Horikita, Fly Without Worry; Ayanokoji, Push From Behind

In the Student Council Room, Ichinose waited quietly at the desk, her expression confident and composed.

Since it was the lunch break, she had to wait a while for any reports to be processed.

After all, the student council members needed their rest as well.

After a short while, a tall, upright figure finally strolled through the door.

"Ichinose, we meet again. Do you have any business today?"

Horikita Manabu adjusted his glasses, his expression indifferent, though his gaze unintentionally settled on a small object in the girl's hand.

"President Horikita, I have something to give you," Ichinose said with a smile. "It's a lead regarding the fight between Sudo and the students from Class C."

"Oh?" Horikita Manabu's expression tightened. "Is this a lead that provides a clear description of the incident?"

"Yes, please listen."

Following this, Ichinose took her phone from her pocket, opened her call logs, and placed it on the desk. She then pried open a butterfly-shaped object in her other hand and pressed a button inside, causing a recording to play.

As the contents of the recording reached his ears, Horikita Manabu listened to the entire thing, the corners of his mouth twitching involuntarily into a faint smile.

"Interesting," he said slowly. "Thank you for your hard work. I will present this recording as third-party evidence at next week's hearing."

"Then I'll leave it to you."

After saying this, Ichinose flashed a polite, sweet smile.

In a secluded corner of the school building.

I said it before, one clown is enough for her.

Ayanokoji watched the scene before him with a look of indifference.

Horikita had hit a wall again.

Due to the lack of absolute credibility in the recorded evidence, the three students from Class C had regained a bit of their confidence:

"Do whatever you want. Even if you bring that to next week's hearing, it doesn't prove that we were the ones who provoked Sudo... Who knows if your recording has been edited!"

"Exactly, it's definitely edited! We are the victims in this incident, so don't try to flip the narrative!"

The three of them shouted, and even though they were panicking inside, they had to keep their mouths shut and continue playing the role of the victim.

After all, if they exposed themselves too easily, it would mean betraying Ryuen, and he and that big, dark lump of a subordinate wouldn't let them off easily!

Uh... that didn't seem quite right.

On the other side, facing the shamelessness of Ishizaki and his group, Horikita found herself in a difficult spot.

She pursed her lips, her brows furrowed, and she subconsciously glanced at Ayanokoji, who was standing beside her with a vacant look on his face. Her expression seemed to be asking him, Ayanokoji, why are you just watching?

Ayanokoji wanted to say something, but he figured it wasn't the right time yet.

"Stop wasting your breath on them, let's go!"

Ishizaki said loudly, then signaled his two accomplices to head back, terrified that if they stayed any longer, everything would be exposed!

Horikita had no choice but to watch them leave, her reddish-purple eyes filled with a hint of unwillingness.

"Hey, Horikita, do you think this incident has any similarities to the time Ike almost got expelled?"

After witnessing the three from Class C leave, Ayanokoji finally spoke slowly, his peripheral vision catching Horikita's delicate profile.

"What do you mean?"

"Are you trying to say they're all idiots?"

"Yes."

Ayanokoji said flatly.

When Horikita heard this, she doubted her own ears; she hadn't expected Ayanokoji to agree so seriously.

That had just been an emotional outburst on her part.

Just as she was frowning in surprise, Ayanokoji continued: "They are all people who frequently violate school rules and don't pay attention to their words or actions. In this situation, they are naturally at a disadvantage in terms of public opinion..."

As he spoke, he shifted his gaze, finally landing on the backs of Ishizaki and his group in the distance. "So, Horikita, we need to bring both sides to an equal footing. Combined with the recording you have, we might be able to ensure Sudo isn't expelled and receives a lighter punishment."

Horikita froze for a second upon hearing this, then asked uncertainly: "Are you suggesting I go and investigate dirt on Ishizaki and the others?"

Ayanokoji nodded slightly.

To be more certain of winning the case next week, he decided to add an extra layer of insurance.

Horikita pondered for a moment, then agreed with Ayanokoji's idea.

Thus, the two reached a consensus once again and began to prepare the draft for next week's hearing...

Of course, only Horikita was nervous; Ayanokoji was still enjoying his leisure.

He didn't know why this girl was so invested in this incident, but seeing her earnest and conflicted expression, the thought couldn't help but arise in his mind again.

Could it be that she... really likes Sudo?

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, the following week arrived.

On the day of the hearing, Hirata yielded his seat to Ayanokoji, so the attendees for Class D were changed to Ayanokoji, Horikita Suzune, the involved party Sudo Ken, and their homeroom teacher Chabashira Sae.

As for Class C, it consisted of the original three students and their homeroom teacher Sakagami Kazuma.

The two classes sat on opposite sides, forming a confrontation.

Before long, Horikita Manabu walked in with his usual solemn expression, giving off an air of impartiality, followed by a mascot-like figure carrying his documents.

He arrived at his seat and sat down, reached out to take the files from Tachibana Akane, and then scanned the attendees on both sides with his gaze. He subconsciously lingered on Ayanokoji for a moment before pulling his eyes away, clearing his throat, and announcing the start of the hearing.

However, Class D immediately fell into a disadvantage at the start.

Facing the relentless accusations from the three students opposite them, only Sudo, the party involved, was actively responding and refuting, appearing somewhat overwhelmed.

After a few rounds, Ishizaki and his two companions brought out their trump card, intending to crush the opposition in one fell swoop!

"President, this guy Sudo is usually arrogant and domineering, showing no regard for school rules and acting extremely violently. Beating us up like this is completely consistent with his usual behavior. Keeping a person like this in school is simply a disaster!"

"That's right, who knows how many more people he'll hit in the future? My arm is still hurting right now."

"Exactly, President, you must uphold justice for us!"

Horikita Manabu glanced at them without a word, then cast his peripheral vision toward the girl sitting to the side who had remained silent since the beginning, his expression cold.

Ayanokoji caught his gaze and followed it to the girl beside him, his eyes slightly stunned.

Good grief, this was the first time he had seen her this nervous; her timid and shrinking appearance was as if she had wet her pants in class and was terrified of being found out.

Although Ayanokoji felt a bit excited seeing the girl in this state, he understood that now was not the time for schadenfreude.

After a moment of hesitation, he lowered his shoulder slightly and reached out a hand toward the girl's slender waist.

He had no ulterior motives; he just wanted to help her soothe her tense nerves.

Just as he touched that supple waist, Ayanokoji gave a light squeeze, and the girl let out a soft, coquettish cry:

"Ah~"

?

The sound was like a mosquito's hum, and Ayanokoji was not very satisfied.

In the ancient Song of the Pipa, it taught him that to play the pipa well, one must gently pluck, slowly twist, stroke, and flick. The girl's waist was as slender as a pipa string, so presumably, the same logic should apply, and so...

What was he waiting for?

Ayanokoji flicked his hand, performing a full massage.

The next second, Horikita Suzune let out a pleasant, wind-chime-like laugh, drawing everyone's attention.

"Hahahahahaha... uwa..."

Hmm, she clearly looked much more relaxed, and Ayanokoji curled his lips in satisfaction.