Implication

Class A hummed to life with subtle chatter, conversation and chuckles filling the air, my eyes flickering from one individual to another, Ai Morishita sat in silence, her gaze staring at her book.

Our homeroom teacher ,Tomonari Mashima came in with composure in his posture. "Good morning class, I am here for a brief announcement..." He paused, his eyes reading the room, "Summer vacation, so advice to make the most of it and have a stress free time."

The class remained calm, all having an expression of relief on their face, Mashima straighten up as he spoke. " This is a brief vacation so take your time..."

With that he exited the room, all students went on whisper on what activity they'll engage with in this upcoming vacation, this is a good opportunity to set up further connections, although I've done that now, the more the merrier.

I observed the room, my eyes picking up some distinct expression from different individuals.

Sakayanagi smiling in the back seat for actually no reason, Katsuragi having a conversation with Yahiko. I looked up towrds the ceiling my thoughts drifting to the scene in the Karaokes lounge, Lloyd has made an unnecessary variable in our mission.

Good thing I've made countermeasures, what could that account for? Well, why don't I demonstrate...

Sakayanagi stood up from her seat, making her way towards my seat, her followers doing the same in a synced manner.

Drawing the attention of other students to her as she walks

I have mapped out the relationships of each of her followers, Masumi Kamuro, Masayoshi Hashimoto and Hayato Kito.

Sakayanagi has the most influence in this class, probably with the most potential individuals in the first year, her faction has all aspects of strength, such as Hashimoto's social engineering and ability to gather information, Masumi Kamuro is more of personal assistance to Sakayanagi although she also branches of to other areas, such as a massager.

They all came before me, with an air of a casual conversation about to blow by, Hayato's kept a considerable distance from the group, and from his physique one could tell that he's physically peaked, although his appearance might make people weary of him, Arisu understood this aspect and from the way he trails her from sometime now, I could infer that he has joined her faction, I came to this to this conclusion due to him not actually stalking her but the way his eyes scanned the area as if taking notes of every glance that was thrown to the class princess.

With this conclusion, we don't need Sakayanagi to tell us that he was her henchmen or eyes at her back.

"How are you Sienna? Everyone's been talking about they're future activities for the vacation, any plans on your part?" Sakayanagi said in calm tone, enthusiasm underneath her voice.

"Not much really, I do have some stuff I could look forward to."

"Which is?" Skayanagi question hurriedly.

"... maybe visiting the school swimming pool?" I threw the question back at her, cause in reality, there's nothing I'd want to do except from a certain task...

"Swimming pool to cool off? That's nice, unfortunately I won't be coming due to my condition, I may watch on the sidelines though."

I shifted my gaze towards Hashimoto who was staring at me, "There anything on your mind Hashimoto, I'll have you know I'm not looking forward to a relationship."

He snapped from his earlier trance, his eyes shifted from my direction, "What? Don't be ridiculous, I have no such intentions."

"Is that right? By the way Sakayanagi, I was looking forward to chatting with you on that day, I have some speculation to share with you." An offer, I know for a fact that Arisu does not build relationships for fun but rather for something in return, a transactional term.

She had her eye sharp for a second, reading my expression on my face that gave away no underlying hint. "Well, you havw pique my interest Sienna, what is it you want to discuss with me, and why not now?"

I waved off her suspicion with an air of familiarity. "Nothing too serious, probably boring if I tried laying it right here."

"Are you saying am boring, Sienna? Am not boring am I?"

"No, just you're probably the only individual that could make the most sense out of it"

She held her hand under her chin, a thought being visible on her face. "Well, I suppose I can make time for that, as of now, I'll be heading to the library, so see you later Sienna."

Sakayanagi walked towards the door, her stride unhurried, her followers followed behind her, Hashimoto casting another glance at me for a split second.

Ai Morishita stood up from her seat, ready to go on for her whereabouts, so there's where I approached her. "Good morning Ai." She stopped to glance at me.

"Oh, Sienna." She faced me, tilting her head, her eyes dull of boredom, "I've been meaning to ask, you'd accompany me to go get some ice cream tomorrow?"

"I'm sorry to disappoint but I can't unfortunately, I have something's to to figure out tomorrow." I carved a teasing smile at her, "That's why you should get yourself someone special who could help you with that."

Ai as expected kept her deadpan look as she stared before replying. "No thanks, all I need is some ice cream."

Then I pitched to her, "Would you want to accompany me to where I'm going to tomorrow, after that we could go for some cold snacks." I asked in a tempting tone.

She pouted her lips, "Huh? I don't see a problem with that." She said as she turned around without another word from me and her.

Ai Morishita, a very good student of this clas, although not in the league of Sakayanagi or Katsuragi, she's been showing her intelligence and composure throughout many scenarios, well, you can just say she has and indifferent expression, it makes her stand out and also simultaneously let's her drift to the background as well.

In other words the best veil I can come up with.

____

Ayanokoji's POV

It's Friday.

Sweet, quiet Friday. I could already feel the solitude of my room before even stepping inside—the familiar silence, the unchanging air, the absence of distractions. A temporary refuge from the relentless noise of scheming minds and shifting alliances.

Yet, solitude comes at a cost.

It forces my mind to wander, to analyze, to break apart every interaction from the past few days. I try not to let my thoughts spiral, but it's in my nature—an inevitability of how I was made.

Whis Kurushima.

A dangerous man, or simply an opportunist? It's unclear. His involvement in recent events isn't confirmed, but there's something off about the way he moves. The way he acted. Regardless, I was able to use Ichinose's help to expose the flaws in the camera theory, forcing Ichizaki Daichi and Kyogo Komiya to withdraw from the case. The result? The school chose to stay uninvolved, reaffirming what I suspected—it takes a hands-off approach when it comes to student affairs.

That single truth changes everything.

If the school refuses to step in, then Ryuen is free to operate as he pleases. His methods, his manipulations, his complete disregard for consequences—it all makes sense now. Despite failing to expel Sudo, he still succeeded. That means expelling Sudo might not have been his primary objective.

Ichizaki and Kyogo.

Sudo insists he didn't injure them as badly as they claimed. If that's true, then there are only two possibilities:

1. They deliberately hurt themselves to strengthen their accusations.

2. Ryuen orchestrated their beating himself—either through direct orders or by his own hands.

The second possibility is more likely. After all, if Ryuen can command someone to attack his own classmates, then it's clear—he has absolute control over them. A dictator in the truest sense. Most students wouldn't tolerate such leadership, yet his class follows him regardless. Out of fear? Loyalty? Or simply because they have no better alternative?

My thoughts return to Whis.

Is he linked to Ryuen? At first glance, my past doesn't align with Ryuen's current goal of Sudo's trial. That means Whis's actions weren't related to the case itself. Then what was his goal?

And then—the missing piece falls into place.

If Whis was aware of Ryuen's plans before they unfolded, that means he wasn't just a bystander. He was fed information. That eliminates coincidence. He wasn't simply in the right place at the right time—someone wanted him to act.

The username.

Three days ago, an account was created solely for hiring Asuka as a witness. That same username was linked to the words Whis used. A direct connection. That means this wasn't a one-man effort. This was planned.

It wasn't just Whis. It wasn't just Ryuen.

This was a coordinated move—a group.

And Whis was working with someone from Class C. Someone who knew my name.

A disturbing conclusion.

Someone out there is watching me. Studying me. Testing how I react.

And Whis? he's a piece in this board.