After Sudo’s violent incident, I assumed the dull days would return.
However, thanks to the fallout from my clash with Ayanokouji and my maneuver with Ryuuen, things had shifted ever so slightly.
The most noticeable change, first of all, was Horikita’s attitude.
"...I thought it over, and there's no other way Ryuuen would have pulled back unless you or Ayanokouji had done something, right?"
Horikita wasn’t stupid; she quickly surmised that there must have been something behind Ryuuen’s impeccably timed retreat. For that to be the case, she suspected that either Ayanokouji or I—both of whom had been with her—must have played a part.
But we both categorically denied it. In Horikita’s case, her suspicions were already leaning toward Ayanokouji, which, in a way, worked to my advantage. Of course, Ayanokouji glared at me, but that was hardly unexpected.
Next was Ryuuen.
This was unexpected. Aside from Ayanokouji, he was probably the first to reach a conclusion, yet he made no move—opting instead to carry on with his studies in silence.
Actually, his demeanor had grown noticeably sharper. Still, he remained cautious, as if waiting for the right moment.
'He isn’t going to act until he has conclusive evidence—or until a confirmation-worthy opportunity arises.'
He knew full well that if he carelessly approached Ayanokouji and me, an audio recording could easily land him in expulsion. So, until he was certain, he deliberately held back his actions.
Yet I was sure he was seething beneath that calm exterior.
'I might need a new contingency plan…'
It’s incredibly challenging to counter a well-planned opponent on the fly—especially someone as unpredictable as Ryuuen.
'If only he had come at me with his fists, this would have been over already...'
Was he refraining from violence because I had turned Ishizaki into a rag doll? Whatever the case, this debacle was ultimately my fault.
'No, if only Horikita hadn’t charged in so recklessly...'
There was no sense in trying to rewrite the past, so I resolved to stop dwelling on it.
As for my relationship with Ayanokouji...
Well, nothing had really changed. We simply ended up talking a bit more than usual, and our conversations occasionally carried a sharper edge. Aside from that, everything remained as it always had. If anything, we might even be a little closer now.
I wasn’t sure how much he trusted my words—probably not much—but at the very least, he didn’t seem intent on treating me as an enemy. Perhaps because of what I pointed out in the elevator, I even noticed some subtle changes in his behavior. Though, of course, it was already too late.
Other than that, Sakura would sometimes strike up a conversation in class, and Sudo would occasionally thank me for my help. The guy had lost to me, then taken a few sharp words from Horikita, and it appeared his personality was gradually shifting. That, at the very least, was a promising sign.
In any case, life had changed just a bit, while the overall structure remained intact. I was still the inconspicuous student drifting on the periphery of the class, and although rumors had it that I was a better fighter than Sudo, my quiet approach to school life seemed to leave the opinions of our classmates largely unaffected.
And so we welcomed our first summer vacation.
Now, here I was at the pool.
"Yaaah!"
"Kyaaah!"
"Nice spike!"
…Youth.
Youth, indeed.
Among the leisure facilities on campus was a pool that looked more like the centerpiece of a theme park. Soon after summer vacation began, Ayanokouji invited me to join Sudo’s group at the pool. Although I wasn’t particularly keen at first, fate seemed to have other plans.
Even Horikita—who I never imagined would be interested in such things—along with Sakura and Kushida, ended up joining us. I even asked Hasebe, but she politely declined.
At the pool entrance, we ran into some folks from Class B: Ichinose, Chihiro—the one who had confessed to him—and Kanzaki, who had lent a hand during the Sudo incident, along with a few unfamiliar faces.
This gathering had transformed the scene into quite the lively mix, with not only Sudo’s so-called "idiot trio" but also a veritable garden of attractive people playing beach volleyball.
For the record, I was merely an onlooker.
But then...
'...What a sight.'
The view of high school girls in bikinis instead of their standard school swimwear was undeniably provocative.
While Sakura covered herself modestly with a rash guard, the figures of Ichinose and Kushida were striking. Perhaps because of that, the other boys lounging around couldn’t help but let their gazes wander in that direction.
But...
'What’s with those hand signals...?'
Ike, Sudo, and Yamauchi were exchanging odd signals and whispered codes. I was about to wonder what they were plotting when...
'...Yamauchi still isn’t back?'
The second “monkey,” the one who had announced a trip to the bathroom, hadn’t returned yet. And Ike and Sudo looked strangely unsettled by his absence...
Observing this, I approached Ayanokouji and asked, "Hey, what are those idiots up to?"
"...They say they're installing a camera in the girls’ changing room."
Are they out of their minds?
"...Isn't that criminal?"
"I've already taken care of it."
Take care of it? If they get caught, it’s an immediate expulsion.
'...Well, I suppose they have their ways.'
From a distance, I noticed a chubby guy in a peculiar suit waving a flag—it looked like a makeshift command center was in play.
As far as I was concerned, it was best not to get entangled in their antics.
Soon enough, Kushida raised the question about Yamauchi’s long absence. Ike and Sudo scrambled with excuses, then Ike and Yamauchi switched places, and Sudo suddenly took off in a minor commotion, but...
'They sure know how to mess around. Our little monkeys...'
Frankly, it wasn’t my concern.
"Ah, I'm off to the bathroom for a bit too."
Since there weren’t enough players to continue the beach volleyball game, I pretended to head for the restroom and made my way toward the changing rooms—it was a chance to see how things would unfold, and I had nothing better to do.
But then...
What on earth was happening?
"Get out of here with your trained dogs, Sakayanagi!"
"Heh, shall I train you as well?"
Ryuuen and the rest of Class C were blocking a path while growling at another group.
'...Sakayanagi?'
I slipped around the barrier set up by Ryuuen’s group and peered at those gathered ahead. There, I saw...
'Geh... Miss?!'
A face that was all too familiar.
When I first enrolled at this school and began my investigations, one of the first things that drew my attention was the mystery surrounding Ayanokouji.
And the most astonishing revelation was that Sakayanagi Arisu was in the same grade.
Sakayanagi.
Not only did she share a surname with the chairman who founded Advanced Nurturing High School, but I had actually met her before.
The very adult who reached out to me after I left the White Room—and helped me establish a new life, so I wouldn’t end up in that same dump—was none other than Sakayanagi Narimori, the chairman and father of Sakayanagi Arisu.
He had taken me under his wing and spared no expense to ensure I didn’t end up living in a dump. Sure, I made my share of mischief and relished my freedom, but he also invited me over to his house on occasion, so I had met Sakayanagi Arisu—a.k.a. the “young lady”—several times.
And since Chairman Sakayanagi was the one who urged me to take the entrance exam for this school…
Honestly, I’d never imagined he’d send his own daughter to a school like this. After all, the young lady wasn’t in the best of health.
Due to a congenital heart condition, she couldn’t engage in strenuous activities and could barely walk without her cane. And her physical development… well.
'The last time I saw her was two years ago, wasn’t it? She hasn’t grown at all.'
Of course, saying that to her face would be like striking a sleeping dragon—moreover…
'I really don’t want to run into her...!'
She surely knew I was enrolled here too, yet she never made an effort to approach me, which meant...
'It’s as if there’s an unspoken pressure from her side for me to come to her...!'
But I wasn’t about to cave under that kind of pressure.
Given her personality, it wouldn’t take long for her to become the talk of the school. For now, she was busy entertaining a Class A boy named Katsuragi, but if I were to deliberately get involved with someone that famous, it would undoubtedly leave a stain on my quiet school life.
'Though it seems like it might already be too late to lead a quiet life...'
After confirming that both Ryuuen and Sakayanagi were individuals I preferred to avoid at the moment, I decided to slip away before they noticed me.
But then...
"What’s all this commotion?"
Perhaps having heard the ruckus from Sakayanagi and Ryuuen, a familiar deep, charismatic voice echoed from the second floor.
"Even though this is a leisure facility, it is still school property. Please keep the noise down."
With that, the student council president effortlessly vaulted from the second-floor ledge and landed neatly on the ground.
Wow.
It wasn’t very high, but for an ordinary person attempting that, a broken bone would be almost inevitable.
"Oh my, it is the student council president,"
Despite his sudden entrance, Sakayanagi maintained a serene smile and replied,
"Is the student council president really at ease enough to play around in a place like this? How amusing."
Ryuuen, for his part, sneered at the president.
And amid their exchange...
'...Sudo?'
Where had he run off to now? Was the one currently in the girls’ changing room actually Ike?
'This is bad.'
Handling just Ryuuen or Sakayanagi alone would have been enough of a challenge; now, with the student council president in the mix, if this were to get out, it would be an instant ticket to expulsion.
'...What should I do?'
Just as Sudo was offering a ludicrous excuse about a cramped leg and warning everyone to stay back, while I was weighing my next move, someone asked,
"Is something happening out there?"
"I heard it’s Horikita from Class D,"
It appeared that Ayanokouji was up to something again. In an instant, all eyes shifted from the commotion around Sudo to the disturbance outside.
And then...
Let’s just say Horikita declared from the diving platform that she was heading for Class A.
Truly, having no regard for the gaze of others is an extraordinary talent.
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