Volume 2 Chapter 1/2 – Four Demons Part 1/ Forbidden Love Part 1 (The Price of Sacrifice)

| Kuzukawa Shou PoV

“Good morning, Kuzukawa-kun.”
“Morning!”

I exchanged a lively greeting with a girl whose name I didn’t even know.

I was feeling great this morning. Every time I opened my phone, I couldn’t help but grin.

“Hey, Kusssun, you’re in a good mood.”
“Seriously, Kusssun, it’s been a while since we’ve seen that sly smile.”
“For real.”

“Who you callin’ sly?”

I was in such a good mood that I even slipped into a Kansai dialect, something I’d never used before. I met up with Shimode, Ueda, and Nakata at the station, and we headed to school together.

People called them my “underlings,” but that wasn’t the case. They were my precious friends since elementary school, and the four of us were always together.

“Thanks for yesterday, Shimo.”
“Don’t mention it. I get how you feel, Kusssun.”
“Yeah, I mean, Aika paired with that introverted loser? That’s straight out of a manga. They don’t suit each other at all.”
“For real.”

Yesterday had been the day we put our long-planned scheme into action.

Naruse Aika.
She was the first girl I’d ever fallen in love with. A rare beauty in every sense of the word, the kind of girl you hardly ever meet in your lifetime. Her body was perfect, and I wanted nothing more than to make her confess her feelings and grovel before me.

I had confided my feelings to my friends.

“So even Kusssun has a pure love story, huh?”
“Isn’t this a first? Actually, they kinda do fit, don’t they?”
“For real.”

I had asked them for their help. At first, I tried making a move on my own. If she turned out to be easy, we would’ve passed her around. But no, she wasn’t. She had firm boundaries, despite her friendly exterior, and that only fueled my desire more. I fell for her even harder.

I kept quiet for the first three years of high school, planning to let loose once I got to college.

Back in middle school, I almost got caught once, but I managed to pin it on a dumb senpai, making him the scapegoat.

He took the fall and ended up in juvenile detention instead of us. No tears were shed for him. Thanks to that, we’ve kept our records squeaky clean. I even inconvenienced my old man with that mess.

That’s why, ever since meeting Aika, my personal princess, these past three months had been hell. I came close to jumping the gun so many times.

That fresh, unfamiliar feeling of genuine affection, along with the frustration of things not going smoothly for the first time, was exciting and sickening at the same time. I’d vent my frustrations on Todou Kyosuke, just to blow off some steam.

I wasn’t going to make the same mistakes I did in middle school. This time, I’d close in on her gradually, using every tool at my disposal, tightening the net until she begged for release and became mine. The ideal scenario.

I wasn’t some horny, impulsive middle schooler anymore, desperate for immediate results. I’m in high school now. From here on, I’ll savor the slow, steady hunt.

“I wonder what the classroom’s like now.”
“She’s definitely getting ostracized.”
“For real.”

Yesterday’s attack was part of a plan to isolate Naruse Aika through guilt. We used her childhood friend, Todou Kyosuke, for that.

We called it a “survival game,” where we took turns beating up Kyosuke and recording it. We made it look like a gang assault for the sake of the video. Of course, we went easy on him. We even pretended to fight among ourselves for the camera.

I already knew Kyosuke wouldn’t go down easily from all the times we used him to vent. Visually, it wouldn’t look too bad, just like some roughhousing. Nothing too serious.

Besides, Naruse Aika didn’t have any other close male friends. I had confirmed that with her old classmates. The only one was Kyosuke.

And even with him, they hadn’t been close since entering high school. So she wouldn’t know much about how guys interact, and by now, it didn’t matter. She even invited me to karaoke, probably thinking it was all behind us.

That last punch I threw was pure frustration, though.

I had some concerns about Aika’s feelings, but in the end, I won the gamble. Even if her emotions took a turn for the worse, it didn’t matter. This plan wasn’t about that.

In parallel, we had Hatsushiba Tomoka, one of the top girls in the caste, secretly film Aika’s reaction. Tomoka would easily brush it off as “just some guy roughhousing.”

Tomoka was an easy mark, always kissing up to the popular guys in the social hierarchy. All I had to do was suggest that she could boss Aika around, and she jumped on board.

The same went for the other clingy gals, Ando Mitsuki and Tashiro Maaya.

Those girls were probably new to bullying, so they’d 100% follow the lead of whoever they were sucking up to.

Shimo and I reviewed the footage at karaoke, and it had come out perfectly.

Shimo immediately edited it into a masterpiece. We put a heavy mosaic over everyone but Kyosuke and only lightly blurred Aika, making her easy to identify.

There’s no way a beauty like Naruse Aika could be hidden behind a mosaic.

We made it look like Aika had been giving orders for the assault, and the video was scheduled to go live by midnight. Anyone who saw it would be shocked, and those who hadn’t would only have rumors to believe.

Once the rumors spread, Naruse Aika would fall into our hands. Nobody wants to go from the top of the social hierarchy to a lonely outcast.

Once the curtain of rumors falls, she’ll come crawling to me of her own accord.

In the end, the masses will always side with the one who holds the power. It’s like politics — one scandal and even the most popular politician gets torn apart.

The higher someone climbs, the easier it is to tear them down in an instant. I can’t wait to see what kind of obedient little pet she’ll turn into.

It had taken a long time to get to this point, and my body ached with anticipation. It’s almost time.

I was struggling not to let my face break into the same Joker-like grin I’d been scolded for as a kid.

◆　◇　◆

| Mihane Todou PoV

I arrived at school earlier than usual.

Kyosuke was in Class 1-A, while I was in 1-C. Ever since we entered high school, I’d been careful not to bring up Kyosuke too often. Even though a few people from our middle school were here, we’d always made sure not to interact at school.

As a result, no one aside from my close friends knew that we were siblings.

From the first time I saw Aika, I had a feeling things would turn out this way. She was prone to letting her emotions toward my brother spiral out of control.

All I had to do was make sure she saw me with Kyosuke. She couldn’t see what happened inside our home, and her imagination would run wild on its own.

As expected, she became consumed by jealousy.

And now, this is the result.
Absolutely perfect.

Especially Aika’s stunned expression today—I’ll never forget it.

I waited for my friends, struggling to keep my smile from showing. As I thought about heading to the restroom for some relief, I overheard some conversations.

“Hey, did you see that video from yesterday?”
“Yeah, it was brutal.”
“That was definitely Naruse-san, right? To think someone so cute could do something so awful.”
“I actually liked her a lot.”
“Well, good thing you didn’t confess, huh?”
“She’s supposed to be the prettiest girl in school, but still…”
“What about that guy?”
“Oh, who was he again? Someone from 1-A, right?”
“Yeah, poor guy. That was basically a lynching.”
“Probably Kuzukawa’s crew, even though they weren’t shown in the video.”
“No way, Kuzukawa-kun wouldn’t do something like that.”

The whole school was abuzz with talk about the video. The group chat had been shut down quickly, so the plan was likely just to make an impact and let the rumors do the rest.

Kuzukawa-kun, well done. Thanks.
But I’ll never forgive you.

As I was silently thanking and condemning him, my friend arrived.

“Morning, Mihane.”
“Morning, Yuma.”

Asagi Yuma.
We’d been friends since middle school and were now in the same class, 1-C. She had a bob cut with straight black hair, and her warm smile was one of her charms. I knew better than anyone how pretty she was without her glasses. She was petite, but her chest was bigger than mine. For some reason, I always thought she’d look good in a naked apron.

Back in middle school, she had long, messy black hair and gave off a gloomy impression. That changed when she came to my house.

Kyosuke suggested she try a short hairstyle, and to use her glasses to ease her shyness, gradually growing more comfortable. The result? She became the top beauty in our class whenever she took her glasses off.

Ever since then, she’s been swapping glasses often, hoping Kyosuke would notice. I knew.

“Is Kyosuke-kun okay!?”
“Did you see the video?”
“Yeah… it was awful.”
“It really was. But you know, he didn’t even have any bruises, and he seemed totally fine.”

Honestly, it was a mystery. From the video, his uniform should’ve been dirty. And when he came home, he acted kind of distant.

“Oh… I’m so relieved.”
“Sorry I didn’t reply sooner.”
“No, I figured you were busy. But I was so worried.”
“Yeah, sorry. It was… a lot.”

Yesterday was indeed a lot, as I ended up doing it three times. How could I hold back after what happened?

Whenever I relieved myself, it was always with Kyosuke’s borrowed triangular ruler. It was tough keeping my burning desire in check.

“Hey, your eyes look rough.”
“Oh, you noticed? I tried to cover it with foundation.”
“Hmm, it’s only noticeable this close. You’re fine.”

The lack of sleep was inevitable. I had been pacing like a crazed polar bear, debating whether to sneak into Kyosuke’s room.

In the end, I convinced myself it wasn’t the right time and managed to calm my feelings.

“Good morning.”
“Oh, morning, Kyoko!”
“Morning, Kyoko.”

Sagawara Kyoko.
Another friend from middle school. She had straight black hair cut to her shoulders and often wore a headband to keep her bangs up because of her acne.

Her slightly droopy eyes gave her a gentle look, and although she was tall for a girl, she had an attractive figure.

In middle school, she hated people seeing her acne, so she kept her bangs long, hunched over, and wore thick glasses to hide her face.

She’d also come over to my house many times, where Kyosuke kindly gave her advice on skincare, hairstyles, and posture. After following his advice, she started being called a beauty by the time we reached our third year of middle school. Now, she’s the most popular girl in 1-C.

“Is Kyosuke-san okay!?”
“Yeah, I told Yuma already—he’s totally fine.”
“I see… but I can’t forgive Aika-san. After everything Kyosuke-san did for her, how could she betray him like that?”

“Well, maybe Aika didn’t mean for it to go that far. Maybe she just couldn’t say no.”

“Mihane-san, you’re really kind.”
“Mihane, you’re too nice.”

I’m not that pure-hearted.
Sorry, both of you.

“But from today on, I can’t hold back anymore. I’ve been patient, but this has gone too far.”

“Mihane-san…”
“Mihane…”

“My body may be fine, but my heart… it might be broken beyond repair.”

Though it’s not my heart that’s broken—it’s my obsession.

I know I can’t win against Aika alone. I understand that, especially when it comes to the sibling barrier that seems so strong with Kyosuke.

And if I make a move and get rejected, I’ll have to leave home.

But if I gather these three, I’m sure I can get through to him. If I can break through the wall of being just his sister, even a little…

Then I’ll be the only one living under the same roof as him.

I have the advantage. Just wait, Kyosuke.