The Battle of Wits at the Disciplinary Hearing

The atmosphere at the hearing was taut as a drawn bowstring, thick with the acrid smell of confrontation.

Horikita Suzune stood in the middle of the room, a USB drive in hand, her gaze sharp as a blade.

Ever since Ayanokoji had "set her straight," she had finally regained her usual composure.

After glancing again at her brother, Horikita Manabu, who was presiding over the hearing, Horikita Suzune was even more determined to win the debate.

"The footage clearly shows that when Ishizaki Daichi and the others left the abandoned club building at 4:20 p.m., their injuries were mostly minor." Horikita's voice carried clearly across the room as she pointed to the image frozen on the screen.

"Ishizaki can raise and move his right arm freely, and Komiya Yogo walks without difficulty on his left leg. There's no sign of serious injuries."

As soon as she finished, Sakagami Kazuma, the Class C homeroom teacher, abruptly sat upright and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. His tone was openly skeptical. "Do you know what 'reinjury' means?"

He glanced at Ishizaki and the others, whose faces had gone pale, and cursed them for their uselessness. But he didn't go easy on Horikita. "Is it impossible that the minor injuries Sudo inflicted worsened during their daily activities? Or are you just making things up?"

As he spoke, Sakagami glanced discreetly at Chabashira Sae, the Class D homeroom teacher.

He didn't want to be targeted by the vindictive woman over this, but Classes C and D had always been at odds. Defending his students was only natural.

Chabashira sat nearby, lightly tapping her fingers on the table. Her face betrayed nothing, but she was thinking, That old fox Sakagami knows how to exploit a loophole.

Still, she wasn't worried. Hirata and Ayanokoji wouldn't have come if they didn't have another card up their sleeves.

What surprised her was that Hoshinomiya Chie from Class B had come too.

What's she sticking her nose in for? How long ago was that business between us? And she's still at odds with me.

"Sae, don't look at me so coldly~" Hoshinomiya noticed Chabashira's gaze and leaned over to her at once, cooing in a sickly-sweet voice.

But Chabashira simply looked away without so much as a glance. Hoshinomiya was so annoyed that she quietly made a face at her back.

In the middle of the room, Horikita didn't let Sakagami's challenge throw her off. She took another USB drive from her bag and spoke firmly. "There is a chance of reinjury, which is why I prepared a second video."

She paused and looked at Ayanokoji, an almost imperceptible expression flickering in her eyes.

She and Ayanokoji had gone to retrieve this footage from near the karaoke place. She had only meant to track Ishizaki and the others' movements, but she'd unexpectedly found crucial evidence.

In her mind, Ayanokoji was practically the incarnation of the "Goddess of Fortune," though she didn't know that he had already anticipated where the clues would lead.

"This video shows the entire process: Ishizaki and the others entered the karaoke place with minor injuries and came out with serious ones." Horikita held up the USB drive and looked toward Tachibana, the Student Council secretary. "Tachibana-senpai, please play it for us."

"Tachibana." Horikita Manabu's voice was perfectly calm, yet carried unquestionable authority.

"Of course, President." Tachibana took the USB drive and quickly plugged it into the equipment. A new surveillance video soon appeared on the big screen.

Meanwhile, Sakagami lowered his voice and said to Ishizaki and the others, "Don't panic. Keep insisting that Sudo caused the minor injuries, and don't say anything else!"

He cursed Ryuen in his mind.

That kid was still too careless. He'd let Class D catch such a huge mistake. He had plenty of ambition, but not the skills to back it up.

Ryuen, try taking things seriously for once.

Just then, Hirata Yosuke suddenly stood up, a phone in his hand. "President Horikita, I have some information that might help explain what happened."

He glanced at his phone screen and thought of the message Shangguan Che had sent him. At last, he understood how to use the information.

"Go ahead." Horikita Manabu gave a slight nod.

Hirata cleared his throat and began reading aloud. "April 6, third floor of the abandoned school building: Ryuen Kakeru and Ibuki Mio entered and then left, both injured;

"April 7, the woods behind the first-year school building: Ryuen Kakeru, Ishizaki Daichi, and Tokito Yuya entered; Ishizaki and Tokito were injured;

"April 8, the men's restroom on the first floor of the first-year school building: Ryuen Kakeru and Yamada Albert came out with injuries. Ryuen had new injuries on top of old ones..."

He read slowly, every date and location perfectly clear. The atmosphere in the room turned instantly rigid.

The Class C students' faces changed dramatically. Ishizaki clenched his fist so hard that his nails nearly dug into his palm.

These were all "secrets" kept within the class. How could Class D know so much? Had someone in their class betrayed them?

Sakagami's back broke out in a cold sweat. His first thought was a mole.

That kid Ryuen really has been set up!

A faint smile tugged at Chabashira's lips. I knew I was right about Hirata. The kid really does have an ace up his sleeve.

Hoshinomiya dropped her playful expression and looked at Hirata gravely.

Even she had only heard snippets of this information while working in the infirmary. Class D had managed to gather it in such detail. It seemed Class D was far more formidable than she'd thought.

Ichinose Honami had been sitting quietly nearby, but now she couldn't help widening her eyes in surprise. Hirata has uncovered so many of Class C's secrets. It seems the alliance between Classes B and D was the right move.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka remained expressionless in the corner, lightly tapping his fingers on the table as he thought about Shangguan Che.

Ayanokoji didn't know why Shangguan Che had come to mind. Perhaps it was instinct.

After reading one section, Hirata put his phone away and said calmly, "I think this information should make my point clear."

He didn't really understand what the information meant himself. Hirata only had a general idea.

He had simply read the "notes" Shangguan Che had written for him, and he hadn't expected them to work so well.

Horikita Suzune immediately seized the opportunity and stood up to press her case. "The information Hirata provided makes it clear that Class C students are frequently injured. They even seem to have a habit of 'deliberately worsening their injuries.'"

She pointed at the footage on the big screen. "That makes it quite possible that Ishizaki and the others fabricated their accusation against Sudo.

"Perhaps they're so used to fighting among themselves that they accidentally got into a conflict with Sudo. That would explain how Sudo defeated three men who were already injured. Then, out of habit, they made their injuries worse in an attempt to frame him!"

Her words struck the hearts of the Class C students like a heavy hammer.

Just then, Tachibana finished adjusting the equipment, and surveillance footage from the karaoke place began playing on the big screen.

In the video, Ishizaki and the others entered the establishment with their arms around one another, moving nimbly and showing no sign of injury. But a few hours later, they came out clutching their arms and limping, their faces twisted in exaggerated pain.

The entire room fell silent. Even the sound of breathing was clearly audible.

"We withdraw the complaint." Sakagami spoke almost at once, his voice betraying the faintest tremor.

He knew they couldn't drag this out any longer.

If they kept arguing, the three of them would continue to insist that Sudo had hurt them, while Horikita would produce even more evidence that Class C had "staged" the whole thing. In the end, both sides would suffer.

More importantly, he couldn't let anything happen to Ryuen.

If the Student Council investigated the information Hirata had, Ryuen's collection of Class Points and repeated involvement in fights would all come to light. He might not just be suspended for a year—he could be expelled outright.

If there was a mole, something like that was very likely to happen.

Sakagami had already put all his chips on Ryuen. If Ryuen fell, Class C might be finished.

He quickly weighed his options. April is the month for enforcing conduct rules, and there are cameras everywhere. We won't gain anything by fighting Class D now. Better to withdraw the complaint and wait until the semester ends, when the surveillance eases up and the recordings are erased. Then we can find another chance to get back at them.

Chabashira raised an eyebrow, surprised that Sakagami had backed down so quickly, but she said nothing.

Keeping Sudo from being expelled was already the best possible outcome.

Hirata and Horikita exchanged glances, both seeing the surprise in the other's eyes.

They hadn't expected Class C to give in so quickly. They hadn't realized how important Ryuen was to the class.

Ayanokoji watched Sakagami's tense profile and sensed something was off.

The withdrawal was too sudden. It wasn't like Class C. Was there something else going on? He didn't say anything, though, and continued to play the part of a silent observer.

This is what an ordinary person does, just like everyone else. Isn't it?

Horikita Manabu glanced at Sakagami, then at Chabashira. His tone was even. "Since Class C has withdrawn its complaint, does Class D agree?"

Chabashira stood and gave a slight nod. "We agree."

And so the tense, confrontational hearing ended with Class C's sudden withdrawal of its complaint.

Meanwhile, Hoshinomiya took Ichinose by the arm and asked curiously, "Honami-chan, do you think Class D has some hidden powerhouse? They actually managed to force Class C to withdraw its complaint."

Ichinose smiled, a hint of admiration in her eyes. "Perhaps. After all, everyone has their secrets."

At that moment, Shangguan Che was eating in the cafeteria with Sakura, completely unaware that the hearing had ended.

Sakura took small bites of her food, then suddenly looked up and asked, "Shangguan, do you think Teacher Mashima will find that... bad person?"

"He definitely will." Shangguan Che put a piece of fried chicken into her bowl. "And don't worry about anything else. I'll help you with everything."

At his words, Sakura smiled brightly, her eyes curving into crescents.

Seeing her smile warmed Shangguan Che's heart, too.

There were still unresolved concerns with Kamuro Masumi, but at least for now, everything was moving in a good direction.

The end of the hearing wasn't the end of the conflict, but a new beginning.

Class D had won the first round with wit and courage, but Class C's retaliation, Class A's scrutiny, and Class B's alliance all pointed to one thing: the days ahead wouldn't be peaceful.