Chapter 85: You Actually Made My Affection Drop?!
"Haaaaah—"
After an all-nighter, Class 1-E's morning run felt like torture. Back in the classroom, Amano couldn't stop yawning.
"You look exhausted, Amano." Sakuya's tone from the desk beside him was colder than usual. "Rough night? Or no chance to sleep?"
"Ran into some complications."
Amano didn't know how to explain it. Last night's Dark Game at the club building had been catastrophic in scale—an entire club tower half-collapsed from the battle. But this morning when he'd passed by, the building was somehow fully restored.
And beyond that—total media blackout. Not a single app carried news about the fight. Network feeds were dominated by celebrity gossip and a piece about Kaiba Corporation stock rebounding after a week-long crash, buoyed by two joint duel victories.
Information suppression made sense. Instantaneous building reconstruction was beyond Amano's comprehension.
Sakuya clearly wasn't buying the vague answer. Her voice took on an edge of severity.
"As Duel Committee Representative, sleeping in class reflects poorly on the entire class. Don't blame me if I have to make an example of you!"
"'Make an example'—Class Rep, what relation is the Committee Rep to you?"
Class 1-E pounced on the slip immediately. The teasing began in earnest.
"Did I use that phrase wrong? Isn't that what it means?" A faint flush crossed Sakuya's cold expression.
Given Sakuya's academic track record, expecting her to use idioms correctly was asking a lot.
But in the usual crowd of students teasing them, one particularly enthusiastic voice was conspicuously absent today.
Kozuka Yoka. Wonder how her recovery's going.
"Committee Rep, why are you only wearing pants today? No uniform top? Kondo's going to catch you."
"Rushed out this morning. Forgot it."
"That's new. Didn't know you had airhead moments too, Amano." Some of the ice thawed from Sakuya's voice.
You're the last person who should call anyone else an airhead.
Noise erupted in the hallway outside District 15. Student chatter rose and fell in waves, growing louder as the crowd approached Class 1-E.
"That's—that's Rin Seiya, right?"
"Synchro Academy's number one—why would she come to District 15?"
"First time seeing her in person! She's like an elf! Way prettier than her photos online!"
"Where's the goddess heading?"
"That direction... there's only the Class E classroom. Is she looking for those underperformers?"
Amano's bad feeling intensified.
He wanted to hide. Badly.
Too late. Rin's footsteps were fast and purposeful, heading directly for Class 1-E.
"Amano~"
Her voice arrived before she did. Rin appeared in the doorway with a brilliant smile, holding what looked like a piece of clothing.
Class 1-E wasn't particularly shocked—this had happened yesterday too.
"Knew she was looking for you, Committee Rep."
"Lucky guy, knowing the academy goddess."
"Did the Committee Rep go on a date with Goddess Rin last night?"
"So suspicious~"
Why did it feel like torches were being quietly lit in the classroom corners again?
Completely ignoring the curious stares, Rin walked straight to Amano and handed him a Synchro Academy male uniform top.
"Here, Amano. I accidentally damaged your shirt last night. Brought you a replacement."
Class 1-E's collective attention laser-focused on keywords.
"Last night!"
"Damaged your shirt!"
"So that's what you meant by 'rushed out this morning,' Amano Rei."
The lie he'd told moments ago crumbled instantly. Sakuya's tone dropped to unprecedented subzero temperatures.
[NANKI'IN SAKUYA] [AFFECTION -1]
Amano accepted the uniform from Rin and quietly gestured for her to say less in front of the crowd.
Rin nodded. "Okay! So—tonight then?"
Class 1-E keyword detection activated again.
"Tonight?"
"Then?"
"Enough! Stop!" Amano cut her off before the misunderstandings spiraled further. If this kept going, he'd have actual celebrity gossip circulating, which would definitely hurt his system reward prospects with other targets.
"Rin-senpai, I have something after school today. Can't make it to club activities. And I'm leaving early."
"More important than watching episodes?" Rin looked genuinely puzzled.
"You're leaving early?" Sakuya echoed the confusion.
"It's about my sister. Already cleared it with Kondo. Middle school gets out this afternoon—I need to be there."
"Oh, it's about Amano Shio." Sakuya nodded, her tone returning to normal.
"You have a little sister? You really are built like an anime protagonist!" Rin's curiosity spiked. "Can I come too?"
"Better not. It's complicated. I should handle it myself."
This was about Shio's school bullying situation. Through Finesse's connections, Amano had arranged to speak with Shio's homeroom teacher about the details.
As her brother, Amano absolutely refused to believe Shio would bully other students.
There had to be more to the story.
Middle school let out at 3:30 PM. Amano left early, arriving before 3:00. Following the address the homeroom teacher had provided, he found Class 3-7.
He hadn't told Shio he was coming.
Finesse had planned to come along but got held up by something—she'd arrive later.
After locating the classroom, Amano stayed hidden near the back door, peering through the window glass at the top.
The behavior would definitely raise suspicions in a middle school setting, but Amano wanted to see his sister's actual school situation with his own eyes.
Inside, Shio wasn't paying attention to class.
The entire middle school atmosphere was loose—more like a marketplace than a classroom. Students did their own thing while the teacher on the podium acted blind to it all.
Shio was talking to a girl at the neighboring desk.
The girl had gauze covering her left eye. Multiple injuries of varying sizes marked her body—untreated, just bandaged with adhesive strips. Her clothes were torn and ragged.
Seeing this, Amano's concern intensified.
Did my sister really beat someone up this badly?
But watching longer, Shio and the injured girl seemed to be chatting and laughing together. Nothing like a bully-victim dynamic.
Instead, a group of loud kids in the distance caught Amano's attention.
They appeared to be roughhousing, but their play involved tossing water cups filled with hot liquid back and forth. Finally, one of them "accidentally" fumbled the grip, sending the half-open cup of hot water arcing toward the girl beside Shio.
Amano started to rush through the door—
Shio moved first. Her leg exoskeleton motors maxed out. A sideways high kick intercepted the hot water mid-flight and sent it right back at its origin.
Master Vail, your prosthetic technology is absurdly advanced.
The scalding water splashed across the group. The kids shrieked. Finally, the teacher on the podium looked up.
But when the teacher realized it was Shio's doing, they immediately looked away. Fear flickered across their expression.
Shio announced loudly: "I'm warning you, Akiyama! Touch Shiyue again and I'm coming for you after school!"