Chapter 131: Accident!

The next morning, the faint morning light coated the steel frame of Shibuya Station in a layer of soft, warm gold.

The train, accompanied by the rhythmic and hypnotic sound of track friction, slid steadily into the platform.

Inside the carriage, Yukimura Reion's gaze moved away from her literature book, and her cold eyes subconsciously swept across the surroundings.

—She didn't find that familiar figure.

Her gaze turned to the window, searching for a moment among the sparse morning crowd, but still found nothing.

'He asked for leave yesterday, and he didn't appear today either...'

'Could it be that he's really sick, and it hasn't improved?'

This thought had just emerged when it was interrupted by the sound of the train doors opening and a slight commotion.

"Ruri, the train is here, I'll be going now."

"Mm-hmm! Take care on your way!"

A clear male voice and a girl's crisp response hit her eardrums.

Yukimura Reion subconsciously looked toward the sound, just in time to see Natsume Chikage waving goodbye to a very cute-looking girl, and then stepping into the carriage.

His complexion was fair and healthy, his steps steady; he didn't look like someone suffering from an illness at all.

Natsume Chikage stepped into the slightly crowded carriage, scanned it and saw no empty seats, so he found a spot by the door to stand as usual, and naturally took out his phone.

His fingertips tapped rapidly on the screen, completely immersed in his own creative world, clearly not noticing Yukimura Reion standing to the side at all.

Yukimura Reion was silent for a moment, withdrew her gaze, reopened the literature novel in her hand, and read it carefully as she always did.

The train started slowly, the carriage swayed gently, and it headed toward Hibiya.

After a while.

The train arrived at Hibiya Station on time.

The doors opened, and a large number of students wearing Private Moonlight Academy uniforms poured out of the carriage like a tide; Natsume Chikage and Yukimura Reion were among them.

On the platform floor, the yellow tactile paving was particularly conspicuous.

Those raised strips, designed for the convenience of others, sometimes became minor obstacles for hurried pedestrians—though not enough to make one fall, tripping slightly was enough to cause a slight loss of balance.

Yukimura Reion walked toward the exit while lowering her head to put her literature book into her bag.

In that split second of being distracted, her toe accidentally caught on the raised part of the tactile paving.

"Ugh...!"

The sudden force caused her center of gravity to tilt forward, the literature book slipped from her hand, and she fell forward uncontrollably—

But the expected collision with the cold ground did not come.

She fell into a warm and solid back.

Natsume Chikage was walking when he suddenly felt a force hit his back, and immediately after, he felt a pair of slender arms subconsciously wrap around him.

He turned his head in a daze, and what came into view was Yukimura Reion's face, inches away.

The faint scent of books unique to the girl and a hint of cold aura unexpectedly lingered at the tip of his nose.

Both of them froze in place.

Yukimura Reion looked up in astonishment, her clear pupils reflecting Natsume Chikage's equally stunned expression.

Through the thin school uniform fabric, the temperature of his back and the solidity of his body were transmitted with absolute clarity.

Having never had such intimate contact with a person of the opposite sex, her face, which was always calm, instantly flushed with a noticeable crimson, spreading all the way to her fair earlobes.

"......!"

As if struck by an electric current, she bounced off Natsume Chikage's back, turned around quickly, took a deep breath, and tried her best to suppress her out-of-control heartbeat and slightly chaotic breathing.

A moment later, when she turned back again, her face had tried to return to its usual coldness, only the slightly red earlobes betrayed her heart.

"I tripped just now, excuse me, I am very sorry." Her voice was a few degrees colder than usual, as if to freeze the awkwardness of just now.

Natsume Chikage realized, bent down to pick up the dropped literature book, and handed it back to her: "Are you okay?"

"Thank you, I'm fine." Yukimura Reion quickly took the book, her gaze lowered to avoid eye contact, and she added in a low voice, "It was just an accident."

After speaking, she didn't linger, turned around, and quickly merged into the crowd of students, her slender back carrying a hint of imperceptible haste, and soon disappeared.

Natsume Chikage looked in the direction she disappeared, shook his head slightly, didn't think much of it, and continued on his way to school.

Soon.

Natsume Chikage passed through the school gate and stepped onto the cherry blossom path.

The weather today was still sunny; under the azure sky, cherry petals flew like snow, falling on the winding path.

Natsume Chikage strolled alone among them.

From the baseball field on the left came the crisp sound of batting and the shouts of boys, and from the music classroom on the right flowed the melodious rehearsal sound of the orchestra.

The two sounds intertwined, once again outlining the distinct feeling of school youth in his heart.

When he arrived almost in front of the teaching building, a familiar figure entered his sight.

The senior with a small tear mole under her left eye and an intellectual and elegant temperament—Yue Dao Lin, was standing there talking to someone.

The moment she saw Natsume Chikage, Yue Dao Lin felt the silent heart in her chest beat violently again.

She subconsciously lowered her head and looked at the heart rate monitoring watch on her left wrist that she hadn't worn for a long time.

On the dial, the number had been stable at around 60 not long ago.

At this moment, it had clearly jumped to 80 and was still rising.

This obvious gap caused her eyes to settle into a firm light after a moment of relief and complexity.

Heartbeats never lie.

No matter how many times it repeats, the result is the same.

Thinking this, Yue Dao Lin really intended to start pursuing Natsume Chikage, just as she had said before!

"Sorry, excuse me." She smiled and said goodbye to the classmate beside her, then took a step, actively welcoming the figure that could disturb her heart rate.

Just at this moment, a figure blocked her path.

"Good morning, Yue Dao-san."

The one who spoke was the handsome-looking Student Council Vice President, Yushengfu Society.

He was very popular in school and was also a candidate in the hearts of many girls.

Yue Dao Lin paused, recognizing the other party as Student Council Vice President Yushengfu Society.

Because they both had arrangements for the opening ceremony on Friday, she had gone to the student council once, and the two had discussed related matters in a meeting held in the student council.

They weren't close, but they were acquaintances.

"Good morning, Vice President Yushengfu Society." She responded politely.

Yushengfu Society smiled and asked: "Yue Dao-san, regarding the opening ceremony, we need to hand over some things with the orchestra people before class, do you have time now?"

Yue Dao Lin shook her head and smiled: "Sorry, I have some personal matters to deal with now. If you need to find the orchestra people to hand over, you can go to our club room."

"If nothing goes wrong, our club president should be inside. Matters of handing over with the student council are actually mostly handled by him. Last time it was only because he had something to do that he asked me to go."

"If you find him now, I think it will be more appropriate than finding me."

She pointed to the teaching building on the side, where a boy playing the violin inside the window was the president of the orchestra club.

"Then—I'll excuse myself first."

After speaking, Yue Dao Lin brushed past him and walked toward Natsume Chikage behind her with a clear goal.

Yushengfu Society heard this, was silent for a moment, moved his gaze away from Yue Dao Lin, kept looking at Natsume Chikage's back, and stood in place for a long time. ===== CHAPTER 132 =====