The Angry Horikita

The second day of May, Saturday.

Even though there were only half a day of classes, he still felt exhausted. He wanted nothing more than to lie in his own bed, wrapped in a blanket with the air conditioner on, and sleep soundly.

After Kamigami Haruo bid farewell to Ichinose at Class D's door, he entered a classroom with a peculiar atmosphere.

Inside, the students were putting on all kinds of performance art.

Some were constantly trying to sell game consoles no one wanted.

Some were indignantly complaining about having been assigned to Class D.

Some were asking girls who had not attended yesterday's discussion meeting to lend them money.

Some were doing their best to comfort their classmates.

The moment he reached his seat and sat down, a head popped up beside him.

"Kamigami-kun~~~"

Yamauchi Haruki's face looked utterly drained. Had he starved himself to the point of collapse?

"Ah, Yamauchi. What is it?"

"This is a game console I bought not long ago. How about buying it for thirty thousand? I can't buy anything without points~ You wouldn't want to see your classmate go hungry, would you?"

Yamauchi Haruki placed the console on the desk and tried to sell it with a yearning expression.

In other words, hadn't he originally offered to sell it to Ayanokōji for twenty thousand?

Why had the price jumped to thirty thousand when it came to him?

When he had gone shopping on Sunday, he had seen that the specialty store price, even with a few accessories, was only around twenty-five thousand.

"I'm really sorry, but I'm so broke that I can only mooch meals off Horikita now. If you really can't afford food, you could try the free Mountain Vegetable Set Meal."

"Damn it..."

Yamauchi Haruki muttered something too quietly for others to hear, then spoke again.

"The Mountain Vegetable Set Meal tastes awful. How about I sell it to you for twenty-five thousand? Buy it so I can eat something good~"

Come on, man. You would rather rip off Ayanokōji for twenty thousand than sell it to me for the same price.

Then inspiration struck him.

Fine, fine. If this was how he wanted to play it, then he could only set a tiger against a wolf.

"Uh, I really don't have any points left. If you want to eat something nice, you could ask Horikita. She may look cold, but she's kind-hearted. I'm sure she'd be happy to help if you asked properly."

Kamigami Haruo could barely keep his grin down. He really wanted to see what Horikita Suzune would look like after getting pestered.

"I-is that so? Got it."

After saying that, Yamauchi Haruki shifted his gross gaze away from Haruo and looked toward the back row.

Without the slightest embarrassment, he headed straight toward the rear of the classroom.

All Kamigami Haruo could say to that was, rest in peace.

"Haruo, what did you say to Yamauchi-kun? Why did he go to Horikita?"

Kushida, who had been chatting with her close friend, saw the interaction between Yamauchi Haruki and Horikita Suzune and came over to talk to him.

"Haha, just wait and enjoy the show."

Kamigami Haruo had not considered the consequences of what he had done at all. He was simply looking forward to the entertainment about to unfold.

He watched Yamauchi Haruki walk up to Horikita Suzune's desk and try to speak to her first.

After getting no response despite trying several times, Yamauchi Haruki reached out, intending to shake her shoulder.

And then, well, the deceased passed peacefully.

She first grabbed Yamauchi Haruki's arm, then slammed it onto the desk with force.

The sound of his head and body hitting the desk was as loud as someone striking a wooden fish.

Seeing this, Kushida Kikyo, who had been watching the show, and Hirata Yosuke, who had been chatting with his friends, hurried over to stop the fight.

After some mediation, they finally returned to their respective seats and resumed chatting.

Some talked about the humiliated Yamauchi Haruki, while others talked about the terrifying Horikita Suzune.

In the end, only three people felt miserable.

Why three?

Yamauchi Haruki, who had taken the impact.

Horikita Suzune, who had been set up.

And Ayanokōji, whose desk was covered in Yamauchi Haruki's drool.

That was right. Yamauchi Haruki had been pinned down on Ayanokōji's desk.

Wonderful. It was practically one scheme harming three worthy men.

Wahahahaha!

Kamigami Haruo could not hold it in after watching the whole thing. His shoulders shook, and he laughed so hard that tears streamed out of his eyes.

"What a meanie~"

After barely getting his laughter under control, Kamigami Haruo wiped the tears at the corners of his eyes with a finger and looked at Kushida Kikyo, who was speaking to him from the front.

"Isn't it funny? Pfft, hahahaha."

He ultimately failed to hold it in before he even finished speaking.

His laughter drew the attention of several people in the class.

Kamigami Haruo immediately felt an intense killing intent aimed at him. He did not need to think to know who it was.

There were still a few hours until the lunch break anyway, so he would deal with it later. For now, he would enjoy the moment.

Besides, she seemed not to have made a bento today because she had run out of ingredients and had not had time to buy more.

"It's not funny at all. Classmates should get along properly, you know. But it feels like you're done for. You should apologize later."

Though Kushida Kikyo said that, she could not hide the upward curve of her lips.

Seeing that the person who had brightened her mood was about to be in trouble, she decided to give him a reminder.

After all, that murderous gaze had been fixed on the person behind her the entire time.

Kamigami Haruo naturally knew what he should do, but he was not going to do it.

It was just a beating. He was used to it already.

Though he said that, after school—

Kamigami Haruo suddenly found himself unable to control his legs. It definitely was not because he had chickened out.

After all, rumors like, "Are they dating?" had already started spreading around the class.

People had seen Horikita Suzune making bentos for him before.

However, the students who stayed in the classroom during lunch were generally quiet types, so they did not casually spread rumors.

But now, because of Master Yamauchi, the rumors began spreading through the entire class in increasingly outrageous forms from The Trio.

Since they had originally intended to prank Kamigami Haruo, they had no hesitation at all and said every ridiculous thing they could think of.

He clicked his tongue, remembering the last time rumors had spread. Back then, his entire body had received a thorough massage.

It was like getting the most expensive back-stepping massage at a parlor, with a three-hundred-pound woman standing on his back. It had felt as though she was about to stomp the food right out of his stomach.

Kamigami Haruo recalled that the last rumor had apparently been started by those three as well. It had been fine when he was not involved.

This time, though... forget it. He was not losing anything anyway. Dating a beautiful girl was still a win for him.

Only then did the lunch bell ring. Kamigami Haruo, who had long since cleared his desk, eagerly prepared to run off, and the leg he had already placed outside the desk had risen to stand.

"Excuse me, Kamigami-kun."

Fine. He would stay and await judgment.

Hirata Yosuke, you thick-browed fellow, why weren't you accompanying your fake girlfriend? What did you want from me?

"What is it, Hirata-kun?"

"It's like this, Kamigami-kun. It seems you haven't read the message I sent you last night. If you have time, I'd like you to take a look. After all, it concerns our class's future policy."

Hirata Yosuke wore an expression that practically said, please help me out, making Haruo feel a little embarrassed.

Seriously, the read receipt feature made things so awkward.

"I forgot to read it last night. I'll look at it right now, hahaha."

Kamigami Haruo scratched his head, using laughter to cover up his embarrassment. After all, he had promised yesterday that he would read the message.