Chapter 21

"Someone capable of leading us, and who doesn't lose out to Ichinose or Katsuragi."

"Does our class really have someone like that? If we did, wouldn't they have stepped up already?" asked the girl beside Manabe, who wore her hair in two short pigtails. Her name was Yamashita.

"Actually, we do. Let's be patient and wait a little longer..."

"Honestly... Kitazawa, you're so indecisive."

"Sorry. I'm only thinking of what's best for everyone... To be honest, I'm not a match for Class A's leader."

"Class A? Katsuragi? Is he really that impressive?" The girls murmured among themselves.

"No, it's Sakayanagi. You've probably heard that two factions in Class A are fighting for power, right? I knew Sakayanagi before, so I'm telling you this for everyone's sake."

"That does seem to be true... Even so, if we can't find anyone else, Kitazawa, we'll still have to ask you to shoulder this responsibility," Nishino said.

"All right, I'll do it. If no one else can take charge before the midterm exams, then I'll step up."

After thinking it over, I set a final deadline for Ryuen. If he couldn't get the job done, I'd have no choice but to take the worst-case option and personally bring Class C together. Once I did, I'd be trapped in the mire of class politics, with no way out. That wasn't how a smart person should handle things! I could easily end up stuck between sacrificing myself for the class and betraying it to help Koenji... Hopefully, Ryuen wouldn't let me down... Otherwise, I'd have Albert beat him up every day until he lost all hope in life. After all, I wasn't a demon.

Author's note: Two chapters in one day, on the sly.

Volume One: First Signs of Promise

11: The one riding behind doesn't need to steer

The one riding behind doesn't need to steer. —Thomas Fuller

Just as I'd expected, Ryuen came back after being gone for three days. He returned after school that afternoon and, without a word, shoved Yamada and his chair to the floor. It was definitely his style.

"Don't let them fight in the classroom!" I signaled Kaneda to keep the people in neighboring Class D, who'd heard the commotion, from getting involved.

With the girls screaming and Yamada roaring, the other boys and I struggled with all our might to separate them.

"I'll kill you, crazy boy!"

Yamada straightened his clothes and strode off without looking back. He was heading to the usual place to settle things. He knew Ryuen would come.

Sure enough, Ryuen followed right behind him without saying a word. There was no need for a referee or a gong. As soon as they reached the spot, the two of them started fighting.

With Ishizaki no longer wearing him down, Ryuen was fiercer than ever that day. He was almost evenly matched with Yamada. Or perhaps Yamada had lost his temper after one provocation too many. Ryuen kept catching him off guard and sneaking in a few cheap shots.

Naturally, that only made Yamada angrier. He grabbed Ryuen by the collar and tore the school-issued shirt with his tremendous strength. Ryuen took the chance to pull off his shirt, toss it over Yamada's head, and use his old "throw yourself into the opponent" move.

Yamada's body was like steel. Ryuen crashed into him with a loud thud. Both of them fell, then got back up at the same time—or rather, they kept fighting without even getting up.

What a thrilling, evenly matched brawl, even if neither of them had a technique or a plan. As long as it was intense enough, wild haymakers landing one after another could be just as exciting.

Kaneda, who'd gone to deal with the aftermath, came back and interrupted my absorbed spectating.

"Luckily, the Class D guys took off right after school... Only Kushida and a few girls heard the noise. I've taken care of it," Kaneda said between breaths.

"You boys are disgusting. You keep doing the same stupid thing over and over, and you're not even embarrassed," Ibuki, our observer, remarked as she watched the two fighting on the grass.

"Do you think Ryuen will win?" After watching a few rounds, Kaneda asked.

"What? You're hoping he'll win!?" Ibuki asked, thinking she'd misheard him.

"Isn't that obvious? What about you, Kitazawa?" Kaneda asked, looking as though he'd seen right through everything.

And he had. At this point, my continued stalling and waiting made my intentions pretty clear. I shook my head without saying anything.

Ryuen's rise to power wasn't really my fault, but I wouldn't blame Ibuki if she resented me for it. After all, I'd played a part in pushing things along and speeding up Kaneda and Ishizaki's departures. More importantly, Ryuen taking charge benefited me.

Ibuki was perceptive enough to realize right away that I was leaning toward Ryuen. She grabbed me by the collar. "Ryuen's got something wrong with his brain. Is there something wrong with yours, too?"

"Heh, Ibuki. Aren't you always against violence?" I pointed at her hand, deflecting the question.

"Shut up! I'll never accept that guy Ryuen as our leader!"

"Then why not fight him yourself? I'd be heartbroken if you got hurt."

"You... You bastard!"

Unable to take it anymore, Ibuki slapped me across the face and stormed off in anger.

I glared at Kaneda, who'd been watching the show. He immediately looked away, pretending to admire the scenery.

I checked my face with my phone camera. It seemed Ibuki had held back and hadn't hit me very hard... But she'd still left a faint mark.

That day, Ryuen and Yamada fought until sunset without a clear winner. But the visible injuries on Yamada's large frame showed that Ryuen had taken another step toward victory. With his shirt ruined, Ryuen simply draped his jacket over his shoulders and agreed to fight Yamada again the next day.

I thought the winner had already been decided, and I didn't plan to keep coming back to watch them trample the grass.

"From now on, I'll leave this place in your hands, Kaneda. I'm going to calm everyone in the class down. Our top priority is getting through the period without a leader. Let me know as soon as they decide the winner."

"Sure. What about the midterm exams? Everyone's not studying very efficiently right now, are they?"

"It's fine. I've already gotten the exam papers from some third-year students. No one will be expelled."

Of course, if someone couldn't even pass after being given the answers, perhaps it was better not to waste the country's educational resources on them.

"Huh!? There... there are exam papers?"

"Old exam papers. The questions are the same every year—at least, that's true for these midterms. Those strange little quizzes before were a hint. They showed us both what counted as failing and how to solve the questions."

"I see. No wonder Sakagami-sensei said that... We just need to go over the old exam questions at the study group, right? We could even photocopy them and let everyone memorize the answers!"

"I'll go over them, but don't rush into making copies. First, I want everyone to actually improve their academic ability at the study group. Second, I want to keep them from spreading to the other classes, especially Class D, which also has plenty of students who struggle. Third, it's just in case."

"In case of what?"

"Right. Everything has two sides. Since we don't understand the school's rules..."