I'm in a real religion, why are all the people who confess to me girls?

Ichinose's hand slowly moved downwards...

Hmm, there was no strange downward movement; I just followed Tianyin's shoulder and touched the muscles of her arm.

Just like that, Ichinose felt a burning sensation on her face and her heart pounding rapidly.

like……

Some people are even less able to sleep.

Ichinose covered her face. Even though she wasn't that kind of girl, she couldn't help but want to get closer to Amane whenever she was with her.

Perhaps, the Heavenly Sound possesses such magic...

Just as Ichinose was affectionately stroking Amane's hair, Amane snuggled affectionately against Ichinose, looking very happy.

Ichinose, who had been holding Amane tightly in her arms, drifted off to sleep.

This time, she dreamed of things from a very long time ago.

"Kneel down now! Apologize to the shop owner with me!"

"Mom, I..."

"Your Majesty!"

That was the first time I felt humiliated or ashamed.

He was ordered by his mother to bow and apologize to the supermarket owner in public.

If it were anyone else, they certainly wouldn't have obediently listened to their mother.

But Ichinose still knelt down.

because……

She was a thief.

Perhaps such a statement is a bit too extreme.

However, in the eyes of mothers at that time, the child they had raised with great care had committed theft, and was no different from a thief.

For countless days and nights, every time Ichinose dreamed of this place, he would suddenly wake up from his sleep.

But this time she didn't. However, Ichinose couldn't be happy no matter what, because if she couldn't wake up from the dream at this moment, this humiliating past would keep repeating in her dreams.

However, Ichinose had nothing to complain about. Ichinose had stolen the convenience store hair accessory to give to her sister as a birthday present.

But theft is theft, and no matter the reason, it cannot erase its criminal nature. Even Ichinose Honami herself was very clear about this, so even though she was unwilling, she still chose to kneel down with her mother.

Perhaps seeing the mother and daughter kneeling and begging for forgiveness, the shop assistant softened and didn't report Ichinose's theft; she remained the model student Ichinose Honami in everyone's eyes. But the deed didn't disappear.

In order to stop Ichinose from stealing, the mother, who was already struggling with two jobs, could only work even harder to improve the living conditions of Ichinose and her younger sister.

Every time I see my mother looking exhausted, Ichinose feels guilty deep down.

So she chose to come to Gaoyu, unlike those who came to this place with lofty ideals and dreams.

Ichinose chose to come to this school only to ease her mother's burden, but she didn't want others to see the 'weak Ichinose Honami'.

So she chose to lie.

He wove a dream with lies, making himself appear to be just like everyone else, hoping to graduate from Class A and receive recommendation letters for higher-level institutions—universities.

It's said that with that recommendation letter, you can get into any prestigious university!

Isn't that amazing?

However, Ichinose only wanted a good job opportunity, and even though she was at the top of her class, she had no intention of continuing her education.

Because she knew that even if her mother worked two jobs and only needed to support her younger sister for three years, she could imagine the immense pressure involved.

So for Ichinose, the most important thing isn't getting into university; she just wants to graduate! And if she could get a high-paying job, that would be even better.

If all else fails, she could work at a convenience store to help ease her mother's burden. But if it really comes to that...

Her body was also a bargaining chip.

That's right.

Her self-esteem vanished the moment she knelt in that humiliating moment.

She would do anything to make her family's life better. The reason she concealed the number of points she used to buy items that could help her advance in class was because she heard that these points could be exchanged for cash at a certain ratio upon graduation.

Doesn't it look a lot like a clown?

Despite being a leader trusted by everyone, Ichinose repeatedly exploits that trust for her own benefit.

Ichinose also wondered what he would do if he were exposed one day.

She'll probably repeat what she did back then. As long as she's shameless enough, kneeling down in front of the whole class, let alone embezzling millions of dollars, even if she does something unforgivable, no one will say anything to her. At most, they'll shed a few tears and say "Smith, Masah!" What more do they want from her?

This is a completely different way of using trust than Kushida's.

Kushida turned the trust others placed in him into a weapon that could wound them. It seemed like he was maximizing the power of trust, but he could only use it once.

As the saying goes, if you try to kill a tiger but fail, you'll end up being injured by it.

This roughly describes Kushida's current predicament. If she cannot be defeated in one fell swoop, everyone will lose trust in her, and she will end up as a dispensable pawn, waiting alone until graduation, or being discarded as a useless burden halfway through the process.

Ichinose, on the other hand, turned everyone's trust into a shield to protect herself. Theoretically, she could use it as many times as she wanted, but the effect would weaken with each use.

This is the real reason why Ichinose dared to take the gamble.

What she didn't expect was that the moment she revealed a weakness, Ninomiya would use such a disgraceful act as a coup to force her to relinquish power and expel her from school.

This is something Ichinose simply cannot accept! What do you mean she'd drop out of school if it made everyone happy? That's all a lie!

Ichinose, who always appears to never lie in front of outsiders, has hardly ever told the truth since enrolling in school. Doesn't that sound rather ironic?

But this is the real, living Honami Ichinose.

The real reason she couldn't be expelled wasn't because there were people she couldn't bear to leave, or because she liked the school in any way; it was simply that if she were expelled, she would immediately become a burden on her family.

At that point, she will have no choice but to drop out of school early and start working.

There was no other choice; her family's financial situation was insufficient to support her through high school.

This is the real reason why Ichinose asked Amane to stay.

Ok.

She lied again, but this time she deceived Tianyin.

She took advantage of Tianyin's affection for her, hoping to stay with Tianyin's help.

but……

He only started interacting with Tianyin in the first place to increase his liking for her, but the more he got to know her, the deeper he seemed to fall for her.

She seems... to be getting used to Tianyin being around her, or perhaps she's fallen for her? That's a bit embarrassing, so let's not go with that.

What about that sound?

I guess... I just treat her as an ordinary friend?

Ichinose couldn't help but feel a little lost when she thought of what Amane said that night. She thought Karuizawa was inferior to her in every way, but in Amane's mind, she couldn't even compare to a girl who had a boyfriend.

So where exactly does the problem lie?

In terms of looks, they each have their own merits. Karuizawa's advantage is her overly straightforward and beautiful face, while Ichinose's advantage is her cuteness.

Ichinose also has absolute confidence in her figure.

As for personality... the rumors she heard were that Karuizawa was a rather self-centered girl, which was simply incomparable.

But as a result, Amane didn't even want to leave her with a lingering thought, and said Karuizawa's name without the slightest hesitation.

To be honest, Ichinose was a little jealous of Karuizawa at that time. She didn't know why Karuizawa received special treatment from Amane.

But it was only after Ichinose realized what was happening that she discovered it.

The reason she got so hung up on this was entirely because she was jealous, and thus she became caught up in the situation.

……

"Honan! Honami, wake up! If you keep sleeping, there won't even be any miso soup left!"

Amane's urgent voice woke Ichinose from her bed.

The first thing Ichinose saw when she opened her eyes was those familiar big eyes blinking in front of her.

She, who would have been startled in the past, felt inexplicably at ease at this moment.

"Sorry, I slept too soundly."

Looking around at the empty beds, it was obvious that she had overslept. Tianyin's hurried expression also indicated that she had probably slept past mealtime.

"Did you have a nightmare? I heard you talking in your sleep!"

Amane's casual remark immediately snapped Ichinose out of her daze, and her fingers, still under the covers, gripped the sheets tightly.

However, Ichinose still looked completely bewildered.

"Huh? A nightmare? It seems like some bad memories, but I can't quite remember them. I hope I didn't say anything weird? How embarrassing! Tianyin, do you remember what I said?"

Ichinose asked tentatively, half-jokingly.

However, he carefully observed Tianyin's expression.

But no matter how Ichinose looked at it, Amane's expression showed no flaws, as if Amane really wasn't thinking about anything at all.

Want to know?

Amane's feigned mystery made Ichinose a little nervous, and she gripped the bed sheet tightly with her fingers.

"Ugh! Tianyin, stop keeping me in suspense and just tell me already! I'm not going to say something embarrassing, am I?"

"Hey~"

Tianyin tapped her cheek with her finger.

Even if Ichinose is slow to react, she already understands what it means.

In the past, Ichinose might have hesitated or been more reserved, but at this moment she was completely led by the nose by Amane. Eager to know what she was talking about in her sleep, Ichinose quickly and gently tapped Amane's cheek without any hesitation.

"Can we talk about it now?"

"Hehe~ Fanbo, you kept calling my name last night, like Amane~ Amane~ and so on. Since it was so cute, I gave Fanbo a little reward."

"The reward refers to..."

Ichinose breathed a sigh of relief when he realized that Amane was just joking and trying to take advantage of her.

Tianyin knew about her past, but she wasn't afraid of those things. What she was really afraid of was that Tianyin would find out about her plan to use Tianyin.

Because... it seems that everyone who has used Tianyin has met a bad end.

"This is it!"

Tianyin playfully touched her two thumbs together.

Ichinose's face instantly turned bright red, and she grabbed a pillow. Seeing that things were not going well, Amane took off running.

Amane's steps slowly came to a stop only after Ichinose's voice had completely faded away behind her.

"It seems that what happened back then still left a shadow on her. I really envy Fanbo. She has a responsible mother. That's something I long for but can't have."

Tianyin's murmured murmurs quickly faded in the corridor, leaving only her solitary figure standing at the elevator entrance, lost in thought.

Chapter 131: Did you grab it on purpose or by accident?

"The competition is about to end, so I suggest you prepare in advance, Tianyin. I'm really lucky!"

Ichinose smiled and showed Amane the last two cards in her hand.

Since the two had agreed not to go out today, and without a phone to pass the time, Amane could only ask Kiryuin for a deck of cards to keep herself entertained with Ichinose.

As for Kiryuin?

When Tianyin went to borrow the playing cards, this guy was still fast asleep, complaining that Tianyin had disturbed his sweet dreams.

However, speaking of which... it's a cloudy day today, the air is very damp, and the ground is a bit wet with a faint smell of soil. It seems like a heavy rain is inevitable.

This kind of weather is perfect for sleeping, but what worries Tianyin is what to do about tomorrow's relay race.

The entire race route, as stipulated by the school, is located in the mountains. After a heavy rain, the already terrible road conditions will only worsen.

Hopefully, no one will get hurt.