The Web Weaver

Tuesday morning was especially bright. Golden sunlight streamed through the dormitory window, casting warm patches of light across Fūki Ran's desk. He had gotten up early and was carefully studying the paintings Sakura had provided, laying the sketches out in order as if piecing together a complicated puzzle.

Suddenly, his gaze settled on one of the drawings. It showed Ryuen meeting with an unfamiliar student in the economics section of the library. Fūki noticed that the class badge on the student's uniform was a different color from Class C's, and that the student's demeanor was entirely unlike that of Ryuen's group.

"That's a student from Class B..." Fūki murmured, immediately making a note of the discovery. He recalled Ichinose mentioning the day before that Ryuen had asked her for advice on class management. It seemed that hadn't been a coincidence.

The first class of the morning was math, and Teacher Chabashira was explaining complicated function graphs on the blackboard. Fūki had deliberately chosen a seat at the back of the classroom by the window, where he could observe the whole class. He noticed that Sakura was sitting in the third row, by the aisle, and seemed more focused than usual. Her pen kept moving across her notebook, but a closer look would have revealed that her notes had nothing to do with the lesson.

When class let out, the classroom immediately grew noisy. Ike and Yamauchi were loudly discussing last night's TV show, Sudo was dozing on his desk, and Hirata was surrounded by several girls talking about class activities. Taking advantage of the commotion, Sakura slipped silently over to Fūki's desk and quickly tucked a folded note into his pencil case. The whole thing took less than three seconds, and no one noticed.

The note contained a new sketch, showing Ishizaki Daichi exchanging an envelope with a Class A student early in the morning. In tiny handwriting, Sakura had added: "7:15 a.m., east side of the gym. Ishizaki met with a student from the Katsuragi Faction in Class A. Envelope approximately 5 mm thick, made of ordinary white paper."

The discovery put Fūki on alert. If Ryuen had reached into Class A, his ambitions might be greater than they had imagined. More troubling still, these secret dealings across classes could mean that Ryuen was weaving an even larger conspiracy.

At lunchtime, Fūki went to the Sakura Grove behind the Special School Building as planned. The area was usually deserted at midday, and the blooming cherry trees formed a pink canopy, making it an ideal place for a secret meeting. To his surprise, Horikita and Kushida were already there, along with Hirata and Sakura.

"I think Sakura should take part in our core discussions," Hirata explained. Sunlight filtering through the cherry blossoms dappled his face with shadows. "Her powers of observation make her one of our most valuable sources of information. Besides..." He turned to Sakura with an encouraging smile. "She made another important discovery this morning."

Sakura kept her head lowered, but this time she didn't hide behind anyone. Instead, she chose a tree stump to sit on and opened her sketchbook. "I noticed Ishizaki acting strangely this morning," she said quietly, lightly tapping a new sketch. "After meeting with a student from Class A, he took a detour to the faculty office building and lingered outside for about ten minutes, but never went in."

Horikita studied the sketch carefully. "The faculty office building? That's unusual. Ishizaki hardly ever goes near there."

"And the timing is suspicious, too," Kushida added. "The Monthly Evaluation Meeting is tomorrow."

Fūki nodded thoughtfully. "Ryuen may be planning to cause some kind of stir among the teachers." He turned to Sakura. "Can you keep an eye on Ishizaki's movements? Especially the kinds of people he meets and the timing of those encounters."

Sakura nodded softly and quickly jotted something down in her sketchbook. Sunlight filtered through the cherry trees onto her notes, making the delicate lines seem to glow with gold.

"We need to expand our information network," Hirata said, "but not recklessly. I think we could ask a few trustworthy classmates to keep track of different areas."

"Sudo could handle information about Sports Clubs," Horikita suggested. "He's been especially attentive to that sort of thing lately."

"Karuizawa might be able to keep an ear out for gossip among the girls," Kushida said. "She has a wide circle of friends."

Fūki thought for a moment. "But we need to be very careful. Karuizawa is reliable, but her relationship with Hirata could make her a particular target."

Just then, footsteps approached from nearby. The five of them immediately stopped talking and pretended to admire the cherry blossoms. Two Class B students came by, glanced curiously at them, and continued on their way.

"This place isn't very safe anymore," Hirata whispered. "Ryuen is clearly keeping a close eye on what we're doing. We'll need to change the location for our next meeting."

"How about the stacks in the Old Library?" Horikita suggested. "Few people go there, and there are several exits."

Fūki nodded in agreement. "Good. We'll meet there next time. For now, let's leave separately so we don't attract attention."

They left the Sakura Grove one after another, each taking a different route, with five minutes between them. Fūki was the last to go. He carefully checked the area, making sure they hadn't left anything behind.

When he returned to the classroom, Fūki noticed Ike and Yamauchi huddled together, whispering. The moment they saw him come in, they broke apart. Their unusual behavior put him on alert.

After the afternoon classes ended, Fūki deliberately took a detour past the faculty office building. Just as Sakura had said, Ishizaki was lingering outside, glancing at the entrance from time to time as if waiting for someone.

Fūki pretended to tie his shoelaces, then sat on a nearby bench and took out a book, acting as if he were reviewing his notes while keeping a close eye on Ishizaki. About ten minutes later, a bespectacled male student came out of the building, quickly slipped a small wad of paper to Ishizaki, then left without looking back.

The discovery made Fūki's heart tighten. If Ryuen had planted an informant inside the faculty office building, then their situation was even more dangerous.

That night, Fūki organized the day's discoveries in his dorm room. Sakura's sketches, Ishizaki's strange behavior, the mysterious encounter outside the faculty office building... The clues swirled in his mind like scattered fragments. He took out a blank sheet of paper and began drawing a relationship chart, trying to find the connections between them.

Late into the night, the light in his room was still on. Outside the window, a bright full moon hung high in the sky, its cool light spilling over the quiet campus. Beneath that calm surface, undercurrents were quietly gathering. Fūki knew they had to weave a protective net before the storm arrived.