An Unexpected Disaster

Shinjo hung up the phone just like that. Although it might not be related, he had a vague feeling that this matter and the fact that his personal points hadn't arrived yet must have some kind of causal connection.

"Sorry, Kei, Sudo called me over, so..."

"That's not right, is it... I could have sworn I heard something about a secret base..."

Although the two were currently a fake couple, Kei had long since begun to view Shinjo as her own prey. In truth, she had never wanted her boyfriend to associate with the class's The Idiot Trio.

What if they corrupted the upright Shinjo?!

But ever since Shinjo joined Horikita's study group last time, things had spiraled out of control.

A boys' secret base... it didn't sound like a good place at all...

"The secret base is actually Ayanokoji's dorm room. Sudo seems to have run into some trouble, which is why he asked me to go over."

Seeing the increasingly strange expression on Kei's face, Shinjo hurriedly explained.

"That's even worse, isn't it?!"

"Seriously, what exactly are you thinking..."

"Katsuya! I'm only looking out for you because I care. If you really want to go, fine, but take me with you?"

That way, no matter what happened, with her as his girlfriend present, everything should be foolproof!

"Well... alright then."

Because Sudo had been in such a rush, Shinjo didn't think to call and confirm whether it was appropriate to bring his girlfriend along.

"Heehee! Let's go then!"

Sudo's secret base (Ayanokoji's dorm room).

"So, why is the secret base my dorm room?"

"Well, after the celebration party last time, everyone felt your place was clean and hygienic, so we all got spare keys and designated this as our secret base."

Ike said this while taking out his key and twirling it in front of Ayanokoji.

"I feel like I'm in a very dangerous environment!"

"That's not important. Anyway, Sudo, what exactly do you want to tell us? You even called Horikita and Kikyo over."

"Can I... can I wait until Shinjo gets here to say it? Because this matter is of great importance... so..."

Sudo didn't look like he was joking, which made Horikita, standing to the side, feel a bit suspicious.

Fortunately, Shinjo didn't keep everyone waiting for long.

When they discovered that Kei was following behind him, everyone's reactions were quite varied.

"Kei... Kei-izawa?"

"Karuizawa-san, you're here too!"

When Kei saw that Horikita and Kikyo were also present, she finally believed that she might have jumped to the wrong conclusion.

If they were really going to do that kind of thing, they would probably avoid having girls around, right?

Especially these two.

For a moment, the atmosphere became awkward.

"Um, Sudo, sorry about that. I didn't tell you, but I brought my girlfriend along without asking..."

"Huh? Oh! It's fine! After all, she's your girlfriend, Shinjo! From now on, Karuizawa-san is my good friend too!"

Sudo was very straightforward. After all, he only felt admiration and gratitude toward Shinjo right now. Never mind bringing a girlfriend; even if he had brought Sae Chabashira... well, maybe not her.

"It's no problem! We couldn't be happier that Karuizawa-san could come!"

Kikyo Kushida was truly the social butterfly of the class. She could maintain good friendships with everyone, so naturally, she wouldn't give Kei a cold shoulder.

The two sycophants naturally followed suit and expressed their welcome, while Horikita remained her usual self, more concerned with what Sudo wanted to say.

Hey, at least ask for my opinion...

But Ayanokoji knew very well that his opinion had never been important.

"Now that everyone is here, Sudo, what exactly do you want to say?"

Sudo looked left and right, and finally, with a face full of bitterness and sorrow, he spoke:

"Um... actually, I was called in by Teacher Chabashira today, and well, if things go poorly... I might be suspended, and it could be for a long time, too..."

"Suspended?!!"

Even Shinjo couldn't help but widen his eyes. It really was a troubled autumn.

"You didn't... insult the teacher, did you?"

The person who spoke was Kei, as she didn't have a very good impression of Sudo to begin with. Coupled with his explosive temper, it would be perfectly normal for him to do something like that.

"Of course not! Even if I'm an idiot, I know better than to offend a teacher."

"Then what happened to you?"

"Actually, I... I beat up some guys from Class C last week, so the teacher said I might be suspended... I'm currently waiting for the final decision, so the reason everyone hasn't received their points yet might be because of me."

Sudo hit someone? And it was people from Class C?

Isn't that just normal for him!

But I still had to ask, "You, why did you hit them? Even though I admit that the people in Class C are indeed asking for a beating."

"Let me say this first! They were the ones who came looking for me, I only fought back! In the end, those guys actually reported me for starting the fight! This is clearly them framing me!!!"

Shinjo immediately thought of Ryuen. It was certain that guy would target Class D, whether it was because of their past grudges or for the sake of class competition.

Therefore, he chose Sudo as his first target because he was the easiest to find a flaw in.

He's actually quite clever this time...

"Sudo, calm down. Tell us exactly what happened, don't miss a single detail, okay?"

Shinjo tried his best to soothe his emotions, and Sudo, as if he had grabbed onto a life-saving straw, began to adjust his breathing and slowly started to speak:

"The advisor for our basketball team said that I would be included as a regular player for the summer tournament. But that day, on my way home, Komiya and Kondo from Class C, who are also in the basketball club, called me to the Administration Building, saying they had something to tell me. Since I had already had run-ins with them before, I thought I'd settle things once and for all, so I followed them."

"But I didn't intend to use violence! When I got there, a guy named Ishizaki was already waiting. They said they couldn't accept someone from Class D becoming a regular player and threatened me to quit the basketball club if I didn't want to get beaten up. Naturally, I refused! But they didn't listen to reason and just started attacking me, so I took them down before they could take me out."

Shinjo organized the events in his mind:

"So, you should have told the school this sequence of events just now, right? And their attitude was to make you wait for the disciplinary action?"

"That's not exactly it. The school told me to find evidence by next Tuesday proving that they were the ones who started it, otherwise I'll be suspended. And if that happens, our class points will be deducted, and I'll even lose my status as a regular on the basketball team!"

Clearly, compared to the first two punishments, the last one was the one Sudo couldn't accept the most.

"How can this be?! We are clearly the victims, why do we have to be the ones to collect evidence?!"

"Are you kidding me..."