"I admit that I followed you, but you can't blame me. You said you would discuss things with me, but you still haven't." She sighed at those words. "Why would I let go of such a good opportunity?"

Indeed, she makes a point there. It is more surprising that the girl hasn't taken advantage of him yet when she could have.

Should he thank her for being so lenient?

She is so stubborn. "If you followed me, you should have heard the discussion."

Sumire looked at him cautiously. "Do you really want to help me?"

"Is it that shocking?"

"Well, mmm, I suppose."

"I want to take responsibility for my actions that hurt you so much. Even if I didn't know, at the end of the day, I allowed them to use me to hurt you."

"I already said you don't have to go this far."

Sano shook his head. "I understand that, but you have to understand me too. This is something I want to do."

"Then alright." She extended her hand out and brushed her fingers across the cut on his cheek. "I think men with scars are cool.

"Like I will believe that." Sano scoffed.

"Yuhi-san does; his reaction is quite amusing." She drew her hand back. "By the way, you only spoke to a recording earlier."

"Huh?"

"Hmmm, it's like what I thought. He has never shown himself in front of his subordinates. That curtain is there for display."

"But what about the power he used?"

"It is actually easy to fake that kind of thing. I doubt I would have been able to save you otherwise."

Sano knew better than to ask questions. Ever since he learned the existence of individuals with evolved genetics, he understood something. These people live in a completely different world than he does. They may live in the same world, but their status is far above those even with political power.

The woman he loves belongs to that category of untouchable people. If he disliked how far away their status was back when they dated, then what about now?

Why is it no matter how hard he tries, he still can't reach her?

Sumire must have sensed his frustration since she pulled her hands away from his cheek. A strange light appeared in her hand, no now that he got a closer look he realized it was blood. He watched as a hilt of a sword formed from the blood and frowned.

"Is this-"

"Right, it seems I can use blood to create weapons."

"Your blood?"

Sumire nodded. "Having power isn't all great. It comes with sacrifices. Sure it may seem nice, and we may seem like unreachable people. But at what cost do we pay to obtain that status? You know, even before they told me, I felt like I already knew about this a long time ago and unconsciously put a distance between myself and others because of it."

"Sumire."

"I am very tired already," Sumire mumbled. "But I won't stop until I reach the truth."

He wonders what truth she is searching for now. She already learned the reason for the accident, and yet she still doesn't seem satisfied. How much more does she want to learn, and for what reason? Does she truly have to uncover all the dark secrets in the world?

"Why are you getting closer?"

At some point, he was unconsciously leaning towards her.

"Is it a crime to get close?"

"Mmm, you have hidden motives."

"I want to take your temperature." It was a lie; of course, he had bad intentions like she suggested.

Sumire, however, was clever enough to understand and buried her face under the covers. "I want to sleep."

Sano sighed, defeated. Well, he didn't think it would be that easy. Moreover, she mentioned that he couldn't have his way with her anymore. He moved away from the bed and walked over to the couch, where he left his laptop and some paperwork.

The next few minutes, he looked over some documents and compared it to the video on his screen. It was quiet when she broke the silence and spoke up, mumbling quietly.

"Does he always try to intimidate you like that?"

Sano sighed deeply as he looked over at her. "Every single time a subordinate disobeys him. He turns them into statues for one night, or several depending on how severe the situation is."

He never personally experienced it, but he saw with his own eyes and heard the stories. He never thought the day would come where it would happen to him.

"That's-"

"I have never disobeyed him before; it was the first time."

She didn't reply right away, and then he hears sobbing. At first, he thought he just imagined it. Sano quickly stood up and walked over to the bed. He pulled the covers and to confirm his suspicion. Sumire was indeed crying.

This is the first time he has seen her cry since their breakup.

No, this is the second time.

"Why are you crying?"

"I already told you," Sumire exclaimed. "I don't want you to sacrifice anything,"

Sano sighed when he heard those words from her. "If you can't accept my affections. The least you can do is allow me to protect you. Back then, I couldn't protect you, Sumire. I allowed my parents to walk all over you, I allowed them to mock you, and you had a hard time."

He regretted it so much; he wishes he helped her. It was painful for him to look away.

"So, are you simply trying to make it up to me?"

"You already know the answer."

The girl was still crying, but the strength had returned to her eyes. Sano extended his hand out and wiped her tears with his thumb. "Let me do this much. I won't complain about you and Terashima anymore."

Although he isn't fond of seeing them kiss, he can't do anything about it right now.

"Alright, stop crying; you know I can't do anything when you cry."

"You're just bad at comforting girls. How can you be a playboy if you can't solve something this simple."

"Sumire I--" Before Sano could say anymore, though, they suddenly heard a voice.

"I will take over this if you don't mind."

Sano isn't surprised to see Terashima. This was the time he would normally visit. He stepped out of the way, and Terashima stepped forward. Sumire wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Yuhi."

"Mmmm, I heard. Aren't you too careless? If you're going to do something like that, you have to tell me so I can watch your back."

"Aha." Sumire laughed softly. "Instead of stopping me, you want to join me?"

"Of course, raiding a church sounds quite cool."

Sano watched this exchange silently. She is able to smile when Terashima is around. Just a few minutes ago, she was crying, but now she can smile. He didn't say anything and simply walked away.

It seems he really can't do anything for her even though he went through all that trouble. It is not like he did that to obtain something from her, but even then, it frustrated him. Why is he unable to do something for the woman he loves?