Hachiman's Meritocracy Classroom

But.

"No glasses, and he didn't even change his outfit."

"He's not bad-looking, but those dead-fish eyes make him look like a delinquent."

"Even though the girls around him are dazzling, his piano skills are average, so he wasn't swept up into becoming dazzling with them."

At that moment, quite a few girls in the audience felt relieved.

Performing Unreachable Love, Big Brother: Did You Pick the Wrong Song? Part Two

Hachiman's role was that of the pianist—essentially background music. Then Ichika had demanded that he not wear glasses, and with the girls being so dazzling, he had been pushed to the margins.

Hachiman had no complaints about this arrangement.

If anything, he could slack off a little now.

As the pianist, Hachiman was seated at the farthest spot, but it was also the best position from which to observe the scene below.

He could see familiar and unfamiliar faces alike. There were not only students and faculty from the school, but also guests from outside. He could even see some familiar classmates sitting together with their families.

Among them, he spotted Chabashira-sensei and Hoshinomiya-sensei taking their seats as well, though both had changed into their usual clothes.

They had reined in the brilliance they displayed onstage.

Some male teachers noticed them too, but Chabashira seemingly deliberately raised the ring finger of her left hand.

Normally, wedding and engagement rings were worn on the ring finger. Chabashira had always been single, yet she now wore a ring there. Moreover, it did not look expensive at all; it was more like an accessory.

The male teacher immediately showed a bitter smile, understanding that this meant she had no interest in him and was rejecting him.

It seemed the ring Karuizawa had bought had come in handy.

It did not need to