Behind the Gymnasium

On the third day of school, everything seemed calm on the surface.

Kanzaki Toru woke before his alarm as usual, washed up and got dressed as usual, and observed everything around him on his way to the Academic Building as usual. The students in Class D had already quickly sorted themselves into a few loosely defined groups: the loud athletic crowd centered around Yoshida and the red-haired Sudo, the study group centered around a few girls in the front row who looked like good students, and the loners on the fringes, like him.

Sakura Airi belonged to the last group, and was the most isolated of them all. She arrived in the classroom earliest every day and left latest, never leaving her seat between classes. She had drunk the water, at least; the bottle was empty now, tucked into the side pocket of her schoolbag. That was probably the biggest progress she had made in two days.

The morning classes passed without incident. When the lunch bell rang, Kanzaki Toru stayed in his seat as usual. Sakura Airi, in the row ahead, stayed put too, nibbling at a piece of bread while making sure no one noticed.

Just as he was about to get up and head to the cafeteria, the back door suddenly flew open.

"Hey! Anyone in Class D—"

Sudo, his red hair tousled, stumbled into the room, drenched in sweat. "Has anyone seen Yoshida? There's a fight! Yoshida and some second-years are behind the gymnasium—there are a bunch of them against him!"

Only a handful of students remained in the classroom. Two girls stepped back, and a skinny boy shook his head outright. Sudo grew more and more frantic.

"I'll go," Kanzaki Toru said.

Sudo froze for a moment. "By yourself? There are three of them—"

"Go get help, not fight them. Find Chabashira-sensei. I'll go over and buy some time."

He didn't wait for Sudo to answer, and headed straight out the back door. It wasn't far to the area behind the gymnasium; it would take about three minutes to run there. As he ran, he quickly calculated the situation. Yoshida was one of the most active students in Class D and was close with Sudo. If he got hurt, Class D might face a collective point deduction. Besides, helping Sudo would put him in his debt.

Behind the gymnasium was an open area partly hidden by shrubs. Kanzaki Toru rounded the last corner and saw what was happening.

Two people were holding Yoshida by the shoulders, pinning him against the outer wall of the gymnasium. Blood stained the corner of his mouth. The second-year standing in front of him was tall, with a crew cut and a cold expression—the kind of cold that came from having plenty of confidence and not seeing one's opponent as a threat at all.

"You Class D students get a few points and spend them, sleep through class, and don't even understand the most basic rules." The crew-cut boy raised a foot and planted it on the wall beside Yoshida. "Say that thing you shouted outside the store yesterday again: 'It's only a thousand points.'"

Yoshida gritted his teeth and said nothing.

"Sorry to interrupt."

All three turned at once. Kanzaki Toru stood at the entrance to the open area, hands in his pockets, breathing evenly.

"There's a teacher patrolling by the gymnasium's main entrance. They'll probably pass by here in about three minutes. You can carry on if you want. I just came to let you know."

The crew-cut boy narrowed his eyes. "Class 1-D? Another one?"

Kanzaki Toru shook his head. "I said you can carry on. But I have a question—how much does he owe you?"

The crew-cut boy froze.

"Personal points. You wouldn't waste your time cornering him unless it was for more than entertainment. If he owes you money, I can pay it back for him. If it's something else, tell me the rules and I'll make him apologize."

His voice was so calm that it seemed strangely out of place in a scene of violence.

The crew-cut boy stared at him for several seconds, then slowly broke into an amused smile. "You're kind of interesting. I didn't think Class D had someone like you."

Then he let go of Yoshida's chin and stepped back. "We'll let it go for today. But..." As he passed Kanzaki Toru, he deliberately bumped his shoulder and lowered his voice. "You'd better teach your classmates a thing or two. The ones who talk tough now won't be around by the end of the semester."

The three second-years walked off.

Kanzaki Toru went over to Yoshida. Yoshida slid down the wall and sat on the ground, his head lowered, refusing to look at him.

"Can you stand?"

After a long silence, Yoshida said abruptly, "I just said, 'It's only a thousand points'... How was I supposed to know it mattered so much?"

Kanzaki Toru didn't comfort him. He simply held out a hand. "Get up. Sudo went to find a teacher. You'd better leave before the teacher gets here."

Yoshida hesitated for a few seconds, then took his hand and let himself be pulled up. He leaned against the wall to steady himself and quietly said thanks.

Kanzaki Toru nodded and turned to head back.

The moment he left the open area, a gust of wind blew through, and the shrub leaves rustled.

Suddenly, he felt that something deep in his mind had changed.

It was hard to describe. It wasn't pain or dizziness. It was more like a vague outline that had always existed at the edge of his awareness had suddenly been lit up by something. He instinctively focused his attention on it—and then he saw an image.

It was like opening a book that belonged only to him. Its pages stopped at a certain point, revealing a portrait. A white sun hat, thick red glasses, a face tilted slightly downward.

Several lines of information appeared beneath the portrait. They weren't words he saw with his eyes, but something that appeared directly in his mind—

Sakura Airi. Class 1-D. Affection: 68. Title: Observer Hidden Under the Brim. Status: Ongoing social anxiety; beginning to trust a specific person. Relationship history: First encounter on the bus → accompanied to the store → everyday care. Affection reward: Improved disguise skills—unlocked.

Kanzaki Toru stood in the gymnasium's shadow, going over the information repeatedly. It wasn't a terminal or any kind of electronic device. It was inside his mind, like some dormant ability had finally awakened.

He didn't know where it came from. But he knew some of its rules: it only recorded girls. The other person had to leave some kind of impression on him before she could be recorded. Once her affection reached a certain level, a reward would unlock.

Sakura Airi's affection was 68. Her first reward had unlocked—improved disguise skills. He tested it and could feel that something really was different. He had more precise control over his body, more ease in managing his expressions, and a subtler command of his voice and tone. It wasn't an improvement in knowledge, but in muscle memory, woven into every movement.

The Illustrated Guide also showed that she was only two points away from her next reward. 70.

He remembered the note Sakura had left on his desk: "Second-years are investigating the new students. Be careful, Kanzaki." If that gesture meant her affection had increased, he knew what those two points meant. Gratitude only required a single point of affection. Going from 68 to 70 would take initiative.

He continued on, pushed open the back door of the Academic Building, and went up the stairs. Several thoughts turned over in his mind at once. The second-year's remark about how many students Class D would have left by the end of the semester implied some sort of selection process that could eliminate students in a short time. Yoshida had been targeted as a warning; the upperclassmen were testing the new students through intimidation, weeding out the weak and those who didn't understand the rules. By stepping in, he had saved Yoshida, but he had also exposed himself.

It was worth it. At least now he knew the Illustrated Guide existed.

When he returned to the classroom, there were only a few minutes left in lunch break. Sakura Airi was lying face down on her desk, her face buried in her arms and her hat brim pulled low. Kanzaki Toru didn't call out to her. He sat back down and summoned the Illustrated Guide again in his mind.

Affection: 68. Next reward at: 70. Two points to go.

No rush.