Don't Understand Why (Sakayanagi IF Route)

The afternoon passed by in a flash.

This was a feeling Oreki had never experienced before.

Most of his classmates had left one after another.

Only those who wanted to continue studying or had other business remained.

For instance, Hashimoto Masayoshi.

At this moment, he was more panicked than anyone else.

He had just made up his mind to follow Oreki, only to run into such a thorny problem?

Although he didn't know the reason.

Hashimoto Masayoshi still intended to give it a try.

After all, victory was within reach.

As long as Class A and Class B successfully cooperated, all future tests would be much easier.

"Uh... Houtarou."

Hashimoto Masayoshi walked over naturally.

He sat down beside Oreki.

"Sorry, I know you're not in a good mood. But... about the leadership matter..."

"...Didn't I tell you not to bother me?"

"..."

Oreki's gaze made Hashimoto Masayoshi freeze.

It was completely unexpected.

He hadn't anticipated such a strong reaction.

"Fine. Then... let's talk about your situation; maybe I can help."

"...What could you possibly know?"

"I'm telling you..."

Hashimoto Masayoshi suddenly grabbed Oreki by the shoulders.

He shouted loudly:

"Oreki Houtarou, stop kidding around! What is the meaning of this attitude?"

"Do you have any idea what kind of mindset I had when I joined you?"

"Give it a rest already!"

Hashimoto Masayoshi swung his fist at Oreki.

But it was quickly blocked by Oreki.

The force was immense.

More than twice as strong as he had imagined.

"What kind of joke..."

"What kind of Class A..."

"Get lost!"

Oreki's punch landed heavily in Hashimoto Masayoshi's abdomen.

The pain was absolute.

So you really were hiding your true strength... Houtarou.

Hashimoto Masayoshi thought to himself.

However, this should have successfully allowed Oreki to vent his anger.

In that case...

Taking this punch was worth it.

"Cough, cough... You really don't hold back, Houtarou. But this is enough, right? Don't keep everything bottled up inside; you can tell me whatever is bothering you."

"...Sorry."

"It's fine."

Hashimoto Masayoshi looked around.

The few remaining people were staring at them.

It seemed they had attracted unnecessary attention.

"This isn't the place to talk. Let's go."

"Yeah..."

Oreki walked out feeling dejected.

Unexpected.

Even he had a side that could lose composure.

Truly...

A failure, Houtarou Oreki.

Soon.

Hashimoto Masayoshi brought Oreki to a cafe.

After they were seated on the second floor.

"Tell me the reason for your unusual behavior today."

"...Arisu has left."

"Huh? No, wait... Sakayanagi Arisu left Class A? Why?"

"Expelled."

"Expelled?!"

"..."

"Sorry, I was too excited. Given the situation, it's no wonder you're like this, Houtarou."

"So? What about the solution you mentioned?"

Oreki picked up an Americano and took a sip.

It was bitter.

Just like his current mood.

"Naturally, it's you, Houtarou."

"Another joke?"

"No. I mean that only you, Houtarou, can come up with a method."

"I can't do anyth..."

"It's too early to say that."

"If you brought me here just to hear this, then goodbye."

"Don't be in such a rush, Houtarou."

Oreki, who had just prepared to leave, sat back down.

He listened with some impatience as Hashimoto Masayoshi continued.

"As far as I know, Ayanokoji might know the location of the Sakayanagi residence. I'm referring to the one outside the school."

"!"

"I don't think I need to tell you what this implies."

"I didn't expect..."

Oreki returned to his usual mode of thinking.

Hashimoto Masayoshi was right.

It hadn't reached the point of despair yet.

He could start with Kiyoko.

Once he obtained the address, he could plan how to leave the school and find Sakayanagi.

"You've been a huge help."

Oreki said, preparing to go find Kiyoko.

But he was quickly stopped by Hashimoto Masayoshi.

"Hey, that woman won't tell you honestly. Not to mention, we had a conflict with her just a few days ago."

"But..."

"Houtarou, I know how you feel right now. But being anxious won't help."

"...You're right."

He calmed down.

Such a simple matter—the usual Oreki would have definitely realized it.

It shouldn't have been up to Hashimoto Masayoshi to tell him.

But right now...

It was enough to prove that Oreki needed a good rest for a while.

Only after completely calming down could they discuss a battle plan.

"I lost my composure today. My apologies."

"It's fine. Houtarou being Houtarou is enough."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Nothing. Anyway, leave the canvassing to me."

"Mn."

"Though I am curious about your methods, Houtarou, I'll save those questions for tomorrow. After all, knowing these things in advance would take all the fun out of it."

After saying this, Hashimoto Masayoshi bid Oreki farewell.

He even took the liberty of settling the bill.

Including Oreki's share.

Arisu, I'll be there soon.

Oreki gazed out the window.

It was that sea.

However, since this school was built on artificial land, seeing the ocean wasn't particularly noteworthy.

But...

He recalled the red string he had seen that day.

What could it be?

He had a feeling it was something very special.

Yet, his reason told Oreki that what he saw could only have been a hallucination.

There was no time to dwell on these things anymore.

Time to go.

Get some good rest, then face tomorrow's weekly test.

"Oreki-kun?"

"...Fe... Honami."

"Hm? If I heard correctly, Oreki-kun just tried to call me 'Fe-nami', didn't you?"

"..."

"It's okay, it's okay. It was just a joke; I'm not blaming you, Oreki-kun."

Ichinose walked over from the shop entrance.

It looked like she had bought something.

"It's a rare opportunity. I wanted to go find Oreki-kun tonight to discuss things, but little Arisu wouldn't approve, would she?"

"Arisu, she..."

"Yes? Did something happen to little Arisu?"

"No... it's nothing."

Oreki had no intention of telling Ichinose about Sakayanagi Arisu.

He quickly changed the subject.

"Which people are you planning to send?"

"Well now... that's a se-cret."

"Is that so? Then goodbye."

"Eh? You're leaving already? We only just met."

"Sorry, I have other matters to attend to."

"No, if Oreki-kun is busy, then it can't be helped."

Ichinose waved at Oreki.

Good grief...

I can't tell if she's genuinely airheaded or just putting on an act.

Oreki thought to himself.

Is the former more likely?

Hard to say.

It doesn't matter.

In the end, whatever happens to this school has nothing to do with him.

Let alone the students here.

He only wanted to see Sakayanagi Arisu one more time.

Even if it meant giving up everything.

Because if I don't go now...

There won't be another chance later, will there?

--To be continue