The Situation is Unfavorable

Because there were so few clues, no one could come up with a good solution for the time being. Since Chabashira was expected to bring the school's official disciplinary notice tomorrow, everyone dispersed after offering a few words of comfort to Sudō.

On the way back, Karuizawa tilted her head and asked:

"Katsuya, you must have a way to deal with this, right?"

"Why would you think that? I'm not a god..."

"I don't know, but I feel like you always step up at critical moments, and you always look so confident."

This statement stemmed from the trust she held for Shinjo in her heart, but as far as this situation was concerned, even he couldn't possibly come up with a good solution in such a short amount of time.

Shinjo shook his head and posed a question to the girl beside him:

"Megumi, under what circumstances do you think the school would listen to Class 1-C's unilateral declaration and make Sudō find evidence to prove his innocence, rather than making the other side find evidence to prove Sudō is guilty?"

"Hmm... I guess it's because Class 1-C doesn't need to prove anything anymore?"

"Exactly. Furthermore, since Sudō admitted that he laid hands on the people from Class 1-C, even if they don't have overwhelming evidence, he is the primary suspect simply because he confessed."

"That's really a headache. If he can't find any evidence, wouldn't that be terrible?"

The hard-earned class points would definitely be gone, the hard-won peaceful atmosphere of the class would be destroyed, and everything would return to square one—or perhaps even worse than square one.

"It would be great if there were some kind of witness... but I think we both know that's unlikely, right? If Class 1-C intentionally wanted to frame Sudō, they would definitely choose a place with no people and no surveillance cameras."

"It's too early to talk about this now. Let's wait and see what the teacher says tomorrow."

"I guess that's all we can do..."

The next day, everyone except for the Horikita study group clearly didn't know what had happened.

So, when Chabashira appeared in the classroom, someone raised their hand to ask:

"Teacher... the personal points... why haven't they been deposited yet?"

"Don't be impatient. That is exactly the issue I wanted to discuss with you during today's homeroom. Sudō got into a conflict with students from Class 1-C and physically assaulted them, so until the final verdict is reached, the distribution of personal points for both classes has been suspended."

Upon hearing that it was because of Sudō, the gazes of the students instantly turned hostile, and they all looked toward the red-haired boy in the back row.

Naturally, Sudō couldn't just sit there in silence, so he hurriedly stood up and shouted in explanation:

"That's not it! The people from Class 1-C provoked me first; I was acting in self-defense!! You have to believe me, I didn't hit them on purpose!"

But how could the others listen? If it weren't for Hirata and Kushida speaking up for him last time, they wouldn't even have wanted to lend him the points to get through his previous crisis.

"Why did they only hit you and not anyone else? Have you thought about your own problems?!"

"What did you say?"

"In other words, why is it always you who causes trouble for the class?! Sudō! Did we offend you somewhere?! I'm begging you, please stop causing trouble!!!"

"Why are you saying that to me?! This clearly isn't my fault! I'll say it again, they hit me, and I was just fighting back!!"

The classroom suddenly became rowdy. Naturally, Hirata and Kushida couldn't let the situation escalate further, so they quickly stood up to mediate the argument.

"Everyone! Calm down! You all heard what Sudō-kun just said; it was the people from Class 1-C who wanted to frame him. We should believe in our own classmate!"

"Hirata-kun is right. We shouldn't be fighting amongst ourselves at a time like this. We should work together to help Sudō find evidence to prove his innocence and crush Class 1-C's conspiracy!"

With the two of them taking the lead, the anger of many in the class subsided significantly.

Of course, there were still many analytical minds among them.

"That may be so, but Sudō, do you have any evidence to prove your innocence?"

"I... how could I possibly have something like that?!"

Chabashira didn't want to watch these students blaming each other and shifting responsibility anymore. After leaving behind a "Homeroom is dismissed," she walked out the front door.

"Everyone! Even so, we shouldn't give up! We can use our respective connections and relationships to see if there were any witnesses present!"

"So, I'm begging you, if anyone saw what happened, could you please step forward now? Our classmate needs your help!"

Someone from our own class... that shouldn't be possible as a witness, right?

Although Shinjo didn't know what the judicial system of this school was like, logically speaking, such a major incident should involve a recusal system, right?

People from Class 1-C and Class D shouldn't be able to serve as witnesses.

Moreover, witnesses themselves couldn't be considered strong evidence, as there was always the possibility of them being bought off.

Unless the witness was a teacher from the school or someone of high standing like the Student Council President, it was unlikely to hold weight.

"Do you still not understand?! This matter has nothing to do with whether you were the one at fault or not!"

"How do I not understand?! I clearly didn't do anything wrong, so how does it have nothing to do with me?! They are the ones at fault, yet I'm the one being punished! Is that just how this school works?!"

Nearby, Sudō and Horikita were clashing again.

"Don't tell me you don't believe me either? We're partners!!"

"I have never considered you my partner. Since you are being so stubborn regardless of the situation, there is nothing I can do to help."

"You!"

Shinjo stepped forward and patted the shoulder of the dejected Sudō:

"I believe you, but... right now, I don't have any good ideas either."

"Shinjo..."

Sudō choked up; this was truly a case of seeing one's true colors in times of adversity. Who would have thought that Shinjo was merely looking for an excuse to extricate himself? He didn't care whether Sudō would be expelled, and as for the deduction of class points, with only 87 left, they could do whatever they pleased.

Five minutes later, at the Yorozuya.

"Your nicotine addiction is truly outrageous. Would you consider paying my medical bills for the secondhand smoke?"

Chabashira acted as if she hadn't heard him, continuing to smoke the cigarette in her hand.

"What do you intend to do this time?"

"What do I intend to do? Isn't the question really what you intend to do?"

Hearing this, Chabashira let out a cold laugh, her expression and tone dripping with disdain:

"Heh! You really are cold-blooded. Sudō trusts you so much, yet you still plan to profit off him?"

Facing her mockery, Shinjo appeared completely indifferent as he fiddled with the Spring Monster (a type of stress-relief toy) in his hand:

"That doesn't seem to conflict at all. Besides, your phrasing has a serious issue... I'm not taking anyone's money; I'm using their money to handle their business! If certain people have a way to solve things themselves, they are more than welcome not to come to me. After all, the Yorozuya has never engaged in forced sales, has it?"