Rumors Are a Good Thing; There's No Reason You Can Use Them and I Can't (Continued)

"No, it's suspicious that you haven't left school at this time, especially since you're not a club member."

Indeed, for students at this school, the abundance of recreational facilities means they can have a great time for leisure even without participating in club activities.

So, except for the period leading up to exams when students choose to study in the library or classroom, they usually leave school immediately, either to go to the Keyaki Mall or to go straight back to their Go-Home Club.

Although the exams are approaching, Hashimoto has neither stayed in class to study nor gone to the library, so his behavior is quite suspicious.

Combined with the recent rumors circulating about Ichinose, Kanzaki set his sights on Hashimoto.

Shuichi Kanda could easily see this relationship, but Miyake didn't seem to be thinking about it that way.

With that in mind, Shuichi Kanda took out his phone and began editing a message.

"Speaking of clubs, Kanzaki doesn't participate in club activities either, right? In that respect, he's the same as me."

"Besides, we were in the same group during our training camp, and you didn't believe me? That really disappoints me."

While speaking, Hashimoto not only dragged Kanzaki into the same predicament as himself, but also took the opportunity to get closer to Miyake.

However, after spending so much time with Shuichi Kanda, Miyake simply didn't buy into his act.

"No, it's precisely because we're in the same group that I find you suspicious."

"Oh dear, this is so heartbreaking."

The smile on your face doesn't tell you're sad, you jerk!

Just as Miyake was about to add a few more complaints, he suddenly felt his phone vibrate in his pocket.

[Ignore them, let them handle it themselves. I'm behind the corner of the Gymnasium.]

Suppressing the urge to look in Shuichi Kanda's direction, Miyake put his phone in his pocket.

"In short, you'd better not cause any accidents. Although the Student Council President is very tolerant of everyone, that's not a reason for you to fight at will."

With that, Miyake prepared to leave and then meet up with Shuichi Kanda.

"Oh? You're not going to get involved? Did you receive orders from Kanda?" Hashimoto smiled.

Shuichi Kanda, who was singled out, didn't care at all, because at this time, he was probably the only Shuichi Kanda in the school who could get Miyake to leave.

Miyake, too lazy to argue with Hashimoto, turned to Kanzaki instead. "Kanzaki, you'd better calm down. Ichinose probably doesn't want to see you fighting with students from other classes."

"I'll be careful."

After giving some warnings, Miyake left the scene and then, unnoticed by the two, went to the back of the Gymnasium.

"Hey, Shuichi, why don't you go out and stop them?"

"Why should I stop them? I'd love for them to start fighting." Shuichi Kanda shrugged.

"Huh? Really? What if things get out of hand?"

"I actually hope they make a big fuss about it, so the school will thoroughly investigate the matter, including the source of the rumors. If the school is willing to investigate, this kind of thing can't be covered up."

Honami is a kind-hearted person and is unwilling to appeal to the school, and no one else has the right to appeal on her behalf.

In situations like this, if you want the school to get involved, making a big scene is a perfectly viable tactic.

Miyake was speechless. "Why didn't you say so earlier? If you had, I wouldn't have stopped them. You're wasting my time."

After Miyake left, Hashimoto and Kanzaki began to confront each other again.

"Hashimoto, your reason for still being at school at this hour can't be to meet anyone, right? Are you planning to spread rumors around by random people?"

Kanzaki's expression remained as calm as ever, but his words carried an extraordinary force.

Hashimoto nodded. "Rumors? You mean those rumors about Ichinose doing all sorts of bad things lately? Those rumors have nothing to do with me."

"Stop playing dumb! The rumors started from Class A, didn't they? What you've done is absolutely despicable. How are you any different from Ryuen?"

Hey, hey, hey, Kanzaki, you're framing Ryuen! Ryuen didn't spread such malicious rumors on his own. He's always the type to take action rather than talk.

"Heh, you don't have any proof that the rumors started from Class A, do you?" Hashimoto, of course, refused to readily admit to Kanzaki's accusations.

No, it wasn't just a simple matter of denying it; he even launched an attack on Kanzaki.

"Speaking of which, Kanzaki, Ichinose those things about Ichinose really just rumors?"

What do you mean by this!?

Hashimoto's words immediately made Kanzaki's voice turn angry.

"There's no smoke without fire, and flies don't land on eggs without cracks. If Ichinose really didn't make a mistake, these rumors wouldn't exist, right? I think I'm not the only one who thinks this way; I bet quite a few people do too."

Hashimoto leaned against the wall behind him and mumbled something incoherently.

"These are two completely different things! Even without wind, waves can still be stirred up by human intervention, and rumors are even simpler; as long as people harbor malice, there will be an environment for them to grow."

However, Kanzaki wasn't stupid, and naturally wouldn't be Hashimoto by Hashimoto's twisted logic.

Shuichi Kanda strongly agreed with Kanzaki's statement.

Although there is a saying that human nature is inherently good, Shuichi Kanda prefers the school of thought that human nature is inherently evil.

Evil thoughts stem from desires, and humans are born with desires. Even newborn babies have the desire to survive, so they begin to breathe and plunder the air in the world.

As people age, they develop various desires, which in turn breed all sorts of malice.

The way to suppress such malice is through education. Education guides people toward goodness, and it is through education that society can be stable, and people can truly be human.

Regarding this incident, people feel jealous when they see someone of a higher rank than themselves.

Ichinose happens to be one of those people with a relatively high rank.

Why is she so beautiful? Why does she have such a great figure? She's so pretty, she must have secretly engaged in compensated dating, right?

The human heart is dark, and it may not show in ordinary times, but once a trigger appears, a chain reaction will occur.

This was especially evident among the first-year students; not only were there rumors circulating in Class A, but there were probably Ichinose a few people in Classes Class C and Class D as well.

Moreover, some students in Class B also wavered after hearing these words.

Sakayanagi's spreading of rumors exploited the ugliness of human nature and the jealousy many people felt towards Ichinose, leading to the current situation.

"Indeed, what you say makes a lot of sense, but can you assert that Ichinose doesn't have a dark past, Kanzaki?"

"Of course. We've known Ichinose very well after spending the past year together, and I've already asked Ichinose about this."

Kanzaki's face remained completely unmoved, which only piqued Hashimoto's curiosity.

No, it wasn't just Hashimoto; Shuichi Kanda was also curious.

"So what did Ichinose tell you?"

"She told me not to let rumors bother me and not to take them to heart. That was her reply."

It seems that Ichinose hasn't completely overcome this hurdle yet.

"It seems you didn't get a definite answer either. People usually don't want to talk about their dark past. They won't tell the whole truth when asked by their friends, which is why she didn't tell her classmates the truth. Or are you assuming she was a good person in the past just because she's a good person now?"

Having heard this, Shuichi Kanda felt there was no need to listen any further.

If they haven't started fighting after all this time, then it's highly unlikely that they will.

Kanzaki's interrogation of Hashimoto will yield no results, because Hashimoto will certainly not admit that he was the source of the rumors.

He might say: I just heard those rumors and then spread them to other places.

Moreover, the rumors have been circulating for many days. Kanzaki must have investigated quite a few students in Class A, because it would be quite difficult for one person to spread the rumors.

But the final results are probably all pretty much the same. Anyway, I just overheard it from someone, or maybe I forgot where I heard it.

So, if Kanzaki really intended to make a big deal out of this, he would have already done so.

However, this trip wasn't without its gains; at least Kanda Shuichi Kanda learned about Ichinose's current predicament.

"They're gone."

"Huh? Are they leaving already? Won't they start fighting?"

Shuichi Kanda looked up at the sky speechlessly. "If we were going to fight, we would have already done it."

"By the way, isn't Senior Qiao Huan with you?"

"Xun went back to her dorm first. We agreed to have dinner together later, since you've all already eaten, right?"

Miyake shrugged, indicating that since you guys weren't waiting for me, I had to eat with my girlfriend.

"Hehe."

Looking at this guy who got a good deal but acted innocent, Shuichi Kanda really wanted to hit him with his schoolbag.

Not long after returning to the dormitory, Kushida arrived and immediately surprised Shuichi Kanda with his first words.

"Are you really not going to get involved in Ichinose's matter?"

Oh, little Kikyo, I'm so glad you're concerned about your rival, Ichinose.

The real reason is that, in Kushida's understanding, she and Ichinose are on the same side, and she's worried that one day Kushida might also be falsely accused...

In short, Kushida felt a deep empathy for Ichinose's current situation.

On one hand, she also wanted to know Ichinose had any dark past, so she didn't want Shuichi Kanda to resolve this issue quickly.

On the other hand, she was also wondering what Shuichi Kanda would do if she were in that situation one day. Would he also stand idly by like he is now?

Therefore, she chose this time to come Shuichi Kanda.

"It's not the right time yet."

"Isn't this the right time?" Kushida's eyes widened. "You're not thinking of breaking Ichinose and turning her into a toy you can manipulate at will, are you?"

"What are you saying? What are you saying? Am I such a despicable and shameless person?" Shuichi Kanda's eyes widened. "This is slander! Everyone knows that I, Shuichi Kanda the gentlest man in Class C!"

"Heh, that's enough to fool others, but don't fool yourself." Kushida crossed his arms and sneered. "You've probably forgotten how you threatened me with those videos back then, haven't you?"

"That was an accident. You don't understand. If I hadn't threatened you back then, would you be getting my affection now?"

"Snort!"

Kushida didn't care about any of that; he simply didn't believe your nonsense.

"By the way, how's Honami doing lately?"

"What else could it be? It's no different from usual. I go out and have fun as usual, and my behavior seems very natural."

To outsiders, this appears to be a dignified response to rumors, because if they were true, they would naturally dissipate if ignored.

Unfortunately, there is a bit of truth mixed in with this rumor: Ichinose really did steal something.

Or rather, if Ichinose simply ignores it, it won't have any impact.

For example, you said that Ryuen got into fights in junior high school and was a delinquent.

Is this true?

Yes.

But will Ryuen care?

Won't.

However, Ichinose is different. Although she doesn't seem to care at all when others say she stole something, she's probably very sad when she's alone in the dorm.

If this continues, she'll probably develop psychological problems again.

So even if Kushida doesn't come to see Shuichi Kanda for a few days, Shuichi Kanda is ready to take action.

After all, although Shuichi Kanda doesn't celebrate Valentine's Day, he doesn't want this incident to ruin his mood on that day.

"By the way, Kikyo, how many secrets about first-year students do you know?"

Why are you asking this?

Kushida wore a strange expression.

"It's nothing. Aren't there rumors? Let's just muddy the waters. Create an anonymous account and post some harmless secrets you know on the School Forum."

Kushida was speechless. Holy crap, are they going to go this far?

"No, just be careful and don't let anyone know it was you. Oh, and by the way, you also need to spread some fake news. After all, it won't work if it's all true. It's best to have at least two pieces that are obviously fake."

"Hmph, do I need you to teach me?" Kushida raised his head arrogantly. "But what do you plan to do after that?"

"After that? After that, the school fell into chaos. As the vice president of the Student Council, I should have intervened directly to quell the storm. If anyone continued to spread rumors in private, then I would allow them to be reported. If the report was true, I would simply deduct Class Points."

Shuichi Kanda said it as a matter of course, but those words sent a chill down Kushida.