Jitsuryoku Shijou Shugi no Kyoushitsu e Chapter 2

WEAK POINT

The bad events didn't stop there. The next morning, during homeroom, Chiyabashira-sensei had an announcement.

"I have an announcement for all of you today, there was a bit of trouble a few days ago, he over there, Sudou, and some C class students were involved in an incident. To be honest, it was a fight."

The classroom became noisy.

Depending on the details of the dispute between the two groups, Sudou might be suspended and class points would be deducted. Sensei recounted the whole situation to the class.

Chiyabashira-sensei was very impartial and had absolutely no expression on her face and she had a certain beauty to it.

Without prejudice, she explained the school's neutral position on the whole matter.

"Uh... why hasn't the problem been resolved yet?"

Hirata asked a reasonable question.

"The complaint was filed by class C. They said it was a one-sided fight, but when we asked Sudou, he said that their claims were not true. He said that the C class students called him out, made a fight... "

"I'm innocent, it was self-defense."

Stating it without shame, Sudou attracted the cold stares of his classmates.

"But you have no proof, am I wrong?"

"Evidence? I don't have anything like that."

"In other words, we don't know the truth yet, because the situation has been postponed, the result will be decided who the real culprit is."

"I don't know anything except my innocence. I want money for my troubles."

"He said that selfishly, but as it is now, there aren't many things that can be entrusted. If, as Sudou said, there were witnesses, the situation could change. If there are witnesses to the fight, please raise your hand."

Chiyabashira-sensei continued to speak in an indifferent voice. None of the students raised their hands.

"It's a pity Sudou, but there seems to be no one here who is a witness."

"...It seems so."

When Chiyabashira-sensei looked at Sudou with a doubtful gaze, he looked down at his desk.

"In order to find witnesses, each teacher informed their class about the situation."

"Huh!? You said everything!?"

The school probably couldn't do anything else. Since Sudou said there might be a witness, every class in the school should be asked to find such a person.

For Sudou, who intended to hide the incident, this was not a good situation.

"Bang**t...!"

Sudou's plan to keep the incident within our group had already failed.

"Anyway, that's it, we will most likely have a final decision by next Tuesday, taking into account whether or not there is evidence. The lesson is now over."

Chiyabashira-sensei left the room, with Sudou leaving quickly. She probably knew that she would get angry with someone if she stayed in that room.

"Hey, isn't Sudou the worst?"

The first to speak was Ike.

"If we lose points because of Sudou, doesn't that mean we'll have 0 points again?"

The situation was out of control as the class became chaotic.

If we ended up losing points, Sudou would become the target of the class' frustration. Naturally, Kushida tried to ease the situation.

"Hey, everyone, can you listen to me?"

Kushida took the opportunity to stop the uproar and change the situation.

"As Sensei said, Sudou-kun was involved in the fight. But Sudou-kun was dragged into it."

"Kushida-chan, by saying 'dragged into it', does that mean you believe Sudou's words?"

Kushida recounted yesterday's incident to the whole class. About how she was the regular, and how some jealous people tried to kick Sudou out of the club and the resulting fight. She explained that Sudou beat them up in self-defense. Most of the class listened to Kushida's heartfelt words in silence. If Sudou or I had tried to explain the situation in the same way, the effect would not have been the same.

It was a plausible story, but considering her usual behavior, no one could believe it easily.

"I want to beg again, if anyone knows someone in this class, among your friends, or among your senpa who saw what happened, please tell me, you can contact me anytime, I would appreciate it."

Although she said the same thing as Chiyabashira-sensei, the class had a completely different reaction.

It was interesting how she was naturally gifted to be able to connect with others.

The class was wrapped in silence. The one who broke the silence was not the eyewitness, but Yamauchi.

"Hey, Kushida-chan, I don't believe Sudou's story, I think she made it up to justify her own actions. During middle school, she kept talking about hitting people. She even taught us about how much fun it was to beat people up. "

Starting with Yamauchi, the entire class voiced their dissatisfaction with Sudou.

"Earlier, I saw her pull a kid from another class just because they bumped into each other in the hallway."

"I saw her acting out of line in the cafeteria and getting angry at someone who tried to warn her."

Kushida's words about Sudou's actions did not reach the class. The class, feeling that they would lose their hard-earned points, all let Sudou evaporate.

Kushida took the opportunity to stop the uproar and change the situation.

"As Sensei said, Sudou-kun was involved in the fight. But Sudou-kun was dragged into it."

"Kushida-chan, by saying 'dragged into it', does that mean you believe Sudou's words?"

Kushida recounted yesterday's incident to the whole class. About how she was the regular, and how some jealous people tried to kick Sudou out of the club and the resulting fight. She explained that Sudou beat them up in self-defense. Most of the class listened to Kushida's heartfelt words in silence. If Sudou or I had tried to explain the situation in the same way, the effect would not have been the same.

It was a plausible story, but considering her usual behavior, no one could believe it easily.

"I want to beg again, if anyone knows someone in this class, among your friends, or among your senpa who saw what happened, please tell me, you can contact me anytime, I would appreciate it."

Although she said the same thing as Chiyabashira-sensei, the class had a completely different reaction.

It was interesting how she was naturally gifted to be able to connect with others.

The class was wrapped in silence. The one who broke the silence was not the eyewitness, but Yamauchi.

"Hey, Kushida-chan, I don't believe Sudou's story, I think she made it up to justify her own actions. During middle school, she kept talking about hitting people. She even taught us about how much fun it was to beat people up. "

Starting with Yamauchi, the entire class voiced their dissatisfaction with Sudou.

"Earlier, I saw her pull a kid from another class just because they bumped into each other in the hallway."

"I saw her acting out of line in the cafeteria and getting angry at someone who tried to warn her."

Kushida's words about Sudou's actions did not reach the class. The class, feeling that they would lose their hard-earned points, all let Sudou evaporate.

"I was planning to... disappear, but..."

Lunch break. For some reason, I got involved with the usual group and went to the cafeteria.

The members were me, Kushida, Horikita, Ike, Yamauchi, and Sudou.

It was inevitable. When lunchtime came, Kushida came up to me and asked, "Want to have lunch?" with a smile. I couldn't possibly refuse, right? So I said, "Sure!"...

"You seem to get into one trouble after another, Sudou-kun."

Horikita sighed in despair.

Naturally, the topic of discussion was how to prove Sudou's innocence.

"Well, it can't be helped, so we'll help you as friends, Sudou."

Although he initially treated Sudou as a bad guy, Ike's attitude changed. It was definitely because Kushida joined. Even so, Sudou apologized.

"I apologize for causing trouble again Horikita, but I'm not the one at fault this time, I'm really frustrated at that C-class bastard."

As if it was someone else's problem, Sudou spoke to Horikita in an indifferent tone.

"I apologize, but this time, I don't want to help at all."

Horikita immediately rejected Sudou's request for help.

"The most important thing for Class D to recover is to take back the points we lost as quickly as possible. However, because of you, we probably won't be able to get the points. In other words, you just messed up that plan. "

"Wait a minute, that may be true, but I'm not the guilty one, I only hit them because they provoked me first! Which part of me is at fault!?"

"You keep saying that they started the fight, but it was nothing more than a trivial difference, don't you realize that?"

"Trivial your pala. It's completely different, I'm not the one to blame!"

"Is that so? Alright, good luck."

Grabbing his untouched tray, Horikita stood up.

"Aren't you going to help! Aren't we friends!? "

"Don't make me laugh, I never thought of you as a friend, I feel most uncomfortable when I'm around people who don't realize how stupid and ignorant they are. Goodbye."

Horikita sighed, looking more annoyed than angry, and left the room.

"What's wrong with her? Damn it!"

Unable to vent his anger elsewhere, he hit the cafeteria table.

I saw the nearby student's miso soup spill out. I saw her glaring at Sudou, but fell silent when she saw his face. And I understood how she felt.

"I guess we should be satisfied with what we have"

"I knew you would understand, Yamauchi, I'm counting on you too, Ayanokouji."

Looks like I'm second to Yamauchi. Well, that's not too surprising.

"Even if you ask me to help, I can't do much, you know?"

It's not effective to self-deprecate every time someone asks for help, it seems.

"You've been saying that since Ayanokouji-kun, Ike, say something."

"No, but... well, it's strange for Ayanokouji to say that he won't be of any use, well... it's better than not being there. Maybe."

As expected, Ike couldn't figure out how I would be useful.

With a smug face, I looked at Kushida. As if I was showing off the power of being a boring person.

"It's sad, I thought we got along so well when we were preparing for the exam..."

Ike said in a disappointed tone. I saw Horikita sitting back in the distance, looking a little annoyed.

"I don't understand Horikita at all, what's wrong with him, Ayanokouji? Why is he like that?"

I don't know the answer to that question. Am I an instruction manual for her? To avoid answering, I filled my mouth with rice.

"That's strange, Horikita-san wants to go to Class A, right? If we save Sudou-kun, the class will receive points. I wonder why she doesn't want to."

"Isn't it because she doesn't like Sudou? She said she doesn't consider him a friend."

Saying that won't help..

They misunderstood what she said earlier because of her dislike for Sudou...

"I don't want to think that way, but I guess it's true..."

"Kushida, Horikita-"

I unconsciously began to speak. Kushida looked at me with interest.

"Horikita-san?"

"Ah... This is probably unrelated, but here's my thoughts on this: I think Horikita usually speaks in a harsh manner, but I also think you guys misunderstand him."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"He wouldn't help if there wasn't a reason to do so... I think."

"What do you mean by, 'in my opinion, in my opinion' Are you just guessing?"

Sudou burst into conversation. Since he was aware of Horikita, it was not hard to understand that he did not like being rejected by him.

Horikita probably realized this when Chiyabashira-sensei told him about the incident.

This happened for a reason. And finally he predicted... in other words, the possibility that this would end with a positive outcome was almost impossible. After realizing that, Horikita deliberately became cold towards Sudou.

If it was said here, it would not make much difference as it would only make them feel discouraged. Without knowing how things would end, I hesitated to reply to Sudou's outburst.

Not wanting to pour cold water into their plans, Horikita probably said nothing and left.

"Well... guess it's just like you said, Sudou."

"You don't even have a reason to think like that?"

"Anyway, Horikita is smart, I feel he came to a conclusion that made him act like that."

"A conclusion? Yes, a conclusion to leave me."

"Don't accuse others, Sudou, it's only natural for Ayanokouji-kun to defend Horikita, since she's with him all the time... She's important to him, you know?"

Ike quipped at me with a wicked smile on his face.

Sudou bit his tongue and reached for his tray, still feeling irritated.

"If someone came as a witness, it would be great. Since the teachers are asking all the classes, this will probably be resolved soon."

I understand wanting to think that way, but can the situation be solved so easily?

After all, the problem is serious. It's unreasonable for Horikita to give up. It would be checkmate if any witnesses, assuming there was one in the first place, were from Class C. It would be natural for Class C to hide the truth in order to protect themselves. After all, this school was made up of ranks. It was unlikely that the feeling of guilt would outweigh the loss the class might get.

But if the witness was not from class C, the problem was where to look?

If it was someone who was neutral and had seen the situation from the start, the outcome might have been different.

"Ah, sorry, I'll leave for a while, I'll ask the senpai I just saw over there."

Kushida stood up from his chair.

"You're doing your best for someone like Sudou, Kushida-chan. That's adorable."

Captivated by Kushida's back, Ike was mesmerized.

"I have to make a serious confession to Kushida-chan..."

"No way, you think she'll come down to your level?"

"I have a better chance than you."

The two boys who were also fascinated quarreled.

"If I date Kushida-chan... fufu."

Drooling, Ike began to fantasize with indecent thoughts.

"Hey why are you fantasizing about my Kushida-chan?"

"No..."

"What fantasies are you thinking!? Speak up!"

It seemed like she was losing control.

"What do you mean, what? Of course I'm thinking of him naked, right next to me. In other words, cuddling."

Somehow, the whole scene could be imagined to some extent with few words.

"Damn it, I won't lose! I'm also thinking about things!"

Hey hey, that's neither feasible nor appropriate.

"Stop it, don't touch my Kushida-chan with your dirty hands."

In some ways, Kushida looked pathetic.

She was probably the object of some boy's fantasy every night.

"As I thought, the best part about high school is girls, I really want a girlfriend, if I have a girlfriend during the summer, I can go to the pool with her! That would be the best!"

"It would be the best if Kushida-chan was my girlfriend... it would be the best if she was my girlfriend..."

As if it was something precious, Yamauchi said it twice.

"But since Kushida-chan is cute, won't she get a boyfriend sooner or later...?"

"Don't say that, Yamauchi, it looks like she doesn't have a boyfriend, so it doesn't matter."

Ike replied confidently, though it seemed like he was trying to convince himself.

"Do you want to know? I'm sure you guys want to know."

"What are you talking about, Ike? Tell me."

While saying, "Well, I guess I can't help it," Ike took out his phone.

"Using the phone we got from school, we can actually track the location of registered friends."

Ike searched for Kushida's location as he said it.

Shortly after, the phone blinked with Kushida's information, showing that he was in the cafeteria.

"I always check it regularly, even on weekends, then I talk to him, pretending that we met by chance, to make sure that he doesn't have a girlfriend."

Crossing his arms, Ike had a confident expression on his face, but what he was doing was nothing more than stalking her.

This was already at a level where the police would normally intervene.

"In fact, Kushida-chan is beyond our reach... she won't come down to our level. Could it be if I were lower...?"

"Yes... first of all my girlfriends can't be ugly..."

"They must be at least 70..."

It seemed like the two boys were starting to dream of getting a girlfriend.

Their wild fantasies were shattered, but they couldn't get rid of their high hopes.

"Ayanokouji, do you want a girlfriend?"

"Well, if that's possible."

If I can get a girlfriend just because I want one, I won't have much trouble socializing with others.

"I'll ask again, but are you sure you don't feel anything for Horikita?"

She thrust her chopsticks at me as she asked.

"No, really."

"Are you sure?"

She asked again, like she didn't believe me. I nodded vigorously to understand what I meant.

"...Then it's fine, I thought you were clinging to him, I mean, it would be troublesome for Horikita."

I don't remember ever clinging to anyone. Especially definitely not her.

"But are you okay with Horikita? Okay, he's cute, but... he's so boring, right? I wouldn't be able to stand someone like him. He doesn't want to go to the pool or go out every day."

"I don't know, Horikita is better than Kushida."

Sudou nodded twice, three times and crossed his arms while feeling proud of his choice.

"If someone is not related, he will refuse to go on a date, but if it's his girlfriend, he will probably agree, right? And she'll show an expression to her boyfriend that she wouldn't show to another boy."

"I see... I can imagine that too, she's so cute."

While glancing at Horikita, who was sitting some distance away, Yamauchi entered his imagination.

"But Horikita seems to have left you, Sudou."

"That... well, it's true. Damn it, I feel sad now."

"Well, I'm not saying anything because the number of Kushida-chan's rivals is only decreasing."

It looks like Ike decided to look for girls around a size 70 chest while keeping Kushida as his main goal.

"By the way, Ayanokouji, if you don't like Horikita, who do you like? Sudou has Horikita, Yamauchi has Kushida-chan. Are you going to be a rival?"

"Who..."

No particular girl came to my mind.

For a while, I thought about it seriously. If I were to choose, then... Kushida? She was the one I talked to the most, so it was inevitable. But since I knew she didn't like me, I hadn't really thought about it.

"There's no one."

However, Ike and Yamauchi sent me doubtful looks.

"Do you believe that there's anyone who doesn't have a crush on a girl?"

"There's nothing like that at all, don't hide it, Ayanokouji."

"Unlike you guys, I haven't met many girls besides Horikita and Kushida."

"Well, I don't think I've really seen you talking to other girls."

It was sad that it was true.

"Should I introduce you to some girls?"

Putting his arm around my shoulder, Ike spoke confidently.

"Wouldn't it be sad if you tried to introduce some girls when you don't even have a girlfriend?"

"Uu... yes..."

"Sae-chan-sensei said that we're going on vacation in the summer, right? I'll definitely get a girlfriend then Kushida-chan if possible! Or some other cute girl!"

"Me too, me too! Even if she's the worst, I'll get a girlfriend... and then I'll live my school life full of love!"

"...When should I confess to Horikita..."

The three of them talked about the girls in their minds.

"We should have a competition to see who gets a girlfriend first. The first person to have a girlfriend will treat us all to a meal! Agreed?"

It was hard to decide if I was a true friend by participating in a competition like this.

"What's wrong, Ayanokouji? After all, you're not going to say that you won't participate, are you?"

"No, I'm just wondering why the first person to get a girlfriend is the one who treats others."

"Oh, I see, you're just jealous, right?"

"A person who gets a girlfriend will be happy, because they are happy, they treat everyone. That kind of feeling."

Although they were starting to get excited, Sudou's problem remained.

The class was divided into groups after school.

However, from the start there weren't many people to help.

Hirata and Karuizawa led the Hero & girls team while Kushida led the pretty girls & Co. team.

They had decided to look for witnesses on their own.

Even so, it was difficult to get results in a short time.

There were 400 students enrolled in the school. Even if everyone from Class 1-D was excluded, there wasn't much difference.

It would be difficult even if all the time in the morning, recess and after school were included.

"Alright, I'm going home."

"Are you really going Horikita-san?"

"Yes."

Horikita answered without hesitation and left the classroom.

As expected of Horikita. He was not discouraged by the surrounding stares, all asking, "are you leaving?" When he grew up, he was probably the type to quickly leave a drinking party. promising to finish everything at the next meeting without reading their mood.

"Well..."

If Horikita's tactic was to stop in the open, mine was to leave quietly in the shadows.

"Ayanokouji-kun."

Kushida called out to me in an anxious voice. The small class size hindered my escape as I was soon discovered despite my stealthy silent steps.

"What is it? Do you need something from me?"

Sorry, Kushida. I will decline your invitation with a fistful of steel. And then I will return to the dormitory.

"You'll... help, right?"

"Of course."

I couldn't refuse her. Kushida's shining eyes and cute request added up to a deadly combination.

I couldn't help it; it felt like I was being controlled by Kushida. I was unable to resist.

If one decides to stay awake, they will fall asleep within 24 to 48 hours. Although some people occasionally claim that they can stay awake for a long time without sleeping, they will eventually collapse.

Simply put, a person has a limit to how long they can last. This is a human mechanism.

After I finished giving my reasons, Kushida made a suggestion.

"I really want to get Horikita-san to help this time. Can you ask her again?"

"But she's going home today."

They failed to stop her a moment ago. Was it time for revenge?

"Yes, can you go after her? If it's Horikita-san, I think she'll definitely be of great help."

"Well, that's true."

"If we take the time to persuade her, don't we have a chance?"

If she wanted to try again, I had no right to stop her. I nodded, letting him know that I understood.

"Ike-kun, Yamauchi-kun, can you stay here? I'll be back quickly."

"Alright."

The two of them did not suit Horikita. After all, it didn't seem like Kushida was forcing them to follow him.

"Let's go."

Taking Kushida's arm, I left the classroom. I wonder what this bitter feeling is. For some reason, I heard Ike and Yamauchi's angry voices behind me. It must have been my imagination. Heh.

As I walked towards the entrance of the building, there was no sign of Horikita. I decided to exit the building. Since he wasn't the type to be stopped for anything on the way home, he probably headed straight for the dormitory.

I pushed past the crowd of students putting on their shoes. Soon after, I saw Horikita between the school and the dormitory (since it wasn't far from the first place).

Most of the groups heading back had two or more people, but there was a lone figure that stood out.

"Horikita-san."

I hesitated before speaking to her, but Kushida called out to her confidently.

"...What is this?"

Horikita turned around, looking a little surprised. It seemed like he didn't expect us to chase after him.

"I really want Horikita-san to help with Sudou-kun's incident... is that impossible?"

"I thought I had refused a few minutes ago."

She shrugged her shoulders, as if the person she was talking to was an idiot.

"I know, but... But I think we need to do this to get to class A."

"We need to do this to get to class A, huh?"

Looking completely unconvinced, Horikita did not listen to Kushida's words.

"If you want to help Sudou-kun, go ahead, I have no right to stop you, but if you need someone to help, ask someone else, I'm busy."

"No one is playing around right now."

I unintentionally replied. She glared at me, with eyes that said, "Why are you talking?"

"It's important to spend time alone. It's uncomfortable to have that time taken away."

As expected from a loner's thoughts, she didn't like spending time with others.

"Even if I help him now, this will happen again, isn't it just a vicious circle? You may believe that at that time Sudou-kun was the victim, but I think differently."

"Huh? ... wasn't Sodou-kun the victim? It would be a big problem if he lied."

Kushida didn't understand what Horikita was saying.

"Maybe it was Class C who started the fight this time, but in the end Sudou-kun was also the perpetrator."

Please stop speaking with an impression that I understand.

Kushida looked at me with a puzzled expression, as if asking, "You know?"

Horikita, don't say anything unnecessary... She walked back, implying that we were left to settle this matter. Kushida, having understood something from Horikita's words, could not stop him.

"Sudou-kun is also... the culprit? Is that so?"

Kushida looked at me, asking for guidance.

After Horikita revealed that I was pretending, even if I tried to pretend I didn't know, the future seemed unsettling. Moreover, if Kushida asked with a cute expression, I would gladly give her my bank account information.

"I understand what Horikita is saying, at the very least, Sudou is misrepresenting here. He's the type of person who easily resents others, so he has violent behavior and tends to say reckless remarks to those who provoke him." Kushida was surprised and impressed to hear that Sudou was considered a regular. He looked good at basketball, but his arrogance and pride would eventually make some people, especially those who practiced just as hard, hate him. Furthermore, there are rumors that Sudou has been fighting since middle school, I don't know anyone who knew Sudou before, but since the rumors have been circulating for a while, there must be some truth to this matter. "

Other people's impressions of Sudou were not good.

"This was bound to happen sooner or later, that's why Horikita said that Sudou was the perpetrator as well."

"In other words, his usual actions caused this situation, right?"

"Yep. As long as he continues to provoke those around him with his behavior, this problem is inevitable, and if there is no evidence, his image, especially his impression of others, will be used against him. For example, let's say there are Two suspects in a murder case, one of them has a previous murder record, while the other is honest and diligent. Who would you trust?"

If one is forced to answer, the majority will make the same choice.

"Obviously, the honest one."

"With or without evidence, a decision must be made, even if it is not the truth. That is what is happening now. As long as Sudou does not recognize his mistake, Horikita will not give up."

However, it feels a little different from the expression "you reap what you sow."

"Well, so that's what it means..."

Kushida, finally understanding Horikita's meaning, gave a small nod.

"So Horikita-san isn't helping to teach Sudou-kun a lesson?"

"Something like that, by punishing him, she wants Sudou to have self-awareness."

Kushida seemed to understand, but couldn't agree with it.

Instead, it was like she was crazy; she had clenched her fists in anger...

"I don't understand why she would leave Sudou-kun just to punish him, if she's not satisfied with something, she should tell him directly. That's what friends do."

I guess Horikita thought of Sudou as a friend at first... By getting rid of him, he wasn't the kind of person who would teach this well. He had no sense of responsibility for others.

"You should do what you believe is right. Wanting to help Sudou is not wrong."

"Yes."

Kushida nodded without hesitation. She was the type who helped many times for her friends. To be honest, this was a very difficult thing to do; something that only people like Kushida could do.

"However, it might be better to be more careful when telling Sudou directly. Since it's useless if he doesn't reflect on it, he should have realized it himself."

"Alright, I'll take Ayanokouji-kun's advice."

Changing her line of thought, Kushida stretched her back.

"Let's go find the witness now."

After returning to the classroom, I joined the others.

"Weren't you able to persuade Horikita in the end?"

"Sorry, we tried."

"It's not Kushida's fault. We should be fine with the people we have."

"I look forward to working with you, Ike-kun, Yamauchi-kun."

Kushida stood there, her eyes shining brightly, asking for help. They both looked at him with a crazy look in their eyes.

"Where are we going?"

Randomly looking for witnesses was inefficient.

Perhaps it would be better to make a plan before moving.

"If everyone's okay, how about asking for class B first?"

"Why class B?"

"Because they are the class that will benefit the most if a witness is found."

"Sorry Ayanokouji-kun, but I don't quite understand."

"Between classes D and C, which class is the obstacle for class B? Simply put, which class is more of a threat?"

"Of course, it's class C. So we should ask class C, but why not class A?"

"First, there is little evidence. Class A doesn't need to provide assistance in a situation that won't affect them since this dispute is between classes C and D."

Of course, we still weren't sure if class B could be trusted. If it was someone cunning, they probably had a plan to defeat not only class C but also class D. Even if their plan was not so detailed, they would have some sort of plan.

"Alright, let's go to class B!"

"Stop."

I reflexively pulled back Kushida's collar as she stepped forward.

"Nya~!"

Startled, Kushida let out a cat-like scream.

"Moe~!"

There was love in Yamauchi's eyes when he heard Kushida's cute cry. That action was probably intentional...

Even though I thought it was, my heart died from excessive cuteness.

"Kushida's communication skills are very important here. However, it's not as simple as casually entering the classroom and trying to make friends.

"Is that so?"

If the witness was a friend, or would help for free, there would be no problem. But if it is a person who prefers to calculate, they will not agree to help without a price.

We won't know if they will help us until we talk to them. Even if we consider it... will everything go as expected?

"Do you have any acquaintances in class B?"

"Yes, there are only a few people I talk to and get along with."

"Let's try asking those people first."

We didn't want word to spread quickly so we quickly looked for witnesses.

"One by one? Wouldn't it be better to ask them all at once?"

Ike didn't seem to like indirect strategies.

"I also think that we're looking at it a little too negatively. It might be better to ask Class B first, but I think it's better to ask many people at once. We might not be able to find the witness in time. If we go slowly."

"Well, that's right, do what you think is best Kushida."

"Sorry Ayanokouji-kun."

Kushida held her hands together in front of her in an apologetic tone. There was nothing she had to apologize for. It was natural that our opinions didn't match, and if there were several different viewpoints, we had to choose the majority opinion. I withdrew and left the plan to Kushida and the others. Unexpectedly, I felt someone's gaze on me and looked back.

Only about a third of the class remained in class.

There didn't seem to be anything wrong.

At least, I couldn't determine what was bothering me.

The first class we visited felt a little strange. Despite having the same basic layout, it felt like we had arrived at a completely different place. I corrected my initial misconception that a house and a game were only slightly different. Since we didn't know whether the class would be an enemy or an ally, our initial impressions of the class were also different. Even Ike and Yamauchi were shocked; they couldn't move from the doorway.

Being the only one unaffected, Kushida started talking to his friends with a smile as he entered the classroom. What a wonderful attitude. She could easily chat with her friends regardless of their gender, similar to how she behaved in class D. I won't be able to do the same.

The two who were most jealous were Ike and Yamauchi. Kushida was talking and having fun with people who were clearly more attractive.

"S-Shit! Too many guys are eyeing my Kushida-chan!"

What do you mean... What kind of sentence is that?

"Don't panic Ike, it's okay We have an advantage: we're in the same class as Kushida-chan!"

Feeling annoyed, the two arrogant people comforted each other. Although there were only 10 people in the room, Kushida began to explain the situation to those who were there.

The atmosphere of Class B felt the same as Class D, certainly not one one would expect from a group of honor students. It's not stiff at all and contrary to how I imagined it, there are guys who dye their hair while some girls wear skirts that are too short.

I guess you can't judge a book by its cover. Or is there something other than academic ability that Class B is better than Class D? This school system still has many mysteries.

It was very distressing to think about these things.

Since this was Kushida's job, I left her to take care of everything.

Trying not to be noticed by the others, I took a few steps back from the doorway.

"I want to go home..."

I didn't want them to hear me complaining to myself.

At the field, I looked at the track and the field running laps around the track.

Since the air conditioning was comfortable, I didn't feel like going outside.

"That sports club must be working hard."

After finishing scouting class B, Ike joined me while looking out the window. He's a fickle person; this wait must be boring for him.

"People who participate in club activities are stupid."

"What's with this sudden thought? You know that saying those kinds of things will change half of your school, right?"

I don't know the exact number, but I estimate about 60 to 70 percent of the students participate in club activities,

"Where's the virtue in a rigorous exercise regimen? If they like exercising, they should do it as a hobby."

It's strange to think of club activities solely as advantages or disadvantages.

Participating in clubs has its benefits. One can socialize with others, as well as experience success and failure. These are experiences that are not included in academics. Furthermore, club members 'going home' would not have the benefit of being in the club.

"I guess."

I waited for Kushida's report for the next few minutes, but I didn't get what I expected.