Kumi is stunned into silence.

"Kumi," Veikko said as he takes advantage of that silence, "I overheard two girls in the tower talking about this setup. So I escaped to warn you."

"And it was all in vain, Ryynänen-san," Hime said.

"And it was you who knocked me out yesterday," Veikko sneered slightly with a touch of defiance in his tone.

But Hime silently smirks back at him.

"I know it was you," Veikko continued with a smirk as well. "I always found it strange that you just happened to come waltzing along with that wooden sword of yours right after Kumi left with Sara."

He sighs while folding his arms and shaking his head slowly. "And to think that you came into my room last night wearing only your eyepatch and seduced me."

It was his attempt to take the tension out of the room and throw Hime off her game. But it was also out of spite to release his pent-up outrage from all this. It seems to work as Hime's smirk turns into a slight sneer, and her cheeks even redden. The enforcers glance back and forth between Veikko and Hime with bewilderment.

"Oh wait," Veikko said as if remembering something important, knowing that any of the enforcers present could mention that to her. "It was only a dream. But it seemed so real."

Hime sighs and gestures for the enforcers to take Sachiko away. The others also drag Kumi off as well. One of the enforcers clasps Veikko's arm to encourage him to leave.

"W-Wait!" Kumi cried. "Let me go. Don't take Sachiko away! Sachiko . . . ! Yagiyuuin-san!"

Her cry compels the enforcers to pause.

"Even if you have a grudge against me," Kumi continued, "that shouldn't affect Sachiko. Let Sachiko free!"

"Grudge?" Hime said with cool amusement as she pins Kumi's badge next to her own, then removes her glasses. "You sure are full of yourself."

She raises her free hand up to her face and pokes her forefinger behind her eyepatch.

"My goal is to gain badges," she continued, and digs out another badge.

Veikko is both amused and perturbed from Hime's cleverness in hiding a badge there and the fact that in order to hide a badge like that she must be missing an eye, along with the notion of hiding something in one's eye socket.

"And then," Hime concluded, "join the Student Council."

"Three . . . badges," Kumi gasped. "So you already had two before . . . "

"Okay, take her away!" One of the enforcers commanded at the group holding Burai Sachiko. The other group with Kumi takes this as their cue to drag Kumi off as well.

"S-Sachiko!" Kumi cried as she resists them. "Sachiko! Sachiko!"

Veikko looks back and forth between Sachiko and Kumi grimly.

"Come on, Veikko-kun," one of the enforcers admonished gently while tugging on his arm. "There's nothing more here for you to see."


One month later

Yagiyuuin Hime confidently walks along with an entourage of students behind her. They like the rest of the student body are now wearing vests instead of a blazer. The other students are quick to move out of her way and give her uneasy looks as they speak with tones of awe about her. This is due to the fact that she is displaying ten badges, five on either side.

But the biggest change of all is Kumi being a part of her entourage.

Veikko Ryynänen watches the students from high inside the tower. That ship should be showing up soon, at least according to the Student Council when he asked this morning. Of course, he once noted the helicopter pad, but was informed that it is easier for them to procure a ship than it is a helicopter. Then there are their claims of closed communications to insure strict isolation for the student body.

In the meantime, he keeps his mind and body busy, through reading and exercises. Mostly, he wrote down and recited Finnish words to avoid becoming too familiar with Japanese. He also manages to remain clean-shaven, since he was given the use of a razor and shaving cream. Whenever he went outside, he tended to look behind him in case Hime wanted to knock him out again. She never showed up again to him outside. Inside, he periodically encountered her.

He has since gotten used to the daily violent routine that took place after school. The troubling thing now is that the enforcers, along with the members of the Student Council, are starting to look more attractive to him. Against his better judgement he . . . relieves himself at night . . . using a towel and face cloth.

The enforcers have come to know what he does and start getting more assertive with him, despite the order from the Student Council to not harass him. They instead become more subtle about it through a caressing touch here or there, along with soft sweet words. Some, however, made masked comments involving sexuality with him. When the uniform change came, some would ask his advice on if their uniforms made them look cute.

"Hey there, Veikko-kun," an enforcer called mischievously as she briefly slapped his behind, startling him into paying attention to her and he sees that she is grinning. She is a girl he recognizes whose name is Junko and wears glasses.

"The students from the Art Class requested that they wish to draw you," she said.

"D-Draw me?" His tone suspicious.

"Don't worry, you won't be nude," she waved dismissively with a close-eyed smile, then makes a broad squinty smile. "Though I wish it were so."

A drop of sweat trickles down the side of Veikko's face as he blinks at her. He knows that he really doesn't have a choice.

He is led by four enforcers to the Art Class past gawking grinning students who happened to be around. Given that this is a school hour, most of the students are in their respective classes. The Art Class is in the building where he had witnessed Kumi and Sachiko being separated a month ago. Those windows have long since been fixed.

Once inside, he is greeted by the sight of grinning students, all eager to draw him. The only ones who are not grinning he recognizes as Hime and Kumi.

"Kya, he showed up," one of the other girls squealed softly to another girl.

"He's so gorgeous," the other whispered back. "I wish he'd pose nude!"

"I once saw him naked, meow," said a familiar girl alongside them as she points at her own face.

He is instructed to sit on a stool in front of the class and to give a casual pose.

"Something is missing," Hime suddenly announced.

"Something?" Kumi said from alongside her.

"Yes, another model."

There is a moment of silence as Hime stares at Kumi.

"Eh? Y-You want me to go up there with him?" Kumi exclaimed as she points at her own face.

"Is there a problem?" Hime glared at her.

"Um, no, no there isn't!" Kumi said with a close-eyed nervous smile while rubbing the back of her own head.

"Then take a stool up there with you and sit next to him."

Kumi does so.

"Long time no see, Kumi," Veikko quipped.

"That it is, Veikko-san."

Veikko and Kumi are instructed to sit with their backs to each other, yet touching. The students begin drawing them in earnest. Hime turns out to be an excellent artist, something that Mineko is quick to proclaim.

"Wow! So skilled, meow!"

"What do you want?" Hime grumbled as she looks to acknowledge Mineko.

"Nothing less from you! Not only are you capable at studying, but at drawing too, meow!"

"Really, thanks," Hime replied in a curt tone.

"She's sucking up like always," one of the students grumbled to another.

"Now she's after Yagiyuuin-san," the other grumbled in reply.

"But, meow, the female model is a bit . . . If you would be the female model, Yagiyuuin-san, it would be even more beautiful, meow!"

"You must be kidding," Hime said.

"No, no," Mineko said assuredly. "Don't be so reserved, meow."

Veikko shook his head slightly in disapproval over her fawning.

"Amesu-san is clearly prettier than me," Hime continued.

"Eh?" Kumi exclaimed.

Veikko raises an eyebrow with internal surprise. Even though low self-esteem can elicit such a comment, having ten badges makes him dismiss this notion. So it must be honesty because he might agree with her.

"You think so too," Hime suddenly announced. "Right, Ryynänen-san?"

Veikko takes a deep breath as a sweat drop trickles down the side of his face. He needs to be careful with this one. Teenagers, especially the girls, are prickly about their looks.

"The definition of pretty," he said carefully, "is to be attractive in a delicate manner . . . Therefore, you are right; Kumi is prettier than you."

"You see, Amasu-san."

"Th-Thanks, Veikko-san," Kumi said shyly with an unease smile while rubbing the back of her head.

"She's setting you up," Veikko whispered.

"I have an idea!" Hime suddenly announced. "Let's have all of you draw only Amesu-san! You don't mind, do you, Ryynänen-san?"

"Um . . . no," he said as he got up, then turned to get close to Kumi for a moment.

"I got a bad feeling about this," he quickly whispered before straightening.

"Draw her in their most beautiful form."

"Here it comes," Veikko said as if to steady himself.

"Can you please model for us nude?"

The whole class is stunned into silence, only to next break out into chuckling and smirking.

"Eh?" Kumi gasped. "Yagiyuuin-san, you must be joking?"

"You can't do it?" Hime glared.

Kumi finds herself feeling like a mouse under the glare of a one-eyed fox.

"Maybe you would feel more comfortable if Ryynänen-san left?" Hime asked as she eyes him.

"M-Maybe," Kumi said nervously with lowered head.

"H-Hey, is this for real?" Mineko asked.

"Also," Hime further added with a smirk, "if he were to see you nude, it might drive him over the edge."

"Don't do this to her," Veikko said to Hime in a quiet firm manner with a matching glare.

"Oh ho, so you're her knight in shining armor now?" Hime said snidely with a leer.

"You have all those badges," Veikko said dryly, "and yet you feel compelled to humiliate this poor innocent girl?"

Hime laughs in a casual mocking manner.

"Something funny?"

"Yes . . . You said, innocent . . . No one is innocent."

"That's because you can't conceive of it. Those who cannot conceive of innocence are not innocent. And besides, this place doesn't exactly encourage innocence now does it?"

"Then how long do you think you can hold onto your own innocence, Rynnänen-san?" Hime said with a leer. "In the time you've been here, you've been hit on countless times. And I do know for a fact that the enforcers have gotten bolder with you. How long before masturbating won't be enough to relieve your frequent erections anymore?"

Veikko reddens and the rest of the girls all squeal and sputter with wide-eyed glee as many of them clamp their hands over their mouths.

"Oh yes, it's all over the tower about the state your towels become," Hime continued to taunt. "Tell me. Back when you had that wet dream about me, how was I?"

The girls all around are trying to suppress their squeals as they clamp their hands over their mouths, and Veikko is cherry red. He feels like wanting to sink into the floor into the center of the Earth.

"Nothing to say, eh?" Hime said. "I bet that the enforcers will reach their limit with you. And risking the wrath of the Student Council, they will burst into your room and have their way with you. Or maybe they will include the Student Council as well?"

She leans forward. Her leer broadening even more. "But you know what . . . ? You won't put up a fight . . . You'll just lie there and take it."

Veikko is silent and sullen.

The bell signals the end of the class, causing Hime to chuckle as everyone gets up to leave.

"Too bad," Hime mused. "Let's have you model on another occasion, Amesu-san."

Veikko returns to the tower.


It is lunch time and Kumi is serving tea to Hime and her entourage. She spills a bowl onto the table, causing some of it to trickle onto Hime. There is outrage from the girls, save for Hime, who downplays it then asks for Kumi to wipe it off her leg. But when Kumi kneels, Hime pours a bowl of hot soup over her head, much to the shock of the other girls.

"Not in words, but in earnest actions lies beauty," Hime said. "Don't you agree, Amesu-san?"

Kumi forces herself to agree.

Afterwards, Kumi is outside washing her hair out under a tap and dressed in a tracksuit. Sasarano Sara walks up to her and pities her, but Kumi dismisses it. They talk and Kumi tells Sara that during the month she has been here, she noticed that everyone fights with the resolve to protect their own badges and to steal others to the point that they will sacrifice even their own dreams for it. She next says that she needs the resolve and sacrifice to oppose that, stating that she no longer cares what happens to her and to rescue Burai Sachiko instead of having to be rescued herself. Then grimly states that she is not a sacrificial pawn and walks away.

"What you say is right, but are you fine with that?" Sara said to herself with concern. "If they could see your current self . . . what would Sachiko . . . and your sister think . . . With that, you also will succumb to this school."

It is now after school, Hime and her entourage are standing in one of the hallways. She commands them to attack another group of girls. Behind her is Kumi, still in her tracksuit, who glares at Hime's badges, for her own is amongst them. Hime seems to become aware of Kumi's glare and tells her to not just stand there watching her, but to watch the surroundings instead, because she is her bodyguard; then slyly accuses her of wanting her own badges, which Kumi denies.

A door is suddenly kicked off a classroom directly behind Kumi and two girls jump out with the intention of attacking Hime. But Hime shoves Kumi toward them, simply stating that it is her turn to attack them. Kumi ends up getting punched out for her troubles. It was only a setup to enable Hime to get the upper hand upon her would-be attackers. She walks up to Kumi, who is still unconscious, and kneels down then strokes her face, expressing concern for her pretty face.

"But you know, Amesu-san," she continued to croon, "when I see something pretty or beautiful . . . I can't help myself but wanting to soil that beauty."

Back in the art room, the portrait that Hime had drawn of Kumi and Veikko together has a gash through Kumi's image.