The Real Clown

Facing the deliberate warning, Satsu turned his back to Suzune, raised his left hand to ear level, and waved it slightly.

"Don't worry. I've always been against solving problems with violence."

Satsu said to Kuraku, "You just said you wanted to see me make a fool of myself, but I don't think I've ever done anything to wrong you, or seen you make a fool of yourself."

"Have I ever offended you?"

These words, which seemed somewhat cowardly, drew a scornful laugh from Suzune.

"I thought you had some brilliant plan. Turns out you're negotiating by acting like you're backing down." (Horikita Reine)

"Cut the crap and choose! Or should I choose for you?" Kuraku had clearly lost his patience. He slowly approached Satsu, his threat obvious.

"Everyone makes a fool of themselves, and everyone's done things they're ashamed of. Have you ever considered that someone might already know about those things?"

As soon as Satsu finished speaking, his eyes suddenly lit up.

"There's nothing I'm afraid of you finding out!"

"But it seems your companion here does have something to hide."

As Satsu spoke, an amused smile spread across his face. He seemed certain he had already won.

"Hahaha."

Matsuyama let out a few nervous laughs and said, "What a joke. What could I possibly be hiding? Kuraku, hurry up and deal with him!"

"Sae."

Those two casually spoken words from Satsu struck the hearts of Kuraku and Matsuyama like a bomb.

Through Matsuyama's thoughts, countless images flooded into Satsu's mind. As if telling a story, Satsu began to lay it all out.

"Your friend Kuraku likes Sae, but..."

"That girl named Sae is actually your girlfriend!"

Kuraku stared at Matsuyama in shock, and even Satsu's tone shifted slightly as he said it.

He tried hard to suppress his emotions, making himself sound as if he'd known all along.

"From the very beginning, you planned to milk Kuraku for his points. You knew he liked Sae, so you secretly pursued her behind his back."

"Then you and Sae worked together to make Kuraku support the two of you."

Kuraku finally snapped. He grabbed Matsuyama by the collar and shouted, "Matsuyama! Is what he said true?!"

Matsuyama was genuinely scared now. He knew what Kuraku was like. Sae had only glanced at Satsu, and Kuraku had already dared to go pick a fight with him.

After everything Matsuyama had done, wouldn't Kuraku tear him apart?

"He's just trying to drive a wedge between us! He has no proof!"

"You sold the necklace Kuraku gave Sae, didn't you? The transfer record is on your phone—a deposit of thirty thousand points."

"How does this bastard know everything?!" (Matsuyama)

Hearing that, Kuraku ignored Matsuyama's struggles and violently tugged at his pants, trying to get the phone out of his pocket.

He pulled so hard that Matsuyama's pants ripped, leaving his underwear barely concealed.

Suzune also turned her gaze away at that point, not watching any further. By now, anyone could tell that everything Satsu said was true.

Sure enough, Kuraku quickly found the deposit, and even the date matched what Satsu had said.

"Sae told me she'd accidentally lost the necklace."

Kuraku sounded utterly dejected, but anger gradually overtook him. He spoke faster and faster, his voice rising with every word.

"I was wondering why Sae suddenly wanted a tablet. You're the one who wanted it, weren't you!"

Matsuyama spoke in a rush, terrified. "I'll pay you back! I'll write you an IOU. I can repay you!"

As he spoke, Matsuyama tried to shove the tablet into Kuraku's hands. Kuraku refused and slapped the computer onto the ground.

Seeing that Kuraku was still furious, Matsuyama pulled up his already-torn pants and said, "I can break up with Sae too. We can talk about anything!"

Although Matsuyama tried his best to keep himself covered, that flash of red still stood out.

"Making out!"

As that miserable scene surfaced in Satsu's mind, he mercilessly delivered the final blow to Matsuyama.

"Three days ago, Kuraku went to Sae's room to bring her breakfast. Sae told him to wait outside while she got dressed."

"But you were making out with Sae at the time! Kuraku stood outside that door for a full half hour!"

By this point, even Satsu had begun to feel sorry for Kuraku. "Everyone laughs at you, but you're the biggest joke of all. You're a real clown!"

"You're from Gotham, right? Could you get me Batman's autograph?"

"Oh, right. Sae fed that breakfast to Matsuyama—with her mouth."

Satsu even put extra emphasis on the words "with her mouth." They were like a sharp thorn, piercing Kuraku's final defense and burying themselves deep in the softest part of his heart.

"Matsuyama!"

Kuraku roared and lunged at Matsuyama. Tears had already begun streaming from his eyes, and he landed punch after punch, putting all his strength into every blow, with a hint of murderous intent.

The two wrestled on the ground, and the scene quickly got out of hand. Satsu quietly circled around and picked up the tablet.

"Mm~ ninety-nine percent new, a rare find!"

He said it in a shrill voice, but quickly returned to his normal tone.

"Too bad there's no receipt, so I can't return it. I'll have to sell it secondhand for a little less."

Seeing that the danger had passed, Satsu had no interest in staying to watch the fight. He leisurely returned to Suzune's side.

"All right, done. Let's go!"

Suzune's eyes narrowed to slits. Her gaze shifted from side to side as she checked the area, then she gave a soft snort and turned to leave.

"Hey, wait for me!"

Satsu jogged after her, but didn't hurry to speak. What had just happened with Kuraku had completely thrown off his train of thought.

This time, Suzune didn't immediately tell Satsu to go away. She lowered her head, looking thoughtful.

They walked side by side for a while. Only when the sounds of Kuraku and Matsuyama wrestling had faded into the distance did Suzune speak. "How did you do that?"

"What?"

Satsu, who had been trying to gather his thoughts again, replied instinctively. Reine stopped, and Satsu stopped with her. They stood facing each other.

"How did you find out so much about those two just now?" Suzune asked.

"Even if you can learn about the students before school starts, knowing about something like them making out is ridiculous."

Should I tell her I can read minds? Would you believe me? Satsu really wanted to say that to Suzune, but obviously he couldn't.

He hadn't expected the story between those two to be so explosive, either. Satsu had deliberately tried to steer Kuraku into thinking about his past.

That way, he could use it to threaten him, but that simple-minded musclehead hadn't recalled a thing in his anger.

Meanwhile, Matsuyama, who had a guilty conscience, had remembered the things he'd done. Satsu's words had sent his thoughts spiraling, the snowball growing bigger and bigger until it finally exploded.