The Players (4)

The teddy bear alarm clock woke Oreki that morning.

He casually pressed the button to stop it.

"It's already past seven."

Getting enough sleep was a wonderful thing.

Especially when you were young.

"Good morning."

As soon as Oreki stepped outside, he saw Sakayanagi in the elevator.

He didn't really feel like responding.

But, whatever.

"Good morning."

Oreki stepped into the elevator and pressed the button for the first floor.

It was only a little over ten seconds.

Yet it felt unbearably long.

It was probably because of what had happened last night.

Sakayanagi had already sensed something was wrong.

Since Oreki wasn't going to submit willingly, she'd have to use force.

"Would you like me to give you the five million points now?"

After they left the elevator.

Sakayanagi looked at Oreki calmly.

He had no idea what was going through her mind.

"Yeah, please."

Oreki handed her his terminal.

About five seconds passed.

The black circle on the screen spun a few times, and the tens of thousands of points on Oreki's terminal became more than five million.

He felt much more secure.

With this, he wouldn't have to worry about points for a long time.

At least, he had enough for his daily expenses.

There was nothing particularly interesting about today's lessons.

Oreki was so bored he could barely stay awake.

He already knew world history inside out.

Even when the teacher called on him, he had no trouble answering.

No one understood world history better than he did.

"Yaaawn—"

"Classes are finally over. Are you going to the club?"

"Of course!"

Several girls got up from their seats.

Oreki followed close behind.

He planned to submit his application to join.

It wasn't that he wanted to join the Tennis Club.

And he didn't like playing tennis, either.

To be precise, he didn't like sports.

But if he wanted to find out how strong his opponent was...

He'd have to go along with it.

"Leaving in such a hurry?"

Sakayanagi stood up, leaning on her cane.

She watched Oreki with a smile.

"If I get there late, it'll be a hassle. I don't want to wait too long."

Oreki answered casually.

He just wanted to get it over with and go back as soon as possible.

If Kiyoko wasn't what he thought she was, Oreki would submit his withdrawal form tomorrow.

An excuse, huh...

He could say he wasn't feeling well.

If that didn't work, he could just give the club president some points.

Who would turn down money?

If someone did...

It just meant they hadn't been offered enough.

After leaving the classroom.

Oreki turned the corner and ran into Karuizawa Kei.

The moment she saw him, she ran over.

As if she'd been waiting there for him.

"Oreki... You're going to the Tennis Club, right?"

"Yeah. Didn't I tell you yesterday?"

"That's true. I was just asking..."

"...Yeah."

After their brief conversation, they walked side by side toward the Tennis Club.

Since Sakayanagi had already figured it out.

There was no point keeping up the pointless act.

Besides, walking so far apart felt awkward.

"Are the classes in Class D easy?"

"To be honest, they're surprisingly hard..."

"Y-you can handle the exams, right?"

"Probably."

"Here's some information in advance."

"What?"

"People who fail the major exams will be expelled."

"Huh!"

Karuizawa Kei lowered her head.

This was undeniably bad news for her.

But it was all right.

Class D's overall academic level was low.

Even she could rank near the top.

So, no matter how many people were expelled, Karuizawa Kei probably wouldn't be affected anytime soon.

For now, she could rest easy.

"We're here. This is the Tennis Club."

Karuizawa Kei pointed ahead.

Oreki nodded.

But soon, he noticed a girl who stood out.

She had a blank expression.

She was clearly slender, but for some reason, Oreki felt that she was very strong.

"...She must be the one."

--To be continued