Yui Hori’s tone immediately made Koharu Miura feel uneasy.
Although this short-haired girl was usually a goofball, she was very serious and reliable at critical moments.
The expression on Yui Hori’s face just now was the exact one she wore when she was talking about something important.
‘Did Yui Hori hear something?’
What Koharu Miura feared most right now was that Arisa Kiyono’s secret would be discovered by others.
Although, on the surface, the news that Arisa Kiyono was actually ALISA from the idol group sugar starlight should still be a secret and not widely known at school, no one could say for sure which way the plot would go.
Now that the plot had already diverged from its original track, Koharu Miura couldn’t guarantee whether things beyond her expectations would happen. However, one thing was certain.
If others found out about Arisa Kiyono’s identity as an idol outside of school, her current situation, and what she was going through, that girl would immediately run away and close herself off again.
Just the thought of that possibility gave Koharu Miura a headache.
She could only hope that what Yui Hori was saying had nothing to do with Arisa Kiyono.
At a time like this, she would actually feel more at ease if Haruka Kondo were causing some kind of trouble instead.
“What big event?”
Koharu Miura tried her best to keep her tone steady. As a girl who was doing everything she could just to survive, her mind was rehearsing all sorts of possible crises.
The only thing she didn’t expect was the person Yui Hori was about to mention.
“About ten minutes ago.”
Yui Hori leaned in closer from the back seat, her voice as thin as a mosquito’s buzz. “Kanzaki… came to the door of our class looking for you.”
“…Huh?”
Koharu Miura’s hand, which had been flipping through her textbook, suddenly froze.
Sou Kanzaki?
It was like a sudden snowfall, instantly washing away all thoughts of Arisa Kiyono from Koharu’s mind.
“You said… Kanzaki came to find me?”
Koharu Miura couldn’t help but turn around. Her eyes were filled with disbelief as she looked at Yui Hori in the back seat. “How could he…”
” — Did he have something to say to me?”
“Eh? I don’t know.”
“Doesn’t he always have that smiling face? It makes him hard to read — but only you can talk to him so easily, right?”
Even without seeing Yui Hori’s face, Koharu Miura knew that this gossipy girl must have a teasing expression on her face right now.
“Yui — “
“Fine, fine.”
Yui Hori curled her lips, her tone carrying a hint of envy. “He asked if our Miura was here, and I told him you weren’t.”
“When he heard you weren’t here, he seemed a bit stunned for a moment. Then he said, ‘I’ll head back for now. When she returns, please let her know I came by to see her,’ and he just left.”
Perhaps also interested in the content of their conversation, Yui Hori’s desk mate, who usually didn’t talk to Koharu Miura much, also leaned over to add, “Yeah, a lot of girls in class were watching him. He only stood at the door for a short while, but the atmosphere in the whole hallway seemed to change. Miura, are the two of you… really — ?”
“No…”
Koharu Miura replied subconsciously. But to be honest, being asked like that made her feel uncertain as well. Was it really nothing? It didn’t feel like it.
What had happened with Haruka Kondo was real, and she hadn’t denied her admiration and good feelings for Sou Kanzaki in front of Haruka.
Whether Sou Kanzaki knew about that was another matter, but given that she had already stated her feelings, saying that there was absolutely nothing between her and Sou Kanzaki felt like she was just lying to herself.
It was only at this moment that Koharu Miura realized she had been so focused on investigating Arisa Kiyono and thinking about the idol group’s information for the past several days that she had forgotten she hadn’t spoken to Sou Kanzaki face-to-face in a long time.
Hearing sudden news about Sou Kanzaki, Koharu Miura responded guiltily, her mind already a mess.
Moreover, she was very concerned about the reason why Sou Kanzaki had come looking for her.
She was most afraid that Sou Kanzaki would ask about the time she had met him in the park with Arisa Kiyono.
After all, Arisa Kiyono and Sou Kanzaki would definitely meet eventually.
When that time came, would Sou Kanzaki recognize that the idol was the same person she had falsely claimed was her cousin?
Or had he heard something from the teacher or others about her frequently going to another class to find someone?
To Koharu Miura, who wanted to “survive as a background character,” every proactive move by the refreshing male protagonist felt like an unpredictable storm.
But there was no way to verify it now. No matter how strong the feeling of unease in her heart was, she could only wait until after class —
” — Miss Miura.”
Just as she was thinking this, the teacher’s voice came from the podium.
Koharu Miura, who was immersed in the quiet conversation, Yui Hori behind her, and the girl sitting next to Yui all flinched at the same time.
Coming back to her senses, Koharu Miura felt as if the eyes of the entire class were gathered on her.
Among them, of course, were the helpless and curious gazes of Mio Sato and Yuzuki Yasuda, who were sitting a bit further away.
“Class is in session. Please be quiet.”
“Yes…”
Koharu Miura and the others could only lower their heads and apologize, silently admitting their mistake.
For the entire math class that followed, Koharu Miura didn’t hear a single word.
Although the “tap-tap” of the teacher’s chalk on the blackboard was the only sound in the classroom, Koharu Miura sat in her seat, unable to think of anything but Sou Kanzaki.
She really wanted to sneak a look at her phone. However, although there were no monitors in the corners of the classroom, she couldn’t risk taking her phone out.
As a result, the girl could only let her mind wander, guessing what Sou Kanzaki wanted with her.
However, she couldn’t find an answer. The more she thought about it, the more uneasy she became.
Her anxiety felt like a thin needle pricking her heart, making her feel as if she were sitting on pins and needles no matter how she adjusted herself.
Finally, the bell rang to end the class.
Before the teacher had even walked out of the classroom, Koharu Miura couldn’t wait any longer. She rushed out the back door and pulled out her phone in the corridor.
As soon as the screen lit up, Koharu Miura saw several LIME notifications on the lock screen. But they weren’t messages from Arisa Kiyono, whom she had added at noon.
They were messages from Sou Kanzaki.
Koharu Miura took a deep breath and clicked on the message.
Inside the chat box was just a simple sentence, consistent with Sou Kanzaki’s usual style.
[LIME Message]
“Miura, I’m sorry to bother you. I went to your class looking for you, but you weren’t there, so I could only send a message to ask.”
“I want to confirm something. Have you been to the livehouses in Sakuragicho before? It was more than once, right?”
“……!”
The moment she saw those words, Koharu Miura felt as if a bucket of ice water had been poured over her head.
Her first reaction was that if Sou Kanzaki knew she had been to the livehouse where Arisa Kiyono performed as an idol, then it was very likely he would eventually find out that Arisa was active there.
The plot might arrive earlier than the original timeline — just as she had feared before.
She had no idea what kind of development a premature plot point would lead to.
But after her initial panic, Koharu Miura’s wide eyes gradually returned to normal, and she slowly fell into deep thought.
‘Why… does he know?’
Sou Kanzaki definitely wouldn’t stalk her, and there shouldn’t be anyone she knew in this world who would stalk her.
She had indeed been to Sakuragicho many times, but the people at the livehouse didn’t know her and didn’t know her name.
Although Yui Hori and the others knew she had been there, they certainly wouldn’t tell Sou Kanzaki — and if they had, why would Sou Kanzaki need to ask her for confirmation?
It was even more impossible for Arisa Kiyono to have told him.
That was strange. Who would have told Sou Kanzaki?
Koharu Miura frowned deeply, her mind filled with unsolvable doubts. She thought for a long time and could only come up with one answer.
The person who was keeping an eye on Arisa Kiyono — the person who was spreading rumors to frame her and wanted to harm her.
Had that person noticed her existence?