Tokito

Ayanokoji's analysis was well-founded, and no one had any objections.

Horikita pressed her fingertips against the edge of the registration form and frowned. "Even if he has photographic evidence, how is he supposed to turn Class C against Ryuen?"

"There is a way. The key lies in his actions," Ayanokoji replied quickly.

"The fact that Tokito deliberately brought a camera shows that he already intended to document the truth. That deliberate act exposes his underlying resistance to Ryuen's rule."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Sudo abruptly stood up, his chair scraping harshly against the floor. "Let's go ask him right now!"

"Don't rush, Sudo. It won't be too late to go once we've thoroughly analyzed the clues."

"Isn't there less than twenty-four hours left?"

"If you want to do a good job, you must first sharpen your tools."

"Ugh, I don't get it!" Sudo anxiously thumped his own head. "Just tell me when you've figured it out."

Horikita glanced at Sudo and calmly considered their next course of action, especially Tokito's whereabouts.

Of course, this was not something Lady Horikita, who knew almost nothing about the other classes, could analyze.

So Kushida Kikyo, with her wide social circle, spoke up at just the right moment under everyone's gaze.

"Tokito? I don't know him very well either. I've only heard a few things from Class C students. It seems he really dislikes Ryuen's behavior, so he refuses to take part in any class activities."

Kushida placed a finger against her lips, her lively eyes shifting thoughtfully.

"He's probably the type who stays in the classroom all the time."

"Mm. We'll find him tomorrow at noon while he's eating."

"Then it's settled."

Before Horikita could finish speaking, the impatient Yamauchi came out to stir things up. Ike, who had been staring at Kushida absentmindedly, and the restless Sudo left with him.

And so, at noon the next day,

only Horikita and Ayanokoji went to find Tokito Yuya.

On the way to the student cafeteria, they spotted Tokito alone, sitting forlornly beside a flower bed.

His mouth mechanically repeated, "Class C, Class C..."

The man who might have been the true witness to the Sudo fighting incident was now extremely wary, and his pale complexion was unnaturally severe.

The instant Ayanokoji and Horikita approached, his bloodshot eyes locked tightly onto them.

"Tokito, we're from Class D..."

Before Horikita could finish, he reacted like a startled bird. Perhaps the words "Class D" had provoked his taut nerves; Tokito shot to his feet, forcing out a raspy voice from his throat.

"Sorry, I'm not feeling well. Please leave."

Tokito's obvious abnormality only made Horikita more certain that she had found the truth.

"We came because of Sudo's matter."

"Get lost. I told you to stop bothering me."

Tokito suddenly became frantic, his expression twisted with hostility, clearly unwilling to speak with them.

Horikita spoke calmly.

"Don't panic. We understand your situation."

"What the hell do you know?!"

"We know you have leverage against Sudo."

Tokito's pupils contracted, but he immediately shoved Horikita, who stood in front of him.

"What Sudo? I don't know him. I'm leaving."

Tokito then lowered his head and left without another word.

Only Horikita, silent, and Ayanokoji, who had watched everything unfold, remained.

"He refuses to cooperate. We should prepare ourselves for tomorrow's disciplinary hearing."

"Mm."

Horikita broke the silence expressionlessly.

No one had expected Tokito to refuse to reveal any information at all.

Even if they knew there was something wrong with Tokito's behavior, there was nothing they could do. Without evidence, the Student Council would not believe their speculation.

It seemed the only option left was for Horikita to work a miracle at the hearing.

The afternoon weather was terrifyingly gloomy, as dismal as their moods.

"Looks like it's going to rain today."

"Perfect. I have two umbrellas here."

In Class A, Hashimoto Masayoshi and Sakamoto looked out over the field. Dark clouds blocked the sunlight, but they could still see the girls from the Track and Field Club running with all their might until they were drenched in sweat, while the boys trained with flushed faces and secretly watched the girls.

"Hey, Hashimoto, did you forget to buy my coffee again?"

"Ow!"

Hashimoto, who had been leaning out the window with his upper body bent forward, suddenly had his waist viciously pinched. Her nails nearly sank into his skin through his shirt.

It was Kamuro Masumi, who looked absolutely furious.

"You forgot our agreement for the third time already? Is your brain completely useless?"

To gather intelligence, Hashimoto needed to visit other classes and interact with their students. As a result, he often had no time to buy ingredients in the evening, so he asked Kamuro Masumi, who also freeloaded meals from chef Sakamoto Junichi, to bring him coffee.

Unfortunately, whenever Hashimoto intended to buy coffee, he ultimately forgot this "trivial" matter because he was busy gathering information.

Come to think of it, the root of the problem was their own Sakamoto, since all those intelligence-gathering assignments had been ordered by him.

To reliably obtain the latest news from every class, Hashimoto had to run back and forth between several classes every day. The period after school in the afternoon was especially ideal for gathering intelligence.

But that was also when ingredients had to be bought, so Hashimoto had no choice but to give up going to the supermarket, setting off a chain reaction.

Their "mastermind," Sakamoto, was also rendered speechless as he quietly watched the farce unfold.

"You can't blame me for this. There just wasn't enough time."

"Not enough time, yet you have time to ogle the Track and Field Club girls and comment on them?"

"Th-that was all a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding."

Hashimoto waved his hand with an awkward grin, then suddenly had an idea.

"You can ask Sakamoto."

Hashimoto was certain Kamuro would be too embarrassed to ask Sakamoto, since she was just someone freeloading meals.

"Sakamoto?"

Kamuro Masumi's eyes quietly shifted toward Sakamoto's seat.

She found him merely sitting there in silence. Lead-gray daylight filtered through the bulletproof glass windows, casting a cool halo over Sakamoto's silver-rimmed glasses. His slender fingers unconsciously stroked the embossed design on his fountain pen, the words "SPECIAL OBSERVER" engraved on its barrel leaving faint marks against his fingertips.

As her gaze moved upward, she saw the smile in Sakamoto's eyes. Yet that smile made Kamuro feel terribly embarrassed, as though her behavior just now had been laughable.

She immediately stomped on Hashimoto's foot again, ignored his wail, and returned to her seat. She then pulled out her phone and began messaging Sakamoto.

A notification sound came from his pocket.

Sakamoto, who had taken in the entire farce, felt the vibration and pulled out his phone.

A message appeared at the top of the lock screen.

"Someone came looking for me."

—From Tokito.