Library Incident

As soon as the bell rang for the last class of the afternoon, Miyama Saku began planning his escape. He would stop by the supermarket for some ingredients and make himself a nice dinner that night.

Before he could even zip up his backpack, Himeno Yuki's voice drifted over from behind him.

"Miyanomae, we're going to the library to review."

"Huh? We still have to go?"

"Didn't you see me solve problems yesterday? I can pass."

"Quit talking and move." Before he could react, Himeno Yuki had already grabbed his wrist and half-dragged, half-pulled him toward the library.

"Did you come here to help me study, or to space out?"

Miyama Saku turned his head and looked at Himeno Yuki beside him, resting her chin on her hand and staring out the window. The setting sun slanted into the reading room, casting a warm orange glow across her profile, but she seemed completely unaware, her gaze scattered beyond the glass.

"You already know how to do everything," she said lazily without even turning around.

"Then why did you drag me here?" Miyama Saku felt his temples throbbing.

"What are you writing? That paper's all crumpled."

"Oh, this?" Miyama Saku glanced down at the battered exam paper beneath his hand. "Some strange upperclassman gave it to me. She said it was last year's paper, and the question types are the same."

"Really? Let me see." Her hand had already reached out before she finished speaking.

"There isn't much left. Can you wait until I'm done?"

"Then hurry up."

Miyama Saku lowered his head and resumed wrestling with the crumpled paper. The questions were fairly manageable. He skimmed the prompts, his pen writing answer after answer across the wrinkled sheet.

Himeno Yuki did not urge him again. She simply rested her chin on her hand and quietly watched him write line by line.

Only after he finished the final question did Miyama Saku let out a soft breath.

"I'm done. Take a look."

Himeno Yuki took the paper, her fingertips slowly moving down the page.

"Seriously? These big questions at the end are obviously beyond the syllabus."

"It's not like you have to answer them." Miyama Saku capped his pen.

"It's a hundred-point paper. The last few questions only add up to fifteen points."

"Let's call it a day. I need to go buy groceries, and I still have to make dinner tonight."

Himeno Yuki ignored him, her eyes still fixed on the paper. After quite a while, she slowly raised her head and looked at Miyama Saku.

"You have something this useful, and you're not sharing it with the class?"

"I only got it today, okay?"

"I have photos from before the answers were written in. You can send them to the others if you want, but don't drag me into it. Besides, this is just a shortcut. They should study properly and improve themselves. There's no guarantee the next exam will use the same question types."

"Oh, right. If you're going to send them, do it two or three days before the exam. If they find out too early, they won't be willing to study properly. A few days is just enough time for them to practice."

Miyama Saku clapped his hands together and slung his backpack over his shoulder.

"Are you saying I'm stupid and useless?"

The voice was loud, painfully clear in the quiet library.

Miyama Saku looked over. A short-haired redheaded boy was shouting at a girl. He had seen the girl before in the cafeteria, always eating alone in a corner. He had assumed she was the type who disliked socializing. He had not expected her to attend a study session.

Ken Sudo's voice was so loud that the surrounding students had already looked up. Some of them were from Class B, but they quickly lowered their heads again and pretended not to notice.

The library reading room was so quiet that only the rustling of pages could be heard. That shout had practically torn through the air.

Was nobody going to do anything? Miyama Saku frowned. The library staff did not seem to be nearby.

As he wondered whether to step in or find a teacher, Himeno Yuki had already stood up.

"Hey." Miyama Saku reached out to grab her, but his fingertips merely brushed her sleeve and failed to stop her.

No, that guy looked like trouble. Why was a girl like her going over there?

Himeno Yuki walked straight between the two of them and stopped.

"This is a library. If you want to argue, take it outside." She sounded distinctly annoyed.

Ken Sudo was already holding back his anger. Hearing someone interrupt him, he whipped his head around, his eyes looking as though he wanted to devour her alive.

Miyama Saku sighed, put on his backpack, and walked over.

He stood more than half a head taller than Himeno Yuki, broad-shouldered and imposing when he leaned forward.

"Who are you? What's it got to do with you?"

Horikita Leon remained seated, her expression unchanged as if the person who had just been yelled at wasn't her.

Miyama Saku sighed, put on his backpack, and walked over.

"She's talking about the library rules, not you." He stood beside Himeno Yuki.

"You're so loud the whole floor can hear you. Do you think it doesn't concern everyone else?"

Ken Sudo's gaze shifted away from Himeno Yuki and fixed on Miyama Saku's face. He gave him a once-over, then curled his lips into a contemptuous smile.

"Another busybody." He stepped forward until he stood in front of Miyama Saku. "What, you want to stand up for her?"

Miyama Saku met his gaze. Less than half an arm's length separated them, and Ken Sudo's hot breath nearly sprayed across his face.

"This is a library, not the African savanna. If you want to roar, there are plenty of places outside."

After saying that, he looked past Ken Sudo and swept his gaze over the people seated nearby.

"You're students from Class D, right?" Miyama Saku's voice landed clearly in everyone's ears.

"He's already disturbing everyone else in the library. Class D's reputation is bad enough as it is. If this keeps up, it won't just be the first-years. The entire school won't look kindly on your class or its behavior."

Then his gaze returned to Ken Sudo's face.

"Besides, even if you don't care about the class, don't you care about yourself? Acting like this, you're probably ostracized wherever you go."

Those words struck a sensitive nerve in Ken Sudo.

Ken Sudo's eyes instantly turned red.

"Say that again, motherfucker?"

He grabbed Miyama Saku by the collar, with enough force to nearly lift him off the ground.

"Sudo!" Kushida Kikyo's voice was panicked. She reached out to grab Ken Sudo's arm, but he shook her off with a swing of his hand.

She staggered back and slammed into the edge of a nearby table. Books scattered across the floor with a clatter.

"Miyanomae!" Himeno Yuki sounded frantic. She took a step forward, trying to stop the violence that was about to unfold.

"Don't come over." Miyama Saku stopped her.

Ken Sudo was no longer merely arguing in a library.

Miyama Saku did not struggle. Though he was being held by the collar, his eyes remained steadily fixed on Ken Sudo's.

"I said that acting like this will only make everyone think Class D is beyond saving."

Ken Sudo raised his fist.

"Sudo."

A voice came from nearby.

There was no particular emotion in it, but that single voice made Ken Sudo's fist stop dead in midair.

"If you hit someone here, you might be expelled before the exams even begin. Don't you want to become a professional athlete?"

Ken Sudo's fist remained raised, his knuckles white from clenching, but his momentum had clearly stalled.

"Behavior like this will probably go into your school record." Ayanokoji waited a moment, as though choosing his words—or perhaps waiting for Ken Sudo to take them in himself.

"Professional teams probably won't choose someone with a record of disciplinary action for violence."