"Interesting. He even kept it from people in your own class. What, did he think you weren't worth the effort of showing himself?"
Ryuen's mocking words rang in Horikita Suzune and the others' ears, making their displeasure clear.
"That's none of your business, Ryuen," Horikita Suzune replied, her expression sour.
"Sure, but I'm pretty annoyed that he managed to pull one over on me today." Ryuen smiled cruelly. "When I get back, I'll start by dragging that rat hiding in our class out of its hole. Then I'll come back and have another little chat with you."
"Oh, right, Suzune. When you get back, tell that 'rat' in your class to wash his neck and wait for me. I'll show him what real hell looks like!"
With that, Ryuen snorted and turned to leave with Ishizaki and the others, looking like he couldn't believe how hopeless they were. Halfway off, though, he suddenly turned back.
"Oh, right. Here's a little good news for you. If you want to find the guy hiding behind the scenes, check everyone's personal points. That guy swiped quite a few from me."
Ryuen grinned viciously, making his meaning perfectly clear. But Horikita Suzune and Ayanokoji Kiyotaka stood there in silence. No one could tell what was going through their minds.
While Ryuen and Horikita Suzune were facing off, Chiba Yu was sitting in a restaurant at Keyaki Mall, across from a boy with somewhat rugged features and a friendly manner.
"Funny how we keep running into each other. I didn't expect to see you here. I was too hasty last time, so let me make it up to you with this meal."
From their introductions earlier, Chiba Yu had learned that the boy was named Kimura Itsuki—the same person who had bumped into him by the dormitory elevator last time.
"By the way, you've been looking at your phone this whole time. Is something important going on?"
Chiba Yu paused at the question, then shook his head and slowly lowered the hand holding his phone. "It's nothing. I heard things haven't been going too well lately between your Class C and our Class D. Is it really okay for you to eat with me?"
Kimura Itsuki scratched his head and smiled. "It's fine. Ryuen can be a little violent, but he probably won't care about something this small. Don't worry—just enjoy your meal."
Then Kimura Itsuki sighed. "Honestly, though, I'm kind of jealous of Class D."
"Hm? Why? We're not getting any personal points at all right now. That alone makes it hard to imagine anyone envying us," Chiba Yu said, putting on a mildly surprised expression.
"At least you all seem to have a pretty good time day to day. Compared to that, the atmosphere in our class is... hard to describe."
Thinking of Ryuen's personality, Chiba Yu figured that a lot of Class C probably had to walk on eggshells, afraid of making him angry. Every class had its own problems, he supposed.
"Ding!"
In the middle of their conversation, Kimura's phone suddenly rang. He picked it up, and his expression seemed to darken.
"Sorry, Chiba. Something's come up with our class, so I have to go over there. Let's hang out again sometime."
Hearing that, Chiba Yu slowly rose from his seat. "It's fine. I don't have much going on anyway. If you've got something to take care of, go ahead. We can meet up another time."
As he spoke, Chiba Yu patted Kimura's shoulder, wearing an expression that said, 'It's fine, I understand.'
Kimura Itsuki left, leaving Chiba Yu sitting where he was, gazing out the window.
"That was a close one. I got it back safely. I can't do what I did this time again. I could get caught any day."
Looking at the tiny listening device in his hand, its surface glinting faintly in the light, Chiba Yu murmured in an utterly calm voice. There wasn't a trace of lingering fear in it.
"Ryuen's probably going around with a dark look on his face, searching for that so-called 'traitor.' I hope things settle down for a while after this."
After a few idle thoughts, Chiba Yu got up from his seat. Running into Kimura Itsuki at the mall had been pure chance. He'd intended to turn down the invitation when Kimura offered to buy him a meal, but the other boy had been far too persistent.
With a sigh, Chiba Yu headed for the entrance. The sun was nearly setting, and dinner was over. It was time to go back to the dorm and lie down.
"That movie was so good. I actually cried when the leads hugged at the end."
"Yeah, me too."
"Hey, look—isn't that Chiba?"
A little group of three girls strolled through the mall, chatting and laughing. From what they were saying, they had just come out of the cinema. Now they had spotted a boy not far away who seemed to be their classmate.
"Hey, I think it really is him. Should we go say hi, Karuizawa?" Mori Nene teased with a grin.
"Yeah, yeah. You should at least say hello," Matsushita Chiaki chimed in, clearly enjoying the show.
The two girls played off each other, and Karuizawa's cheeks turned pink despite having been perfectly unbothered a moment ago. Then she protested as if exasperated. "Who would say hi to some gloomy guy with a terminal case of laziness?"
But to the others, her reaction looked even more like her putting on a tough front.
"Hehe~ What are you afraid of? You and Hirata aren't dating. Besides, everyone knows that apart from Hirata, Chiba is the only guy in class you're close to."
"Exactly. And I've heard Chiba's reputation in class has been pretty good lately. Quite a few girls seem to be getting interested in him. If you don't make a move soon, Karuizawa, you might regret it."
"Ahhh! What are you even talking about?! There's no way I'd like a gloomy, lazy guy like him! If I were going to date someone, I'd choose a bright, youthful guy like Hirata!"
"Oh~ So you like Hirata, then?!"
"No! I was making a comparison. A comparison, understand?!"
While they were fooling around, Chiba Yu had already walked to a spot not far in front of them. As for their conversation...
Heh. Sorry for being a gloomy, terminally lazy guy...