Exploration

Class B's classroom was at the other end of the second-floor corridor, its door open. Kiryu Yume walked to the entrance but did not go in right away. He leaned against the doorframe and looked inside first.

Ichinose Honami stood beside the podium with a notebook in hand, surrounded by four or five classmates.

Her short golden hair swayed as she turned, and she casually tucked it behind her ear. A boy stood beside her with his arms folded.

The atmosphere in the entire classroom was different from Class A's, with no obvious factional divisions.

"Kiryu?"

Ichinose Honami spotted him and walked down from the podium. "What brings you here? Did you need something from me?"

Kiryu Yume straightened from the doorframe. "Just passing by. Thought I'd take a look at your class."

"Our class?" Ichinose Honami tilted her head, then smiled. "Class A pays attention to other classes too?"

"Just looking around."

"Just looking around, huh." Ichinose Honami nodded and took a piece of candy from her pocket, offering it to him.

"...No need."

"Take it. You don't look very energetic." She shoved the candy into his hand.

Kiryu Yume caught it. Strawberry-flavored.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome. Let me know in advance next time, and I'll show you around." Ichinose Honami turned back toward the podium, once more becoming the center of the little group surrounding her.

Kiryu Yume slipped the candy into his pocket and left Class B. As he went downstairs past Class C's floor, a noisy commotion came from above the stairwell. One boy's voice rose above the surrounding buzz. "What gives you the right to order us around?" Another voice replied coldly and evenly—"I'm not ordering anyone around. I'm stating facts."

Kiryu Yume recognized the latter voice—Ryuuen Kakeru. Several people spoke at once after that, their words blending into an indistinct mess. Sakayanagi had said Class C had yet to unite. From the sound of it, that was indeed the case.

Kiryu Yume turned and headed for the cafeteria.

Morishita Ran and Yamamura Miki were already seated in the cafeteria. Each had a bowl of rice and a bowl of noodles in front of her, neither of them touched. Yamamura Miki had her head lowered as she flipped through a paperback, while Morishita Ran looked out the window.

"Finished?" Morishita Ran picked up her chopsticks.

Kiryu Yume ordered curry rice at the counter, carried it over, and sat down. "Class B is pretty united. Ichinose Honami is organizing group assignments. Class C is arguing, and Ryuuen Kakeru can't keep people under control."

"What about Class D?"

"Another day. I'm tired."

Morishita Ran picked up a piece of fried chicken and dipped it in the curry sauce. "That Ichinose Honami from Class B—she gave the speech at the entrance ceremony. Is she popular?"

"A bunch of people were gathered around her. She even gave me a piece of candy."

"She gave you candy?"

"Strawberry-flavored. Said I looked low on energy."

The three ate in silence for a while. As they were nearly done, Morishita Ran set down her chopsticks.

"Kiryu, when you went to Class B just now, how did Ichinose Honami treat you?"

"Pretty normally. She gave me candy and asked whether Class A was paying attention to other classes."

"She didn't ask why you were running errands for Sakayanagi?"

"She didn't."

Morishita Ran nodded. "Ichinose Honami seems easygoing on the surface, but she's actually sharp. She didn't ask why you were running errands for Sakayanagi because she'd already guessed. If someone from Class A went to other classes to gather information, someone had to be behind it. She knew who it was without asking."

"You mean she was playing dumb?"

"Not playing dumb." Morishita Ran picked up her tray and stood. "There was no need to ask. Some questions only make things awkward when spoken aloud; if you don't ask, everyone stays comfortable. Giving you that candy was her way of saying, 'I know why you came, but I don't mind.' That's far more clever than asking directly."

Kiryu Yume thought about it and found that it made sense. Ichinose Honami had smiled from beginning to end and never pressed him about anything, but that candy and her words, "Let me know in advance next time"—they had both been statements of intent.

The three returned their dishes to the collection counter and headed out. The sun had not fully set yet. Several students were running on the field, and the dull thuds of a ball striking a backboard carried over. A breeze blew in from the field, carrying the mingled scent of grass warmed by the afternoon sun and soil.

The moment he stepped out of the cafeteria, Kiryu Yume saw a familiar figure leaning against the wall. Long straight black hair, a light gray cardigan, and a folder in her hand. Kamuro Masumi. When she saw Kiryu Yume come out, she straightened and walked toward him. She was not fast, but she was direct, reaching him in just a few steps.

"For you." She shoved the folder into his hands.

Kiryu Yume opened it. Inside were several printed sheets. The first page listed the seating arrangement and scope for next week's exams. Several questions on the third page had been circled in pencil, with tiny notes beside them: "Basic questions, easy to get wrong."

"Sakayanagi told you to do this?"

"Yeah. She said you got three basic questions wrong on the last quiz. Review according to the exam scope." Kamuro Masumi's tone was about as animated as a weather report. As soon as she finished, she turned to leave.

Watching her turn away, Kiryu Yume suddenly sensed something—not in her expression or voice, but something extremely subtle. When Kamuro Masumi turned, her shoulders tensed ever so slightly. The movement was tiny; if not for the system's "coercion" bond taking effect, he would never have noticed it. Was she nervous? No, not nervous. There was something she had not said.

"...Masumi," he called after her.

Kamuro Masumi stopped but did not turn around.

"Sakayanagi had you bring me the materials." Kiryu Yume watched her back stiffen for an instant—not with anger, but with the instinctive reaction of someone who had been seen through. "Did you want to come yourself, or did she arrange it?"

Two seconds of silence passed.

"Sakayanagi arranged it," Kamuro Masumi said. Her tone was exactly the same as before, without the slightest fluctuation. But Kiryu Yume noticed it—the pause before her answer was just a little longer than a normal response. Without the system, he would probably have assumed she was choosing her words. But now he knew she had not told him the whole truth.

He did not press her. Kamuro Masumi quickly walked away, her black hair swaying once behind her before she vanished around the cafeteria corner. Kiryu Yume lowered his head to look at the circled questions. The handwriting was tiny, the pressure light, as though afraid of piercing the paper. Was it Sakayanagi's handwriting, or had Kamuro written it for her? He could not tell, but that cautious lightness did not feel like Sakayanagi's style.

Morishita Ran came over from the side and glanced at the folder in his hands. "What's that?"

"Study materials. Sakayanagi had Kamuro bring them to me."

Morishita Ran raised an eyebrow. "She cares about your grades too?"

"She meddles in quite a lot."

"Not a bad deal. Free tutoring material from the top student in the class." Morishita Ran patted his shoulder. "You won't have any excuse if you mess up the exam."

"When have I ever messed up an exam?"

"You got three basic questions wrong on the last quiz." Morishita Ran's tone was flat.

"...You even know that?"

"You sighed when they handed out the papers. Really loudly." With that, Morishita Ran started walking toward the field.

Kiryu Yume stood there blankly for a moment, then shook his head and followed. The two arrived beside a bench at the edge of the field. Morishita Ran sat down and leaned back with her head tilted against the bench. Kiryu Yume sat beside her. The breeze carried the scent of grass and soil. Someone shouted for a pass in the distance.

After sitting for a while, Morishita Ran suddenly spoke. "Kiryu, what school did you go to before?"

Kiryu Yume froze for a moment. "Somewhere out of town."

"Where out of town?"

"...Very far away."

Morishita Ran did not press further. "Then weren't your family worried about you coming here alone for school?"

Kiryu Yume thought of his family from his previous life. "They weren't worried. They couldn't control me anyway."

Morishita Ran gave an "Oh" and did not continue. They sat there a while longer as the sunset slowly sank, the sky shifting from orange-red to grayish purple. The streetlights had just come on, though their glow was still faint. Kiryu Yume lowered his gaze to his hands—when he took the folder earlier, his fingers had reacted quickly. Sakayanagi's "pet cat" bond seemed to affect more than just how he reacted when she patted his head. He had noticed that whenever something related to Sakayanagi was involved, his movements became more natural and more obedient than usual, almost without passing through his brain.

Morishita Ran stood and dusted off her skirt. "Let's go."

The two headed toward the dorms. As they neared the fork in the road, a faint fragrance of perfume drifted over. Kiryu Yume instinctively tilted his head—not to avoid it, but because he had caught a scent that felt familiar. It was a tiny motion, like a cat's ear twitching at an enticing smell.

Then he saw Sakayanagi Arisu standing beneath a streetlight, speaking with Kamuro Masumi. Her white cane rested at her side.

Morishita Ran followed his gaze, then looked away. "I'll go on ahead. See you at the cafeteria tomorrow."

"Yeah."

Morishita Ran headed toward the dorms, her shadow stretched a little long beneath the streetlights. Kiryu Yume stayed where he was, watching Sakayanagi from afar. She had not noticed him. She was speaking with Kamuro Masumi, her profile looking somewhat pale beneath the streetlight. Kamuro Masumi nodded once, then turned and walked off in the opposite direction.

Kiryu Yume put his hands in his pockets and turned toward the dorms. Back in his room, he tossed his schoolbag onto the desk and lay down on the bed. His phone vibrated. Morishita Ran.

"You looked toward Sakayanagi for three seconds by the field just now. When you turned your neck, you did it faster than usual."

"...You counted that too?"

"Observation. Was she satisfied with the report you gave her today?"

"I haven't reported to her yet. I'll tell her tomorrow morning."

A few minutes later, it vibrated again. Yamamura Miki. Two words appeared on the screen: "Good night." With a period after them.

Kiryu Yume replied, "Good night," set his phone beside his pillow, and turned off the lights. Moonlight shone onto the ceiling outside, laying down a pale gray-white layer. He closed his eyes.

Tomorrow morning, he would report the situation in Classes B and C to Sakayanagi Arisu. Ichinose Honami's attitude, the situation where Ryuuen Kakeru could not keep people in line—he was still unsure how useful that information would be to Sakayanagi. But he knew Sakayanagi would not have sent him on a pointless trip. That woman had follow-ups for everything she did.

He turned over and pulled the blanket up to his chin. Don't think about it yet. Tomorrow's problems can wait until tomorrow.