Capítulo 76: Violence Solves Everything.
"Takeshi!"
To gather the other members of the band back together with Alisa,
Masachika rushed toward Takeshi, whom he spotted from the stage.
"Hey, Takeshi! Takeshi!"
"Oh, oh......."
Frowning at Takeshi's sluggish response despite calling him from
close by.... Masachika also froze upon seeing the person Takeshi's gaze
was fixated on.
"Shiratori......."
"......"
Nao looked like she didn't know what to do and silently averted her
gaze. Masachika hesitated for a second, then called out again to Takeshi,
who also stood there frozen, not knowing what to do.
"Takeshi, let's put that whole situation with Shiratori on hold for now
and return to the stage."
"Yeah, but......"
"Shiratori won't run away, and you can have a proper talk later! So,
for now, focus on the live performance! Show your little brother what you
can do!"
At Masachika's words, Takeshi shook his shoulders for a moment
before dashing off, hurriedly looking around.
"Yes, that's right! Where is he?"
"Hey, wait, Shiratori!"
Taken aback by Takeshi's sudden dash, Masachika took a few steps
before turning to Nao. Then, he lowered his head abruptly.
"Sorry, I was out of line earlier!"
"Eh──"
"Sorry, we'll talk more later!"
Leaving those hurried words behind, Masachika followed after
Takeshi. Fortunately, Takeshi was wandering while looking around, so
Masachika didn't lose sight of him and quickly caught up. At the same time,
Takeshi spotted his younger brother.
"Kano!
"Oh, nii-chan!"
"Are you okay!? Did you hurt yourself or something!?"
"Umm, yeah, onee-san was protecting me......."
Saying that, what Kano indicated with his gaze was Sayaka, who was
holding hands with him. Takeshi immediately tightly grasped her other hand
that was free and deeply bowed his head.
"Sayaka! Seriously, thank you!"
"Uh, well, it was just a coincidence......."
"Really, thank you...!"
While Sayaka's eyes flickered between white and black due to
Takeshi's heartfelt gratitude, she noticed that her hands were occupied and
froze. Surprised by Sayaka, who was rarely in a state of shock, Masachika
called out to Takeshi.
"Sorry to interrupt this emotional scene, but could you please return
to the stage as soon as possible? You can take your brother with you."
"Yeah, but......"
"I'll make sure the show goes on. So, please trust me. I'll call Hikaru
and Nonoa right away."
At Masachika's words, Takeshi and Sayaka looked at each other for
a moment before nodding, and the three of them headed toward the stage.
Looking behind himself, Masachika pulled out his phone and wondered
where the other two were.
"Hikaru... is probably in the restroom in the school building."
Then, while making a phone call to Hikaru, Masachika ran toward the
school building.
◇
"Ugh, I still feel kind of weird... This always happens when I'm
nervous."
After using the restroom, Hikaru walked down the hallway with a
reluctant look on his face to return to the schoolyard. Then, just off to the
side of the school building, a voice jumped into his ears that sounded like a
man and a woman arguing about something.
Turning his gaze in that direction, he saw a scene where a group of
boys surrounded a slightly flashy girl. It seemed like a typical pick-up
situation, but the atmosphere was far from calm. It was unusual for four
boys to surround a single girl. Moreover, all of the boys had brightly colored
hair, such as gold or green, and wore sloppy clothing. Clearly, they were
delinquents, a type of people not commonly seen in Seirei Gakuen or its
surrounding area.
(What's with this...? Why are those types of people here?)
Labeling them as mischievous friends of some student would be a bit
far-fetched. After all, the invitations for the event had the names of the
invitees written on them, so if problematic individuals were invited, the
students who invited them would be held accountable. It was hard to believe
that there were students who would invite such risky individuals and let
them roam freely.
(But I can't afford to think about that right now.)
It seemed that some students around also noticed the behavior of the
boys, but no one made a move to help. Hikaru himself had no experience in
dealing with such situations, and it was his first time having a conversation
with delinquents, but ignoring the situation was not an option from the
beginning.
"Huh?"
Then, inside Hikaru's pocket, his phone began to vibrate. However,
Hikaru ignored it for the moment and approached the delinquents.
"I told you, my sister is calling me! Let me go already!"
"So why don't you bring your sister along too~?"
"Yeah~. Let's have fun together"
With vulgar laughter echoing around the visibly irritated girl, the boys
gradually started moving towards a more secluded area. Hikaru mustered
his courage and called out to them.
"Um, excuse me."
However, the men only glanced at him and completely ignored his
presence.
"Excuse me! Can I have a moment?"
"Oh?"
Deciding that there was no way out of this, Hikaru boldly grabbed one
of the men by the shoulders. Then, he gulped at the vicious look in the
man's eye, and strained his stomach.
"I'm a member of the school festival committee. I would like to ask
you to refrain from persistently picking up girls on campus without regard to
the other person's intention."
He called out calmly, even bluffing. However, the other party was not
a communicative group to begin with.
"Ah, yeah yeah, whatever."
The man brushed Hikaru's hand away roughly and grabbed the girl's
arm forcefully, seemingly losing interest in trying to resolve the situation.
"Ouch, hey!"
"Hey! Aren't you guests too? If you cause trouble here, the person
who invited you will face consequences!"
At Hikaru's words, the men stopped moving for a moment, then all
grinned at the same time.
"The person who invited us, huh?"
"I'm telling you, we're only doing this at the request of the guy who
invited us."
"What...?"
At the moment Hikaru was taken aback, the man grinning in front of
him suddenly became straight-faced ──and the next moment, a shock
pierced through his abdomen.
"Huh!? Gah!"
In an instant, he lost the strength from his legs and collapsed on the
spot. Immediately afterwards, a severe pain that seemed to turn his internal
organs upside down came up from his abdomen to his throat, and Hikaru
found himself in agony.
"Heh, haha, weakling. Don't try to act tough, you wimp!"
"Yeah, you should train yourself more, rich boy!"
"What are you guys doing!?"
From overhead, Hikaru could hear the taunts of the men and the
screamed protests of the girl, but he didn't have time to pay attention to
them. The pain was the greatest pain he had ever felt in his life, and all he
could do was stare at the ground, his vision blurred with tears.
"Help, Sis! Leo!"
The girl's voice told him that someone had come to help her...
(Oh, thank God.)
Hikaru felt a little relief in the corner of his mind.
◇
It was at the age of four that Nonoa clearly realized that she was out
of step with her surroundings.
It was during lunch break at kindergarten. There was a rumor that
there was a big frog in a small pond in the corner of the ground, and more
than a dozen children from the same class gathered there. Then, spotting
the biggest frog they had ever seen on a dead branch sticking out from the
center of the pond, a few mischievous boys started throwing rocks at it.
Then one of the teachers came running in, looking panicked.
Normally, she would caution the children not to approach the pond because
it was dangerous, so it seemed like she intended to do the same this time.
However, when she saw the boys persistently throwing stones at the frog,
her expression changed.
"Stop it. Don't you feel sorry for the frog!?"
At the teacher's shout, the boys who had been throwing stones
stopped moving. The children watching around them also looked somewhat
uncomfortable, their faces downcast. Among them, only Nonoa.
She genuinely wondered, "What's the teacher talking about?"
There was no way the teacher could know if the frog was suffering or
not. Why would this teacher tell such a lie that anyone could understand
with such a nonchalant face? Adults always told children that they should
not tell lies. So why...
"Yes~!"
"I understand~"
Why were the other children so convinced? It was beyond strange, it
was eerie. The teacher who told lies with a serious face, and the children
around her who were deceived. Nonoa couldn't help but think of them as
creatures different from herself.
She understood why they shouldn't approach the pond. It was
dangerous if they fell in. She understood why she shouldn't hit their friends.
If they hit someone, that person would hit back. But she couldn't understand
why they shouldn't throw stones at a frog. Even if they threw stones at a
frog, a frog wouldn't throw stones back at them. No matter how much she
thought about it, she couldn't believe that humans would suffer any harm
from a frog. After all, the teacher said it wasn't because it was dangerous
but because it was "pitiful." In other words...
(I see, everyone is an idiot.)
She was sure that's what the teacher meant. The truth is, she didn't
know why they shouldn't throw stones at the frog. She didn't know, so she
tried to deceive by telling a simple lie. And the other children were so easily
fooled. The teacher who thought they could deceive, and the children who
were all deceived, were all idiots. The moment Nonoa realized this, the
teacher became untrustworthy. Because they would tell lies.
"Do you understand, everyone?"
""""Yes~""""
However, Nonoa also realized that it would be troublesome if she
openly expressed her thoughts. Besides, her mother had told her to "listen
to what the teacher says."
"Yes."
She nodded obediently along with those around her.
Even after that, Nonoa's distrust towards her teacher continued to
grow. Upon closer examination, her teacher's words were full of lies and
contradictions, even within the realm of understanding for children. She
must have been telling even more lies than Nonoa thought. Once she came
to such a realization, she could no longer believe in anything.
"Hey, Dad, Mom, why does Sensei lie?"
One day, Nonoa was so sickened by the lies that she couldn't bear
the feeling of being around others. Her parents looked at her with surprise
and asked her what had happened. In response, Nonoa spoke harshly.
How the teacher never told her the truth. How the teacher always
said random things and tried to make everyone follow her words forcefully.
Trying her best to convey those thoughts, her father nodded with a
serious expression and gently stroked Nonoa's head.
"I see... Nonoa is much more mature and clever than the other
children."
"...Clever?"
"Yes, Nonoa is smart enough to understand when adults are lying."
Clever. That was a word she had not expected to hear. For a long
time, she had thought that she was exceptionally normal. So this
unexpected compliment from her father was a ray of sunshine for Nonoa.
"Lies.... So, everyone is lying after all?"
"Ummm, it's hard to say what's a lie, but──"
As her father hesitated to answer, Nonoa's mother took over the
conversation.
"Listen, Nonoa. In this world, what everyone believes to be true
becomes true."
"What? Even if it is a lie?"
"Yes, even if it's a lie. Even if it is a lie, if everyone thought it was
true, it will become true."
"...Disgusting."
Nonoa frowned and muttered those words, causing her parents to
wear slightly troubled expressions. In truth, at that moment, the two of them
hadn't realized their daughter's true peculiarity. Not was it intelligence, but
rather Nonoa's inherent uniqueness was her lack of guilt and empathy.
The primary reason why Nonoa felt out of step with her
surroundings was because she could not feel guilty about bullying living
creatures. And it was because she could not sympathize with the
awareness of those around her that it was pitiful to bully said living
creatures.
Her parents thought, "Because she is intelligent, she must have
seen through the true feelings and formalities of adults." But that was a
mistake. Nonoa simply couldn't comprehend emotions and didn't get
swayed by her own feelings or the opinions of others. Therefore, she merely
judged the teacher's words as a deceptive way of hiding the truth.
But on top of this misunderstanding, Nonoa's parents miraculously
drew the correct answer at this time.
"Nonoa. Being smart is something to be proud of... but it's also
important to fit in with others, you know? Look, if you go against everyone
and make things difficult, won't it be troublesome?"
"But if you really can't understand what the teacher says, you can tell
Mom or Dad, okay? We'll talk to the teacher on your behalf."
These words, spoken with genuine concern for their daughter's wellbeing, struck a chord deep in Nonoa's heart.
At this moment, her parents became the only adults in her life that
she could trust. She decided to obey her parents in order to fit in and avoid
trouble. That absolute rule became the one and only law that bound Nonoa
and protected her.
And now, Nonoa found herself in a particular situation.
In front of the approaching man with a smirk on his face, she
questioned her own law. Behind the man, Rea was being held by another
man. Hikaru was crouched down, clutching his abdomen. Hikaru, who had
tried to help Rea, had been beaten down. Witnessing this scene... Nonoa
felt her heart pounding strongly, a sensation she hadn't felt in a long time.
(Ah, this feels good...)
Her heart stirred. Heat surged through her body. The sense of her
own will, always overlooking the world, merging with her body. The
exhilaration of becoming human.
(I'd like to immerse myself in this sensation more... but this is
getting quite troublesome.)
Staring at the obstacle in front of her, Nonoa thought. What should
she do now in this place? She looked back at the many rules her parents
have given her up until now.
"Be nice to your brother and sister."
"Treat your friends well."
"Don't make the first move."
"Don't do anything dangerous."
"If you are in danger, run away first. If you can't do that, call for help."
"If you get involved with a strange person............"
Nonoa examined these rules in her mind and thought about what she
should and not do in this situation. Then she came to a conclusion.
"Oh come on, seriously? This one is really cute too──"
"Somebody──!! Help──!!"
"!?"
Nonoa screamed with all her might right in front of the man who
approached her with a vile smile on his face. The man cowered at the
sudden scream. No, the true reason he froze was because he couldn't see
any trace of fear in the eyes of the girl before him.
Nonoa was not afraid of anything, even though she was calling out
for help at the top of her voice. After she finished screaming, her eyes were
as lifeless as glass marbles, as if she were simply fulfilling her duty. This
eerie sight, combined with her beautiful and perfect appearance, exuded an
inhuman and unsettling aura.
"What!"
The man took a step backward in the face of the unknown entity.
Looking up at his face with a blank expression, Nonoa, who had kept her
word, decided to quickly eliminate the obstacle in front of her.
(For now, let's just blind him.)
In a purely rational manner, without any hesitation.
Nonoa thrusted her fingers toward the man's eyes.
"Whoa!"
The man reflexively recoiled and turned his face away, so she didn't
hit her target. However, her intention was clearly conveyed.
(Wha-what just happened? What did she do to me just now!?)
The man asked himself inwardly, but he knew the answer. His
common sense just didn't want to admit it.
His eyes had been targeted. It was a forbidden move, avoided even
in combat sports or unrestricted brawls. He had been subjected to an eye
gouge. The girl in front of him, who had attempted it, had a faint look of
suspicion and disappointment, as if she had missed a shot in football or
something.
"Hn!"
A terrible fear ran down his spine, and he let out a spasmodic cry
without realizing it.
It was a first-time experience even for a man accustomed to using
violence and being subjected to violence. It was a violent act devoid of
murderous intent, anger, or pleasure, but one that suddenly assaulted him
with extreme brutality. The man felt genuine fear toward the presence that
had calmly carried out such an act.
"Ugh, gaaah!"
That's why, to him, it was an emergency evacuation in the form of
violence. He couldn't allow this presence in front of him. He had to eliminate
whatever this something was, taking the form of a beautiful girl, right away.
Driven by such madness, he swung his fist... but due to the sudden
retreat of his target, it simply cut through the air. And with a wide opening
created, the man's face became vulnerable.
"Gah!"
A fist punched him squarely in the face, and the man's
consciousness was blacked out by the blow.
"Oh, Kuzecchi!"
"You... at least try to dodge, will ya?"
Pulling Nonoa from behind and delivering a counter punch to the
man's face, Masachika sighed with exasperation. Inadvertently, he found
himself in a position where he was hugging her shoulders from behind, but
Masachika showed no signs of embarrassment on his face, and Nonoa's
expressionless face remained without any expression. Well, if you looked
closely, there was a slight flicker of emotion in her eyes... but it was fleeting.
Suddenly, Nonoa twisted her expression into a grimace, burying her face in
Masachika's shoulder.
"Th-thank you.... I was scared......."
(Ugh!)
Suddenly, Nonoa acted as if she were a frail maiden frightened of
violence, and Masachika tightened his facial muscles to prevent any
expression of annoyance. Right here and now, Masachika was the only one
who was aware of Nonoa's act . The students who were hanging around her
also looked at her with satisfaction and fondness for Nonoa's behavior.
And... the crony friends of Nonoa who had heard her cries rushed to the
site.
"What? Wh-who are you guys?"
"What? What about you? What were you trying to do to Nonoa?"
"I'm gonna kill you."
Two large boys appeared, sprinkling their murderous intent as much
as they could, and hunted down the rest of the delinquents like the fiends
they were. Masachika, still holding Nonoa in his arms, watched the scene
with a look of surprise on his face.
Masachika himself didn't know much about those two. However, he
knew that they fanatically worshiped Nonoa and carried out various deeds
that couldn't be made public, eliminating any obstacles in her way. They
were publicly known as modest fans who admired Nonoa from afar, but in
reality, they were fanatical believers who buried anyone who posed a threat
to Nonoa in darkness.
(I guess I can leave that one to them... or rather, should I be careful
not to overdo it?)
Deciding that this was the case, Masachika rushed over to Hikaru,
who finally raised his upper body.
"Hey, Hikaru, are you okay?"
"Umm, yeah... I've calmed down now, I'm fine."
Hikaru tried to stand up slowly while holding his stomach, but... it
seemed like his legs couldn't support him, causing him to wobble a little.
"Hold on."
Masachika quickly grabbed Hikaru's right arm to support him. But at
the same time, there was someone... supporting, or rather embracing,
Hikaru's left arm.
"Um, thank you so much for rescuing me."
"Oh, uh... it's nothing."
Clinging to Hikaru's left arm and pressing her body against him with
sparkling eyes was the girl who had initially been harassed by the
delinquents.
"Um, are you... perhaps, Noanoa's...?"
"Yes! My name is Rea Miyamae, I'm her little sister! Oh, this is my
younger brother, Leo."
Saying so, Rea rudely pointed to a slightly defiant-looking boy with a
swollen cheek who stood there with a sulking expression.
"Are you okay? Did they hit you?"
"No, it's nothing serious."
Despite Masachika's concern, Leo simply turned away in annoyance.
After a moment of looking at it as if to say, "You little
brat," Rea then quickly put on a smile and looked up at Hikaru with upturned
eyes.
"What's your name, onii-san?"
"Oh, uh... It's Hikaru Kiyomiya."
"Hikaru... that's a nice name! Can I call you Hikaru-san?"
Saying that, the girl tilted her head slightly. Despite her somewhat
calculated mannerisms, she was undeniably cute, being Nonoa's sister after
all. However...
"Oh, haha......."
To Hikaru, she was honestly the type he was extremely
uncomfortable with. Hikaru forced a wry smile and gave an ambiguous
answer. But Rea didn't pay any mind to it.
"Then, I'll call you that, okay? Thank you for helping me, Hikaru-san."
"No, actually I couldn't do anything about it......"
"That's not true! If it weren't for you, I wonder what would have
happened to me......"
Rea put her hand over her mouth and lowered her gaze for a
moment, her eyes filling with tears. It was a very protective gesture, but
Hikaru's reaction was indifferent.
"Well, I'm just glad nothing happened... Well, I shouldn't say 'nothing
happened.'"
"Hmmm, you're very kind, Hikaru-san. But I'm more worried about
Hikaru's... stomach, are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine."
Masachika's gaze sharpened at the exchange and he asked.
"Did they beat you up? Or did they kick you?"
"I think they hit me."
"Who did?"
"Well.... he's lying over there."
Following Hikaru's gaze, Masachika saw a man lying flat on his back.
"Heh......."
Saying this in a cold voice, Masachika yielded and headed toward
the man. Hikaru, driven by a sense of urgency, gripped his wrist with a jolt.
"Hey, what are you planning to do?"
"Just wait. I'll wake him up and make him kneel before you."
"No, no, it's already enough. He's already bleeding from his nose like
crazy... and wait, isn't his front tooth broken?"
"That was self-defense, so no harm done."
"No, seriously, it's already enough!"
Stopped again with great force, Masachika looked at the fallen man,
scoffed, and then turned back to Hikaru.
"Well then, just to be safe, should we go to the infirmary?"
"Huh? Oh, no, I'm fine."
"No, it's not okay. If there's any damage to your bones or organs, it
could be dangerous, right?"
"That's right! I'll accompany you too, so let's go together!"
Hikaru made a face that seemed to say he'd rather be spared from
that, but unfortunately, Masachika was pressed for time. If he considered
that there might be more people like these delinquents, he couldn't stay
here indefinitely.
"Well then, Rea? Can I leave it to you?"
"Huh, wait a sec─"
"Yes! Come on, Leo, come with us too."
"I don't really─"
Leo, wearing a sour expression, was interrupted by Nonoa's calm
words.
"No, your mouth is cut, right?"
"Hey, don't treat me like a kid, Neechan!"
"I'm not treating you like a child, I'm treating you like a little brother."
"That's the same damn thing!"
Nonoa tried to squeeze her brother's cheek, but her hand was
swatted away. Masachika approached and whispered softly into Nonoa's
ear.
"(After Hikaru's treatment is done, please go back to the stage. Also,
can I leave dealing with those guys to your friends?)"
"(Roger~)"
It was a curt, unenthusiastic reply. For the moment, Masachika was
reassured by her words.
"(I'm counting on you.)"
Expressing his gratitude, Masachika began to move in order to fulfill
his promise with Alisa.
◇
At the same time, another group of delinquents showed up at the
maid café run by the first-year D and F classes.
"Kya!"
"Hey, hey, "Kya!"? Are young ladies supposed to have such refined
screams?"
"P-Please stop......"
"Well, it's just a little slap on the butt. Come on, maid, give us some
service."
The female students couldn't say anything in response to their
behavior, who seemed to mistake this place for a hostess club or
something. The absence of Sayaka and Nonoa, who were at the live
performance, was significant. After all, Seirei Gakuen was a school for the
affluent. Many of the students had been raised with care, far removed from
any rough activities. They had never interacted with people who displayed
such rudeness or rather, actively displayed it.
"Heh, well, I thought it would be boring to go to a rich school festival,
but it's more fun than I thought it would be."
"Yeah. Real high-class ladies are different, huh? They're nothing like
our dirty girls."
"Thank you for inviting me! Gonda-san!"
"Oh. You should be very grateful to me."
A large man with thin eyebrows smiled broadly. This man, called
Gonda by his friends, was the leader of the group.
To tell the truth, he himself had no connection to Seirei Gakuen. He
was a delinquent who attended a public high school eight stations away
from the school, which was famous for being rough around the edges. His
only knowledge of Seirei Gakuen was that it is a school for smart and
wealthy people. Why did he come to such a festival with his friends? It was
because of an envelope from an unknown sender that arrived at his
doorstep two weeks ago.
Inside the envelope were ten invitation tickets and a letter. The letter
contained a request to "mess up the Seirei Gakuen Festival," as well as
detailed instructions on how and when he could enter the festival without
getting caught by security, how he could escape after causing trouble, how
he would be paid, and so on. Gonda was skeptical at first, but when he
checked the locker at the station which was stated in the letter and found
cash in it, he was convinced the letter was true.
"Seriously, we're getting treated?!"
"Yeah, I had some unexpected temporary income the other day."
"Wow, Gonda-san, you're so generous!"
However, Gonda had no intention of blindly following the instructions
and causing a major rampage. Although the letter stated that there would be
no consequences for whatever they did, he wasn't foolish enough to take it
at face value. Therefore, Gonda had no plans to do anything that would
involve the police. At most, he would use this advance payment to enjoy
himself as he pleased. The reward, if received, would be just a bonus... that
was his mindset.
(But... it's not as bad as I thought.)
The surrounding girls, who seemed to have a refined upbringing,
cautiously observed them. They had naturally beautiful, unadorned skin and
clean black hair that had never been dyed. Even though they were high
school students like themselves, they were completely different creatures
from the girls at their own school. Surely, the world they lived in was
fundamentally different from Gonda and his friends, who didn't even have
the money to attend a private school, let alone a cram school.
These young ladies, who wouldn't even be able to have an equal
conversation with them under normal circumstances, were now trying to
gauge their reactions. For Gonda, it was incredibly delightful. It satisfied his
desire for dominance, accompanied by an overwhelming sense of
omnipotence that was different from making underclassmen obey him at
school.
"Hey! How long are you guys going to stay here?"
But then someone interrupted him. Unlike the other students, a
female student with dyed hair and makeup was staring at them with her
hands on her hips. Unbeknownst to them, she was one of Nonoa's cronies,
and she was determined not to allow any further brutality in her queen's
absence.
"It looks like you've been sexually harassing my girls a lot. Forget the
bill, get the hell out of here!"
"Hah?"
In response to the girl's scolding, one of the delinquents raised his
eyebrow and stood up. However,
"Hey."
Gonda, with a glare, made the man sit down and turned to the female
student with a fake smile on his face.
"I'm sorry, I'm a bit ill-mannered. At my place, it's not even sexual
harassment to touch someone's buttocks. I'll give you my order, so please
give me a break."
The female student blinked as if she had just been caught off guard
by this unexpectedly unsolicited offer. But she immediately wrinkled her
brow and rejected the offer.
"Hey, hey, didn't I say we'll pay? Besides, who's bothered by us
being here? Huh?"
Saying so, Gonda looked around, but all the other customers had
already left. It was obvious that the cause was Gonda and his friends, more
so than anything else.
"It's because of you that the other customers can't get in!
"That's a problem. Hey, we'll compensate for that too, right?"
"Oh well. I'll have a Coke then!"
"Uh, I'll have a beer."
"You idiot, that's not on the menu."
The students laughed foolishly. After that, Gonda dutifully avoided
the female student's demands, but... just as the female student was about
to lose her patience, the classroom door swung open.
"That's enough!"
Entering while spouting lines like a live action hero was a crossdressing beauty with honey coloured hair in a ringlet roll hairstyle.
"S-Sumire-senpai!"
While the female maids had relieved expressions and Gonda and the
others were taken aback by her appearance, Sumire looked down at Gonda
and the others with dignity and said proudly:
"We won't resolve anything through discussion. Let us calmly resort
to violence!"
"Calmly resort to violence?"
Gonda and the others were stunned by this brazen remark, which
bore no resemblance to her ladylike appearance.
"Suppress them☆, desuwa!"
With these words as a cue, the five members of the Public Discipline
Committee stormed into the classroom.
"W-Wait! We weren't causing any trouble or anything!"
"T-That's not what you said!"
"Using weapons is unfair!"
It took less than a minute for Gonda and his friends to be mercilessly
overwhelmed, without any room for argument or resistance.
◇
"Kujou-senpai! We have another report of trouble from a student!"
"Where is it?"
"Well, three... men were forcibly picking up two female students
near the gym."
"Then it's the same thing as before. Chairman-san, let's send security
guards there."
"Oh? Excuse me, but it seems that the issue has already been
resolved. One of the visitors who happened to be present at the scene
managed to restrain the troublemakers..."
"A visitor? Were they injured?"
"No, it seems not. I couldn't get all the details, but when their ticket
was checked, it turned out they might be a relative of Sarashinasenpai......"
"Oh, Chisaki-chan's......"
Reports of troubles with unwanted guests and violent incidents kept
coming in one after another. The committee members, who had not
anticipated such a situation at all, were completely shaken up. The only
reason they were still able to respond to the situation was because the three
of them were calmly giving instructions to the others.
"Chairman-san! There was a man who interrupted the stage in the
gym!"
"Calm down, there should be some teachers in the gymnasium. But
more importantly, have you closed the school gates yet? And are we ready
for the school-wide announcement?"
"The closure seems to be complete now! I have Inoue at the school
gate explaining the situation to visitors."
"Alright, then──"
"Excuse me!"
Then, Touya and Chisaki opened the door to the conference room.
The unexpected appearance of these two people caused both surprise and
relief to spread among the people in the room.
"Touya... What happened to the Raikokai?"
"I asked the bodyguards who were escorting them to bring them
outside and have them wait in the Student Council room. In this situation,
there's no need for them to be guided or anything."
"I see......"
After hearing Touya's words, the committee Chairman showed a
slightly worried expression, then nodded and issued further instructions.
"Understood. Touya, please assist here. Sarashina, you...."
"I know. We just have to crush all the troublemakers, right?"
"Don't overdo it, okay? And also, please don't involve anyone who is
not involved. We are in the process of checking the surveillance cameras,
and it seems that the paper material used for the invitations held by the
intruders is different from the real thing, so if you see someone suspicious,
you should first──"
"Roger that. But I can't guarantee that I won't overdo it. I... will
never forgive them for messing up the school festival that we worked so
hard to put together."
As they watched her back, half reassuring, half worried that she
might overdo it, a bespectacled member suddenly stood up.
"I'm going to the site, too."
"Kaji?"
"Kensaki-kun is also here, and I want to talk to the teachers a little
about the security situation."
Upon hearing his words, the chairwoman thought, "Indeed, it might
be awkward to have Touya and Kaji work together," and nodded.
"Understood."
"Chairman-san! Class 1-D has been taken care of!"
"Oh, I see. Understood."
The sudden outbreak of multiple troubling events were gradually
being brought under control, thanks to the swift response of the executive
committee and disciplinary committee.
◇
"Bullshit."
Yuki muttered as she looked at the middle-aged man she had
subdued in the hallway. He had been ranting and causing a scene, saying
things like, "You ruined my life" and "You destroyed my company," but it
made no sense. She noticed the invitation ticket he had and spoke under
her breath.
"With an invitation like this, you shouldn't be able to enter the
school......."
The names in the inviter's column were meant to be checked at the
school gate by a member of the public morals committee. If they used the
name of a fictitious student, they would have been denied entry at that point.
"Ojou-chan, where should I take this guy?"
"Oh, I'm sorry. To the disciplinary committee room... Do you know
where it is?"
"Don't worry. I'm a graduate of this school."
"In that case, may I ask you to handle it?"
"Yeah, all right."
Leaving the man in the custody of a nearby adult, Yuki looked back
at Ayano and shrugged her shoulders.
"It seems that in addition to the person who distributed the counterfeit
invitations, there was someone who helped break in from the inside. It's
possible they are the same person, though......."
"Is that so?"
"...Put your weapons away for now. It's not something you want
people to see too much of."
"Oh, excuse me......."
Upon Yuki's words, Ayano hid the sharp object she used to subdue
the man in her sleeve. Then, unexpectedly, she muttered something to
herself.
"...The student council room."
"Hm?"
"If it's Masachika-sama, I believe he would head to the Student
Council room."
At Ayano's words, Yuki raised her eyebrows and thought for a few
seconds...
"...I see. The target is the Raikokai, huh?"
Yuki said to herself and headed for the student council room with
Ayano.
◇
In the student council chambers, a school-wide disturbance took
place as the members of the Raikokai were visiting. It was a scandalous
incident for which, if one were a working professional, the issue of
responsibility for the supervisory staff would be unavoidable. However, the
members of the Raikokai present in that room showed no signs of
discomfort.... or so it seemed.
"Now... I wonder how they intend to settle the matter?"
"Rather than that, I wonder who caused this turmoil? I'm assuming
they are trying to target the current student council.... or perhaps maybe
targeting the former president and vice-president?"
No, on the contrary, they were even rather enjoying this commotion.
Even the eyes looking down at the schoolyard where the commotion was
taking place were more curious than concerned. Their demeanor was truly
that of spectators from a higher vantage point.
Of course, if the commotion really turned into a disturbance that
resulted in a string of injuries, they would mobilize their bodyguards here to
bring the situation under control. However, at this stage, the members of the
Raikokai were more interested in observing the response from the
coordinating members of the student body. For them, it was not unusual for
this level of commotion to occur during an election campaign.
"With the former student council president serving as the executive
committee chair and the current student council overseeing the school
festival itself, it was customary for those who aimed to overthrow the current
student council to target this event. That was the norm back then during our
time."
"The only way to qualify for the Raikokai was to survive and succeed
in coordinating the school festival... But I suppose times have
changed......"
"Even so, it's still pathetic.... Excuse me. I mean no disrespect to
Suou-san's granddaughter."
"It doesn't matter. The fact remains that my granddaughter failed to
prevent this situation."
Back when they were students, corporal punishment by teachers was
commonplace in schools across the country. Seirei Gakuen served as a
distinguished social gathering place for its students, and the election
campaigns were legitimate factional disputes where the students
represented their respective families.
The Raikokai, which was originally just a group of influential alumni,
introduced the election system about 70 years ago in order to centralize
power and make it more elite. Since then, the students of the school have
been vying for just two seats, using power, financial resources, and
sometimes even violence. And in the election campaign, where everything
was at stake, it was not unusual to see people injured or even expelled from
school.
But that was why the positions of student body President and Vice
President were so special. Winning such factional battles and taking such
positions was synonymous with becoming the rulers of the generation. And
the organization where such rulers gathered was today's Raikokai. They
have the power to move Japan without exaggeration. With their
connections, there was nothing they couldn't do in Japan. That is why, from
their point of view... the current generation's election
campaign seemed utterly feeble.
The advancement of social media and the strengthening of
compliance were pressing forces of the era, causing the previously fierce
election battles to fade away. While the ruthless screening system, such as
debates and greetings by student council members, remained unchanged,
such reality had transformed into a popularity contest among the students.
They didn't respect the current Student Council President and VicePresident, who were chosen in such an election campaign. Moreover, deep
down, they didn't even acknowledge them as fellow members of the
Raikokai.
"But it seems that there is a candidate pair that is a little interesting
this year, isn't there? I heard that if they are to be elected, they plan to
incorporate the opposing candidate into the student council to work
alongside them."
To dispel the slightly awkward atmosphere, one of the men raised his
voice and Gensei's eyebrows twitched. The other man, however, did not
seem to notice and responded in a curious manner.
"Oh, including the opposing candidate as well? Hmm, quite
intriguing.... It seems that candidate pairing understands the essence of an
election campaign."
What they mean by the essence of an election campaign was
networking. To make connections that would be useful to them in the future,
form factions, and when they eventually achieve electoral victory, give their
faction members positions on the board of directors. In this way, they control
the students of the school and the people of their generation. That was the
election campaign for them.
"That would give me a little hope for next term's election
campaign.... It seems we have some other students with a bone to pick
who can cause such a ruckus."
"Hmmm, so far, it looks like things are going exactly as that someone
wants them to...... Well, let's see what happens now, shall we?"
But there was one easy way to get away with it.
Knowing this, they waited. They awaited the moment the doors of the
student council room would open once again.
◇
"Oh......."
"Ara."
Masachika stopped for a moment when he saw Yuki and Ayano, who
appeared from just the opposite side of the hallway in front of the student
council chambers. But as they approached, Masachika also walked silently.
In front of the student council room, the opposing candidates faced off.
"......"
The two parties stood on either side of the door to the student council
chambers, and at about the same time, Masachika and Yuki looked at each
other silently for a few seconds before turning their attention to the two men
who appeared to be the Raikokai's bodyguards.
"Excuse me, I am Masachika Kuze, one of the Student Council's
General Affairs officers. I have been instructed by President Kensaki to
come here to check on the Raikokai."
"Likewise, I'm Yuki Suou, Student Council Public Relations.
"I am Ayano Kimishima, Student Council General Affairs."
All three of them introduced themselves and showed their student ID
cards.
"Has anyone else come here before us? While we appreciate the
presence of the bodyguards ensuring safety, it is crucial that the
whereabouts of the Raikokai members are not known to suspicious
individuals."
In response to Masachika's question, the two bodyguards looked at
each other for a moment before answering shortly.
"No, no one else had arrived before."
"I see... Thank you."
Masachika and Yuki were internally relieved to hear these words.
They had made it in time.
"Now what do we do? Masachika-kun."
"......"
A short distance away from the student council room, Yuki asked
Masachika. She looked at her brother's eyes and let out a small wry smile.
"In that case, let's keep an eye on each person who arrives.
Regardless of who they are, let's hold no grudges."
"Ah."
After a small nod,
Masachika spun around on his heel. Feeling the presence of Ayano at his
back, Masachika turned the corner of the corridor and leaned his back
against the wall.
After a few minutes of waiting, a figure appeared at the other end of
the corridor. Masachika stood in the middle of the corridor and greeted the
person with a faint smile on his face.
"Yo, Kiryuin. What brings you here to such a place?"
"Ah Kuze. I could ask you the same thing, what are you doing here?"
In response to Masachika's unfriendly smile, Yusho answered with a
faint smirk of his own.
◇
"...it you, was it?"
On the other hand, as Yuki headed in the opposite direction from
Masachika, another male student appeared before her.
Looking up at Yuki, who was standing in front of the staircase, the
student narrowed his eyes behind his glasses. Meeting his gaze, Yuki spoke
calmly.
"That's a shame, President-san."
The boy chuckled a little at this call.
"I'm not the President anymore... Suou-san.
"That's right... Kaji, Chairman of the Disciplinary Committee."
The 67th and 68th student body Presidents of Seirei Gakuen Junior
High School faced each other across the stairs.
Status de energia semanal
-- Ranking de
Poder 
-- Pedra de
Poder