Chapter 41

this effort. We feel very unhappy about it, which is why we often clash over this." "Not a word of what Komiya says is true. Those guys are just jealous of my talent. While I was silently training, they were constantly getting in my way. That's how it is." Sudo suppressed his anger and replied. "The testimonies from both sides do not match, so we will have to make a judgment based on the existing evidence." Secretary Tachibana summarized. "We were beaten to a pulp by Sudo. And it was a one-sided beating at that." Komiya pointed to the injuries on his body. "That's a lie too! You guys were the ones who started it. I was acting in self-defense!" Everything was proceeding perfectly according to Ryuen's plan. Perhaps Shiina and I shouldn't have come to join the fun. I started thinking about how to trick Shiina into having dinner with me later; with the super bodyguard Ibuki absent today, this is a golden opportunity. "If Class D has no new testimony, we will continue with the proceedings as they are. Is that acceptable?" Secretary Tachibana also seemed to feel this was a waste of time and prepared to enter the ruling phase. "It seems there is no need for further debate." The Student Council President, who had been silent until now, spoke for the first time. "Regardless of who called whom out, even looking at the nature of the wounds, the fact that Sudo beat them one-sidedly is clear. We should probably just use this as the basis to reach a conclusion." Although I don't know why Horikita is still spacing out, it would be great if Sudo were expelled without a drop of blood being shed. That's right, brother-in-law, hurry up and uphold justice by punishing your own! I'm rooting for you! Wait, what kind of strange term did I just use? "W-wait a minute! I can't accept this! This is only because those guys are just small-time thugs!" Sudo said somewhat hysterically. "You claim self-defense against opponents with whom there is a clear gap in strength?" Sakagami-sensei laughed dismissively. "W-what's that supposed to mean? There were three of them, three!" Sudo was still at a disadvantage facing the classroom. "However, in reality, only the students from Class C were injured." Sakagami-sensei pointed out ruthlessly. "Eek!" Just then, Horikita let out a very feminine shriek, which startled me. It turned out Ayanokoji was pinching her waist—that pervert! Stop it right now! Or... let me do it! "Wait... what are you... stop... stop it!" It seems Horikita's thoughts were the same as mine. "Horikita, pull yourself together. If you don't fight back, we're going to lose." Ayanokoji said in a helpless tone. Then stop touching her! You're clearly taking advantage of her! "Ugh..." Horikita seemed to finally understand the situation. "...Excuse me. May I ask a question? Is that alright, President?" "I permit it. However, please answer sooner next time." Horikita slowly pulled back her chair and stood up. "You just said that you were called to the Special Building by Sudo. Who exactly did Sudo speak to, and what reason did he give for calling you there?" "Why are you asking such questions at this point?" After Komiya and the others said this, they looked at each other. Cunning girl, trying to find fault? I smiled slightly, waiting for Horikita to play her hand. "Please answer." Horikita added this to press them, and Secretary Tachibana nodded in agreement. "I don't know the reason he called me and Komiya out. It's just that when we were changing after club activities, he came over and told us, 'Come meet me in a bit'... It was probably just because he didn't like the look of us. So, what about it?" "Then, may I ask why Ishizaki was also at the Special Building? He isn't a member of the Basketball Club, so logically, it shouldn't have anything to do with him. I find his presence there unnatural." Heh heh, of course, we were prepared for this question too. "That was... just in case. Because there were rumors that Sudo was violent and his physique is larger than ours, so we brought along our good friend Ishizaki. Is that not allowed?" "In other words, you mean you felt you might be subjected to violence by him?" "Yes." "I see. So that is why you brought along Ishizaki, who was known for fighting during middle school, as a bodyguard. To counter Sudo in an emergency." "This was only to protect our own safety. Besides, we didn't know Ishizaki was famous for fighting. We only brought him because he is a reliable friend." "Even if not by much, I have some experience in martial arts. Because of this, I know that when facing two or more enemies, the difficulty of a fight increases exponentially. You were accompanied by Ishizaki, who is skilled at fighting, so I cannot accept that you were beaten one-sidedly." "That's because we didn't intend to fight! Kitazawa even reminded us in class to refrain from violence!" Ishizaki took over the conversation. "Objectively speaking, the main factor in a fight is the collision of energy between oneself and the opponent, and both sides crossing the distance of the confrontation. Only then does the situation escalate into a fight. In a scenario where the opponent has no will to fight or offers no resistance, the probability of the three of you being injured to this extent is very low." "That kind of common logic doesn't apply to Sudo. He is extremely violent, and he even took our lack of resistance as a good thing and attacked us without mercy. And this is proof of that." Ishizaki tore off the bandage on his cheek, revealing the scraped wound. As expected of Ishizaki, who fights often, only he could pull off such a bitter-flesh ruse! Facts speak louder than words; Horikita's questioning didn't change anything, and I didn't even have to speak. I glanced at Shiina quietly; she seemed to be spacing out, her attention focused on the bookshelf to the side. "Is that all for Class D's argument?" As expected, Horikita-senpai also had the look of someone who had just listened to nonsense. "...It is a fact that Sudo injured the other party, but it was Class C that started the fight. As evidence of this,