The Phone Is Gone

Early the next morning, Toru Hasegawa discovered a serious problem the moment he woke up.

His body seemed to have undergone some kind of mutation.

Staring at the phone he had accidentally crushed while reaching to turn off his alarm, Toru Hasegawa fell into deep thought.

Was his strength... really this great?

Then, he gingerly picked up the phone.

"Crack—"

The phone in Toru Hasegawa's hand seemed to be subjected to some immense force, and it split apart.

"Something's wrong, something is definitely, absolutely wrong."

Toru Hasegawa really couldn't keep his composure anymore, so he had to move with even greater caution.

He hadn't expected such a thing to happen at this specific juncture, and Toru Hasegawa already had a suspect in mind.

No, no matter how he thought about it, this had to be the reason.

Airi Sakura's favorability must have reached its maximum; otherwise, there was no logical explanation for why he would be having this problem.

Toru Hasegawa didn't even dare to wash up. He walked barefoot around his small dormitory, occasionally clenching his fists in the air to practice the most basic movements.

The only thing he could be certain of now was that his strength was abnormally high, causing him to lose control for the time being.

However, after an hour of struggling, Toru Hasegawa was finally able to control himself slightly.

After breaking almost all of his spare toothbrushes, he finally finished brushing his teeth.

Then came washing his face; fortunately, thanks to his previous experience, he managed to avoid any issues other than tearing the towel just a little bit.

Congratulations, congratulations.

But the most pressing matter was to deal with the phone; fortunately, the handbook issued by the school contained relevant regulations.

Moving slowly, he put on his shoes and carefully controlled the force he used to walk, making his way to the place on campus that handled such matters.

Unfortunately, because it was Saturday, the Gate of Opening was closed.

"Damn it, I have to report this issue to the higher-ups." With his expectations dashed, Toru Hasegawa felt a little angry.

The handbook issued by the school didn't specify business hours, and it wasn't until he arrived that he saw a sign on the door reading "Open 8:00–16:00, Closed Saturdays and Sundays."

In other words, Toru Hasegawa would be without a phone for the next two days.

If he hadn't made any plans, it would have been fine, but he had specifically taken the initiative to invite several parties out yesterday.

Moreover, this bizarre business schedule made Toru Hasegawa want to complain; he would rather the school be open on weekends and closed on weekdays. Otherwise, with such long business hours, the students were all in class...

Wouldn't that just make them salary thieves?!

Fortunately, however, what was needed for daily personal point payments wasn't a phone, but a student ID card.

Toru Hasegawa didn't go hungry; he enjoyed a nice breakfast and then stood at the entrance of the dormitory, waiting for someone he recognized to pass by.

"What are you doing here? Are you waiting for an adventure to begin?"

As it turned out, he was the one being approached.

Toru Hasegawa had a vague impression of the person; she seemed to be from his class. What was her name... hmm? Why did he remember it so clearly?

"I'm just waiting here because my phone broke, Ran Morishita."

The girl with the slightly airheaded, world-weary face shifted her expression just a little: "You actually know who I am, Toru Hasegawa."

"Your way of speaking... is really unique." Usually, no one would address others by their full name directly, but since she did, Toru Hasegawa felt that Class A might not be as wonderful as he had imagined.

"Did you notice? Hehehe, no matter what you say, I won't change it."

"No, I didn't mean it like that, please feel free."

Toru Hasegawa searched his mind for memories of Ran Morishita up to this point. The two had basically no contact; her seat was in front of his, so he had no way to observe her during the day, only catching glimpses of her figure when classes started or ended.

Overall, there was no data to refer to.

Wait, how was he doing this? Even though he had never paid attention before, he could confirm the relevant memories...

Toru Hasegawa felt a slight headache.

Hyperthymesia? No, if that were the case, he should have discovered it long ago, not waited until now.

In any case, he had to deal with the problem at hand.

"You broke your phone just two weeks into the semester? You really are careless."

"It can't be helped, life is full of accidents." Toru Hasegawa didn't want anyone to see the true state of the phone, as he had already disposed of it. "So, you shouldn't just be here to ask me these questions, right?"

"That's right, I wanted to ask about your thoughts as a traitor." Ran Morishita made an unreserved statement.

Traitor.

Toru Hasegawa felt a little surprised: "You've already figured it out?"

"No, it's precisely because I don't understand that I came to ask you. Sakayanagi Arisu is interesting, but she's a handful. It wouldn't be good if she noticed me."

"So, it's fine if I'm the one who notices you?" Toru Hasegawa was slightly speechless, but he still said, "Let's go somewhere else; it's not convenient here. Of course, in exchange, I'll need to use your phone later."

"Fine, I'll tag along with a suspicious character like you then." Ran Morishita nodded.

The two arrived behind the dormitory.

Fate is truly peculiar; this was the second time in a week that Toru Hasegawa had come to this spot. He really wondered how many more times he would end up here in the future.

"Whatever you want to ask, just ask it directly."

"Shouldn't it be you, the traitor, who takes the initiative to confess?"

Faced with such an unreasonable statement, Toru Hasegawa sighed helplessly and decided to start from a slightly more vague perspective:

"The school divides us into four classes. Class A is the best, and Class D is the worst. Only by graduating from Class A can one obtain the rewards promised by the school."

That is to say, a near one-hundred-percent rate of advancement to higher education and employment.

"I see, so that's how it is."

As a result, just from this brief opening, the girl nodded repeatedly as if she had completely understood, and then cast an interested gaze toward Toru Hasegawa.

He had been targeted.

"Toru Hasegawa, you still leaked information to Class D despite understanding all of this. No wonder Sakayanagi Arisu calls you a traitor. Since there will be all sorts of class competitions later on, it would be much easier if one could widen the gap in one go right from the start."

Ran Morishita analyzed the situation right in front of Toru Hasegawa, speaking her thoughts aloud without hesitation, which made Toru Hasegawa quickly change his approach to dealing with her.

"That is the reality, though most people probably wouldn't be able to see things to the extent that you do."

They would only subconsciously assume that this information was important and keep it secret, without understanding the deeper reasons, including the subsequent class competitions and the like.

"Yet you were clear about it from the very beginning, Toru Hasegawa. I would really like to hear the purpose behind why you did this."