"Ryuen-san, he..." A stocky, buzz-cut boy standing beside the red-haired student started to say something.
"Ishizaki, shut your mouth." The more you said, the easier it was to reveal your "hand." The red-haired student, Ryuen, cut him off and continued glaring fiercely at Hoshino.
"Fine! I came to snoop." Under Ryuen's stare, Hoshino felt a little uncomfortable. He spread his hands, looking nonchalant.
"I knew it. You..." The blue-haired girl began to stir, shifting into a fighting stance.
"Wait, are you seriously going to hit me?" Hoshino looked surprised. He eyed the girl beside Ryuen warily, putting on an act of nervous fear.
"What? Weren't you just acting all tough?"
Hoshino felt like he'd been made into a "clown." Quite a few people in the classroom looked like they were enjoying the show.
"Ahem. Let's get down to business, Ryuen. You're the leader of your class, right?" Hoshino cleared his throat and straightened his clothes.
"Huh? How did you know..." Ishizaki looked shocked.
"Hm? No!" Ryuen ignored Ishizaki and flatly denied it.
"..." Ryuen's blunt denial left Hoshino stunned.
From what Hoshino knew, "tyrants" like Ryuen usually didn't deny what they'd done. They were always arrogant, acting as if they were second only to heaven. Ryuen seemed a little different.
"Really? You're that weak? I thought you were the leader of your class! Who's so strong they could beat you? You're all cowering, and your leader can't even come out and say a word? You people actually respect a leader like that?"
"Get lost, kid. I'll have a nice, long talk with you!" Ryuen ignored Hoshino, only throwing out a vicious threat.
"Sure! See you tomorrow!"
Hoshino left Class C's classroom, his palms slick with cold sweat.
Facing off against a bunch of "delinquents" while an entire class watched had put too much pressure on him. He'd only just managed to hold Ryuen's gaze, and he'd almost "broken character"!
Hoshino had learned the basics and gained something from the visit. He'd gathered some information, and he'd found someone to pick a fight with!
The tricky part was figuring out how to start a conflict without going too far and making it impossible to smooth things over.
Should he just find someone and start insulting them? He'd feel like a lunatic. If he got caught, the punishment would probably be pretty severe.
He'd just have to take things one step at a time. For now, he'd head back!
"Hey, Hoshino, where were you this morning?" After lunch, Hoshino strolled back to the classroom. Ayanokoji, who had been sitting in the corner, came over to strike up a conversation.
There weren't many people in the classroom at this hour. Most hadn't returned yet, and Hoshino had made sure to come early while it was still quiet.
"Uh, just wandering around. I'll be living at this school for three years, after all, so I figured I should get familiar with the place. What's up?" Hoshino was a little surprised. Ayanokoji didn't usually start conversations.
They'd become a little more familiar over time, but they only ever talked when they happened to be alone together. Normally, two "socially anxious" people wouldn't chat in front of a crowd.
"Nothing. I just saw you rush out as soon as class ended and come back right before it started. I thought you might be feeling sick..." Ayanokoji's voice was completely flat.
"I'm fine!" Hoshino said, though he felt a flicker of wariness toward Ayanokoji.
From what Hoshino had observed, Ayanokoji wasn't the kind of person who cared about others. His instincts warned him, too. So Hoshino wasn't going to take Ayanokoji at his word. Even if there was some deeper reason, Hoshino doubted he could get it out of him easily.
Come to think of it, Hoshino wasn't sure what he'd been thinking earlier when he'd wanted to get close to someone like him.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was always expressionless. Hoshino had barely ever seen him show any other emotion—at least, not so far. He hardly spoke, and usually sat hunched in a corner by himself, doing the same things everyone else did. But to Hoshino, he seemed like a little kid who'd just started kindergarten, watching and learning how other people behaved.
He sometimes spoke with the girl beside him, though it seemed like she mostly teased him. On several occasions, Hoshino had seen Kushida talking something over with Ayanokoji after school.
They'd been at this school for almost a month, but Hoshino hadn't sensed even the slightest desire in Ayanokoji to fit in. From beginning to end, there was nothing in his eyes—not a thing, and not a person!
People like that were often the scariest! If Ayanokoji had been the "lone wolf" type, Hoshino wouldn't have felt so uneasy.
Hoshino shook off his thoughts and got back to seriously "slacking off."
That's right, "slacking off"!
Hoshino pulled a chocolate bar from his desk and munched on it without a care. The loud crunching echoed through the classroom, drawing strange looks from all around. Even Chabashira-sensei, up at the podium, shot him an impatient glance. Hoshino blushed under all the stares, but had no intention of putting the chocolate away.
"Kushida, stop staring! I can't take it anymore!" Everyone else had glanced at Hoshino and then gone back to what they were doing, but Kushida kept watching him without any sign of looking away. Feeling uncomfortable under her gaze, Hoshino could only complain silently to himself.
Come to think of it, this place was way too lax! Did they even have to do all those pointless things? Why not just bring in a bed and sleep? Chabashira-sensei only frowned impatiently. She showed no sign of stopping Hoshino, which gave him even more ideas.
But after thinking it over, Hoshino decided against it. The results would be announced next month, and someone would surely stop him. It was too much trouble for just a couple of days. Still, bringing in a pillow seemed like a good idea! Hoshino made up his mind.
After school, Hoshino spent some time killing time in the library.
Whenever he went to the library, Shiina was there. Hoshino genuinely admired the silver-haired girl.
"I'd usually go over and talk to her, but I'll skip it today!" Feeling restless, Hoshino hurried out of the library.
He left the library much earlier than usual.
The result of the bet was coming soon, and there were still some uncertainties, so Hoshino couldn't help feeling anxious. Even the books he could usually read without trouble had been impossible to focus on these past few days.
He checked around, but there were no new editions of the books he'd read before, so he didn't feel like staying any longer.
Before you continue