The first time they actually met face-to-face was at lunchtime the next day. Naoya was aimlessly walking down the school halls with his friends until he found his path blocked by a stranger.
“You’re Naoya Sasahara, right? Thanks for yesterday,” the mysterious girl spat out in a frigid voice. Contrary to her unpleasant tone, she was dazzlingly beautiful. Her silver, gossamer hair fell to her lower back, and her blue eyes twinkled like the sun’s rays dancing on the ocean. Her face was perfect, almost uncannily so—as if she were a CGI model rather than a real girl—with skin that was almost translucent in its paleness.
And yet, despite her dainty beauty, the look she gave Naoya could only be described as sharp and vitriolic. An overwhelming aura of intimidation emanated from her as she stood in the hallway, arms crossed over her chest. She reminded Naoya of a Deva statue—the type one could find in Buddhist temples.
“What?” Naoya managed to blurt out in response.
The other students began to take notice of the remarkable girl. Soon, whispers began to fill the air.
Naoya’s friend, Tatsumi Kouno, who had been walking with him, came to a halt and frantically whisper-shouted into Naoya’s ear. “Whoa, hold up, Naoya. Did something happen between you and ‘The Queen of Thorns’?”
“Uh, yeah, yesterday. It wasn’t really a big deal...” Naoya said flippantly while he made a show of maintaining his composure. He hadn’t seen her face yesterday, but he could easily guess who it had been from her hair alone.
Didn’t think I’d see her again so soon, though...
As it turned out, her name was Koyuki Shirogane. She was a second-year student at Ootsuki High School, just like Naoya, although she was in a different class. Her grades were just as impressive as her looks. So great was her superiority in every subject, including sports, that it had even managed to reach Naoya’s ears.
Unfortunately, the majority of the rumors he had heard about her were far from complimentary.
Koyuki resumed speaking while looking down on Naoya. “Thank you once again. Seeing as I didn’t get to say that yesterday, I decided to seek you out. You were wearing our uniform, so I knew you came to this school at least.”
“I see. There was really no need for you to come and say thanks, though,” Naoya responded.
“There was, actually,” she said with a dramatic flick of her hair. She huffed through her nose before she spoke again, “I don’t like to be indebted to anyone, so I had to do something. It’s not like I would approach some nobody like you otherwise.”
“Huh?”
Koyuki Shirogane was almost perfect, save for one major flaw: her sharp tongue. Since Naoya had entered this school, he had heard innumerable stories of male students who had fallen for her looks, only to be ruthlessly slaughtered by her verbal onslaughts.
As a result, she had gained the nickname, “The Queen of Thorns.” It was for this reason that she was currently drawing a lot of scornful whispers and disapproving looks from the crowd, as well.
“Here we go again...”
“I don’t know what happened, but she really ought to watch her mouth...”
Koyuki, for her part, paid not the slightest bit of attention to the peanut gallery. Instead, she chose to further press her point. “It’s true that I was in a scary situation, but I’m sure I would have figured something out, even if you hadn’t stuck your nose where it didn’t belong. In the future, I’d really appreciate it if you didn’t run around acting like some kind of white knight. Like I said, I don’t like owing people.”
“Mm-hmm, got it,” Naoya nodded and assented immediately. He understood exactly what she was saying. “In other words, you want to take me out after school as a way of saying thanks, right?”
“What?” Koyuki sputtered after a dumbfounded pause.
“What?” Everyone in the hallway echoed, mirroring Koyuki’s perplexed expression.
The most surprising reaction, however, was Koyuki’s—almost immediately, her face flushed tomato red up to the tips of her ears. “Wh-What are you talking about?! How did you m-manage to reach that conclusion from what I just said?!” she squeaked.
“What else was I supposed to think?” Naoya responded, incredulous. “You just admitted that yesterday was frightening for you. That part was true... The rest of what you said was just putting on airs.”
Koyuki seemed shocked, but didn’t reply. Naoya added, “And what you said about not owing people was kinda true too, but what you really wanted to say was ‘thanks.’”
Koyuki’s voice and expression belied her harsh words. It wasn’t hard for him to uncover her real intentions when he paid even the slightest bit of attention. Naoya continued his assault. “It just so happens that I’m not working today, and I’m not a part of any clubs. I’m totally free. So, Shirogane, where’re we headed?”
“L-Listen! I-I just... Ugggh!” Koyuki protested. Her petite frame shook with frustration. After a while, she managed to stop herself. She stared at the ground and began whispering something under her breath. “Um... If it’s okay with you, I’ll be waiting, so...”
“Sure, I’ll meet you at the front gate after school.”
“Wait, how did you hear me?! You’re supposed to not be able to do that!”
“My hearing’s always been good. It’s never let me down so far,” he replied.
“Guuh!! You... Y-You-!” she stuttered.
“‘You’ what?”
“You freak! What are you, a mutant?! What’s with the amazing hearing?!” she screamed. And with that suspiciously complimentary remark, Koyuki fled the scene, her face still a bright red.
The peanut gallery in the hallway watched her depart and discussed among themselves.
“What the...? Was that really Shirogane?”
“That didn’t go how I was expecting it to...”
“Guess she really can be cute and charming if she wants to be.”
Tatsumi gave Naoya a hearty slap on the shoulder. “Still an expert mind reader, I see! But...” Tatsumi trailed off as he lowered his voice and inquired with a disappointed tone, “You were just planning on messing with her like you usually do, weren’t you?”
“I mean, yeah. Pretty much,” Naoya replied.
“Goddd! Why does this jerk get to be so popular with the ladies?!” Tatsumi despaired. Naoya met his friend’s outburst with nothing but a small shrug.