The "Silent Drama" Outside the Dormitory Late at Night and the Daily Intel-Gathering of a Devotee of the Way of Caution

When he said goodbye to Hirata at the dorm entrance, the last trace of sunset on the horizon had just been swallowed by night.

Shangguan Che dragged his weary steps back to his room and dropped into a chair, still mulling over Hirata's situation.

Was this kid's self-improvement for the better or the worse? He thought about it for ages, but his mind felt like it was stuffed with cotton, and he couldn't reach any conclusion.

"Forget it. I'll just keep a closer eye on him from now on." He waved away the thought. "Right now, Hirata and Sakura are complete opposites. One's steady as a rock and won't budge an inch, while the other panics at the slightest disturbance. The difference is huge. What a pain!"

But then he thought it over and couldn't help grinning. "I should be nearly done helping Hirata, right? Definitely!"

Remembering the conditions for completing the task, he hurriedly repeated the thought three times in his head, afraid the heavens wouldn't hear his prayer.

Outside the window, the sky had grown completely dark.

Looking at his room, which had suddenly become "splendidly illuminated," Shangguan Che couldn't help remarking, "It sure gets dark early in May."

He took out his phone and scrolled through his contacts. "Tonight's not a good time to chat with Ichinose. It's the middle of the night—if she misunderstands and thinks I have ulterior motives, I'll be in trouble. I'd better talk to Sakura instead. I barely spoke to her today."

Before sending a message, he habitually activated Clairvoyance to see what his classmates were up to. He hadn't expected to see anything unusual, but what he saw gave him a shock.

Ayanokoji was wandering around outside the dorm!

"What's he doing out at this hour?" Shangguan Che's curiosity was instantly piqued, and he stared at the scene without blinking.

Ayanokoji ambled over to the vending machine, inserted a coin, pressed a button, then turned around with a bottle of orange juice. Shangguan Che frowned. "Something's off. Who comes out in the middle of the night just to buy a bottle of orange juice? There's definitely something fishy going on!"

Sure enough, Ayanokoji walked over to the elevator, but instead of pressing the button, he stared at the screen showing the inside of the elevator. Before long, Horikita Suzune appeared onscreen, looking down at her phone. It seemed she had just returned from outside.

What happened next nearly made Shangguan Che spit out the water he had just swallowed.

Ayanokoji actually crouched down and hid behind a pillar next to the elevator!

"I knew something was up!" Shangguan Che excitedly slapped the desk. "Buying orange juice in the middle of the night was just an excuse. He's really staking out Horikita, isn't he?"

The more he thought about it, the more reasonable it seemed. "Ayanokoji and I are both guys, and we're 'friends on the surface.' It shouldn't be too much to take a peek at his little secret, right?"

The elevator doors opened, and Horikita stepped out. She had barely walked a few steps when a boy in a Student Council uniform emerged from the corridor beside her. It was the Student Council President, Horikita Manabu!

"Oh, look at that! A family reunion!" Shangguan Che suddenly understood. "No wonder Horikita Manabu is here. He came to wait for his little sister. This is an anime world, after all—of course a coincidence like this would happen!"

He watched intently. Horikita Manabu spoke to Horikita for a while. Whatever he said, Horikita's expression instantly darkened, and their tones seemed to grow more and more heated. They looked on the verge of an argument.

Suddenly, Horikita Manabu stepped forward, closing the distance between them. He grabbed Horikita by the wrist and slammed her against the wall!

"Whoa, a sibling romance plot?" Shangguan Che's mind instantly filled with all sorts of suggestive ideas. He hurriedly shook his head. "Don't overthink it, don't overthink it. Keep watching!"

But what happened next left him completely dumbfounded. Horikita Manabu actually lifted Horikita right off the ground!

Horikita's feet dangled in the air, pain showing on her face as she struggled with both hands.

"No way! Would an actual brother do something like that?" Shangguan Che was so shocked he nearly jumped up. He fumbled for his phone and, going by memory, entered the dorm supervisor's number. His finger hovered over the call button, then stopped. "Wait, this is Japan, and it's an anime world. Ayanokoji's still the male lead, so maybe there'll be a twist? I should watch a little longer."

Just then, Ayanokoji suddenly dashed out from behind the pillar and grabbed Horikita Manabu's arm, forcibly stopping him from going any further.

The three of them stood there and exchanged a few words. They were too far away for Shangguan Che to hear what they were saying, but he saw Ayanokoji let go in the end.

"Did they work things out?" He had barely formed the thought when Horikita Manabu suddenly threw a punch at Ayanokoji's face!

"Holy crap, even the Student Council President fights dirty?" Shangguan Che stared in disbelief. "That was so underhanded!"

The fight that followed left Shangguan Che, a complete novice, dumbfounded.

Horikita Manabu's fists were as fast as the wind, but Ayanokoji dodged every one with ease. He didn't look like he was putting in much effort, yet he always managed to avoid each attack precisely.

After a while, Horikita Manabu stopped, and the three of them stood together chatting again. Shangguan Che stroked his chin and guessed, "Maybe nobody's going to sneak in another attack this time?"

In the end, nothing happened. Horikita Manabu turned and left. Horikita and Ayanokoji stood silently for a long while before starting another "verbal sparring match." As they argued, Ayanokoji suddenly reached out and grabbed Horikita by the wrist, using the exact same opening move Horikita Manabu had used earlier!

"Seriously, why does everyone like grabbing wrists?" Shangguan Che couldn't help complaining. "Is there something magical about Horikita's wrist in this world?"

They argued a little more, then Horikita took the initiative and held out her hand. Ayanokoji took it, and they seemed to have made up.

As the sole audience member of this "silent drama," Shangguan Che slumped in his chair, unable to recover for a long while. "It's different when you're the main character. Special events can happen wherever you go. I should keep a closer eye on Ayanokoji from now on. I might be able to gather quite a bit of intel."

He tried to recall the anime he had watched, searching for a similar plot about "an older brother beating up his younger sister." After thinking for a long time, he finally remembered one. "I think the heroine's younger brother in Tokyo Ghoul beat her up too. He said it was for her own good. I didn't really get it, but it was probably something like that, right? Maybe Horikita Manabu treated Horikita Suzune so extremely because he wanted what was best for her."

Having figured that out, Shangguan Che started fretting again. "I've guessed his motive, but that method is way too outrageous. I just can't understand it. I guess I should read more detective novels and work on my logical thinking."

Why not read professional books? The answer was simple: he couldn't get through them. All those densely packed lines of text would make his brain "go on strike."

Suddenly, Shangguan Che slapped his forehead. "Oh no! I was so caught up watching the show that I forgot something important!"

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Once he had calmed down, he finally remembered. "Horikita Manabu is at the top of the student hierarchy, right? He solves problems with violence, and when someone stops him, he relies on violence too. This school really puts strength above everything else!"

Shangguan Che hurriedly opened his skill panel and looked at his utterly average attributes. He made his decision without hesitation. "Play it safe. I absolutely have to play it safe! From now on, I'll avoid trouble whenever I can. Safety first!"

Now that he had decided to play it safe, gathering intel was important. Shangguan Che figured that in an anime with a "mystery" bent like this, it would surely be easier to gather intel at night.

"All right, let me take a good look around the whole school!" He activated Clairvoyance, sweeping his gaze over every corner of the campus like a radar.

When his vision passed over the riverbank, he suddenly stopped. A girl in a short skirt was kicking the railing with all her might. It was none other than Kushida Kikyo, the class's "most popular girl"!

Shangguan Che rubbed his eyes, making sure he wasn't seeing things. "Kushida has a side like this too? She always seems so gentle and cheerful. I never expected her to kick a railing so hard." He watched for a few more moments. Only after Kushida turned and left did he notice that the railing had actually been bent a little.

"No way. How can a girl be that strong?" Shangguan Che sucked in a sharp breath. "Nobody at this school is simple. The way of caution really is important!"

He turned off Clairvoyance, took out his phone, and sent Sakura a message: [Sakura, are you asleep? I've finished organizing today's study materials. I'll bring them to you tomorrow.]

A little while later, Sakura replied: [I'm still awake. Thank you, Shangguan. Sorry for the trouble.]

Looking at the message on his screen, Shangguan Che managed a strained smile. "Today's intel-gathering went pretty well. I'll keep at it and do my best to play it safe until the very end in this dangerous school!"