บท 23: Chapter 20: First Contact
On the very same day, the clock struck 3:30 PM.
A man with slicked-back silver hair, so shiny it seemed like every strand glowed its own, sat calmly. He took off his round glasses and stared at them. His every move was quiet as tranquil as a still lake.
"Gulp."
Chika gulping, trying to keep her composure. Shirogane Miyuki, the boy beside her, was sweating profusely. Kaguya, on the other hand, remained composed. It wasn't like the teacher was giving them an intimidating glare. Minoru was being his usual self— he was calm asf.
"Alright, wait for me in the guidance room."
"Y-Yes."
Miyuki hurriedly replied, and they bowed before heading to the room.
"Man, I thought the new teacher would be gentle compared to him. How can I put it? He's scary."
Miyuki didn't expect it, clearly rattled as it was his first time experiencing this.
"I know. Hmm~ But I don't think he's just that. He's a mysterious person..."
Chika rubbed her jaw, playing the role of a detective in her mind. She began speculating that Minoru might have a different life before becoming a teacher here...
"O-Oh, I see."
Miyuki was familiar with Chika's personality. He peeked over at Kaguya, worried about how this young teacher would handle her.
---
(Minoru's POV)
Walking at a cool pace, I headed toward the guidance room. It was damn time for me to initiate contact with my target, Shinomiya Kaguya. I'd already gone through quite a bit of trouble to get a read on her.
Kaguya exuded an icy, arrogant, and prideful that kept everyone, students, and teachers alike, at a distance. When she joined the student council, everything flipped. So, expect her to still be hissing at me, totally on high alert.
She had just a handful of friends, and her BFF was part of the student council crew, especially that dude named Shirogane Miyuki. No, I ain't scheming to blackmail her or nothin'.
Rumors were flying among students and teachers that these two were close and had feelings for each other.
I heard stories from other teachers about how she tamed Swan and humiliated a math teacher who tried to outsmart her in class. That guy ended up resigning last semester.
I also heard that Kaguya was the one responsible for keeping Swan away from Shirogane Miyuki. She likely thought that, as the fresh head of school affairs, I was just another shithead.
I had to watch my step.
This school's era had a lot of kids from influential families.
That's also the reason why other teachers were hesitant to take up the head of school affairs position.
As for what kind of teacher I would become, I had to find a balance. I couldn't be a pushover, showing excessive sympathy and care, as it would tarnish the image of the head of school affairs. Plus, it would be suspicious if I got too close to Kaguya.
So, I couldn't afford to be a fuckin' beta.
Meanwhile, even though they've got high expectations for me, the CEO and principal still have doubts about my abilities. And let's not forget Chabashira Sae, who's got her tit— ahem! eyes on me, ready to fuck any mistakes I make.
Fuck, I can't stand a bitch like her.
Anyway, it's simple really. I'll just be myself.
No need to put on an act and risk losing my dignity as an educator. I won't turn into an 'always strict and scary teacher.'
Instead, I'll take a neutral stance. I won't criticize students for minor slip-ups, but I'll still remind them and give them a chance to correct their mistakes.
And I certainly wasn't going to be a simp-route.
Just the thought of it made me want to puke. Those kinds of 'simps' only faced rejection from someone like Shinomiya Kaguya, she would suspect ulterior motives in a second.
So, no to beta-simp.
I slid the door open, revealing the three of them sitting on the sofa. I walked in calmly, closing the door behind me.
---
Inside the student guidance room, three students squeezed onto a sofa, and across from them sat Yanagi Minoru. All eyes were fixed on the new teacher before them.
Underneath his black suit, Yanagi had a muscular build, snugly fitted into his sharp-looking suit. His piercing red eyes were half-open but didn't waver, chiseled jawline and silver hair neatly combed back.
'Let's stay calm, like always...'
'A-Ah, I'm so nervous!!!'
Miyuki and Chika glanced at Minoru, sharing the same uneasiness. Kaguya, on the other hand, shot them both a quizzical look. Meanwhile, the teacher himself had his own concerns, it was his wounded ass.
After they introduced themselves, Minoru got straight to the point.
"So, what did you want to consult about?"
He locked his gaze onto them, and his deep voice sent a chill down their spines.
'Let's not rush things and keep it natural.'
He wanted this conversation to end asap, satisfied that he had made initial contact with them.
Kaguya was intrigued by the situation.
'Hmmm~ President seems unable to talk to him, huh? What can I do to get him to open up? Anyway, it's interesting to think that the new teacher I met back then, temporarily filling in for Swan-sensei. Hm, should I test him?'
Kaguya wondered as she examined his background. Though Minoru was only three years older than her, his achievements were impressive. Yet, she couldn't find any information on why Teresa seemed to know him.
'There's no way she just likes him for a silly reason, like his looks... huh? Well...'
Kaguya stole glances at him while maintaining her composure.
'Not bad...'
She admitted, appreciating Minoru's sharp, unyielding eyes. But that didn't mean anything for her.
"Yanagi-sensei, we want to nominate a new student for the student council treasurer position."
Miyuki handed him a sheet. Minoru read the name and glanced back at them.
"Why did you choose a student who isn't even enrolled yet?"
The student council wanted to include Ishigami Yu, but he hadn't officially joined the school yet. Due to unresolved issues from his middle school days, Swan had mentioned that he was contemplating rejecting him, despite him being from Shuchi'in Middle School.
'The school has already conducted enrollment tests, and I was the one who graded the math entrance test.'
Minoru recalled his first day on the job.
'And, Ishigami Yu's math score ranked second, right after this year's number one freshman. Maybe that's why? Hm, no? As I'd prepared beforehand, my investigation also cleared Ishigami Yu of those rumors. It seems their motivation is just a strong sense of justice. Well, let's see how this plays out.'
"The truth is. We're worried that Ishigami Yu won't get accepted into this school because that rumor about him wasn't true. So, we'd like to help Sensei find the truth."
Miyuki's concern etched across his face.
But there was no change in Minoru's expression, not even a flicker.
Maybe he didn't know a shit about Ishigami Yu?
After all, this guy was pretty new around here.
"Hoh, I see..."
The three of them reminded him of those main characters who throw themselves into all sorts of messes to solve a big mystery. Minoru finally let his poker face slip, his lips curving upward as he couldn't help but find their act amusing.
They felt a glimmer of hope, but...
"But, why should I listen to you...?"
Huh? They thought he was going to give them the green light.
Miyuki felt his back starting to sweat as Minoru locked his gaze on him.
'Come on, come on! think, Miyuki!'
Chika silently urged him.
"W-We have the list of student candidates, Sensei. Ishigami Yu isn't on it, and his rank should be somewhere in the middle, not outside of the top 160 students. Yet..."
Of course, Minoru was already aware of that as he smiled.
"Oh...! Don't worry about that as I'm well aware of the situation."
Minoru seemed to be saying, 'I'm the one who determines their grades. How the hell wouldn't I be aware?' It was as if they were worried he might be biased or incapable of uncovering the truth behind the rumor.
Miyuki was getting anxious, but Minoru continued speaking.
"If you were trying to pressure me, it's really not necessary. Leave the matter of the students to me. You three can just—"
"Sensei, I don't believe that."
Miyuki and Chika turned to Kaguya, whose expression had turned ice-cold as she stared at Minoru. The already quiet room seemed even quieter as if a sudden blizzard had frozen it over. But it wasn't just Kaguya, Minoru also dropped his smile and narrowed his eyes at her.
"Isn't it a bit harsh to accuse us of trying to pressure Yanagi-sensei?"
Kaguya's question held no friendly tone. She didn't appreciate Minoru trying to brush aside their well-intentioned offer, to the point where she was ready to assert herself as Shinomiya and shut him the hell up.
'Crap, she cut me off just as I was about to explain, just as I feared. Anyway, if I back down and listen to her just because she's Shinomiya, I might as well dig my own grave. The vice-principal would laugh at me, and that means it's goodbye. Dammit, should I just follow Snape's route? I get that they still doubt me because the previous teacher was a dick. But that's just shitty prejudice—no, I know that I'm also an undercover teacher here...'
In other words, he'd lose his job as the head of school affairs the moment rumors started circulating that he gave in to a mere student and questioned his capability as he also couldn't be foolish enough to go soft just to approach her.
"I see..."
Minoru locked eyes with Kaguya, silently asking, 'Is this it? Really?'
"Expected from our celebrity, not even letting me finish my sentence. Well..."
Kaguya realized her mistake at his words, but her personality wouldn't allow her to back down to a young teacher like him. Plus, his sarcasm was getting on her nerves.
"...I conclude that you three won't be satisfied if I just give you my word. Then let me ask you this: Have you proven Ishigami Yu's innocence? How did you gather all the evidence when there's a Welcome Ceremony that should be our student council's priority?"
His gaze shifted to Chika as she shrugged and looked down at her lap. Minoru had guessed that she was likely the one who brought up this issue to Miyuki and Kaguya.
'Fujiwara Chika is from a family with a politician background. More importantly, her childish and eccentric nature is the reason behind this. She's pushing for this so-called investigation out of a sense of justice or simply because she enjoys playing detective...'
"Uh, well, um... we don't have proof yet because w-w-w-we haven't investigated this case. So..."
Chika mumbled her response, feeling responsible for this situation, thinking they could easily find evidence to allow the student council to investigate.
"Fujiwara, if students want to solve this, it could be argued that I'm not doing my job properly as the teacher by letting the students take responsibility instead. Nevertheless, I do acknowledge and will make a note of the fact that the students here have a solid sense of justice. Let's hope it's not mixed with any other... impure intentions. As Shinomiya said, that would 'sound harsh', wouldn't it?"
"Ugh..."
Chika gave a wry smile, admitting her desire to play detective, mostly motivated by the fun of playing the role.
Miyuki flinched as Minoru glanced at him. He, too, wanted to solve this to get Kaguya's attention, despite his typical main character-like kind personality.
Meanwhile, Kaguya was just interested in Miyuki's attempts.
"Then what about you sensei?"
In simpler terms, Kaguya was subtly hinting that he's just a rookie teacher, likely bluffing about knowing it all.
"If you're still that stubborn," Minoru rose from the sofa, "Wait here." He walked out of the room.
-Shhhhh!
With a sense of anticipation, they heard the door slide open again as Minoru returned with a file in hand. Silently, he placed it on the table between them and took a seat.
"Read it."
His cold, confident voice directed at Shinomiya Kaguya conveyed that she had made a grave mistake by challenging his authority as an educator. The three of them turned their attention to the file named "Ishigami Yu."
'What's this uneasy feeling of defeat?'
Kaguya couldn't shake off the sensation as Minoru's intense gaze remained fixed on her.
---
Sup!
Sorry, I've had some real-life stuff going on.
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