What truly matters in a retionship isn't whether the other person fits the "male protagonist" archetype, but rather the mutual uanding aional e between both parties.

  When one side chooses to deceive, that e is severed before it even begin.

  And when the selfish motivations behind the deception are id bare, the retionship loses all meaning.

  Even so, Sonoko remained fully supportive of Ran's decision.

  "That's right! Ran, this is the best choice for you."

  "Shinichi is just going to get himself into even bigger trouble iure."

  "The problems he's fag now are already a huge mess, and the aftermath of what he did isn't something that will just go away."

  She could only shake her head at his as.

  Faking his owh might have ensured his safety, but at the same time, it meant pletely abandoning his past identity.

  If the anization that turned Shinichi into a child never colpsed, and if no cure for the poison was ever discovered, then there were only two possible futures for him:

  1. He remains a child forever.

  2. He has to grow up all ain.

  But either way, the Shinichi that Ran onew was gone.

  If he really had to relive his childhood, was Ran supposed to wait for him to grow up again?

  To Sonoko, it was obvious once Ran had rejected Shinichi, no amount of effort on his part would ge the oute.

  "Yeah," Ran murmured.

  She hadn't analyzed things as deeply as Sonoko.

  She just couldn't accept the fact that Shinichi had approached her uhe guise of "proteg" her—only to use that as an excuse for his own selfishness.

  It wasn't that she couldn't uand why he did it.

  But if she could have accepted it, she wouldn't have moved out to live with her mother.

  "What are you going to do now?"

  "I mean, about Shinichi."

  "I'll pretend I don't know."

  Ran had already made up her mind.

  "If he's already 'killed off' the identity of Kudo Shinichi, then I'll treat him as though he's dead."

  "He's a different person now, just another kid adopted by Aunt Yukiko and Uncle Yusaku."

  "I won't expose him, but I don't want to live uhe same roof as him either."

  "Yeah, that's probably for the best."

  Sonoko was genuinely gd Ran had e to a decision.

  sidering everything Shinichi had gotten himself involved in, it was safer for Ran to keep her distaherwise, he might end up dragging her into even more dangerous situations.

  Now, though, aopic came up.

  "The hing we o talk about is Amamiya."

  "He's the one writing the diary, the one who knows the eory, and the one who uands more than anyone else."

  Sonoko crossed her arms with a smirk.

  "Well, no wonder I ended up taking an i in him."

  "His appearance wasn't the only thing he was hiding, he's got secrets in other areas too."

  See?

  Her taste in men was top-tier.

  She had mao pick out the diary writer from aire sea of people!

  Now that she uood the situation, things made sense.

  "That expins why that ice queen Shinomiya Kaguya suddenly transferred out of Shu."

  "She was testing Amamiya."

  "And that arrogant little rich girl following her…"

  "I was w why she was involved, too. So that's what's going on."

  She had been fused about what those two were scheming behind the ses.

  Now, she finally had her answer.

  "So, are you pnning to meet Amamiya directly?"

  "Well… yeah, I was thinking about it."

  "In that case, how about this weekend?"

  "Huh?"

  Ran bli Sonoko in surprise.

  "But… aren't you going on a date with Amamiya this weekend?"

  "Well, dating is important, but so is discussing this situation properly."

  "And it's not weird if you're there too. We'll just say it's a friendly get-together."

  "That way, I keep seeing Amamiya without it being suspicious."

  "…Wait, you still pn on dating him?"

  "Of course!"

  Sonoko tilted her head as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

  "It's not like I nning to date him for any deep reason. I just think he's super handsome."

  "And if I like looking at him, then isn't it only natural to keep dating him?"

  Ran sighed.

  Seeing how matter-of-fact Sonoko was about the whole thing, she realized her earlier s were pointless.

  Indeed, Sonoko had no ulterior motives.

  She was dating Amamiya simply because she found him attractive.

  That was all.

  "Ran, I'll message you tomorrow. Make sure you're ready."

  "Got it."

  Even if the real purpose of the outing was to introduce Ran to Amamiya, Sonoko still treated it like a proper date.

  Which meant proper preparation was necessary.

  So, early the m, Suzuki Sonoko was already getting ready.

  She picked out a stylish outfit, applied light makeup, and made sure everything was in pce.

  Once she was satisfied, she headed out to meet Ran.

  Their meeting spot?

  In front of Ren's apartment.

  Arriving by car, Sonoko stepped out and spotted Ran waiting for her.

  "Uncle Ryo, pick me up ter tonight."

  "Uood, Miss."

  After giving her driver instrus, Sonoko walked toward Ran.

  "Ran!"

  She waved, then took a moment to really look at her best friend.

  "Oh~ You ged your look today."

  "I feel like if we stao each other, yoing to steal my spotlight as the main heroine."

  "That's not true!"

  Ran ughed, feeling a little embarrassed by the exaggerated pliment.

  "I'm not joking."

  Sonoko shook her head.

  "Today, you look even more beautiful thaerday."

  "And there's something… different about you."

  Sonoko had always been atteo Ran's ges.

  This time, it wasn't just her outfit.

  It was something deeper, a subtle shift in her entire presence.

  A ge that came from within.