Perhaps They Were Responsible!

Although he also felt that the truth probably didn't match the rumors.

"Ah! You're all here!"

As soon as Kudo Mitsunobu entered the room, he spotted Shiba Tatsuya sitting at the far end. He went straight over and slapped Tatsuya on the shoulder.

"Tatsuya, I heard you flirted with Mibu-senpai, who's a second-year student?"

Kudo Mitsunobu knew Mibu Sayaka, of course. After all, he had sat in on the joint hearing conducted by the school's three major student bodies. Although he hadn't seen what Mibu Sayaka looked like in person back then, he had seen her photo in the reports.

But before Shiba Tatsuya could explain Kudo Mitsunobu's nonsense—

The temperature around them dropped at a visibly rapid pace. White frost crept outward bit by bit, and a thin layer of ice formed wherever the mist reached. Only a small area around the furious girl remained unchanged.

"So when you said you were meeting Mibu-senpai to discuss something, you were actually going to flirt with her, Brother?"

Shiba Miyuki's voice grew increasingly low. Kudo Mitsunobu even felt that her icy tone was more chilling than her ability to interfere with events.

"Calm down, Miyuki..."

Shiba Tatsuya hurriedly tried to explain. "I'll explain everything to you. Could you please listen to me first?"

Shiba Miyuki heard him and came back to her senses, breaking free of her out-of-control jealousy.

"I wonder if food that's been chilled and then warmed up is still edible."

Kudo Mitsunobu glanced at the lunch box he had put on the table, looking a little regretful.

"Mitsunobu, I'm so sorry about that. How about I buy you a fresh lunch?" Shiba Miyuki noticed his expression and quickly apologized.

"No, no! That's not important."

"What matters is how Tatsuya's going to explain how he flirted with Mibu-senpai."

Kudo Mitsunobu gave Shiba Tatsuya a mischievous look and nudged him with his elbow, urging him to answer.

"That's right! I hope you'll explain everything properly, Brother!"

There wasn't a trace of warmth in Shiba Miyuki's voice. It was as cold and piercing as the February wind.

"I already told you, it couldn't possibly have been like that!" Shiba Tatsuya said helplessly.

"Is that so? But I heard from a classmate that Mibu-senpai ran out of the café with her face bright red!"

"I really want to know what you said to make her blush like that, Tatsuya."

Kudo Mitsunobu clearly had no intention of letting the subject drop. It was one of his little pastimes, after all.

"Haah—"

Shiba Tatsuya felt that he had been sighing more and more often lately. He even thought he was starting to feel mentally exhausted.

Even so, he felt little emotion inside. He was nothing but perfectly rational.

"Mibu-senpai just wanted to discuss the differences in how Course 1 Students and Course 2 Students are treated."

"So it really was like that!"

Saegusa Mayumi wore an expression that said she had known it all along.

"Mibu-senpai also told me that the Disciplinary Committee was abusing its authority to boost its record."

The moment Shiba Tatsuya finished speaking, the faces of the Student Council members and Watanabe Mari darkened. If the Disciplinary Committee really was abusing its authority, it would tarnish First High School's reputation. It would also mean they had failed to judge people properly and neglected their duties.

And if it wasn't true, that would be a problem too.

"No way! I haven't been here long, but I've quietly watched the Disciplinary Committee in action a few times. If anything, I thought they were too lenient."

Kudo Mitsunobu voiced his doubts. He wondered if Mibu Sayaka was looking at the Disciplinary Committee's enforcement through biased eyes.

"Me too!"

"I haven't seen anything like that either."

Everyone present spoke up about what they had seen. But their reassurances only made Watanabe Mari and Saegusa Mayumi look more somber, their brows drawing together even tighter.

"Maybe Mibu was mistaken. After all, the Disciplinary Committee is more like volunteer work. It's an honorary position."

"Student Council officers get bonus points when they go on to Magic University, but it's different for the Disciplinary Committee."

"Even if they catch a lot of people, it won't go on their records. It won't help them get jobs or get into university later."

Watanabe Mari shook her head, rejecting the idea outright.

"But the Disciplinary Committee does have considerable authority. From the perspective of Course 2 Students who aren't happy with the school system, the committee probably looks like a pack of lackeys protecting Course 1 Students' rights."

"But more accurately, someone must have deliberately led them to think that way."

Saegusa Mayumi's answer surprised even Shiba Tatsuya.

"Mayumi-senpai, you can't go on talking about this."

Kudo Mitsunobu stopped Saegusa Mayumi. As a member of the Ten Master Clans, he had already been briefed on the information Saegusa Mayumi had shared with him.

Although he had learned the day before from Retsu Kudou who the Shiba Siblings really were, if the two of them wanted to keep their identities hidden, he couldn't just tell them outright.

"The people behind it are probably an organization like Blanche, right?"

"How do you know that name?" Saegusa Mayumi blurted out.

"Just as I thought, this really is the work of the Yotsuba Family!"

Kudo Mitsunobu thought to himself, then turned to Shiba Tatsuya. "Tell us more about what you've learned."

"Isn't that a little inappropriate?" Saegusa Mayumi asked Kudo Mitsunobu tentatively.