I, Ryuen Kakeru, Know No Fear! (Continued)

A little earlier in time, around noon today.

After learning that Ayanokoji had received a love letter and that the other party had asked him to meet on the rooftop at 5 p. m., Shuichi Kanda rushed to the rooftop of the school building as soon as his morning classes ended to check on the situation.

"It's so cold..."

As soon as he opened the rooftop door, Shuichi Kanda felt a blast of cold air hit him.

This made Shuichi Kanda had originally planned to watch the incident unfold, immediately change his mind and think of other ways instead.

So, Shuichi Kanda started wandering around the rooftop, observing its layout, and then he saw that thing.

The school installed security cameras on the rooftop.

However, the camera was clearly damaged, and it's obvious that this was the work of Ryuen.

However, upon seeing this, Shuichi Kanda immediately had an idea.

Since we can't witness what's about to happen here, let's just install an eye here.

After making up his mind, Shuichi Kanda returned to his dormitory and took out his small, internet-connected webcam, which he had recently acquired.

This was something more discreet and functional than what he had initially placed on the door of the room.

It belongs to the second generation and can broadcast live video via wireless network.

This inspiration also came from the modified tank that Shuichi Kanda and his team were spying on in the women's changing room.

Moreover, Shuichi Kanda bought two copies as a backup because he was afraid of breaking them, and now that there's one left, it'll come in handy.

Students generally don't come to the school's rooftop.

In order to confirm whether Kiyotaka Ayanokoji was really the guy who planted the listening device in Class C, Ryuen had Ibuki write a love letter and slip it into Kiyotaka Ayanokoji's shoe locker, and arranged to meet him on the rooftop at 5 p. m.

If Ayanokoji doesn't come, it means he has something to hide. After all, how could an ordinary high school student not be excited when faced with a girl's love letter?

If they come, then we can have a proper interrogation.

At 5 p. m., Ayanokoji arrived at the rooftop of the teaching building at the time written in the love letter. All he wanted to do was meet the person who wrote the love letter, then reject her and go back to his dormitory to rest.

Without the shackles imposed by Chabashira-sensei, Ayanokoji felt completely relaxed.

Upon opening the door to the rooftop, one is greeted by Ibuki Mio, the 'cellmate' with whom she was once locked in the elevator.

Um, is this a love letter he wrote to me?

It doesn't seem to fit her style.

"Tsk, you actually came." Ibuki clicked her tongue and said this upon seeing Ayanokoji.

"Isn't smacking your lips a bit impolite? And what's going on here? It can't be a setup for a confession, can it?"

Kiyotaka Ayanokoji had just stepped onto the rooftop.

The door behind him was closed by Yamada Albert, who then stood in front of the door, blocking Ayanokoji's retreat.

At the same time, Ryuen Ishizaki also emerged from behind the cover.

"How foolish, coming over without even verifying the authenticity of the love letter," Ryuen said with a hint of sarcasm.

"Excuse me, is there anything I can help you with?"

In fact, the moment Ayanokoji saw Ryuen, she had already made up her mind.

Shuichi Kanda, you betrayed me!

Everyone has seen what Ryuen's purpose has been these past few days: to find the guy who planted the surveillance camera in Class C.

That's right, it was Ayanokoji who asked Chabashira-sensei to put it there.

So when Ayanokoji saw this setup, he knew that Ryuen must have gotten information from somewhere that he was the one who planted the bugging device.

The only person who could definitively know that he was the one who planted the listening device was Chabashira-sensei, the person involved.

Then, thinking back to what happened yesterday...

It must have been you who did this, right? Shuichi Kanda, is this some kind of provocation?

"Still playing dumb with me?" Ryuen sneered. "You're the one who planted the listening device in our class, aren't you?"

"I don't know that. Are you sure you haven't got the right person?"

Faced with Ryuen's questioning, Ayanokoji naturally refused to admit it easily.

His nonchalant attitude only made Ryuen more convinced of Shuichi Kanda's information.

What kind of person is Kiyotaka Ayanokoji?

After receiving the information from Shuichi Kanda at Ryuen, he recalled that guy—just a tagalong who followed Suzune around.

However, he was still not reassured, so he spent a day investigating Ayanokoji's situation, and concluded that the guy was an ordinary person through and through.

Aside from running a bit fast, his other skills are only at the level of Ike and Yamauchi.

But would an ordinary person remain so calm and composed in the face of being surrounded by several people led by Ryuen?

The answer is obviously no. Most people, like Ike or Yamauchi, would have already become extremely flustered and lost their composure by now.

"Hmph, even if I've got the wrong person, you're clearly not an ordinary person. Your expression hasn't changed at all in this situation."

"Hey, Ryuen! What are you talking about? This guy's just an ordinary person who's been scared silly, right?"

"Ibuki, shut up! I don't know if this guy planted a bug in our class, but judging from his calm demeanor, he's no ordinary person."

A pleased expression appeared on Ryuen's face.

"I never expected that besides Shuichi Kanda, Class D would have someone like you. Let me see what you're really capable of."

"... What do you plan to do to Ayanokoji? Violence is absolutely out of the question; it would pose a huge threat to Class C. You should just give up."

"Why are you in such a hurry, Ibuki? Or have you really fallen for him?"

"Huh? I'm just thinking about the future of Class C."

"Really? Then go up and beat him up, and that'll be the end of it."

Beating up Ayanokoji wasn't just a spur-of-the-moment decision by Ryuen, nor was it solely because, Shuichi Kanda just mentioned, the current Student Council President is very tolerant of fights.

In fact, this kind of news has been circulating for the past two days.

So he decided to test the waters, and wouldn't it be perfect, Ayanokouji would be the perfect guinea Ayanokoji?

That's why Ryuen didn't even have anyone keep watch downstairs; he just blacked out the security cameras. A brawl and a gang fight are different, and he had already planned to take charge of it all by himself.

"Or are you planning to make me do it myself?"

Upon hearing Ryuen's words, Ibuki a deep breath and looked at Ayanokoji.

"Don't blame me, Ayanokoji."

Ibuki's idea was simple: if she took action herself, Ayanokoji might suffer less.

After exchanging greetings, he walked directly up to Ayanokoji and launched an Ayanokoji kick at him.

Furthermore, in order not to hurt Ayanokoji, Ibuki controlled her strength very well, using enough force to knock Ayanokoji to the ground without causing too much damage.

This serves as a small lesson for the guy, so he won't fall for the same trick again.

To her surprise, Ayanokoji simply stepped back slightly, easily dodging her kick.

Clearly, he had no intention of simply taking the beating.

A true expert's skill is immediately apparent!

Even if Ibuki hadn't used her full strength, that kick was definitely not something an ordinary person could dodge, yet Kiyotaka Ayanokoji effortlessly dodged it.

"Are you a trained fighter?"

Ibuki's eyes grew serious, and his expression turned earnest. He no longer regarded Ayanokoji as an ordinary student who couldn't even kill a chicken.

Who knows?

"Hmph, putting on airs!"

Ibuki was now completely serious and launched an attack on Ayanokoji with beautiful movements. Her attacks rained down on Ayanokoji, but Ayanokoji dodged them all.

"What's wrong? Is that all you've got? You can't beat me up with that."

While dodging, Kiyotaka Ayanokoji didn't forget to provoke Ibuki.

As Ibuki's attacks repeatedly missed, she grew increasingly frustrated, her speed increasing and the range of her movements becoming larger.

The consequence of doing so is that its flaws become increasingly obvious.

Taking advantage of the moment Ibuki jumped, Ayanokoji suddenly stepped forward to close the distance, then grabbed her neck and slammed her to the ground on her back.

The blow caused Ibuki to open her eyes wide for a moment before fainting and collapsing to the ground, motionless.

All of this was naturally observed by Shuichi Kanda was watching the live stream from his dorm room.

Ouch, that looks painful, and it's winter! It must be freezing to lie on the ground.

Seeing Ibuki easily subdued, Ishizaki immediately rushed forward.

"Don't worry." Ayanokoji stopped moving. "I controlled my strength well, and you only fell on your back, you'll be fine."

"You possess such formidable power; no wonder that guy urged me to test you."

At this point, Ryuen realized that he had been tricked by Shuichi Kanda.

He knew perfectly well why Shuichi Kanda had given him the information—it was simply to have him test Ayanokoji.

Ryuen didn't care about this. "Didn't you ask me to test him? Then I'll make an example of him and show Shuichi Kanda what happens when you disobey me."

As it turned out, the kick landed on a hard spot.

However, given the current situation, Ryuen couldn't possibly slink away with Ibuki; eliminating Ayanokoji was his best option.

Moreover, since Shuichi Kanda wary of him that he wouldn't even personally test him, this guy must have something extraordinary about him. Therefore, Ryuen was no longer going to be overconfident.

"Superior!"

At his command, Ishizaki and Albert flanked from both sides, while Ryuen himself attacked from the front, surrounding Ayanokoji.

Ayanokoji let them surround him, silently observing everyone's expressions.

Ayanokoji observed the other's movements discreetly. Wasn't Ryuen supposed to be reckless? But his actions didn't seem like those of a reckless man at all.

In fact, Ryuen was provoked by Shuichi Kanda.

Just now on the tree-lined avenue, Shuichi Kanda didn't completely hide behind Miyake; rather, most of his body was hidden behind Ayanokoji.

In other words, Shuichi Kanda felt that Ayanokoji was better able to protect his personal safety than Miyake.

Miyake was arguably the person Shuichi Kanda trusted most at the school, so when would he begin to doubt Miyake's trustworthiness?

That is when facing a situation that Miyake is powerless to handle, so Shuichi Kanda's meaning at the time was very clear: Ayanokoji was actually able to stop Ryuen.

Ryuen didn't know Shuichi Kanda's actions were intentional or subconscious, but Shuichi Kanda's trust in Ayanokoji's abilities, combined with Ayanokoji's easy defeat of Ibuki just now, made him stand out.

Ryuen had subconsciously come to regard this guy as a formidable rival.

"Heh, I'd like to see how long you can keep that calm expression on your face. Ishizaki, get in there!"

With Ryuen's command, Ishizaki's fist came flying.

"If you're going to do it, don't shout it out..."

If you're going to fight, just fight already. Why announce it beforehand? Wouldn't that give people time to prepare?

Facing Ishizaki's swinging fist, Ayanokoji extended his right hand to catch Ishizaki's full-force blow. The force was heavy, but not enough.

Ayanokoji caught Ishizaki's fist with his right hand and began to exert force, his hand like an iron clamp restraining Ishizaki's movements, and then he was about to kick Ishizaki's knee.

However, this was not a one-on-one fight. After Ishizaki restrained Ayanokoji's one hand, Albert also threw a punch at Ayanokoji, not at his face, but at his abdomen.

This attack forced Ayanokoji to abandon his previous plan and switch from offense to evasion. At the same time, he grabbed Ishizaki's right hand and pulled Ishizaki in front of him to use as a shield.

Seeing Ishizaki standing as a shield in front of him, Albert immediately tried to pull his fist back, but it was clearly too late.

Ayanokoji, having pulled Ishizaki over, raised his right foot and kicked Ishizaki squarely in the stomach, sending both Ishizaki and Albert, who had gotten up, flying backward. The two stumbled back several steps before barely managing to stop.

However, just as Ayanokoji repelled Ishizaki and Albert, Ryuen emerged from an extremely tricky angle and delivered a powerful punch to Ayanokoji's face.

Did it wander into my blind spot?

It seems like my body has gotten a bit rusty from not doing anything for so long.