Masayoshi Hashimoto Was Deeply Shaken

"Hm? How dare you slander Her Highness's good name?"

Masayoshi Hashimoto furrowed his brow, but he didn't actually do anything in particular. Instead, he waited right where he was for Toru Hasegawa to continue.

His look seemed to say, Get on with it!

Just as he'd thought. They were all students, after all. Who could really become utterly loyal to someone else in just a few days? Toru Hasegawa thought to himself, then said aloud,

"The story begins on the first day of school."

"Mm-hmm."

Masayoshi Hashimoto nodded repeatedly, urging Toru Hasegawa to go on.

Now Toru Hasegawa was truly speechless. Are you not even bothering to pretend anymore?

"Sakayanagi noticed the hidden meaning in Teacher Mashima's words on the very first day, but she didn't point it out directly."

"Wait a minute. What proof do you have for that?"

"Has nobody ever told you that interrupting someone is rude? As punishment, go buy me a cup of... cocoa." Toru Hasegawa said bluntly.

"Huh?"

Seeing Masayoshi Hashimoto standing there in a daze, Toru Hasegawa urged him on.

"Go on. If you don't, I won't tell you anything."

Who started a long story without getting drinks first? This was the perfect chance to make Masayoshi Hashimoto run the errand!

"Oh, right. Sure."

Knowing he was in the wrong, Masayoshi Hashimoto slunk off to buy drinks.

Before long, he returned with two cans of cocoa and handed one to Toru Hasegawa.

"Let's go somewhere else to talk. How about your dorm? I'm worried someone might overhear us here."

"You've certainly thought this through." Toru Hasegawa laughed. "But I've got nothing in my dorm, so suit yourself."

And so the two of them went to Dormitory 301.

"Your dorm... really is an open book. Apart from the everyday necessities, there's no sign of anything else."

"That's normal, isn't it? It's only been a few days since school started." Toru Hasegawa shrugged.

"No. The first few days are usually when a dorm room changes the most. After that, it hardly changes at all." Masayoshi Hashimoto dismissed Toru Hasegawa's excuse. "Now, get on with the story about Her Highness. I can hardly wait."

"You won't interrupt me again this time?"

"I won't, I won't. I'll be a proper listener."

Masayoshi Hashimoto wore a sincere, apologetic smile. At least on the surface, he looked like he wasn't acting at all.

Only then did Toru Hasegawa begin. "Why did Sakayanagi, who hadn't planned to point out the problem in Teacher Mashima's words, change her mind the next morning...?"

"...You can say something, you know. I need you to play along here."

Seeing Masayoshi Hashimoto sitting silently, Toru Hasegawa let out a helpless sigh. This wasn't the kind of listener he needed.

"Oh, right. Because something happened on the first day?"

"Exactly. Sakayanagi ran into Classmate Ayanokoji at noon. They'd clearly known each other before, and Sakayanagi must have been eager to test herself against Ayanokoji. That's why she chose to reveal part of the school's truth the next day: she wanted to unite Class A."

Toru Hasegawa took a sip of cocoa.

"So this is the real Her Highness?" Masayoshi Hashimoto murmured.

"No. Now that you know all this, let's go back to the first question. Why didn't Sakayanagi point out the problem in Teacher Mashima's words on the first day? Classmate Hashimoto, answer immediately!"

"I don't know..."

Knowing the truth and deliberately keeping it to herself, Sakayanagi left Masayoshi Hashimoto unable to come up with a reason he could believe.

"Because Sakayanagi never took us seriously. We were all just pawns for her amusement."

Toru Hasegawa's voice wasn't loud, but to Masayoshi Hashimoto, it rang like a thunderclap.

"Her... Her Highness really thinks that way?"

Unable to believe it, Masayoshi Hashimoto froze.

Toru Hasegawa shook his head. If he couldn't see the favorability scores above people's heads, he probably wouldn't have reached such a chilling conclusion so easily either.

Thinking of this, Toru Hasegawa inevitably thought of another heavyweight—

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.

Sakayanagi Arisu's favorability could at least change, and it started at 10. But this person's had been 0 from beginning to end, without ever changing.

Just how heartless was he?!

"I'm sorry, but it's the only explanation that makes sense... Still, don't worry."

After thinking for a while, Toru Hasegawa decided he shouldn't leave the other man empty-handed. Since Masayoshi Hashimoto had run an errand for him, he'd throw in some extra information.

"The people who get to enjoy a 100% rate of advancement to higher education and a 100% employment rate are the students in Class A."

"Huh?" Masayoshi Hashimoto was shocked again. "How did you find that out?"

"I learned it entirely by accident, but there's a good chance the information is true." Thinking of the three second-years who'd fought Sudo over the "instant noodle territory," Toru Hasegawa couldn't help smiling.

"...Wait. Does that mean you're actually as clever as Classmate Sakayanagi?"

Masayoshi Hashimoto suddenly realized something. He stopped calling Sakayanagi Arisu Her Highness and stared straight at Toru Hasegawa.

"Well, even if Sakayanagi's goal isn't to keep Class A on top, she wants to compete with Ayanokoji, so the two goals end up overlapping. So, I'm not exactly..." Toru Hasegawa tried to laugh it off.

If the sky fell, someone tall could hold it up. And besides... there wasn't anything in this school that points couldn't buy... was there?

"...Anyway, thank you for telling me all this."

Masayoshi Hashimoto suddenly bowed to Toru Hasegawa with solemn gratitude.

He'd only approached Toru Hasegawa because he was curious about him. He hadn't expected to come away with information like this.

The truth about Her Highness, the truth about Class A...

"Still, if it ever comes down to a situation where you're the only one who can act, I won't hesitate to sell you out."

Masayoshi Hashimoto added, smiling.

In his mind, Toru Hasegawa had already risen above Sakayanagi Arisu. He deeply admired Toru Hasegawa's insight into human nature.

His understanding of the school's true nature was in no way inferior to Sakayanagi Arisu's, either.

Toru Hasegawa smiled too. "...Of course I'll step forward when the time comes. After all, most people come to this school for the 100% rate of advancement to higher education and the 100% employment rate, don't they?"

"Even so, judging by what you just said, Classmate Sakayanagi's goal isn't that."

"Well, there are people like her, too." Toru Hasegawa didn't commit either way.

"So, can I assume your goal is the same as mine?" Masayoshi Hashimoto stared intently into Toru Hasegawa's eyes. "You're here for what you called the 'majority's goal,' too, right?"

"...I'm poor, and this place waives tuition and all the other fees."

Toru Hasegawa's answer was brief. For some reason, Masayoshi Hashimoto believed him.

"Sorry." Masayoshi Hashimoto apologized at once. "If there's ever anything you need, just let me know."

Perhaps from that moment on, he truly began to think of Toru Hasegawa as a friend.

Toru Hasegawa hadn't dodged the question. If he'd simply admitted it, Masayoshi Hashimoto might have doubted him. But instead, he'd given an entirely different reason, one that fit Masayoshi Hashimoto's impression of him perfectly.

"Besides that, who knows? Some people might have other reasons, too~"

"What do you mean?" Masayoshi Hashimoto was very curious. Could there really be other reasons? He'd never thought the question through before, and had simply assumed that everyone came for the 100% rate of advancement to higher education and the 100% employment rate.

Toru Hasegawa only hinted at what he meant. "For instance—maybe they want a fresh start, or maybe they want to live somewhere completely cut off from the outside world."