"We've only had a few chance encounters, that's all."
Could you really call it just a few? It had been three months straight without a break!
"...Then we'll ask for your help, trusting in Ayanokoji's faith in you." After a long silence, Horikita finally decided to agree to work with us.
"Of course, that's for the best. But there's one thing I'd like to ask you beforehand."
"What?"
"If—just hypothetically—if the truth turned out to be that the student in your class named Sudo was at fault, and not only was it not a wrongful accusation, but we even found evidence that conclusively proved his guilt, what would you do?"
"We'd make him turn himself in and come clean. A lie like that would surely bring consequences in the future."
"If that's the case, then I don't think we'll have any problems working together. Then it's settled. Um—"
"My name is Horikita."
"Nice to meet you. Horikita, and Ayanokoji."
The Heat Was Making Us Lose Our Heads
"About how you've already found another eyewitness..."
Perhaps because of Horikita's hostile attitude earlier, Ichinose thought the people in Class D had lied about this.
"It's true. The negotiations went fairly smoothly, but the eyewitness is one of our classmates from Class D."
"Oh, do you have physical evidence? If not, that's too bad."
"Too bad? Isn't finding another eyewitness a good thing?"
After hearing me, Horikita shot me a silent, disdainful glance. Ichinose smiled beside her and explained.
"It is a good thing, but if all they can provide is a verbal statement and no physical evidence, it'll be much harder to get the verdict to take it into account."
"Isn't a witness's testimony enough?"
"It can be, but when someone from Class D testifies on behalf of someone in their own class, their credibility inevitably takes a hit."
"I see..." I nodded as if I'd suddenly understood, only to receive another scornful look. Maybe I was imagining it; Horikita had looked that way from the start.
"We should have physical evidence, too, but it might take a few days to come to light."
"I see... We'll still help search for eyewitnesses and related clues. The chances may be very slim, but we'll do our best. And please let us know if there's anything else we can help with."
The chance that there were any other eyewitnesses was zero.
That wasn't just because of the coated glass; at that time, I could tell there hadn't been any signs of anyone else nearby.
"Come to think of it, you're both doing your best to protect your classmates. Sudo's pretty impressive, too. He's already a substitute on the official team, so he'll probably earn a lot of points in the future."
"..."
When neither of us replied and instead stared at Ichinose oddly, we started to panic.
"Did I say something wrong?"
"No... What did you mean when you said he'd earn a lot of points?"
"Huh? Didn't your homeroom teacher explain that at the club orientation? The school awards points for club activities, volunteer work, and things like that. Even if you don't perform particularly well, you still get points."
"Really? Our homeroom teacher didn't mention that at all."
"Teacher Chabashira never seems to tell us about details like that. She didn't even tell us when the exam topics changed last time," Ayanokoji added.
"Your homeroom teacher does seem a little strange."
"She's the kind of teacher who doesn't like her students."
"Surely not. The school evaluates teachers based on the class they graduate. Our homeroom teacher, Teacher Hoshinomiya, always encourages us to work hard by reminding us of that. She tells us we have to make it to Class A."
"We haven't heard anything like that..."
"It seems like your homeroom teacher really might not have any intention of helping you get there..."
Could there really be a teacher like that? If so, then maybe, if I explained the reason, she wouldn't keep calling me in to lecture me about my grades.
Damn it, give me back my original identity as a Class D student!
"By the way, about how to contact you."
As she spoke, Ichinose pulled a cute handkerchief embroidered with a panda from her pocket and wiped the thin sheen of sweat starting to form on her forehead. In this stuffy, air-conditioning-free space, wearing a thick uniform only made people lose even more moisture. And the longer we stayed, the harder it became to think straight.
So confusion bred more confusion.
"Since Ayanokoji's on pretty good terms with Raku, we can leave contacting them to those two."
"Are you holding that against me?"
"I just find it strange that you have close friends in other classes."
"I worked hard for it."
Wait, did you mean that our cursed connection was the result of your hard work? If so, Ayanokoji was a dangerous person worth keeping an eye on—and staying away from!
"...We can talk about that later. Anyway, we should head back. We won't keep you any longer."
"Goodbye."
After saying our goodbyes, we parted ways with the two students from Class D.
"Next, we need to tell everyone in our class about this... Raku, do you think we should post it in the class group chat or bring it up at tomorrow morning's assembly?"
"It'd probably be better to tell them in person. That way, we can answer any questions right away."
"Yeah, I think so, too. Let's go to the school cafeteria."
"I thought we came here to inspect the scene of the incident..."
"Oh, I'd forgotten until you mentioned it, Raku. But since the people from Class D have already investigated, I doubt we'll find anything..." As she spoke, Ichinose glanced casually around. "There aren't any cameras that could have captured this place."
"Otherwise, the school wouldn't have been so troubled over this for so long."
"True... We should hurry up and leave. It's so hot in here." Ichinose wiped away her sweat again.
You hadn't come here to investigate the scene in the first place, had you...
"All right... Is that handkerchief a souvenir from one of the recent events at the mall?" I pointed to the handkerchief in Ichinose's hand. Its panda design looked a lot like the character Shiratori and the others had been talking about.
"Do you follow the events held at Keyaki Mall, Raku?"
"No, I just happened to see people talking about it in the guys' group chat."
"Do boys talk about that kind of thing, too? No wonder Chihiro always says all the boys in our class are so childish. Oh, no, wait—please forget I said that."
"If you're going to criticize all boys, Ichinose, at least don't say it to my face. Even if you're trying to protect the girls' privacy, at least spare my feelings."
"Sorry, I wasn't talking about Raku. No, I didn't mean that Raku wasn't a boy... Anyway, um—sorry, my brain's not working right. Just don't take what I said to heart." Ichinose apologized as she spread her fingers and fanned herself, but it was pointless and only made her even hotter.
"Is the heat making you lose your train of thought? We should get out of here as soon as possible." I tried to quicken my pace.
"Speaking of handkerchiefs, Raku, what pattern is on yours?"
"Mine? It's just a plain piece of cloth."
"Don't you find that a little dull?"
"A handkerchief is supposed to be practical, isn't it? Besides, maybe I just don't like things that mix patterns with plain colors."
"Is there anything you like, Raku? If it's something you like, you wouldn't dislike it, would you?"
"Something I like... I'm not sure, actually. I've never come across a handkerchief with a pattern I liked, and I've never thought about having one custom-made."
"Hmm, I thought yours might have a pattern. I didn't get a good look last time you took it out."
"Last time?" I stopped on the stairs and turned around in confusion. "Come to think of it, how do you know I carry a handkerchief? I don't remember taking it out in front of anyone."
"I could guess. Pretty much everyone carries a handkerchief. And did you forget? Last time, when we were—ah!"
At that, Ichinose abruptly stopped and covered her mouth. Her cheeks reddened visibly in the stuffy heat of the Special Building.
"Are you all right? Did you twist your ankle?"
Facing Ichinose's flustered expression, I stepped forward to check whether her ankle was swelling.
"No, I didn't hurt my ankle. It's just... Ah, let's hurry up and go. It's really too hot in here." Before she finished speaking, Ichinose covered her mouth and hurried away from me, blushing as she ran toward the exit.
What was that? She was mumbling incoherently. Did she bite her tongue?
Or did she just start to dislike me?
Also, when had I ever used my handkerchief in front of everyone? I clearly hadn't...
Could Ichinose have seen me that time on the bus? At least I hadn't done anything weird with the handkerchief back then.
The Inevitable Interactions Between Students
The first-years had an entire school building to themselves, with both boys and girls living there. The same was true for every grade. Including the dormitories assigned to teachers and employees in places like Keyaki Mall, there were four dormitory buildings in the school district.
I'm emphasizing this because it holds a deeper meaning.
The separation between grades meant that exams for each grade didn't interfere with one another. At the same time, putting all the students in a grade together was intended to encourage students from different classes to interact and develop all kinds of possibilities—not only the hostility brought on by competition between classes, but also the necessary connections.
Ayanokoji and I were living proof.
"You even considered getting up early..."
In the past, I'd tried getting up early to avoid my curse of running into Ayanokoji, but the difference in timing had only ever been a slight adjustment. Today was completely different. Compared with my usual schedule, it was like I'd crossed over from the third dimension into the fourth.
And even so, I still hadn't escaped my curse.
"So even this didn't work?"
"Why'd you have to get up early today of all days?"
"Weren't you doing the same thing?"
"I hadn't planned to. I just had to get up early because I'd promised a classmate I'd do something."
That was right. After we settled on the plan to cooperate, Class B had quickly started working on the case. Of course, not everyone had joined in; only the students who were interested took part, and nobody was forced to.
Everyone was doing it of their own free will, so I wasn't bothered at all by threats from Ichinose and Kanzaki. Then I was assigned to the poster-making team, where Kanzaki was working. Since no one else was capable, I was more than "willing" to take responsibility.
That's right. I've always been a kindhearted and helpful guy. If my classmates needed help, I'd always lend a hand. As long as I was doing it of my own free will. Yes, my own free will.
"Am I imagining it, or does it seem like you're about to turn evil? Are you okay?"
"Don't worry about it. I'm just struggling with my inner demons."
"I know you might be upset, but there's no need to go this far. If you're under a lot of pressure, I suggest seeing the school counselor. I read that long-term repression can stir up feelings of anxiety and lead to harmful behavior."
"It's not that bad."
"Honestly, I've always thought you gave off a pretty gloomy vibe..."
"...So I really am a terrible person, aren't I?"
"...Let's change the subject. Have you made any progress on the case?"
So it was true—
"If you haven't heard from Ichinose, then we haven't found anything yet."
"Weren't you all working together?"
"Different students have different approaches, so we split up into groups. But overall, we're still working together. For example, Kanzaki's the one passing along information to my group."
"Can I ask what your group's plan is?"
"It's not much of a plan. You'll probably find out tomorrow anyway."
"I see... Speaking of which, your class's teamwork is impressive. Is there some trick to it? The students in Class D are all scattered, like a pile of loose sand."
"A trick? I wouldn't call it a trick. We owe it to Ichinose... If I had to say, it's probably the advantage of having class officers."
"Class officers?" Ayanokoji seemed interested in the activity our class had organized on its own. But then the elevator doors opened, revealing a girl in front of us.
"Good morning, Ayanokoji, and... Huh?! Raku?! Why are you leaving the dorm so early today?"
"How rude. Anyone might have to get up early when circumstances demand it."
"But this is the first time I've ever seen you get up so early, Raku... Also, does Ayanokoji usually get up at this time? I don't think I've ever run into him before."
"No, I usually get up pretty late, too. Today I just got up early to escape the curse of fate."
Before you continue