Classroom of the Elite, A Hypocritical Gray Life

"With that, the wounds on your bodies are just about 'up to standard.' Do you remember the other things I ordered you to do?"

"Y-yes, we remember..."

"Make sure you grasp the key points. As for the rest, I'm sure Sakagami will help explain things for you to protect his students' interests. So, don't leave me any loose ends, do you hear me?"

"Of course, if you choose to betray me—"

At this point, Ryuen stopped the audio; it was clear there was a large portion of content left unplayed. Furthermore, the extra files on his phone screen showed that the other party held far more leverage over him than what could have been provided by this dispute alone.

But knowing this much was enough. I wondered what kind of actions that person had actually taken.

"Isn't this interesting? I don't know when they managed to plant someone in Class C to record everything I've done."

"Although my operation failed this time, you suffered a much heavier loss by letting me get this crucial piece of information. You could have dealt me a heavy blow with a single strike, yet you only sent me the recording to extort a large amount of points."

"A large amount of points..."

"Yes. Incidentally, I have already transferred a portion of the points, but even if it's just a portion, you'll surely reveal some clues if you check his account."

"What is this..."

"Regardless of whether that person is among you, you'd better remember this. I will ferret out the rat in the class soon and demand your identity. As for the threat you made against me, I will make sure you remember exactly what it feels like to be toyed with."

As he spoke, Ryuen shifted his gaze toward Ichinose of Class B.

"As for you lot in Class B... just keep playing the part of the innocent little rabbit, Ichinose. I really didn't expect Class B to be such a boring class, with absolutely no merits to speak of."

"I don't think you have the ability to surpass Class B."

"Just because I didn't go all out and didn't cause your class any losses, you naively think you can beat me? If that's the case, then just wait and see, Ichinose. Watch as your class completely collapses in the end."

With that, Ryuen turned and left without looking back, and we simply watched his retreating figure.

Chapter 40: It Was Only to This Extent

There was once a story about an accident.

The Trans-Atlantic Liner was the most advanced ocean liner of the Brazil Haishun Ocean Shipping Company at the time. Yet, this very ship, which they took such pride in, met with an accident in calm seas. The company specifically erected a five-meter-high and two-meter-wide stone in front of the main gate, carving into it a lesson written in blood.

The reason for the sinking was merely a series of trivial matters.

Privately purchasing a desk lamp, failing to replace fire sensors in time, tying up life rafts for the sake of convenience in handling safety equipment, and performing routine inspections carelessly... it was these safety measures, taken for granted in daily life, that led to a situation where everything was beyond saving once the fire was discovered.

The reason I remember this case so clearly is because of the one-to-one reenactment that occurred that day. The entire ocean liner was swallowed by fire and submerged by seawater before it could even send out a distress signal.

"Everything is already too late."

Human beings often only denounce their mistakes after the fact, yet this cannot rewrite the reality that has already occurred. To avoid the unexpected, one must include all possibilities within the scope of consideration.

Think thrice before acting, and act with comprehensive planning. This is the truth behind that saying.

Therefore, I do not resent the condition in Horikita's plan that required more than one surveillance camera; although the plan ultimately failed, these were necessary measures taken in the pursuit of victory.

Yes, so of course I don't mind such a small matter.

Well, for now, all I can do is silently pray that they deliberate toward victory.

I dismantled the last camera, carefully placed it in my messenger bag along with the others, and then returned the ladder to the janitor.

I must be more careful when accepting requests in the future; I don't want to do this kind of lethal manual labor ever again.

Next, as long as the goods are safely delivered to Ayanokoji or Horikita, there won't be any problems.

I lazily stretched my body, picked up the heavy messenger bag, and headed toward the conference room.

Collection, analysis, design, evaluation.

No plan can escape these four steps. Considering things from multiple angles for the sake of smoothness, disregarding everything for the sake of utility, stopping at nothing for the sake of survival, and taking absolute measures for the sake of victory.

It would have been most appropriate to swap out my own concepts, yet I followed his words and lived the life of a student.

Perhaps I, too, am starting to feel tired and no longer want to overthink things.

I have grown weary of a life of collection, analysis, design, and evaluation.

The air here has been scrubbed clean, devoid of even a speck of dust. The moderate temperature is enough to revive the body from the inside out. The scent of blood can only be smelled when those around me scrape their skin, and the pervasive, explosive smell of gunpowder has vanished without a trace.

If this is my greed in hell, then let me be intoxicated for a little while.

At least let me detach from reality for now and immerse myself in an unrealistic dream.

That's right, I, who am free, have decided to continue this peaceful and non-monotonous life.

Just as my desires were blooming in my thoughts, the sound of footsteps in reality intruded upon my mind, impossible to ignore. Looking in the direction of the sound, I saw Secretary Tachibana, whom I had met once before, walking alongside President Horikita toward me.

Since the host has come out, it means the deliberation is over. I don't know what the result is, but I hope they won... though, do I need to greet the student council president if I run into him? I know that greeting teachers when meeting them on the road is basic etiquette, but when it comes to the student council president, I'm entering a blind spot in my knowledge...

After thinking for a moment, my inner energy-saver told me not to do anything unnecessary, so I simply pretended not to see them and walked past their entire world.

However, I failed.

"Wait."

"..."

I knew it; fantasies are just unrealistic developments.

We had already brushed past each other; calling out now is just too bothersome.

"Horikita President, is there anything I can help you with?"

"First-year student Luomu, I believe I have your name correct, don't I?"

"...You know me?" I tried to search through my saved memories of meetings for any sign of this person, but I couldn't reach a conclusion.

"No, I just know of you. We don't know each other at all."

What is this? Did I do something famous? Don't tell me the rumors about Ichinose and me in class have already reached the upperclassmen!

What should I do? If I catch the eye of an upperclassman, I'll definitely be subjected to school bullying.

"Is there something special about this student, President?" Tachibana-senpai looked on with a puzzled expression, but Horikita President had no intention of acknowledging her.

Is this going to turn into a scene where the secret admirer faces off against the rumored boyfriend, with Secretary Tachibana playing the role of the devoted one to lecture us?

"Does the student council president need to memorize the faces and names of every student in the school?"

"Our student council doesn't have the energy to remember the names of nobodies. You are just one of the few exceptions among the first-years that I've taken note of."

"May I ask if I've committed some sort of error?"

"There's no error, but... you seem to have packaged yourself as unexpectedly weak. Or is that just how you really are?"

"I'm sorry, I don't understand what you're saying. Could you explain?"

"Can you not understand the literal meaning of my words?"

"Weak... I wouldn't consider myself a strong person, and there are plenty of people who surpass me... But since I have never met you before, Senior, why are you able to make such an evaluation of me?"

"We were conducting the student council entrance exams not long ago. You should be able to understand now, right?"

"Are you saying you asked Class Representative Ichinose about me? But why would you need to do that? There shouldn't be any reason for me to have caught your attention."

"Being able to remain calm in the face of the student council president—is that enough?"

"Calm, you say... I can understand that, but it's hard to accept. Besides, I haven't met with you alone before, so isn't 'remaining calm' just a conclusion drawn from the present moment?" I asked tentatively, hoping to get more information out of him.

"...Passable, I suppose."

Huh? Was he just running some kind of hidden test on me? In what way did I meet his requirements?

"You should remember the entrance exam, right?" After giving me some time to think, Horikita President continued to explain, "The assessment for freshmen entering the student council is very strict, with certain requirements in various areas, and academic ability is a basic criterion. It was at that time that I found your grades to be quite interesting."

"But I didn't participate in the student council interview, did I?"

"That doesn't stop me from being able to view the entrance exam score sheets for the freshmen. Besides, don't you think a perfect score of sixty in every subject is quite conspicuous?"

"Eh? Sixty in every subject? You must be a freak."

Calling me a freak right to my face... that's really hurtful.

"It was just a coincidence."

"Don't doubt it; I confirmed the situation with your homeroom teacher."

"An energy-conservationist—that's what they said, right?"

An energy-conservationist...

So, the so-called understanding he had of me was only to this extent.

Chapter 41: Since That Day—

Before absolute reason, only the answer remains. Because they have already ignored their own existence. --Jun

"Eh, does the student council have that much power?"

"The power of our student council is granted by the school and used within the prescribed scope. Do you have any opinions on this?"

"I have no dissatisfaction with that; I was just making a remark. If I gave you the wrong impression, I apologize."

As I said this, I adjusted the position of my messenger bag. The long-term pressure from the strap had made my arm feel slightly uncomfortable. But I didn't expect this unintentional movement to catch Horikita President's attention.

"...You were involved in that matter as well."

"Which matter are you referring to?"

"Is playing dumb fun? Don't tell me you're going to claim you don't know about the fight between Class D and Class C."

"You didn't specify, did you? As for being involved... I wouldn't call it involvement. I was only responsible for the aftermath. Handling the dirty work that needed to be cleaned up regardless of who won or lost... just the thought of helping out makes me lose interest, and I'm still being ordered around at will."

"Aftermath... I see. So the final reversal was your doing. Although it sounds simple, what exactly did you do?"

"The final choice of Class C was made by this boy in front of us?!"

"Final reversal? Do you mean that Class D won this deliberation?" I hurriedly grabbed onto the main point to ask Horikita President, but he politely declined to answer.

"Won't you find out the truth sooner or later? Your acquaintances are still upstairs; you can just go ask them now to see what the result was... Instead, I have a question here that might be impossible to know later if I don't ask now. Are you interested in hearing it?"

"...May I ask if it's something I'm allowed to know?"

"As for the degree, it doesn't matter if you treat it as after-dinner gossip. How about it?"

"If you have no objections."

"Actually, not long ago, I received a threat via email. The content was that if I didn't pay the points as expected, they would leak negative videos and recordings of me onto the internet. Do you have any information about the culprit of this incident?" Horikita President spoke about the threat he received a few months ago as if it were nothing, right in front of us.

I understand the darkness of this society and the distortion of human nature, so I wasn't surprised by such despicable behavior. The greater the power, the greater the degree of threats received over every little thing. However, Secretary Tachibana was greatly shocked by this.

"When did this happen? How could anyone dare to threaten the Student Council President!"

"Tachibana, calm down."

"I-I apologize, I was rude. But this matter—"

"There is no need to pay any more attention to it. I have already resolved the issue, though I have absolutely no idea who is behind it." As he said this, Horikita President narrowed his eyes, studying me with the gaze of a viper fixated on its prey.

I forced myself to suppress the urge rising within me and swallowed hard.

"I haven't heard a word about this from any of my friends... If this matter has already spread throughout the grade, then perhaps I can only explain it away by saying my interpersonal relationships are poor."

After I finished speaking, Horikita President and I locked eyes, neither of us blinking since the start. I had played this game before; whoever blinked first after locking eyes would lose. For a veteran like me, victory was an absolute, everyday occurrence.

Just as we were locked in this intense, masculine standoff, Secretary Tachibana seemed bewildered by the smokeless war unfolding before her.

"P-President?"

"What is it?"

"That... no, it's nothing."

Damn it, I was interrupted by an outsider. Seeing the tension ease, I stopped obsessing over it and casually looked away.

"Since you are unaware, we shall drop the matter... Additionally, there is something I would like to ask your opinion on."

"Although I don't believe I can offer any effective advice, I will do my best to answer."

Hearing this, Horikita President nodded. "You should be aware that students from your class are interviewing for the Student Council. Regarding this, I would like to offer the position to you. I wonder if you have any interest?"

"An invitation to the Student Council? Does Ichinose not meet your requirements?"

"She simply isn't as suitable as you. After all, the position of secretary isn't something just anyone can sit in."

"W-wait! President, did you just mention the position of secretary? Isn't that just—"