The sunlight at noon streamed through the enormous floor-to-ceiling windows of the Library, tinting the floating dust in the air a warm gold.
Xiao Chun Miura laughed so hard she could barely breathe, the clear, bell-like sound echoing through the quiet space and making the usually stiff atmosphere of the Library come alive.
She had never imagined that Kanzaki Sou, who always seemed so reliable, could have such an absurd idea.
Seeing Kanzaki Sou sitting behind the front desk with a lost look, she had thought he might have heard some rumor or gossip… and was unsettled by it.
But in the end, he was actually feeling down because he thought his tutoring had dragged down a fellow Library Committee Member.
Was that even possible?
It was just too ridiculous.
Even without considering “Xiao Chun Miura’s” original grades, she had never been a top student in high school. Now, years later, to relearn high school knowledge and perform this well was already more than enough.
Yet Kanzaki Sou thought he hadn’t helped, sinking into gloom by himself.
—This kind of logic was already strange. Not everyone has to score high marks in exams for their grades to be considered good.
For students who are originally mid-tier, ranking in the upper middle is certainly a good result.
Isn’t that something easy to understand?
…Could it be that, because he’s always been so confident, he never considered the perspective of ordinary students?
That doesn’t seem right either.
Xiao Chun Miura wiped the tears that had spilled from her eyes due to laughing so hard, her voice finally calming down.
Kanzaki Sou instinctively pushed his glasses up.
His face was still full of confusion. For someone whose grades had always been excellent, he couldn’t understand why Xiao Chun Miura was laughing.
“Miura-san?”
His voice was tinged with confusion—was it just Xiao Chun Miura’s imagination, or did it even sound a little hurt?
“Did I say something strange?”
“N-no… Sorry…”
Xiao Chun Miura finally managed to stop laughing.
“I wasn’t laughing at you… Kanzaki-san.”
“When I saw your disappointed expression, I thought something had happened and you were in a bad mood…”
“Then you suddenly called out to me with that expression—I thought maybe I’d done something wrong to upset you.”
“So I was nervous all the way up until just now.”
As Xiao Chun Miura spoke, recalling Kanzaki Sou’s absurd reasoning, she couldn’t help but smile again.
“—But, haha… Kanzaki-san.”
“…I never imagined you were feeling guilty over my grades not being ‘good enough’…”
“Kanzaki-san, I actually got a good score. If I had reviewed by myself, there’s no way I could have achieved this rank—I’m serious about that.”
That wasn’t a lie.
Even when chatting with Kanzaki Sou, regardless of the topic, Xiao Chun Miura’s mind would wander to Kondo Haruka, favorability, romance, routes, and various other things.
She knew in her heart how much of their conversations were genuinely about chatting.
But no matter what they talked about or what she felt inside, at least what she was saying now was undeniably sincere.
Without Kanzaki Sou’s help, Xiao Chun Miura could never have answered so many questions correctly on her own.
“So Kanzaki-san, you really helped me a lot. For me to reach this rank with my own academic ability is already beyond my expectations… As for being a burden or anything like that, it has never happened, not even once.”
…Xiao Chun Miura paused a little awkwardly as she said this.
The statement stood in sharp contrast to her earlier words.
To claim that “it never happened”… was naturally impossible.
Given the current circumstances, saying that Kanzaki Sou had never put pressure on her would be a 100% lie—undeniably so.
But Xiao Chun Miura didn’t care.
She just wanted to say it like this now. Saying it made her happy.
And facing the girl, the boy with glasses, his eyes wide—gentle, kind, able to deal with everyone with rational kindness—the Prince of the Academy, simply listened quietly.
Behind his lenses, the confusion in his eyes gradually gave way to understanding.
After a while, he let out a soft sigh, a trace of relief—so faint even he didn’t notice it—in his breath.
“So that’s how it is…”
He said quietly, then looked up at Xiao Chun Miura.
“Then, the reason you were laughing so happily before was?”
“Ah—”
Xiao Chun Miura froze.
“Well… Sorry, Kanzaki-san. It was because your reaction at that moment was so different from usual… The contrast was just too much, so I couldn’t help myself…”
“Contrast, huh.”
Kanzaki Sou muttered thoughtfully.
What Xiao Chun Miura wanted to say was that someone so confident and reliable would worry over something like this… It was indeed rather comical.
But she felt that what she’d said might have been rude.
“Um, Kanzaki-san, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to say anything bad about you, whether now or in the past…”
Seeing Kanzaki Sou turn his eyes to the side in silent contemplation, Xiao Chun Miura hurried to explain.
“—No, it’s fine, Miura-san.”
Kanzaki Sou interrupted the girl’s flustered words.
“I was the one who showed such a misleading attitude. Sorry for making you worry.”
He was the one apologizing instead.
“N-no, that’s not it!”
Xiao Chun Miura waved her hands frantically.
“I was just overthinking! I misunderstood Kanzaki-san!”
But Kanzaki Sou slowly shook his head, pushed up his glasses, and a relieved smile appeared at the corner of his lips.
“It’s true, I took things for granted.”
“I subconsciously judged others by my own standards, without considering your feelings. Seeing how much you improved, I should have been happy for you.”
“Instead, I wallowed in my own self-absorbed gloom, overlooking your efforts and achievements, Miura-san.”
He looked at the long-haired girl, his gaze serious.
“Miura-san, you worked really hard. This result is the reward you deserve. I shouldn’t have judged it in such a strange way.”
“Congratulations.”
“……”
“……Ah—Mm.”
Kanzaki Sou’s earnest and sincere congratulations left Xiao Chun Miura momentarily stunned.
Clearly, it was her own statement. Kanzaki Sou had merely followed her logic, then extended a heartfelt congratulation.
And yet, Xiao Chun Miura felt frozen in place, not knowing how to respond.
“……Thank you, Kanzaki-san.”
After several seconds, the words slipped unconsciously from Xiao Chun Miura’s throat.
“Mm, as a reward for my tutoring efforts, this is good too.”
Hearing Xiao Chun Miura’s thanks, Kanzaki Sou lifted his head lightly, his smile as radiant as the sunlight outside the window.
***
The recollection ended there.
What followed was nothing more than a return to the familiar routine of Committee Work, with nothing more meaningful exchanged between her and Kanzaki Sou.
Now, sitting alone on a park bench, Xiao Chun Miura absentmindedly traced the cold surface with her fingertip.
A cool breeze swept through the swings in the Park, and Xiao Chun Miura instinctively shrank her shoulders.
Yet the girl’s face showed no trace of the evening chill.
It remained just as warm.