-54- Ichinose Honami

"Hmm?"

Upon hearing the voice, Nanaya Hori looked up and glanced inside the elevator.

Inside, a girl was waving enthusiastically towards them.

"Good morning!"

Greeting with such lively enthusiasm was a girl with waist-length hair, round eyes beneath her bangs, and a notably full figure. She carried herself with a dignified air, exuding a sense of vitality and charisma.

The girl's appearance was in no way inferior to Kushida Kikyou's.

However, compared to Kushida Kikyou's sweetness and cuteness, the girl exuded an indescribable charm, more dashing than beautiful.

But this dashingness lacked any sense of masculinity; instead, it added to her lively and outgoing demeanor, earning her points among both boys and girls.

Nanaya Hori believed that if this girl were in Class D, she would undoubtedly rank high on popularity and beauty lists, no less than Kushida Kikyou.

Facing this girl, Kushida Kikyou also brightened up and greeted her happily.

"Good morning, Honami!"

It seemed that the girl was a friend of Kushida Kikyou's, and she was from another class. The two seemed quite familiar with each other.

"Why is Kikyou here on the boys' floor?" The girl seemed quite surprised and glanced at Nanaya Hori, sounding very curious. "Could it be that this handsome boy here is Kikyou's boyfriend?"

Indeed, anyone would suspect when seeing Kushida Kikyou on the boys' floor, walking to school with a boy. It was inevitable that rumors would spread.

Of course, Kushida Kikyou had only one response.

"Haha, it's not like that."

Kushida Kikyou responded naturally, as if accustomed to such teasing, completely dispelling any ambiguous possibilities.

Seeing Kushida Kikyou like this, anyone would understand that the angel of Class D had no such intentions towards Nanaya Hori.

Naturally, that was the normal situation.

For Kushida Kikyou, it wouldn't be surprising if Nanaya Hori, who knew her true nature, disliked her, let alone developed feelings for her.

Therefore, Kushida Kikyou's response was so natural that it prevented anyone from speculating about their relationship.

Kushida Kikyou then introduced the girl to Nanaya Hori.

"This is Ichinose from Class 1-B."

Ichinose.

That should be the girl's surname.

As for her first name, it was the same one Kushida Kikyou had just mentioned—Honami.

In other words, the full name of the girl in front of them was Ichinose Honami, a student from Class 1-B.

"Hello."

Ichinose Honami greeted Nanaya Hori, exuding the same lively and energetic vibe in her every move.

"Hello," Nanaya Hori nodded in return. "I'm Nanaya, nice to meet you."

At this, Ichinose Honami seemed slightly surprised, as if recalling something. She looked Nanaya Hori up and down and said with amazement, "Nanaya? You're Nanaya Hori from Class D, right?"

"Why?" Nanaya Hori was taken aback, puzzled. "Do you know me?"

Nanaya Hori's question received an unexpected response.

"At this stage, there are very few people who don't know you." Ichinose Honami said candidly, "After you figured out the school's exam policies and the importance of personal points after the midterm exam results were released, it became a topic of discussion in both the first and high grades. Don't you know?"

Nanaya Hori didn't know about this.

After all, no one had told him about it.

Therefore, Nanaya Hori only found out now that he had become a topic of conversation.

And that meant one thing.

"Has what I did in Class D spread?"

It wasn't surprising at all.

After all, Nanaya Hori had made those explanations in front of the whole class. How could it not have spread?

"Being able to uncover such an important matter, everyone says you're quite remarkable," Ichinose Honami said with joy. "And my friends from the track team often mention you, saying your athletic skills are superb, and even the Student Council President hasn't been able to beat you."

Ichinose Honami said this with evident pleasure.

"I've always wanted to see what kind of person you are. Everyone says you're quite aloof, but you seem friendly, don't you?"

So, his aloofness had spread throughout the school as well?

Was this something to be happy about?

"In any case, let's get in." Ichinose Honami pressed the elevator button and urged, "It's not convenient to stand here and talk."

Obviously, Ichinose Honami wanted to befriend Nanaya Hori.

"Let's go in, Nanaya-kun," Kushida Kikyou also chimed in, urging them to enter.

Nanaya Hori nodded indifferently and stepped into the elevator with Kushida Kikyou.

"Ding!"

With a pleasant chime, the elevator doors slowly closed and began descending.

During this process, Ichinose Honami and Kushida Kikyou continued their friendly conversation.

"I heard, Kikyou, that you borrowed a lot of personal points from students in various classes."

"You've heard about it?"

"It's impossible to hide. You've borrowed so many personal points from so many people, everyone's talking about it. But is that okay?"

"It's not like there are no issues. Given our class's situation, I don't know when I'll be able to repay these personal points. It's really troubling."

"Do you need help?"

"No, it's okay. Although I borrowed a lot, after the midterm exams, Class D has become more united. We'll definitely earn class points and personal points in the future and pay them back."

"That's good. If you need help, don't hesitate to tell me, okay?"

"Thank you, Honami."

Ichinose Honami and Kushida Kikyou had this conversation, interspersed with many happy laughs.

The scene of the two incredibly cute girls chatting and laughing together was truly heartwarming.

During this time, Ichinose Honami also provided some information.

"Kikyou borrowed so many personal points to help her classmates, right? It seems Sudou from the basketball club is one of them?"

Ichinose Honami said this.

"That decision is very wise. If it's Sudou, he will definitely bring many benefits to Class D in the future and even increase the class points."

These words from Ichinose Honami surprised Kushida Kikyou.

"Increase the class points?"

Kushida Kikyou exclaimed in surprise.