Riot (3)

"Good show's about to start," Rinya said, his gaze sharp as he looked out the window from the top floor.

"Oh~ We can finally see it?" Hearing that, Kushida, whose curiosity had been growing because she still didn't understand what was going on, gave a light nod. The anticipation in her voice was unmistakable.

The faint worry that had been on her face also gave way to some relief when she saw the situation below. "Looks like everyone's starting to recover, too."

Following Kushida's gaze downward, they saw that many of the Out-of-Control Ones were gradually coming to their senses, though none of them looked well.

Perhaps because they knew they had done something foolish enough to get them expelled, everyone—from Class 1-A down to Class 1-D—wore regret and worry on their faces.

They had worked so hard to come to this school and fulfill their so-called dreams, but now...

Looking at their classmates lying on the ground, battered and bleeding, some still unconscious, they were truly afraid the school would use this incident as an excuse to expel them all.

After all, there were no cameras here. Any protest would be useless... And besides, the chaos that had unfolded here today was far too serious.

If the school's top brass found out, the outcome was bound to be disastrous. It was obvious they wouldn't take kindly to an incident that would damage the school's reputation and cause serious losses.

And after the lesson they'd learned last time, when someone leaked information, the school would probably show no mercy to those involved this time.

"What do we do? I don't want to be expelled. Waaaah..." A girl's trembling sob broke the silence.

Everyone who heard her wore complicated expressions.

At that moment, the middle-aged man from management had already gathered the four homeroom teachers on the other side.

In the midst of their hurried discussion, he had instructed them to pass off what happened today as an accident during the physical fitness test. Then they were to take their respective classes back to school or to the hospital, as appropriate. The test would be canceled, and they were to act as though none of this had ever happened.

The four men looked conflicted, but they were all seasoned veterans and nodded in agreement one after another.

They had been homeroom teachers for so long, yet never expected the higher-ups—who were usually the first to shift the blame—to willingly cover for them. They were deeply puzzled, but none of them were fools. They understood the situation they were in.

After all, an incident this serious had involved a mass brawl, and they themselves had taken part. They hadn't noticed a thing, and there were no cameras nearby. If the school's top brass found out, they could already imagine the consequences.

But just as the middle-aged man finished giving his orders, pleased with himself, he stepped outside to head to the Supervision Center and collect the students. The instant he walked out of the gym, his eyes fell on something that made him freeze.

The school's Security Department, which shouldn't have been here, was arriving in a long, orderly procession of patrol cars. The person sitting in the lead vehicle was someone he knew all too well.

"An... Ayanokoji, why are you..." The middle-aged man rubbed his eyes, his face full of disbelief.

But before he could think further, the tall, lean man at the head of the group stopped his car. The cold reply that followed struck the middle-aged man like a bolt from the blue.

"Coordinator Mikawa, listen to this!"

He turned up the recording and played it at full volume.

The conversations full of scheming and conspiracy rang out through the loudspeakers, instantly echoing across the entire gym.

"This... this voice is..."

After listening closely to confirm the voice, the four homeroom teachers' expressions changed dramatically.

The students from every class, already dispirited, listened and found their faces filled with terror and disbelief.

Many of them had only just come out of their Out-of-Control state, so they even thought they were hallucinating.

But when another familiar, cold voice rang out, so many people were caught off guard by this sudden turn of events that they stood rooted to the spot, stunned.

"Yes, you heard correctly. This recording came from a recorder Chairman Sakayanagi hid beneath the computer in his office."

"Today, I, Takashimizu Ukai, as deputy head, guarantee on behalf of the Security Department that this is absolutely true and reliable."

As soon as the voice fell silent, the quiet gym erupted with a roar, and noisy chatter broke out everywhere.

Fortunately, the four first-year homeroom teachers had all weathered their share of storms. After a brief surge of emotion, they quickly regained their composure and swiftly called for everyone to stop.

"Class representatives, keep your people in line. Everyone stay where you are and wait for instructions."

"Make sure the injured students are taken care of. Wait for the ambulances. We'll go outside and see what's going on first." Mashima, the homeroom teacher of Class A, barked sternly.

"Master, that recording just now... and the Security Department outside... I'm getting more and more confused." On the top floor, Kushida tilted her head as she watched the scene, baffled.

"Tch, do you really need to ask Master? Even I figured it out. I guess that place really is where you traded your brains for something else."

Before Rinya could answer, Ibuki cut in, her eyes fixed on Kushida's chest as she spoke with scorn.

It seemed that whenever Ibuki thought of how Kushida's other side had humiliated her back then, she couldn't help taking any chance she got to tease her.

"Hey, why are we talking about that again, Ibuki-chan?"

Kushida pouted, but then her gaze unexpectedly landed on Horikita Suzune, unconscious beside Ibuki. As though she'd spotted something about Horikita that gave her an advantage, her eyes lit up.

Then she murmured, "Hey, isn't Horikita your rival? Look, that part of her seems bigger than yours..."

"Ma... Master, my stomach hurts a little. I'm going to the restroom. Sorry."

Kushida hadn't even finished speaking before Ibuki Mio cut her off, then dashed away in a flash.

"...I knew that was how it'd go. Hmph." Kushida couldn't help feeling speechless.

But Rinya hadn't paid much attention to the two girls' conversation. His gaze had been fixed on the middle-aged man, who seemed to have been driven into a corner by Ayanokoji.

The man looked so utterly miserable that anyone else might have thought the matter was over.

After all, he was surrounded by so many people. There seemed to be no way he could turn things around.

But Rinya's discerning eye caught the faint unwillingness in the man's gaze. He had clearly prepared a hidden move.

"Heh~ Looks like this guy's going to make one last desperate attempt," Rinya said with an amused smile.

But perhaps out of habit from watching the drama unfold, he added, "Kushida, bring some snacks. The main show's really about to begin. Hurry, hurry."

"Master, well..."

Kushida immediately looked embarrassed. She didn't want to tell him the truth, but when Ibuki came back, she hadn't put the bag down.

"Hmm? Where are the snacks?" Rinya rarely sounded like a child, but now he kept his eyes fixed on the window and gestured behind himself with one hand.

"W-well, I'm really sorry, Master. The bag... the bag's still with Ibuki~" Kushida lowered her head, afraid to meet his eyes.

"Uh... How long does she need to use the restroom?"

"Well... I think she'll be a while."

"Okay~" Rinya's voice came out sounding like he'd lost half his energy.

Fortunately, the sudden commotion elsewhere helped him recover.

"You bastard! Mikawa, what did you do?!"

"Cough, cough..."

As smoke and dust filled the air, they saw Takashimizu Ukai and his group below the window. When the other man didn't resist, they had just started to approach and handcuff him.

No one had expected that the seemingly frail Mikawa had somehow gotten hold of a small packet of grayish-white powder.

By the time anyone realized what was happening, he had already flung it forward with the wind at his back. A cold gust immediately carried the powder toward the Security Department personnel.

Seeing that his attack had succeeded, Mikawa burst into laughter.

"Hahaha... hahaha..."

"This is a small packet of powder extracted from several tons of Berserk Liquid by headquarters. It's always been used to train their high-level products. Even the boss wouldn't let ordinary people inhale it lightly."

"So, will you completely lose control of your nerves, or even suffer brain death? Just thinking about it gets me excited!"

"You... you're insane!" Takashimizu Ukai gritted his teeth, his face flushed red. It seemed the drug was already beginning to take effect.

The other Security Department personnel were no better. After clutching their heads and screaming, they turned into Out-of-Control Ones who couldn't recognize their own relatives and immediately began fighting each other.

Perhaps because the powder was so concentrated, these Security Department members, whose physical strength already exceeded that of ordinary people, were forced to push their bodies to their limits. Every punch and kick they threw was powered by that extreme burst of strength.

If too much time passed without anyone stopping them, their organs might fail under the strain, and they would die one after another.

"Hmm? Ayanokoji, why are you all right?"

Mikawa had only laughed for a moment before noticing that Ayanokoji was still in the car, completely unharmed and quietly watching him.

"After everything you've done, he didn't even tell you about my identity?" Ayanokoji's calm voice stirred an inexplicable unease in Mikawa's heart.

"What do you mean? What are you talking about?"

Ayanokoji didn't answer. He merely glanced around, then walked away before Mikawa could react.

"Hey, wait! Ayanokoji, don't think you can—"

Before he could finish speaking, Mikawa suddenly felt a shadow fall over him.

The moment he looked up...

From the outside, there was no sound—and Mikawa himself had vanished beneath a swarm of completely Out-of-Control Ones, who had descended on him in a single instant.