In the morning, Kaoru arrived at Class A's classroom and immediately noticed Sakayanagi sitting in his seat, surrounded by strange gazes.

Especially when he heard Totsuka Yahiko loudly muttering something about "connections," Kaoru realized the rumors had spread faster than he expected.

Compared to something like Ichinose Honami stealing, Sakayanagi Arisu's situation was far more serious.

If this were confirmed, the fairness that ANHS had always touted would become a joke.

Sakayanagi Arisu being in Class A made sense, but the chairman's daughter being in Class A?

That was something worth pondering.

With just a little push, the school would have a major headache.

"Good morning, Mitoma-kun," Sakayanagi greeted him, her expression calm as if the rumors didn't bother her at all.

Beside her stood Kamuro Masumi, whose gaze was somewhat shadowed.

"Morning," Kaoru replied.

Just as he was about to head to Sakayanagi's seat, Masumi silently gave up her own spot, standing to the side like she was being punished.

"Stop staring. You two should hurry up and talk," Masumi said, crossing her arms impatiently when she noticed his odd look.

This was Kaoru's first time sitting in a high school girl's seat, and he couldn't help but feel a little curious.

He ran his fingers over the desk, then glanced at Masumi's long legs beside him.

The black knee-high socks clung tightly to her calves, while the smooth, pale skin of her thighs peeked out from beneath her skirt, delicate and tempting.

The hem was so close that lifting his head just a little might reveal even more.

But all he usually got was her icy, disgusted glare—one that made it clear she saw him as worse than trash.

"How long do you plan on helping her, Mitoma-kun?" Sakayanagi's voice pulled his attention back.

"You mean today's incident?" Kaoru frowned. "If she admits her mistakes and still earns Class B's trust, what will you do?"

"Nothing. The fact is, you helped her again," Sakayanagi replied, her tone unchanging. "With your interference, even if she confesses, everyone's attention will shift to me. On top of that, I get to experience the joy of being drowned in rumors. What do you think I should do?"

Kaoru was taken aback.

He had expected Sakayanagi to at least put up a fight, but she was giving in this easily?

"The only thing I didn't expect was how fast it happened," Sakayanagi murmured, lost in thought before falling silent again.

She remained silent, but Kamuro Masumi interjected, "Someone saw you on a date with Ichinose the other day. Is that true?"

"You think I managed to win over Ichinose-san?" Kaoru feigned surprise.

When dealing with others' questions, the best way to avoid a direct answer was to counter with a reasonable question of his own.

"Who knows? You two looked pretty close. And why are you so defensive?" Kamuro Masumi curled her lips.

In truth, she had known about it that very day—after all, Karuizawa Kei wasn't the only one who had been secretly tracking his location.

"Even a pervert can get a girlfriend, huh? Tch, she got a terrible taste."

Kaoru stared expressionlessly at her thighs, startling her into instinctively shrinking back.

But then she remembered they were in a classroom—there was no way Kaoru would pounce on her here—so she forced herself to stand her ground, feigning composure.

"So she really is your girlfriend?" Sakayanagi Arisu suddenly snapped out of her thoughts, her gaze fixed intently on Kaoru.

"Yep. I even have seven more rings. Want one now?" Kaoru expressed his thoughts candidly.

If he ran out of rings, he could always just pull out a few more.

These "Wedding Rings" held no extraordinary effects—their sole purpose was to automatically adapt to the preferences of the woman wearing them, generating a design perfectly suited to her tastes. In other words, they guaranteed 100% satisfaction.

Thus, even though both Ichinose Honami and Karuizawa Kei's rings had come from Kaoru, their appearances were completely different.

"Hah? Just how many people are you planning to marry?" Kamuro Masumi was dumbfounded.

"Didn't anyone tell you? Poligamy is a crime!"

Sakayanagi Arisu, however, didn't seem angry.

She blinked, a pleased smile playing on her lips.

"If possible, could you show me the ring Mitoma-kun has prepared?"

As she spoke, she extended her flawless, delicate hand toward him, as if expecting him to slip a ring onto her finger.

But Kaoru Mitoma knew her mood was far from pleasant.

She was testing him—if he produced a ring now, she might trace its design all the way back to its origins.

Prepared for this, Kaoru replied smoothly, "Not yet. If Sakayanagi-san can beat me in a game of chess, then I'll give you the ring."

Sakayanagi fell silent for a moment before breaking into a soft laugh.

"Fine. We'll see about that."

Seven rings, huh? She'd find out exactly what kind of scheme he was hiding.

*****

Two major incidents had occurred that morning.

The first was that Sakayanagi Arisu from Class 1-A had been exposed as the school chairman's daughter, sparking rumors that she had gotten in through connections.

Students from all three grades were buzzing about it.

The uproar lasted until evening, when the school was forced to issue a public statement clarifying that while Sakayanagi Arisu was indeed the chairman's daughter, her admission had gone through the school's standard review process and fully met all enrollment requirements.

At the same time, the school publicly disclosed Sakayanagi Arisu's entrance exam results, confirming that there was no suspicion of cheating involved.

With the official debunking of the rumors, the uproar gradually died down within two or three days.

However, some believed the school had blacklisted discussions on the matter, preventing students from talking about it, which explained why the controversy faded so quickly.

Another major event was Ichinose Honami's public confession.

Upperclassmen weren't particularly concerned with first-year affairs and merely treated it as gossip.

Only Nagumo Miyabi, upon hearing the news, completely lost his composure, nearly smashing the vase he kept in the student council office.

However, the first-year students were utterly shocked.

Many had firmly believed Ichinose Honami would never steal, dismissing the rumors as

baseless.No one expected her to admit it outright.

Honestly, even Class B students were dumbfounded by the situation.

Especially when Ichinose reiterated her confession in class.

Once everyone processed it, they unanimously responded with warm smiles toward their leader.

What else could they do but continue to believe in her?

Were they supposed to reject who she was now because of past mistakes?

Thus, when Kaoru finished his tutoring session and returned to his dorm, he pushed open the door to find Ichinose Honami alone in the kitchen, wearing an apron.

Noticing the sound of the door, the girl suddenly turned around, her gaze landing on Kaoru, her eyes instantly sparkling.

"You're back, Kaoru."

Kaoru fell completely silent.

She was still in her school uniform, with only a simple white apron tied around her waist.

As she turned, her skirt swayed slightly, revealing her fair thighs and the distinct curve of her perky ass.

-----------------------------

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