Mashiro did not answer immediately.
She only raised her eyes and quietly gazed at Yukina. Her light-colored lashes cast thin shadows under the dim light.
“No.”
Her voice was ice-cold, like ice cubes settling at the bottom of a glass.
“Is that so?”
Yukina smiled.
“Then I’ll sit down anyway.”
She placed her textbooks on the seat beside Mashiro, then pulled out the chair, gently shifted her tail to the side, and sat down.
—!
She sat down? She actually just sat down like that?!
Whoa, is this real? That’s way too brave!!
Does that pink-haired shorty not value her life?! Doesn’t she know that bloodsucker has already relapsed?!
The bullying little group on the other side completely exploded, buzzing with discussion about Yukina’s actions.
“…”
Mashiro did not turn her head.
But the tip of her brow moved once.
The fingers resting on the page of the book tightened slightly, and the paper was pinched into fine wrinkles.
“Did you not hear me?”
“I heard you.”
“Then why are you still…”
“Is it not allowed?”
Yukina shifted her chair a little, moving even closer to Mashiro by a tiny bit.
The lab table was clearly very long, yet the distance between the two of them could only fit a small fist. Their shoulders were almost brushing against each other.
“…You, why are you doing this?”
A trace of wavering appeared in Mashiro’s voice.
Her body unconsciously tilted a little toward the other side.
Those red eyes met the gaze of the petite pink-and-white girl beside her for a moment, then quickly looked away, as if burned.
“Because…”
Yukina pressed her index finger against her chin, thought for a moment, then gave her answer.
“Because I can do this.”
“Wha…”
“I am Boss Yumiko’s follower, after all. Bullying you is something I ought to do. And also…”
She leaned a little closer again. Her shoulder lightly bumped against Mashiro’s arm.
It did not hurt. Through the thin fabric of the school uniform, it felt like roasted marshmallow—soft, warm, body heat sticking to the skin.
Mashiro’s muscles tensed for a moment.
“And also, didn’t Mashiro say it just yesterday? That I am…”
She raised a hand to lightly cover her small mouth, tried her best to straighten her petite frame to make up for the height difference as much as possible, leaned toward the other’s ear, and whispered with a warm, sweet breath:
“That I am… a ‘filthy creature.’”
The blood-red pupils contracted sharply.
Mashiro froze. In that instant, she felt as if her heart had been fiercely seized, the wound torn open in a bloody mess.
Her gaze trembled as it moved to the stretch of bandage visible at the edge of Yukina’s school uniform, then swept across the eye patch beneath her bangs.
Those pitch-black memories from inside the Tin Shack yesterday surged into her mind once more.
“I’m sorry.”
Mashiro’s breathing grew rapid. Fine beads of sweat seeped out from skin as pale as wallpaper and dripped along her chin.
“I shouldn’t have… I…”
Her voice was trembling. Every word seemed to be torn from her throat. Just as she was on the verge of shattering…
“Mashiro is right, you know.”
Yukina’s voice blocked her throat one step ahead.
…
…
…?
Mashiro’s brain instantly overloaded.
She blinked, repeatedly blinked several times, then slowly turned her head and stared blankly at the Yukina beside her.
Yukina only smiled, the corners of her mouth curving into a playful arc, the tip of her tail lightly hooking once behind her.
“That’s right. Mashiro guessed it. I am exactly the kind of ‘filthy creature’ you spoke of—a bad woman who has been lurking by your side all along, preparing to do bad things. So…”
She leaned in once more, her voice pressed very low, so low it seemed she was sharing a small secret only the two of them knew.
“I’m not pretending anymore. I’m going to show my fiercest, most evil side and thoroughly bully you. Prepare yourself.”
…
…
…?
Secondary loading.
Mashiro’s brain crashed once again.
She recognized every single word that came out of Yukina’s mouth, yet when strung together they left her completely fogged.
Was this… a threat?
It was just like those children’s cartoons where, after the villain’s disguise is exposed, they simply throw off the cloak and reveal their true evil face.
But why?
Why was Yukina doing this?
Could it be that she really was someone sent by the Family? And after her identity was exposed yesterday, she simply stopped pretending?
But… it was strange.
Too strange.
Yesterday, at that life-and-death moment, she had shown no intention of admitting that identity. Yet now… she was laying the cards on the table so lightly.
Was it to approach me again?
Or did she have some other purpose?
She did not know.
There were far too many things that could not be explained.
Was Yukina… really a bad girl?
“…”
Mashiro no longer knew how to respond.
She only pressed her lips tightly together, lowered her head slightly, and looked at the Yukina beside her.
“Gaoooh~”
The evil dragon roared.
Yukina clenched both hands into little claws, held them up on either side of her cheeks, opened her small mouth, and let out a fierce threatening sound. In the eyes revealed between her pink-white hair there was still a trace of serious immersion in the role.
“Stupid Mashiro, just wait to be bullied by me until you cry!”
Thump.
Thump thump.
Suddenly, Mashiro once again felt the sensation of being struck in the heart.
But this time, it seemed a little different.
Itchy, like a kitten’s claws lightly scratching the softest part of her chest.
She kept her head lowered just like that, gazing at this fierce little pink-and-white creature beside her. In the depths of her eyes, that muddy darkness was swallowed a tiny, tiny bit by an extremely pale pink.
***
At the same time, on the other side…
Did you see that? Did you see that?
That bloodsucker’s expression just now… it looked like she was about to cry?!
Oh my god, she’s actually apologizing?
We’ve been bullying her for so long and she never even let out a single sound, yet that shorty just went over and said a few words and she apologized?
Could this be the legendary… “Bullying Color Haki”?
I’m so curious about the content of their conversation, but I can’t hear a single word! It’s killing me!
In the eyes of this bullying little group, Yukina had only leaned over and spoken a few soft words, yet Mashiro’s face had turned pale, her whole body was trembling, and she had even apologized.
The destructive power far exceeded their range of understanding.
Yumiko was also shocked.
She looked down at the onion beside her, then looked at Yukina who was easily handling Mashiro in the distance, and instantly broke out in a cold sweat.
What is going on.
In this class… are you the boss, or am I the boss?