CH 28

Chapter 28: The Outdoor Classroom: Hanabi's Last Dance 4

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I let out a shocked sigh. I don't have any sympathy for Hanabi at all, she's reaping what she sowed after all. But if I abandoned her and something terrible happened, it would do a number on my conscience. Left with no other choice, I head back down the slope to where Hanabi is. 

"Ugh... Augh..." 

Curled up in a ball on the dirt, I see Hanabi's pale face as she moans. The cold sweat on her face is due to her right foot being completely bent out of position, which is probably causing her huge amounts of pain. I'm not a doctor at all and I can tell it's broken. 

Because I'm one of the participants in the outdoor classroom, my absence will be noticed when they take roll. But Hanabi isn't supposed to be here and if I don't report it, no one will bother to find her. There's no guarantee that Kirigaya and his lackeys will come back here, so if I leave, Hanabi will be left all alone and no one will likely find her. It'll be Hanabi's fault if I get charged with indirect murder. As I go back up to report to the teachers, I hear a voice. 

"Ah..." 

It's different from when I checked up on her before. Her delicate voice is slowly whimpering away. It's pretty obvious why. Being left all alone, especially in the dark, can be pretty frightening. Her flashlight is broken and the moonlight has all but vanished. Being stuck in a closet during the day made Hanabi panic. For a normal person, being left alone in the forest and night would probably make them feel uneasy. For Hanabi, this must be torture, given that she's scared of the dark on top of being injured. I don't want to entertain her thoughts, as I have no problem with leaving her here. 

That's when I start looking at it from another point of view. Up until now, I've tried to distance myself from Hanabi to no avail. I couldn't even get her to stop obsessing over me. So what if I change my mode of operation? The dark is Hanabi's one weak point, and seeing how vulnerable she is, I won't get a better opportunity. If I take advantage of her weakened state, I could get her to promise to stop bugging me in exchange for my help. Well, it's worth a shot. This might work better than a direct approach. Alright, let's go. 

"..." 

I sigh and take a seat, as Hanabi's pained face looks up at me in confusion. 

"Why, Senpai...?" 

"You're scared of the dark, plus you're all alone. At your current state, you can't make it up the slope alone. After the campfire, they'll do roll call and they'll probably find us in half an hour. Normally, injured people will usually want to call for help, no?" 

Hanabi frowns and shakes her head. 

"Why... are you being so nice...?" 

"..." 

"I thought... Ugh... you would leave me..." 

"Well yeah. I mean, you only brought this upon yourself." 

I find myself amazed at how Hanabi rationalizes situations, the words out of her mouth right now being no exception. 

"So you're saying that I love you because I won't leave you here, huh?" 

Hanabi's pale face makes a scowl in response to my blunt words. She then hangs her head, all the strength leaving her body. 

Even if it works to her advantage, Hanabi isn’t one to appear weak in front of me. I'm pretty sure she would rather die than show any weakness to the likes of me, someone she clearly despises. 

That's why she isn't putting up a front right now. She's probably in too much pain to properly process her situation. Seeing her being so weak is like observing a rare animal. 

And there, I spot a single tear running down her pale cheek. 

Wait... Why is she crying?

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Translator’s Note: lol