7.1

It was just before 1 a.m. on the fourth day of the training camp.

Long past lights-out, Nagumo was quietly walking down the hallway alone.

He knew he'd get a little warning if he was found, but there was no clear penalty.

Of course, this wasn't the case if he resisted, such as not returning to his room after being found.

Considering the risks, it had already been demonstrated using other students the day before.

Above all, he'd investigated that the teachers' patrols would end at midnight.

Therefore, Nagumo was hardly worried about being found.

The lights in the lobby were kept to a minimum, and only the sound of the compressors of the lined-up vending machines annoyingly reached his ears at such a time.

He passed through the lobby and moved on to the cafeteria area, where no one was supposed to be.

He couldn't feel anyone's presence, but his intuition was working.

She's right in front of me, he thought.

"You came as promised."

From the back of the darkened cafeteria, such a cute voice reached him.

"I've never refused a woman's call before," he spoke into the darkness.

"Yawn, what a cheesy line. Honestly, I hate your type."

"Relax. I'm not into women like you either."

Nagumo, who snorted in amusement, stepped into the cafeteria with his hands still in his pockets.

"So, there was no need to threaten me. That might've been an unnecessary move."

As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, a female student emerged.

"Amasawa, did you really want to be alone with me that much?"

"Opportunities to be alone with a former student council president don't come around often, do they?"

"I want to confirm something. What would you have done if I hadn't come?"

"I would've beaten up your precious Asahina-senpai, Nagumo-senpai."

Many would've laughed off Amasawa's response as a joke, seeing her smiling face.

And Nagumo did the same, but his eyes weren't laughing. He was convinced that the first-year student in front of him would've carried out her threat.

"Did you show your skills in archery with Ayanokōji to make your threats more effective?"

"Well, yeah. If I don't show that I'm capable, people might dismiss a woman's threats."

"Okay, let's get to the point. So, why did you threaten me to call me out?"

"There's a problem that only you can solve, Nagumo-senpai. That's what I want to talk about."

"You had plenty of chances to talk during the exchange meeting."

While responding, Nagumo internally braced himself.

He sensed that the girl in front of him was not just any girl—her presence was faint. 

A student with a strange presence, similar to Ayanokōji.

And the owner of unusual abilities, one that he had glimpsed during the archery match.

That was more than enough to put him on guard.

"By the way, I'm thinking of seriously injuring you, Nagumo-senpai."

"Seriously injuring me? That's quite sudden."

Amasawa, who was trying to enjoy Nagumo's surprise at the unexpected proposal, laughed in disbelief.

"Is it too unrealistic? Or do you think you can't lose to a girl?"

"I wonder. Maybe it's both."

"Will you run away?"

In this situation, Amasawa used her words to corner Nagumo, to make sure he wouldn't escape.

A measure to prevent the former student council president from running away like a scared rabbit.

But Nagumo's demeanor was confident, showing no signs of worry.

"Can I at least hear the reason?"

"The reason? Hmm, let's just say it's a personal vendetta."

"Personal vendetta, huh?"

"Yes, a personal vendetta. Now, if we take too long, the teachers might find us, and it would be embarrassing if the fact that you were beaten by a girl got out, so can we start?"

"Just to confirm, do you really think you can beat me?"

"Haha, I've been waiting for you to say that. Let's give it a try."

"It's easy to say, but there's nothing in it for me. It would be a problem if I retaliated against a girl who came at me out of personal vendetta."

"It's pointless to resist anyway, you can just let me beat you up. That way, you'll lose your pride, but you won't get penalized by the school. I recommend it."

"Aren't you afraid of being expelled?"

"Of course not. If I get expelled, I have nothing to lose."

"So, persuasion is impossible?"

"Yes, I have no 'value.' In other words, I'm invincible."

Nagumo slowly pulled his hands out of his pockets.

If he had been holding his phone, Amasawa would've immediately jumped on him to prevent him from calling for help.

"I didn't bring my phone."

"Oh..."

Amasawa had slightly licked her own lips.

"Did you get cautious because of the recording? Go ahead and answer without holding back. State the reasons behind this so-called personal vendetta."

"You teamed up with Ayanokōji-senpai and expelled Yagami Takuya, right? It's payback."

Nagumo had been considering various things, but he was completely surprised by the unexpected.

"Yagami? Don't tell me, you were Yagami's girlfriend?"

"That's not it, but we were like siblings who had surpassed that kind of relationship."

"Then aren't you targeting the wrong person? I wasn't the one who led that."

"I know that. I told you, this is just a personal vendetta. Unfortunately, even if I stand on my head, I can't beat Ayanokōji-senpai, and I thought about beating up Karuizawa-senpai and expelling her, but that's a bit scary."

"Scary? Of getting revenge from Ayanokōji? I don't think he cares about what happens to Karuizawa."

"Ayanokōji-senpai has his own goals. I don't want to interfere with that."

By expelling Karuizawa, it would interfere with Ayanokōji's plan.

As someone who knew the circumstances, Amasawa thought she couldn't do such a thing.

"People like Nagumo-senpai are well-suited for stories where the character ultimately faces their downfall at the conclusion."

"It suits me, huh?"

Usually, Nagumo would've been displeased and angry if such words were said to him.

But now, emptiness welled up before such emotions.

Thinking it was a waste to spend any more time, Amasawa stepped forward.

"Last year and the year before, the one always causing a stir at this school was Horikita Manabu."

But something unexpected began, and she stopped.

"This year it's Ayanokōji. I'm sure it'll be the same next year after I'm gone. I was indeed enrolled at this school for three years. I also served as student council president. Even if I attracted attention within my year, it didn't resonate at all with the upper or lower years. There's nothing more empty than that."

That was why he desperately continued fighting.

"I realized it just before graduation. It's not Horikita-senpai or Ayanokōji that's to blame. It's me who couldn't reach that realm."

That was why he couldn't get angry when told that downfall suited him.

If only Nagumo was more capable.

The names Horikita, Nagumo, and Ayanokōji would've been treated as equals.

Realizing this, there would be no need to seek clarity in challenges or establish a hierarchy; they would've been on par.

"But… that's not the case. I wouldn't have been satisfied with that situation either."

If the three of them were lined up, he'd still want to rank them and be number one.

"That's why I won't quit this game. Next year I'll do it again with Horikita-senpai. And someday I'll have a real match with Ayanokōji and settle it."

A part of him could be honest because he was talking to Amasawa, who had nothing to do with him.

Although he didn't vocalize it, Nagumo was grateful for this situation.

"Before you put anything into action, I have a gift for you."

Amasawa, who wasn't at all interested before, was intrigued by Nagumo laying everything bare.

So she stopped and listened to the end.

"A gift? I'm the type to throw away presents from men I'm not interested in without opening them."

"I see. Then it might end with you throwing it away without opening it. After all, it's just a message from Ayanokōji."

"...Ayanokōji-senpai...?"

Her body stiffened involuntarily at the sound of his name.

"If it's a lie to save yourself, it will only widen the wound."

"Believe my words or not, it's up to you. The message from Ayanokōji is 'You still have value. Don't waste it.' "

The reason Amasawa approached Nagumo at the exchange meeting was all for this moment of vengeance.

Ayanokōji noticed something suspicious about Amasawa from the first day.

Pretending not to know the rules of the exchange event, despite having obtained all the information in advance from Tsukishiro. The emergence of a contradiction due to the lie, fabricated to prevent Nagumo from realizing the true reason for approaching him.

The moment she heard that message, Amasawa completely lost her will to fight.

"Is this just a coincidence? The message seems to have foreseen even the fact that you would despairingly declare yourself someone without 'value.'"

The fact that Amasawa was targeting Nagumo and that she would take drastic actions because she had nothing to lose.

What he'd been told at the time of their parting actually happened right in front of Nagumo.

He's a guy I don't like. Nagumo cursed in his heart.

Yet, Nagumo felt a slight sense of satisfaction.

Now, it would be a waste to seriously fight Ayanokōji.

"I'm tired, so I'm going back first. You should return to your room before you catch a cold."

Nagumo left the dining hall, leaving Amasawa standing still.