What's Wrong With Interfering With My Childhood Friend's Love?

Chapter 36 : Sophistry and False Accusations

Today, unlike yesterday, I arrived at school early. Well, it’s more accurate to say that yesterday was just late. As Chiya and I headed toward Akito, Yuto approached us at the same time.

As students trickled into the classroom, everyone seemed hesitant in the face of Yuto’s severe expression.

“Akimitsu! I never expected you to resort to something like this! This time, I can’t just let it slide.”

“Huh? What the hell, first thing in the morning… You’re so damn annoying.”

“…Even if information was leaked, that doesn’t mean you had to go and directly threaten my acquaintance from Nishikiba!”

“What? Don’t be ridiculous.”

“She shared the information out of concern for the conflict between schools. She has nothing to do with us.”

Ah… I listened to the conversation and felt troubled.

The reason Yuto was angry wasn’t because of Akito… It was me.

I had anticipated this outcome, which is why I had gently warned Miumi to be careful. But… well, she must be the kind of person who just couldn’t help but say something.

Yuto didn’t seem to realize that I was the cause yet, but if a search for the culprit began, it would be a huge hassle.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Don’t play dumb. If this were just some delusion, I wouldn’t even be bringing it up. I heard about it myself this morning.”

Ugh… Another pointless argument. Not something I want to deal with this early in the morning.

Akito probably couldn’t care less. His attitude was perfectly reasonable, but his deliberately exasperated manner was only aggravating Yuto further.

“Besides, even if I had snitched… I don’t know what that person told you, but if you trace it back, isn’t this just your own fault?”

“No, you’re mistaken. This isn’t about my personal grudges.”

“Oh, please. It is a personal grudge. You have no moral high ground here.”

“This situation could affect the relationship between our schools. You get that, right? This could easily be seen as an act of aggression against Higashikiba High. You wouldn’t be able to argue otherwise.”

Even though there was no actual evidence, Akito kept provoking him, making things worse. If this escalated any further, it could spiral out of control.

Before the hunt for the one who leaked the information began, I decided to step in.

“Hey, Yuto. I get what you’re saying, but think about it — if someone in our class had threatened her, would that even be possible in such a short time?”

“Well… that’s true, but the timing—”

“Did she specifically say that Akito threatened her?”

“No, she didn’t mention any names, but…”

“Then isn’t it possible she just found out through SNS or something?”

“Come on, do you really think she’d stumble upon it in just one day?”

This is bad. I was hoping to steer the conversation away from finding the culprit, but it looks like that won’t be possible.

No one knows about my connection with Miumi, so they won’t suspect me.

But on the flip side, if they start investigating, there’s a risk that my relationship with Miumi will be exposed. That’s something I absolutely must avoid.

If it comes out, I have no idea how I’d even explain it to Akito.

“Can the three of you calm down for a moment? If this false accusation gets any worse, I’m just going to spill it — I’m probably the one responsible.”

Just as I was struggling to come up with a response, Chiya stepped in.

But instead of de-escalating the situation, her words sounded like an outright confession to Yuto.

From my perspective, it didn’t make any sense.

There’s no way Chiya was actually to blame — she had to be lying to take the fall. And even if she wanted to clear Akito’s name, this wasn’t like her at all.

“…What do you mean? So Sahara did threaten her?”

“Hey, don’t jump to conclusions. ‘Threaten’ is way too extreme… Last night, I was just chatting with a friend from Nishikiba, and the topic came up, that’s all.”

“So, in other words, you indirectly caused a situation where she felt threatened?”

“Maybe my friend just happened to be friends with Yuto’s acquaintance, and that’s how the info got passed along?”

“But that’s just speculation.”

“And saying that Akito or any of us threatened her is also just speculation, isn’t it?”

Yuto fell silent at Chiya’s words.

His argument had been weak from the start, but it worked on Akito because Akito wasn’t the type to argue properly.

But against Chiya, who could throw logic right back at him, he realized he was outmatched.

“Either way, this suspicion isn’t going away. Don’t forget that… Tsk.”

Clicking his tongue — an uncharacteristic display for someone usually so composed — Yuto walked away, back to his group.

I thought this yesterday too, but he gave up surprisingly quickly.

“Chiya, thanks… That guy was such a pain, huh?”

“Akito, if you’re innocent, you should actually defend yourself once in a while.”

“You know I’m not good at that kind of thing.”

For once, Chiya was scolding Akito. But his usual half-hearted response just made her sigh in exasperation.

If he had simply not provoked Yuto, their relationship wouldn’t have turned into such a mess.

“You okay? Akito, you didn’t even do anything wrong, and that was still rough.”

“Kokaze thinks so too!”

Shino and Suisei, who had walked into the classroom in the middle of the argument, sided with Akito and criticized Yuto.

Seeing this, Yuto and some of the other guys in class looked even more annoyed.

As Akito stood there, Chiya leaned in close and whispered to me.

“Riku, what do you think?”

What do I think about what? I had no clue what she was asking.

Then I remembered yesterday’s conversation.

So she thought I’d tease her if she intervened? That was obviously a joke.

Still, since she called it a “spectacle,” I figured I might as well play along.

“What do I think…? If you did all that just to see my reaction, that’s just dumb.”

“Wow, rude. I helped you, and now you’re mocking me?”

Wait. “Helped”? What does she mean by that?

A chill ran down my spine.

Did she figure out that I was actually the one who leaked the information?

I looked at Chiya — her expression was exasperated. But something about it seemed fake.

Because underneath, she looked pleased.

She must have tricked me into playing along with her little scheme.

Akito sucks at dealing with this kind of stuff, so she was using me instead. If she keeps teasing people like this, she’s going to get herself in trouble one day.

“Hah… You really are something else.”

“And you are way too cold to your childhood friends, Riku.”

What kind of personality is that supposed to be?

Besides, Akito and Suisei are my childhood friends too — there are so many things wrong with that statement.

Chiya, satisfied with how things turned out, returned to her seat.

But I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off.

‘Wait… Chiya doesn’t know about my connection to Miumi. So how did she figure it out?’

That’s impossible. If she knew, she’d have confronted me directly.

She must have assumed I was the one who leaked the information.

Regardless, Yuto didn’t come after Akito again.

After all the fuss, he hadn’t managed to land a single blow on Akito. He’d probably stay quiet for a while.

I should also make sure to stay out of this mess from now on.