Whose youth romance story begins with a witch's trial?!

Hasumi Ryoya was stunned by Chang Rong's long and complicated rap-like instructions and could only blink and look at Shirosaki Noa beside her.

"Stare—Rongrong's acting strange, Noah's going to catch Rongrong—Ugh!"

"Oh dear, Noah! Since my top fan has asked you for this, as a qualified idol, you naturally have to do your best, right? So you can't run around."

Noah Kinosaki was about to run away with Chang Rong when he was stopped by Ryota Hasumi.

"...Leah is an idiot."

The colorful balloon, caught by the golden-haired idol, looked helpless and could only stare at Ryota Hasumi and complain softly, thus announcing the disbandment of the "Infirmary Torture Trio" group.

Meanwhile, on the other side—

"Sakura-chan! Sakura... Emma!"

Chang Rong looked around the corridor for the pink-haired girl while calling out Emma's name. Since using honorifics was too cumbersome, Chang Rong simply called her by her given name.

Normally, Emma Sakura would have happily wagged her tail and come running up to him upon hearing such an affectionate way of addressing him. However, for some reason, she completely ignored him at this moment.

In fact, after waking up in the infirmary, Chang Rong noticed that Sakura Emma was acting strangely; she seemed to be deliberately avoiding him.

However, it doesn't seem to be the kind of avoidance where you can't see them at all. Rather, it's more like a cute little peanut-shaped concrete neck massager that will sneak up in a corner of your field of vision to observe you.

Thinking of this, Chang Rong immediately focused her attention on the corner, and sure enough, she saw that pink hair in the corner of the courtyard.

"Wait, Emma!" "Woof...!?"

Chang Rong ran directly towards Sakura Emma, ​​who, after letting out a short whimper, also started running.

—Ha...ha...something's not right! How can Emma run so fast?! Even the guards couldn't catch her at that speed!

And shouldn't she trip and fall after running a couple of steps? Why is she walking like she's flying right now?! Damn it!

I really need to make time to exercise. I feel like I've been frozen in a freezer for two years, my whole body is stiff and numb...

"Chang, why is Chang Rongjun chasing me...!?" "If you don't run away, I won't chase you anymore...!"

Hmm, I feel like I've heard this conversation before—ah, it was Coco-chan…

—No, I failed to win over Coco last time. I only managed to win her over by using her telepathic magic to force her to listen to my story about the new Three Kingdoms. This trick won't work on Emma.

If that's the case—

"Wow!"

Pfft!

Chang Rong tripped and fell flat on her face, landing face-first on the floor.

"Uh! Um, Chang Rong-kun, are you alright...?" Sure enough, Sakura Emma was drawn over by her.

Fortunately, Emma Sakura didn't have the habit of lying 10 meters away to listen to her heartbeat or using a throwing knife to test if she was faking her death. She carefully approached Chang Rong's side.

The next second—

"Gotcha!" "Woof woof woof!?"

Chang Rong grabbed the pink-haired puppy and instantly subdued it. With a chilling battle of wits, she declared the end of the chase with an overwhelming victory.

"Alright...can you tell me why you run away when you see me, Sakura-kun?"

After catching the disobedient pink puppy, Chang Rong brought Emma to the courtyard and, as if in some kind of historical cycle, sat on the bench where she had chatted with Hakimi earlier.

"Waaah! I'm... I'm back to [Sakuraba-san]..."

Upon hearing the respectful address from Chang Rong, Emma slumped her head in disappointment.

"If you want to turn back into 'Emma,' then answer my questions honestly, understand?"

"Mmm..."

Emma Sakura didn't make eye contact with Chang Rong; she just lowered her head and made cute little movements.

"Anyway—why are you avoiding me, Sakura-kun? Did I do something to upset you?"

"Huh...?"

Upon hearing Chang Rong's question, Sakura Emma paused for a moment, then looked at Chang Rong with an incredulous expression.

"What's wrong?" The white-haired boy was taken aback by the pink-haired puppy's transformation.

"So, Chang Rong-jun doesn't dislike me after all...?"

"Huh? Why do I hate you?"

Now it was Chang Rong's turn to be dumbfounded. He didn't know what he had done to make Sakura Emma have this idea.

"Really...! Chang Rong-kun really doesn't hate me? Even though I... executed Coco-chan...?"

Sakura Emma suddenly moved closer to Chang Rong and revealed the reason why she had been avoiding Chang Rong—Ze Du Ke Ke.

"Chang Rong-jun even did that to save Coco-chan. If it were me... I'm afraid it would be Hiro-chan who gets executed. I wouldn't dare to resist..."

Emma Sakura whispered, her face contorted with worry.

"But even though Chang Rongjun cares so much about Cocoa, I... threw Cocoa out in order to find out the truth."

"Chang Rong-jun actually knew all along that Coco-chan was the culprit, right? That's why he wanted everyone to vote for suicide, but I... I didn't consider Chang Rong-jun's feelings at all, I just—Ugh!?"

Sakura Emma was speaking when her head was suddenly rubbed hard.

"You're only bothered by something this small? Emma? Coco and I are really being underestimated."

Chang Rong laughed and rubbed the dog's head angrily as he spoke.

"c岄oc o酱她. She was prepared to do something, she was prepared to protect others, she was prepared to be killed, and she was prepared to commit suicide. And I respect her resolve."

"Similarly, I also admire Emma's determination to pursue the truth. Anyone can act impulsively and rashly like me, but it is much more precious and admirable to be like Emma, ​​who can use reason to the end and never give up no matter the outcome."

"I...I'm not as bad as Chang Rongjun said..."

"No, I believe that if it were you, Emma, ​​you would definitely make the right choice. No matter what happens, no matter what you encounter, you will always make the right choice—right?"

Chang Rong said with a smile.

"...Yes, I will try my best...!"

Looking at the smiling face of the white-haired boy in front of her, Emma Sakura finally mustered up her courage and nodded vigorously to make a promise.

If Chang Rongjun hopes that I can carry this 'rationality' to the end... then I must not let Chang Rongjun down!

"That's great, so that's what it was. I thought it was something else... Well, since everything's alright now, let's go back—hmm?"

The minor misunderstanding with Emma was resolved, and Chang Rong got up to leave. However, just as he stood up from the bench, the corner of his sleeve was gently tugged by a force.

"...Emma?"

Chang Rong turned around and found that Sakura Emma had not gotten up, but was still sitting on the bench. Her right hand was clutching her sleeve, while her left hand restlessly rested on her chest.

"Well, um... since Chang Rong-jun doesn't mind me... I, my [magic]—"

The pink-haired puppy's cheeks were flushed, and although it spoke haltingly, it still continued to speak firmly.

"Is it 'Stamina Absorption Magic'? Come to think of it, I've been in jail for the past few days, so Emma, ​​you must have been holding back for a long time. It's okay, I'm prepared to be sucked into a deep sleep. Come on, Emma!"

Chang Rong understood what Emma wanted to do, so he patted his chest and declared, "Come at me head-on!"

however……

"Well... it's true that I've been holding it in for a long time, so... this time it can't just be a hug, it has to be, it has to be—"

You have to kiss me first.

Emma Sakura blushed and spoke tremblingly but with unwavering conviction.

Chang Rong was completely stunned.

I'm going to get kissed three times in one day... Is today some kind of 'World Kissing Day'?

Volume 1: Chapter 88. Protecting its food, it hisses, then pounces to nibble.

"Sakura Sakuraba-kun—Emma, ​​Emma...?"

"No, not here... not here either..."

Chang Rong sometimes really doesn't understand this girl, Sakura Emma.

On the surface, Emma's personality is somewhat like that of the rock-wielding penguin that randomly appears in the Haneoka Astronomy Club: soft, weak, passive, and somewhat marginal.

But sometimes, Emma Sakura would suddenly become a completely different person, extremely proactive, aggressive, and giving off an aura of "Conqueror's Haki" that was impossible to resist.

Emma Sakuraba was like this during the witch's trial, and she is the same now, dragging Chang Rong's hand and wandering around the castle.

On the courtyard bench, faced with Emma Sakura's request for a kiss, Chang Rong swallowed hard and hesitated for over ten seconds before finally giving her the answer—

"We can try the usual method of sticking on and hugging each other first. If that still doesn't work... then we'll talk about the next step."

Chang Rong's somewhat indecisive or even cowardly response made Sakura Emma frown, revealing an expression like a dog that had been cruelly rejected after being dangled with a frisbee.

But she immediately shook her head, roused herself, and said, "Well, let's do it this way for now, Chang Rongjun! But we need to find a pretty good place first!"

"We don't need to find a special place, do we? Isn't it just right here in the courtyard—oh my! Eh eh eh?"

Chang Rong had originally planned to simply cuddle the pink-haired puppy in the courtyard to allow it to absorb energy and replenish its [magic], but Sakura Emma seemed dissatisfied with this answer. Contrary to her usual behavior, she grabbed Chang Rong's wrist and pulled her along with an unyielding force.

Emma's posture was as if she went out to let her dog roam freely, but ended up being led forward by the dog biting the leash.

Not only that, but Emma Sakura, who was pulling Chang Rong along the corridor, would stop every time they passed a room, mutter to herself as she thought about something, and then shake her head and continue pulling Chang Rong forward.

"The living room—although it's more comfortable to sit or lie down there, this place will definitely have a lot of people coming and going, it won't work..."

"The reception room—there's glass on the door. If someone looks this way as they head towards the entrance to leave the castle, it'll be immediately exposed. That won't do..."

"Chang Rong-kun's room? Considering we currently have absolutely no information about Nanoha Kaori, this kind of place could easily become a dangerous zone where we end up bumping into weirdos while trying to create an artistic conflict. No way..."

—What exactly is Ai Lingqiba Shi 7 Wu Ma checking? Is the landlord coming to inspect his own house?

"A bathhouse? This, this...I...I Although there's a high probability I'll run into a Japanese person here (no, but if I could be with Chang Rong-kun...no, no, that would be too, too intimate for the moment...!"

When Lu Liu left the shower room, Ying Yiyu and Emma seemed to think of something. She looked at the scar, and then looked at Chang Rong again at the closed shower room door. Her cheeks flushed, and she quickly turned her head and continued to pull Chang Rong forward.

"Oh dear, Emma and Rong."

"Milia-chan...!"

On their way to the infirmary, the two bumped into Miria Saeki, who was staring at the medicine cabinet with a conflicted expression at the entrance of the infirmary.