The instant he saw her, he noticed the white stockings, silver hair, and petite frame.
No, no, no—combined with her mobility issues...
A phrase immediately surfaced in Hachiman's mind.
A timid little girl.
She looked quite frail, yet carried herself with remarkable elegance.
There was also a strange atmosphere surrounding this group of students.
It was as though they were all crowding around that timid silver-haired girl.
"Thanks to Classmate Sakayanagi, we were able to obtain those points and acquire information that was crucial to us."
"Not at all. I was merely lucky." The classmate called Sakayanagi appeared very humble.
"It's a little regrettable that the Student Council President stopped us. Otherwise, our class could have gained an even greater advantage," another student added.
"It is rather unfortunate, but it wouldn't be good to completely offend the upperclassmen either."
And so another round of praise began.
The elevator soon arrived.
Hachiman noticed that the frail silver-haired girl gripping a cane glanced in his direction.
But she quickly withdrew her gaze.
"..." Hachiman.
She had probably mistaken him for a lolicon because he had been staring at her.
Hachiman therefore looked away and prepared to reply to Chabashira-sensei's message.
Class D May Have Struck Gold This Time!
Hachiman prepared to send Chabashira-sensei an email.
To tell her that he had become free now.
However.
Beep!
The moment he sent the message, she replied almost immediately.
Specifically, the email Hachiman sent was marked as read after just two seconds.
But Chabashira's reply seemed rather cold.
[I have some matters to deal with and don't have time for now. Come to the rest benches near the artificial lake by the student dormitories at eight tonight.]
It seemed she had brushed him off.
She was busy, too busy even to pay him any attention.
But if he looked closely, he would realize something terrifying.
If she had truly been busy, she would not have read his message the instant it arrived and replied right away.
After all, even work had its priorities. Chabashira's behavior conveyed a sense of urgency.
That was terrifying.
Hachiman felt that his sixth sense was quite reliable. When he noticed Chabashira-sensei's indifferent expression toward the class becoming more animated, he had felt that she had set her sights on him.
And now, he could confirm that she had indeed targeted him.
Yet after observing for most of the day, he had discovered the dire situation Class D was in.
Judging from the circumstances of the upperclassmen from Class D, poverty and needing handouts because they had no living expenses were perhaps the norm.
In that case.
Helping Chabashira-sensei investigate his classmates and create profiles suddenly made twenty thousand points per profile seem like an excellent deal.
And speaking of massive amounts of points...
Hachiman opened the School Forum and discovered that the Chess Tournament post by Sakayanagi Arisu, the arrogant first-year student from earlier, had disappeared.
The upperclassmen of Class D could only survive on relief rations, while some upperclassmen could dress in gold and silver.
The difference between heaven and earth.
So perhaps Sakayanagi Arisu from Class A really had gathered an enormous number of points.
Just as he was thinking that.
"You'll be seeing hell soon enough!"
"Idiot!"
A commotion broke out downstairs on the first floor.
From the second-floor window, Hachiman could clearly see what was happening below.
A tall boy with a red buzz cut was being mocked by two upperclassmen.
Hachiman recognized the tall boy.
He was a classmate.
When Hirata and Kushida had held their self-introductions, this boy had suddenly kicked a desk and shouted, "Are you still little kids? You're actually doing self-introductions?"
But when it had been his turn, had he introduced himself?
He had.
He looked imposing, but he seemed to be all bark and no bite.
Hachiman recalled that his name was Ken Sudou. His specialty was basketball, and he seemed to want to join this high school's basketball club.
"Don't run if you've got the guts!"
Sudou shouted loudly.
But the upperclassmen had already left.
His mood still seemed terrible, so he kicked over a plastic trash can nearby.
Then he left unhappily.
"..."
Hachiman continued speaking with Chabashira-sensei.
"Is there anything special about the rest benches near the artificial lake by the student dormitories?"
[There are no cameras there. It's one of the few places in the school where people can meet in private.] —Chabashira
Oh.
Cameras.
But this was a shopping center.
And there were naturally cameras directly facing the spot where Sudou had been standing.
So Hachiman went downstairs and set the trash can Sudou had kicked over back upright.
Since their appointment was at eight in the evening, Hachiman decided to go shopping first.
He had no experience living away from home. If he had to name something, there had been that nature program in Chiba Village during elementary school.
But now, he would need to stay in one place for three whole years.
The dormitory already had all the necessary hardware, so he only needed to buy some basic daily necessities.
Things like toiletries, toilet paper, pajamas, slippers, body wash, shampoo, and so on. There were many different kinds, inexpensive but troublesome.
There was only one shopping center on the Shopping Street, but there were many places like budget supermarkets and convenience stores.
Hachiman went to one of them.
This supermarket offered reward points. After making purchases, customers received a points card, and once they accumulated enough points, they could exchange them for goods.
It really was full of everyday life.
Aside from the fact that payment was made with Private Points rather than cash.
"Well then, time to go."
Leaning back in his chair, Hachiman looked at the alarm clock beside him.
It was 7:15 p.m.
There were still a full forty-five minutes until his eight o'clock appointment with Chabashira-sensei.
The place was not far away either. It was at the rest benches near the artificial lake by the student dormitories.
Only one side of the dormitory faced the lake.
When Hachiman returned to the dormitory carrying bags and bags of purchases, he had specifically gone to take a look.
It took less than ten minutes to get there from the dormitory.
Very close.
The area was open, and although it was near the artificial lake, it was surrounded by railings and quite safe. It was a good place to enjoy the natural scenery.
Only, the wind there was rather strong.
So most people would not choose to go there, which made it suitable for talking.
Only.
Hachiman opened his phone.
GPS.
As long as they had added each other as friends, they could directly locate one another through GPS.
And now, Hachiman discovered that Chabashira-sensei was not far away.
She was northwest of him.
And that direction was exactly where he was headed.
In other words.
"..."
There were clearly still forty-five minutes until their appointment, but... Chabashira-sensei, you were already there.
Although he knew this teacher was in a hurry, Hachiman had no intention of making her wait for long.
He headed downstairs and jogged over.
Then, six minutes later, he reached his destination.
He could see a woman in professional office attire leaning against the railing, her left hand raised as though she were holding a ladies' cigarette.
She wore high heels.
She had long black hair tied into a single ponytail with a blue ribbon, giving her an exceptionally capable appearance.
Perhaps she heard his footsteps. Chabashira turned around and seemed to smile.
That smile reminded him of a sly fox. It was somewhat seductive.
Of course, that was not something a student should be thinking.
"Chabashira-sensei, you arrived rather early," Hachiman said seriously.
Before you continue