high school students, by design, are inherently inclined to stare blankly at girls who possess a devilishly endearing quality.