Classroom of the Elite, A Hypocritical Gray Life

There was no trace of lying in it; it was pure, unadulterated fear of violence.

"Komiya--?" Ryuen called out the name of the last student who hadn't responded to him in a slow, drawn-out voice, his eyes narrowing as he glared viciously at him.

"I... I didn't... I didn't do it."

"..."

After several twists and turns, Komiya finally managed to summon the courage to speak.

"...I hope you won't act against your words in the future. Also, don't ever let me catch any of you lying. You know the consequences, right?" With that, Ryuen toyed with his fist, feigning indifference.

"..."

"Get out of my sight." After delivering his final threat, Ryuen issued the order to the three people before him. They didn't dare to delay for even a second as they scrambled out of the room, forgetting to even close the door gently.

After the three of them left, Ryuen remained crouched in his spot, lost in thought for a while, before slowly standing up to take a sip of ice water.

"Did you notice anything, Shiina?"

"Ryuen-kun must have realized it too, that this incident wasn't the work of those three... Are there any other suspects?"

"I can confirm that only the four of us were present during the conversation I had with them regarding this dispute."

"And there were no eavesdroppers outside the room?"

"None. For that very reason, I specifically broke that camera to check the surveillance footage from that time; no one else was present. And those three troublemakers weren't carrying anyone else's equipment. Since it's certain that those three didn't do it, how exactly did the other party get that recording?"

"The only possibilities are that Ryuen-kun did it himself, or that there was a listening device present."

"Do you take me for a fool, to do something that harms others without benefiting myself?" Ryuen snorted coldly.

"So it can only be that there was a listening device present at the time. We just checked the room and confirmed that no such thing was installed, so it must have been brought in by someone. Those three weren't carrying anything they received from others... Actually, how a bug was brought in is one thing, but its very existence is the real problem."

"Why would that person have a listening device? I've inquired, and the school doesn't sell them. If it were brought in from outside, it would have been caught during the entrance inspection; as for making one by hand, that's as difficult as ascending to heaven."

And just how terrifying must that person be to carry a listening device?

A murderer? A high-ranking official? An interrogator?

At the very least, an ordinary person would absolutely be incapable of such an act.

"Rather than a listening device, I'd prefer to believe that the person X planted in our class is hiding very well."

"Does Ryuen-kun distrust the students in the class that much?"

"Of course. After all, where there is oppression, there is resistance. Aren't you one of them yourself?"

"I just don't like conflict, but at the same time, I don't hate it either."

"That is the reason why I haven't lectured you until now, unlike Ibuki, who is in need of discipline."

"So, how does Ryuen-kun intend to deal with this matter later?"

"...I will keep the possibility of a listening device in mind."

In other words, will he continue to use violence to turn the class into a place without traitors?

But that... that is impossible, isn't it?

The rule of a tyrant is always destined to be overthrown, and the existence of traitors will inevitably arise.

(Ichinose's Perspective)

The chirping of birds, rising and falling, pierced through the heavy obstacles and awakened me from my slumber.

I groggily glanced at the clock hanging on the wall; the time indicated by the hands was as early as ever. The physical habits formed over three years of middle school wouldn't be forgotten so quickly.

"..."

But let's get up a little later today; just let me doze for a while longer.

"..."

Just like Raku, I'll go to the classroom a bit later. But I can't wait until right before class starts. Speaking of which, Raku really is something; he enters the classroom almost exactly on time every day, not caring at all what others think of him. He never arrives early, causing me to worry in vain every time about whether he'll make it on time.

But that seems to be an unnecessary thought, because according to his own words, he wakes up quite early every day; it's just that since there's nothing to do at the classroom, he simply stays in the dormitory and doesn't come out.

So, what exactly does Raku do during that time?

I am very curious about this.

Raku is a very strange person. That's not meant as an insult; if I had to say, I think it's more of a compliment. Actually, "strange" isn't quite right; it's more like he's hiding something.

He always claims to be an energy-conservationist, adhering to his own creed.

--Do not do what is unnecessary, and resolve what must be done as quickly as possible.

A very strange life creed. I feel that a secret about Raku himself is hidden within it.

Why do I say that? It's because Raku's actual actions completely contradict what he says. Even though there are many things he could just refuse, he still agrees to them, allowing me to act as if I'm coquettishly making a request.

"Coquettishly making a request" is just a metaphor, um, just an analogy, haha--

The sunlight poured through the glass window, shining on my face, and I suddenly felt the warmth of summer.

Ugh, now I can't sleep at all.

No.

In any case, these behaviors of mine should have caused him dissatisfaction, but he didn't seem to have any intention of blaming me; even his complaints were just for show. Or rather, he simply didn't care whether I had offended him or not.

Take this recent fight, for example. If Raku had just refused more decisively, I wouldn't have forced him. But he showed no such inclination; even though the weather was sweltering, he still tagged along with me and offered reminders from the sidelines.

I feel like he is very gentle, yet unexpectedly cold.

Ah, no, that's not the aspect I'm thinking about. I am pondering the secret that Raku hides.

The reason I believe a secret is hidden within that sentence is primarily because Raku does not lie.

Lying is human nature.

Everyone lies, and I am no exception; I have committed grave sins because of it...

But Raku seems to loathe this to the extreme. When speaking with me, he always tries his best to avoid generating lies, while simultaneously using clever language to cover them up.

He probably doesn't know that I have already discovered this. If I were to pursue a question head-on, he would absolutely choose to remain silent. Because he doesn't want to deceive others, nor does he want others to know the true answer.

Yet, a person like this claims to be an energy-saver, while doing things that are completely inconsistent with that statement.

Therefore, I am certain that his secret, along with his unknown past, is hidden within those words.

He is clearly very intelligent yet refuses to utilize his abilities, and he possesses great physical prowess yet refuses to show it to the public.

I think Raku hasn't even realized that he has been deceiving one person all along: himself.

I wonder what his reaction would be if I were to confront him directly. I suspect the result wouldn't be pleasant, so I must continue Teacher Hoshinomiya's commission and properly "adjust" Raku from here on out.

Perhaps he could be a powerful asset in helping us reach Class A.

I inadvertently kneaded the silver necklace hanging around my neck, fantasized about a wonderful future, and then—slapped my cheeks hard.

It really is hot today.

[Please analyze the sentence structure of the following statement]

Whoever wishes to keep a secret must hide the fact that he possesses one. -- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

I sat in the classroom as usual, waiting for the crowd to disperse, doing my homework while listening to the idle chatter of Shiratori and the others. They always managed to find topics I couldn't interject in, so to avoid looking dull, I chose to use my schoolwork as a cover.

The workload wasn't heavy. Since it was just practice, the difficulty of the questions was kept very simple. If the exam difficulty were the same, I wouldn't have to rack my brain over those troublesome processes.

Because the exercises were too simple, most students in the class chose to purchase additional high-level books to improve their standing; even Okabe, who was second to last in the rankings, spent money on them. However, I naturally refused such a hassle.

Although I don't have much experience, I still possess the ability to ensure I don't run into problems during exams.

Perhaps this makes me seem a bit unconventional, but being a "normal person" isn't about doing everything exactly like everyone else; it's about establishing one's own character.

Extreme ordinariness, on the other hand, invites suspicion.

Just like a perfect crime: precisely because of the perfection of its existence, perfection cannot exist. Perfection itself is a flaw; the very fact of its perfection exposes the reality that it is a crime. Even if others have no way of knowing who committed the act.

Even for an assassin, not covering all one's tracks is the safest bet.

"Speaking of which, what exactly were you busy with those few days, Raku?" Shiratori, who had been chatting happily about anime, suddenly cast his gaze toward me and asked.

"Could you be more specific? 'Those few days' is a very vague reference."

"It puts me in a tough spot if you ask for specific dates; it's like asking who remembers what they had for dinner the night before last."

"Then why bring it up now?"

"Because it was genuinely abnormal. You left school exceptionally early those days, and when asked, you just gave some perfunctory excuse about going back to the dorms to sleep... Was it about two weeks ago, or even earlier?"

"If it was that long ago and even you have forgotten, do you think I could possibly remember?"

"That's not necessarily true; I don't have much confidence in my own memory."

"If you don't even have confidence in yourself, do you think anyone else will believe you?"

"I think you're the last person who has the right to say that, Okabe."

"What is that supposed to mean? I was just mimicking, mimicking! Do you even understand?"

"Tch—"

"Tch your head!"

"Sorry, I have no idea what you're talking about—wait, I think I remember. It was around the time the dispute between Class C and Class D happened."

"More than that, I want to know how you just managed to link that to the answer..."

"Never mind all that nonsense, answer my question first. And I remember you were dragged off by the goddess of Class D, Kushida, before too. What was that all about?"

It's truly impressive that you can still maintain such curiosity about that incident after so much time has passed.

After clarifying their questions, I focused my main attention back on the exercises.

"Actually, I was a witness to that dispute. Although I couldn't really help much, I suppose I was a participant of sorts."

"So you were called over to help?!"

"Yeah, that's pretty much it. However, if I told you I was going back to the dorms to sleep, then I probably really did go back to the dorms... wait, what's with those expressions?"

As I moved my pen, the pitch-black casing reflected the disbelief of everyone present.

"You guy... a lazy bum like you... actually had a day where you took the initiative to help out?!"

"Hey, that's going too far."

"Okabe, calm down. Don't let him fool you." Takashima patted Okabe on the shoulder with a feigned air of profundity, leaving the three of us momentarily bewildered by his display.

"What do you mean?"

"Think about it carefully. Teacher Hoshinomiya brought this matter up in class at the time, yet Raku, who was an eyewitness, had no intention of raising his hand at all. That's why I'm certain he was absolutely forced into participating in this."

"I see. But wouldn't seeking out the teacher privately after class to avoid trouble also be a way of resolving a great deal of trouble?"

"Ridiculous. Do you think Raku would ever do something meaningless? Helping out like that doesn't earn any points even if it goes well. Even if he could gain the friendship of Class D, we would still be rivals. If he messes it up, or worse, ends up being a hindrance, he might even end up on bad terms with Class D and be mocked by Class C."

"Do you guys think there's anything wrong with that?"

"Not at all. Truly worthy of being Tak-Holmes-ashima. I, Du-Okabe-hira, am willing to call you the strongest."

"I told you, it makes perfect sense, right?"

I have no idea what you guys are talking about, but it sounds impressive...

"Oh, it's already this late. We should probably be leaving school by now."

"Let's go, let's go. I'm hungry anyway... Raku, you don't have any other plans, do you?"

"None."

"Then let's head out—"

Shiratori sounded the horn of battle. I quickly stood up, packed the things on my desk into my messenger bag, and jogged to catch up with their pace.

"After we eat, the three of you should come with me to karaoke."

"What the hell? Is this some kind of new trend?" Takashima said with a look of disgust.

"I refuse. Are you sick in the head? Four grown men going to karaoke?"

"I've been feeling a bit pent up lately and want to belt out a few songs. I haven't sung since the last get-together."