"Tomorrow... I'll go to the library... and take another look around... see where this school has no cameras..."
The next morning, at five, Hoshino En woke up in an unfamiliar bed. Ah.
"This bed's a little too soft. I'm not used to sleeping on it."
He yawned and harshly criticized the school's incompetence. San.
Shouldn't they have sent out a survey beforehand and assigned rooms according to people's needs? Damn it! Er.
After a quick wash, he put on the school-issued tracksuit and left the dormitory. Zero.
Although Sakayanagi Arisu had said he was a [genius] on par with her, Hoshino En knew very well that he wasn't any kind of [genius], just an ordinary [mediocrity]. Wu.
He had no innate talent that made him better than others. Everything he had was earned through his own efforts.
His excellent academic ability had come from years of studying. Later, though, he realized that studying took too much time, so he deliberately learned techniques to focus and improve his efficiency, reducing the time he spent studying.
His excellent physical fitness had also come from sticking to a fixed exercise routine every day. In many situations, a healthy body could spare him unnecessary trouble.
His remarkable powers of observation came from reading A Study in Scarlet as a child. When Sherlock Holmes first met Watson, he deduced the man's background from nothing but a handshake. Hoshino had thought that was incredibly cool, so he'd made a point of training himself to do the same.
Even the manners he'd used when supporting Sakayanagi Arisu the day before came from watching a movie and thinking they looked elegant and cool. He'd looked up the details, practiced the movements in front of a mirror, and eventually incorporated them into his habits.
Of course, he couldn't say these [self-deprecating] things in front of Sakayanagi Arisu. She'd take it as a denial of her judgment, fly into a rage, and get him into trouble.
And he hated trouble.
After leaving the dormitory, Hoshino En went to the track and began his usual morning workout.
He started with a ten-kilometer run to warm up. The school's track was 800 meters around, so that meant running twelve and a half laps.
Hoshino En: "..."
Before, he'd run along the streets. In the mornings, when no one was around, he could see all sorts of unusual [sights]. Now he was running around the same monotonous track, and, sure enough, he wasn't used to it.
But there was nothing he could do about it. He'd be cooped up here for three years, so he'd just have to adapt.
To suppress his restlessness, he emptied his mind and let his body's instincts alone keep him moving forward.
"Are you a new student? I haven't seen you around before."
Suddenly, a man's voice came from the side. The sudden shock snapped Hoshino En out of his reverie, and his body immediately stiffened.
Seeing that his words had made Hoshino stop, the man stopped too.
"Did I startle you?"
He looked at Hoshino En, a hint of confusion appearing on his otherwise impassive face.
"We've already run five laps together."
Why had he been startled?
"No, no... Well, a little. I was distracted, so I didn't notice you, Horikita-senpai."
The man who'd run five laps around the track with Hoshino En was Horikita Manabu, whom he'd briefly met at the opening ceremony.
"Distracted? While running?"
His answer seemed unbelievable to Horikita. Physical activity consumed not only the body's energy but also the mind's. How could a normal person zone out at a time like that?
"Yeah. I emptied my mind. That way, running doesn't feel as tiring. As for the distance, I've trained my body to slow down and stop automatically once I've run about as far as I need to."
Horikita Manabu: "..."
If I could, I'd like to know how he trained his nervous system to react like that.
"Oh, right. I'm Hoshino En from Class 1-D, Horikita-senpai."
Class 1-D? Wasn't that—
"Your younger sister's in Class D too, right? I saw her yesterday. She doesn't seem very approachable. She hasn't gone out of her way to talk to anyone else in class."
Not that he'd gone out of his way to talk to anyone either.
"...It seems she still can't tell the difference between being aloof and being lonely."
Horikita Manabu's reaction piqued Hoshino En's interest.
Generally speaking, siblings of the same generation had the sort of relationship where they might dislike each other, but would still stand up for one another in front of outsiders. But Horikita-senpai and Horikita Suzune didn't seem to have that kind of relationship.
He genuinely seemed to dislike Horikita Suzune.
But Hoshino En wouldn't be so foolish as to believe his act that easily. There was no such thing as an older brother who didn't like his little sister at all.
So Horikita-senpai's words were something to listen to and leave at that. If he pried any further, he'd get dragged into their family's troubles.
"Ah, senpai, I've finished warming up. I'm going to start training properly now. If you'll excuse me."
"Of course. I was the one who interrupted you, after all."
After their brief exchange, they resumed their separate workouts.
After running about five more kilometers of interval training, Hoshino En finally returned to the dormitory.
He took a shower, changed into his uniform, then washed and hung up his dirty tracksuit.
Looks like I'll have to buy a lightweight, quick-drying set of workout clothes.
With that thought, Hoshino En opened the door and stepped out.
Then he saw Ayanokoji Kiyotaka coming out of the room next door.
Their eyes met again.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka: "..."
Seeing Ayanokoji standing there, stunned and unsure how to react, Hoshino En greeted him first. "Morning, Kiyotaka."
"...Morning, En."
"Let's go have breakfast together. We're in the same class, after all."
"...Yeah."
After their stilted conversation, the two headed for the elevator.
The elevator doors opened—
"Ah, Hoshino-kun. Good morning."
"Good morning, Hoshino-kun."
It was Kushida Kikyo and Ichinose Honami.
They each had Wang Meiyu and Shiranami Chihiro with them.
Horikita Suzune was standing in the corner of the elevator, her head bowed over a book. She showed no intention of greeting Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.
"Good morning, Kushida, Ichinose."
Hoshino En nudged Ayanokoji Kiyotaka toward the corner where Horikita Suzune stood, then cheerfully returned the other two girls' greetings. But as he stepped into the elevator, Wang Meiyu, who was hiding behind Kushida Kikyo, immediately edged toward Horikita Suzune.
Hoshino En: "..."
Was she really that scared of him?
"Um, Xiaomei was really frightened yesterday, and she's still a little jumpy. Hoshino-kun, please don't take it personally."
Kushida Kikyo apologized for her friend's rudeness, then led her and Ichinose Honami into the opposite corner of the elevator.
"Hoshino-kun, about the deduction you made yesterday—I told everyone in Class B about it last night."
Before Hoshino En could say anything, Ichinose Honami dropped a bombshell.
Hoshino En: "..."
"Did you mention me?"
"Not yet, because I thought you seemed—"
"Good!"
Hoshino En put his hands on Ichinose Honami's shoulders and solemnly warned her.
"Remember, you came up with this on your own at the café yesterday. It had nothing to do with anyone else."
"You joined our table only because of Kushida, and I was just some poor soul who got caught by Sakayanagi from Class A and forced to act as her wallet."
"Got it?"
Ichinose Honami: "..."
"I-I got it." Turn.
After hearing her promise, Hoshino En turned to the other side and addressed Kushida Kikyo, who was watching him and Ichinose Honami awkwardly. "Kushida, same goes for you. If you want to use this to win people over in class, that's up to you, but don't drag me into it."
"Got it. Though, 'win people over'? I'd never do something so contrived... I'm sincere with everyone."
Even as she said that, Kushida Kikyo couldn't keep her practiced smile from faltering at Hoshino En's words.
"I know you're sincere. Otherwise, you wouldn't have to struggle so much."
Kushida Kikyo: "..."
Kushida was sunk.
"Um... Hoshino-kun, could you let go of my shoulders?"
Kushida Kikyo fell silent, and Ichinose Honami suddenly seemed to have forgotten how to speak too.
Hoshino En turned his gaze back and saw Honami-chan with a bright red face.
Though her body trembled slightly from her nervous reaction and her cheeks were as red as ripe peaches, she showed no sign of trying to pull away.
"Hoshino-kun, um... you're too close."
She turned her face away, her voice barely above a whisper.
Hoshino En: "..."
He glanced down and realized that both hands on her shoulders had brushed against the curves of her chest.
There was nothing inherently wrong with the gesture, but the problem was that she was exceptionally well-endowed.
Looking at the scene, the first thought that popped into his mind was—
95F. Sakayanagi could never reach that level in her lifetime.
"Hoshino-kun!!"
Kushida Kikyo cried out beside him, while an unfamiliar girl shouted from behind him.
Before Hoshino En could react, he was pushed over to the side by the doors. A girl with a brown bob rushed over to comfort Ichinose Honami, occasionally turning to glare furiously at Hoshino En.
"Honami-chan told me you'd helped her, so I encouraged her to go over to you... I never thought you'd be this kind of person!!"
Hoshino En: "..."
"That's not—"
He looked at Kushida Kikyo and quietly asked,
"Did I say that out loud just now?"
Kushida Kikyo nodded, an awkward smile on her face.
"Are you a monkey ruled by your lower half? You're shamelessly getting worked up first thing in the morning."
Horikita Suzune's voice came from the other corner, delivering her own [greeting].
When he looked over, Wang Meiyu, who was hiding on Horikita Suzune's side, let out an even more terrified squeak.
Hoshino En: "..."
He looked at the only other guy in the elevator, Zhong, and discovered that the other boy was looking at him with pity too.
"I guess we're in about the same boat, Kiyotaka."
So don't look at me like that! It only makes me look even more pathetic!
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka: "..."
Remembering how his attempts to approach Horikita Suzune had repeatedly hit a wall, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka realized that he really had no grounds to feel superior.
"Yeah, I suppose so."
Before you continue