Below is a high-quality Japanese-to-English translation of the provided text, crafted to meet your criteria of polished prose, accuracy, natural dialogue, and emotional depth while preserving character motivations and context. The translation captures the tense confrontation in the courtyard, the emotional weight of Sayaka's past, and the chaotic interplay of the characters, all set against the backdrop of a magical high school. A chapter title is included to reflect the passage's themes of lingering trauma and inevitable conflict.
Chapter Title: Shadows of Past Promises
Chasing the girl to the courtyard, Sayaka called out—or rather, shouted.
"Stop right there!"
The fleeing first-year, perhaps realizing she couldn't outrun Sayaka, slowed to a halt on the grassy lawn and turned to face her.
"What do you want?" the girl asked.
"You're a first-year, aren't you?" Sayaka said.
"…Yes. And you're Mibu-senpai from second year, right?"
"Sayaka Mibu, second-year, Class E. Same as you, a Course 2 student."
"Chiaki Hirakawa, first-year, Class G," the girl replied.
When Chiaki gave her name, Kirihara muttered, "Hirakawa?" under his breath, loud enough for Sayaka to hear. The surname rang a bell for her too.
"So, what's this about? Chasing me out of nowhere?" Chiaki demanded.
"That device you're holding," Sayaka said, her voice steady. "It's a wireless password breaker, isn't it?"
Chiaki's face paled, and she hastily hid the device behind her back.
"Hiding it won't help," Sayaka said. "I know because I've used one myself."
Chiaki's eyes widened in shock.
A password breaker was a hardened piece of malware designed to steal credentials, capable of bypassing various authentication systems to siphon data. Its only practical use was for criminal purposes.
"…That's right," Sayaka admitted, her face twisting with pain. "I've been a spy's pawn before too."
Despite the anguish in her expression, she held Chiaki's gaze. "So I'm warning you—cut ties now. The longer you're involved, the more you'll suffer later."
"How much I suffer is none of your business," Chiaki shot back, turning her face away with a curt, dismissive tone.
But Sayaka wasn't deterred by the cold rejection. "I can't just ignore it! Even now, six months later, I sometimes can't stop shaking. I've bitten my lip raw without realizing it, dug my nails into my palms until they bled. I don't know who you're mixed up with, but I can tell you this: they don't care about you. Not one bit. They'll use you and throw you away."
"I know that!" Chiaki snapped. "You think I don't get that mafia or terrorists don't care about the people they use? Did you really not realize that when you got involved, Senpai? No offense, but you must've been pretty naive."
"Maybe I was," Sayaka conceded. "Swayed by empty ideals, used like a pawn. I was probably childish. But Tatsuya-kun showed me something—facing harsh reality is far more important than chasing comfortable dreams. And I learned not everyone rejects me for what I did."
"Tatsuya-kun…" Chiaki murmured, a flicker of hesitation in her eyes.
Seeing that moment of doubt, Sayaka thought she might get through to her. But in the next instant, Chiaki's expression hardened into complete rejection.
"Kirihara-kun," Sayaka said.
"Got it," Kirihara replied, picking up her intent instantly.
Neither had brought weapons, but they weren't worried. They could tell the first-year had no martial arts or combat training. Between the two of them, subduing her should be easy—or so they thought, assuming Chiaki was unarmed.
But those using Chiaki weren't mere mafia or terrorists; they were far worse. As Sayaka and Kirihara stepped forward, Chiaki moved to throw a small capsule in perfect sync.
"Stop," a voice called from behind.
Chiaki froze.
"Tatsuya-kun…" Sayaka said, turning.
"I knew you'd been lurking around me lately," Tatsuya said, addressing Chiaki. "What's your goal?"
Chiaki's mind reeled. She hadn't sensed him at all, yet somehow Tatsuya was standing right behind her.
"How!? When!?" she stammered.
"I slipped behind you while Mibu-senpai was talking," Tatsuya said coolly. "I didn't plan to step in if you'd backed down. But if you use that, there's no going back to your normal life."
"I don't care!" Chiaki shouted. "I'm not doing this for some reward. I'll finish this even if it costs me everything!"
The moment Chiaki's focus locked onto Tatsuya, Leo tackled her from behind. The impact was too much for someone untrained like Chiaki, and she crumpled, unconscious.
"Too much?" Leo asked, standing up.
"Definitely," Erika said. "Get off her quick, or it'll look like you're assaulting a first-year girl."
"What!? You told me to do it!" Leo protested.
Tatsuya, interrupted mid-conversation, shot them both a frigid glare. Unable to withstand it, Erika and Leo stopped bickering and just stared at each other, frozen.
"For now, report this to Chairwoman Chiyoda," Tatsuya said. "I'm heading back to the experiment."
"R-right, good luck, Tatsuya-kun!" Erika managed, her voice shaky.
Released from Tatsuya's silent pressure, Erika and Leo practically collapsed.
"You okay?" Kirihara asked.
"You felt that too, right?" Erika said. "Tatsuya-kun's pressure…"
"Yeah," Kirihara replied, shivering. "It's not just his sister you don't want to piss off." He recalled Miyuki's psionic outburst during the student council election, a memory that still gave him chills.
"Anyway, we need to report to Chiyoda-san," Sayaka said. "Tatsuya-kun asked us to."
"Right," Kirihara agreed. "Oi, Chiba, Saijo, let's go."
"I know, just… give us a sec," Erika said.
"My legs aren't working yet…" Leo added.
Kirihara let out a wry chuckle at their pitiful tones. "Can't blame you. Tatsuya's pressure would rattle anyone with martial training even more."
"Totally," Sayaka agreed. "It caught me off guard too."
"Tomitsuka," Kirihara said, turning. "Where'd you disappear to?"
"I got called away by a club member," Tomitsuka replied. "When I came back, you were gone, and then Tatsuya's pressure hit. I stayed out of it until now."
"Club? It's a day off," Kirihara said, puzzled.
"Not club business," Tomitsuka said with a sly edge. "Don't worry about it, Kirihara-kun."
Kirihara tilted his head, confused by her cryptic tone, but gave up trying to figure it out and turned to Erika and Leo. "You two good now?"
"Yeah… I think so," Erika said.
"I'm fine," Leo added.
"Let's go report then," Kirihara said. "We can't leave her lying here forever."
"I'll take her to the infirmary," Tomitsuka offered. "You guys go tell Chiyoda-san."
"On it," Kirihara said.
Leaving Chiaki in Tomitsuka's care, the four headed off to find Kanon. Tomitsuka, carrying the unconscious Chiaki, made her way to the infirmary.
Tatsuya's prayer went unanswered as Erika and Kanon inevitably clashed…
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