"...So the people from Class C didn't fall for it?"
To think they could resist the temptation of a beautiful girl! Wasn't that an even stronger display of willpower than sheer perseverance?!
"Not exactly. Ishizaki and the others did fall for it, but they weren't the only ones who showed up."
"So they told someone else about the meeting with Kushida, and then someone came to bail them out?"
"That must be it. We'd already broken down their psychological defenses, but before we could get them to go to the conference room and withdraw their complaint, the mastermind behind Class C showed up and stopped us."
"The mastermind?"
"Yeah. I don't think I've mentioned him to you before, Raku. I've suspected for a while that someone was behind Class C's harassment and provocation of our students, but I didn't have any evidence. I only confirmed it just now."
"There's a student in Class C named Ryuen Kakeru. He was behind all the provocations against Class B. He's a troublesome guy who'll stop at nothing to get what he wants. I imagine he did this to break apart the school system."
"What a terrifying guy... So Ryuen guessed we'd use a tactic like this, and arrived in time to save them?"
"The flaw in the timing we chose for our operation was spotted by their homeroom teacher."
"Class C's homeroom teacher hadn't seen his students before the meeting was about to begin, so he called Ryuen to let him know, and then..."
"We thought of everything, but failed to account for the teacher... At this point, our failure is irreversible, isn't it?"
"That seems to be the case. But Ayanokoji-kun said Horikita had a backup plan."
She had a backup plan, too? That woman was downright terrifying!
"Then what about Ayanokoji...?"
"He's gone back to help Horikita... Maybe if I hadn't taken the role Ayanokoji-kun was playing, things would've been over by now..."
"If Ayanokoji gave the role to Ichinose, then that means she could handle it better. There's no need to blame yourself. From what I know of Ayanokoji, things might have gone even worse if Ichinose hadn't taken over. Besides, once Ryuen showed up, there was nothing anyone could do."
"..."
Even with Kanzaki and me there to comfort her, Ichinose couldn't shake her guilt.
Come to think of it, was the whole reason he brought me here just so I could offer a few words of comfort?
But what happened next made me realize just how badly I'd misunderstood the situation.
After discussing things for a while, Ichinose and Kanzaki, worried about Horikita, decided to go help her. At the very least, they had to get Sudo's expulsion overturned.
I'd planned to go along and see what was happening, but to be safe, Kanzaki left me at the Special Building to retrieve the monitors and circuit boards.
Heh, I see. I was nothing more than a mere tool.
Once I'd realized what they thought of me, I mourned the distortion of human nature and the decline of morality, all while carefully carrying the ladder and retrieving the equipment we'd used.
We, Class C, Withdraw This Complaint
[Horikita Suzune's perspective]
After we waited for a while, the Class C students came running back in a panic, right in front of us. They were all covered in sweat, but didn't seem particularly tense.
Also, things weren't going as planned. Ichinose and Ayanokoji hadn't escorted them in; instead, a strange man had come with them.
"We just made it," Teacher Sakagami of Class C said with a sigh of relief. "Ryuen got here just in time, too."
Ryuen? Hearing the name made me pause. I'd never heard it before. But since he'd made contact with the other Class C students, that meant our operation had failed.
"This was close. Class D nearly got away with it." The man called Ryuen arrogantly smoothed back his hair, then glanced at me with disdain. "I never thought you D-Class students would team up with Class B to pull off something so underhanded."
"Shouldn't I be asking you that? Are you unaware of what your students have been doing?"
"All I know is that they were bullied, and that they were just threatened."
Damn, this was bad. If our plan succeeded, it would bring us a huge advantage. But if it failed, the consequences would be just as serious.
"Are you saying that D-Class students just threatened your Class C students?"
"President Horikita, don't worry about it. They're just playing their little tricks."
Even in front of my brother, Ryuen's mocking expression didn't change.
"Is that so? Then does Class C want to replace its representatives?" My brother asked unhurriedly.
"There's no need for that, is there? The three of you know what you need to do next, right?"
"Y-Yes..."
"Then we'll continue yesterday's hearing. Please take your seats." At the urging of Tachibana-senpai, everyone began to sit down.
Just then, Ayanokoji rushed in.
"Sorry I'm late."
Tachibana-senpai frowned, but still nodded and let Ayanokoji in.
"Horikita, didn't you just say it wouldn't matter whether he was here or not?" Teacher Chabashira watched me with interest. All I could do was pretend not to care.
"Plans often change unexpectedly."
I glanced over at my brother, but he didn't react. His gaze wasn't on me at all; he was staring intently at Ayanokoji.
By now, I'd begun to realize that there was something unusual about Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.
"What happened?"
"We failed. At the last moment, Class C's homeroom teacher called Ryuen, and then he ruined the operation."
I'd considered the flaw in the timing, too. But there were too many constraints to make the plan any more thorough.
"Did you get any useful information?"
"We can confirm most of it, but there's no direct evidence."
"So their testimony could be dismissed as having been obtained through threats and coercion on our part, is that it?"
"Yes... So what are you going to do?"
"..."
Even with my brother right beside me, I still couldn't prove my case this time?
I wasn't willing to accept it. Was there really no way to save this?
"Then I declare this meeting open. Class D, please present your evidence."
Was there really no way to resolve this?
"Hey, Horikita. It's started."
Faced with my silence, Sudo urged me to speak.
That was right. The meeting had started, but I'd fallen silent just as I had yesterday.
Maybe we'd been doomed to lose from the beginning. Was this the price of lying? I hadn't expected the consequences to come so soon, especially when Class C was still sitting safely across from us.
Just then, Ayanokoji took out the photos Sakura had taken and showed them to me again. He placed one in front of me, showing both sides after the fight had ended.
"Sorry, I forgot to show you this one."
This guy, again...
I glared at him in annoyance, then took a deep breath and forced myself to calm down.
There was still a chance to turn things around. At the very least, I could make sure both sides suffered.
I picked up the photo Ayanokoji had offered me and studied the details carefully. Sudo's hand was still smeared with blood, while the other three were sprawled on the floor at the end of the hallway. Whether it was because of the digital camera's settings or Sakura's photography skills, the image was incredibly clear.
What was he trying to tell me? Or was there some detail in the photo I should pay attention to? I compared the people in the picture with Ishizaki and the others, and then I understood what Ayanokoji was getting at.
"Has Class D decided to give up?"
"Sorry to keep you waiting. I was just thinking of what to say." I stood up and picked up where my thoughts had left off yesterday. "Before I explain, I'd like to ask Ishizaki-kun something. After your fight with Sudo, did you suffer any further injuries?"
"What do you mean by that?"
"I mean exactly what I said. If you don't understand, I can explain. By 'further injuries,' I mean whether, after you were hurt then, you got into another fight or had an accident that caused you any new injuries."
"Of course not."
"Are you sure? Are you sure all the injuries on your body were caused by Sudo?"
"Yes, I'm sure." After a moment's hesitation, Ishizaki nodded firmly. Komiya and Kondo nodded along with him.
"Then how do you explain this photo?" I showed it to them, then handed it to Tachibana-senpai.
"...What's wrong with this photo?"
"Haven't you noticed? You just admitted that all your injuries were caused by Sudo, didn't you? So how do you explain the new injuries on the three of you? The scratches on Ishizaki's right arm, the scrape on Komiya's left cheek, and Kondo-kun's broken bone."
"How would we know whether you tampered with the photo after you got back? Are you trying to frame us, just like you did to that girl yesterday?"
"No, Teacher Sakagami. This photo was taken yesterday. I can confirm that." Just then, my brother spoke up.
"So what? What if the photo was tampered with from the start?"
"Then what reason would we have to hold on to this evidence? If you're saying we were too nervous and forgot about it, I don't believe we'd overlook such an important clue. Or do you think we were absolutely certain we could get the hearing reopened today?"
"Is that impossible? In fact, you've been delaying the disciplinary action this whole time."
He really was trying to account for every possibility.
"Wait, I never hit Kondo's hand—"
"Shut up, Sudo. Your statement doesn't mean anything."
"Tch..."
"So you're certain these injuries that aren't visible in the photo were also caused by Sudo?" Ayanokoji, who'd been silent until then, suddenly questioned them.
How much crucial information did he still have up his sleeve?
"That's right. I'm sure."
"Is that so? Then I'll be direct. At Horikita's request, I retrieved the security footage from the Special Building on the day of the incident. The footage isn't as clear as the photo, but you can clearly see that Kondo's arm was completely unharmed when he left the Special Building. He was even helping one of his friends."
Under "my orders," Ayanokoji handed over his phone for my brother to look at. My brother confirmed what he'd said.
"What, are you going to claim the school tampered with the video, too?"
"These injuries were caused by Sudo. Actually, I didn't notice the pain in my arm at the time. It wasn't until that night that—"
"Hahahaha—"
Just as Kondo was explaining, Ryuen, who'd been standing at the entrance to the conference room, suddenly burst out laughing.
"Since Class C has no plans to replace its representatives, I ask that all unrelated parties leave the conference room. Or do you have some objection to the Student Council's decision?" Tachibana-senpai gave Ryuen a stern warning over his rude and unreasonable behavior.
Everyone's attention was drawn to Ryuen.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to insult the Student Council. I just found a very interesting email a moment ago."
"Are you trying to provoke us?"
"No. There's just something I have to say right now."
"You—"
"Tachibana, let him continue."
"But..." Tachibana-senpai tried to object, but my brother stopped her. I was curious, too, about what Ryuen—the man who'd thwarted our plan—had to say.
Then Ryuen's next words left me stunned. No, they were almost impossible to believe.
What he said was—
"We, Class C, withdraw this complaint."
I looked in shock at Ayanokoji, who was sitting beside me. His expression hadn't changed at all, as if he'd expected this to happen.
What had this guy done?
Hearing Concluded
[Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's perspective]
"We, Class C, withdraw this complaint."
Even as he withdrew the complaint, Ryuen didn't look like a loser. Instead, he sounded even more excited.
"So you're withdrawing your complaint, then?" Horikita-senpai immediately understood the situation and spoke up.
Before you continue