The Preliminary Trial Begins

On Sunday morning, representatives from Class C and Class D began their meeting under the organization of the Student Council.

Walking from the first floor up to the fourth, our group of students from two classes filled with gunpowder-like tension arrived outside the Student Council office.

Sakagami and Chabashira knocked on the door of the Student Council office together, and as it opened, they led us inside.

The layout of the Student Council office was vastly different from the last time I had visited; a large area in the center of the office had been cleared to accommodate a long table, which was arranged into a rectangular loop.

Ishizaki and his two companions sat on the right as the plaintiffs, while Sudo sat on the left as the defendant, with the homeroom teachers of each class standing behind their respective students.

Because the meeting time had not yet arrived, the Student Council President, Horikita Manabu, was still reviewing documents on his desk at the far end of the office.

To be honest, I have no idea why a school with so few students has so many documents requiring the Student Council President's approval.

"Now, regarding the school violence incident that occurred, we will begin the cross-examination between the Student Council, the parties involved, and the class advisors. The meeting will be moderated by me, Student Council Secretary Tachibana."

"Class C raises an objection. Class C defines the complaint for this incident as a case of school bullying, not school violence."

After Secretary Tachibana finished her opening statement, Ishizaki, having already been instructed by Ryuen, immediately raised an objection to her.

This was because the minimum penalties for school bullying and school violence differ within the school; simply put, the minimum penalty for school bullying is expulsion, whereas that is not the case for school violence.

"The specific classification of this incident will be determined by the Student Council based on the content of this meeting."

Secretary Tachibana still did not want to classify the incident as school bullying right away, because if something is classified too high from the start, it is difficult to lower it even if the facts change later.

Likewise, if the tone is set too low from the beginning, the resistance to raising it later is immense. Therefore, both for the sake of the students and the school, the Student Council did not want to blow this matter out of proportion.

Otherwise, if such a thing were to happen during one's term, the consequences would be far too severe.

"Class C continues to raise an objection. According to the complaint procedures provided by the school, the Student Council has shown bias toward Class D in the classification process, which is inconsistent with school regulations. If the Student Council insists on this decision, our side will file a formal complaint with the school to impeach the Student Council and seek damages."

That's it—not only must the fire be stoked, but this lethal fire must be directed at the Student Council itself.

No matter how much power the Student Council holds, they cannot escape when it comes to such matters of principle.

"This was indeed an oversight on the part of the Student Council. The subjective judgment made by Vice President Nagumo Miyabi, who was in charge of the investigation, has caused distress to the plaintiffs. On his behalf, I apologize to the students of Class C."

Seeing that the Class C representatives were not to be brushed off, Horikita Manabu stopped processing his documents, moved to the head of the long table, and signaled for Secretary Tachibana to continue presiding over the meeting.

"Now, regarding the school bullying incident that occurred, we will begin the cross-examination between the Student Council, the parties involved, and the class advisors. The meeting will be moderated by me, Student Council Secretary Tachibana."

With Horikita Manabu's stance clear, Tachibana Akane corrected the classification of the incident.

"First, I will explain the summary of the incident to both parties. According to the plaintiffs, the incident began when the parties involved had a verbal altercation during the daily routine training at the Basketball Club. One of the plaintiffs saw the conflict and decided to intervene, but the defendant, losing the argument, lashed out in a fit of rage. Subsequently, the plaintiffs, unwilling to engage in further physical conflict, chose to distance themselves to calm the defendant's anger. However, the defendant had no intention of stopping, chasing them while attacking, even kicking down the door of the Traditional Literature Club and injuring four people, including the three plaintiffs and the president of the Traditional Literature Club, causing significant property damage."

Secretary Tachibana chose not to read the Class C complaint directly, as the content in their petition was far too detailed and convoluted; it didn't read like a formal complaint, but rather like a novel.

"According to the defendant, the three plaintiffs continuously mocked him during training, and afterward, they used their numbers to surround him, forcing him to strike first in self-defense. As for the subsequent pursuit, the defendant claims he was blinded by rage, but insists that aside from the initial impulsive strike, he did not commit any further acts of violence against others. He claims he did not attack the three plaintiffs or the club president inside the Traditional Literature Club, and that the injuries sustained by the plaintiffs were self-inflicted in order to frame him."

Following this, Secretary Tachibana summarized the statement Sudo had given during the Student Council's investigation.

"Based on the statements from both sides, we hope to clarify which version of the truth is the reality of this incident."

The Student Council's role as the adjudicator was essentially finished at this stage; it was now time for the two parties to begin their battle.

"Regarding the dispute that occurred in the gymnasium, do both sides have anything to add? If not, the Student Council will adopt the version presented by Class C."

Secretary Tachibana looked toward the Class D representatives.

"More or less."

Sudo did not care about the cause of the incident; he only cared about the part where he was being framed.

"Wait, we have something to add."

Sudo's proactive admission was something Hirata and the others sitting beside him had not expected.

The players are often lost in the game while the spectators see clearly; the crisis Sudo failed to realize was obvious to those of them watching from the sidelines.

According to Class C's version, Ishizaki was merely a mediator, but Sudo had told them that Ishizaki was involved in the initial verbal conflict.

Ishizaki's identity in this incident was a critical point, because if Sudo ignored this, even if he managed to avoid the charge of school bullying, the outcome would likely be just as grim.

"Then, representatives of Class D, please state the facts you wish to add regarding this incident."

"That day in the gymnasium, Ishizaki did not approach Sudo as a mediator, but as a provocateur. It was not as Class C claims."

Hirata stated his point to Secretary Tachibana with agitation, but the problem was that he had no evidence to support this, as the members of the Basketball Club had already been bought off by Class C. The evidence Hirata had obtained would have to wait for the critical moment to be used.