A Shaken Ibuki

The dormitory rules at ANHS were somewhat strange. One such rule prohibited boys from entering the girls' dormitory after 8 PM, but oddly enough, the reverse wasn't restricted at all. In fact, even staying overnight didn't seem to be a problem.

From this, it was clear that the school had no intention of restricting students' freedom in relationships.

Some students found this arrangement quite satisfying—mainly the popular ones. As for Hikigaya, naturally, he was one of the unfortunate victims of this rule.

"So, why are you in my room?"

Staring at the unexpected visitor before him, Hikigaya felt an instant headache.

Though he was somewhat pleased that she reached out so quickly, couldn't she have picked a better time and place?

"Hah? Got a problem with that?"

"…At least set up a meeting in advance."

Hikigaya let out another sigh.

"Honestly, I didn't expect you to be the first one to contact me… Ibuki."

It was around 6 PM when Hikigaya received a message from Ibuki, saying she wanted to talk about what had happened that afternoon.

But after he responded, she left him on read without replying.

Hikigaya didn't push the issue, assuming she was still hesitating.

Yet, come 10 PM, she showed up at his room unannounced.

"Don't get the wrong idea." Ibuki scoffed. "I haven't agreed to your conditions. If anything, I came here to get rid of that ridiculous idea of yours. And besides, if someone saw me meeting with you, it'd be troublesome. Your room just happens to be the safest place."

"Still, you didn't have to pick this hour."

"Can't help it. I'm the type who can't sleep unless I clear things up."

"Fine… Want some barley tea?"

Despite what she said, Hikigaya could tell that was just an excuse. In reality, she was probably worried about her classmates.

If someone else approached Hikigaya before her, it could lead to irreversible consequences for Class C.

Truthfully, Hikigaya had expected Ryuuen to be the first to contact him. But now, it seemed Ryuuen preferred pressuring his classmates over taking a step back to negotiate—a predictable move for someone like him.

That was the nature of a tyrant. No matter how dire the situation, they never cared about their subordinates' feelings or struggles.

After setting down their drinks, the two of them sat across from each other at the table.

"Alright, I'll get straight to the point." Folding her arms, Ibuki spoke seriously. "Hikigaya, you need to stop interfering with the issue of X. That's Class C's problem."

"…What?"

Hikigaya blinked. For a second, he thought he misheard.

"Wait, are you serious?"

"Of course. Didn't I already say I came here to put an end to that foolish idea of yours?" Ibuki responded as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

So she wasn't tempted by his offer? Yeah, right.

If she wasn't considering it, she wouldn't have come here at all.

In Hikigaya's view, the worst-case scenario was failing to establish any dialogue from the start, with Class C acting like a group of porcupines, impossible to approach.

But as long as there was a conversation, success was within reach.

"You're underestimating Ryuuen." Ibuki's tone carried a hint of irritation. "As much as I hate to admit it, that guy isn't completely useless. His ability to take action and his determination are top-notch. I think it's only a matter of time before he figures out X's true identity. You just have to wait for the results—there's no need for you to take unnecessary risks."

"…Ibuki, I think you're misunderstanding something."

Hikigaya's gaze grew oddly amused as he looked at her.

"I never doubted that Ryuuen could uncover X's identity. The real question is—what will you do once you find out?"

"That's obvious—"

Ibuki started to answer but suddenly froze.

Right. What would they do?

Seeing her hesitate, Hikigaya's expression grew even more amused.

"Don't tell me… Are you just planning to beat X up? Did Ryuuen's violence-obsessed brain rub off on you?"

"Who the hell got influenced by him?!" Ibuki snapped in protest.

All this time, she had simply followed orders without questioning why.

But after Class C suffered a crushing defeat in the sports festival, Ryuuen's actions seemed to grow more reckless, which made her start thinking for herself and take initiative.

Just as Hikigaya pointed out, finding X wouldn't actually solve anything.

And honestly, Ryuuen's obsession with Class D made no sense in the first place.

"I came here to tell you that no one in our class will accept your deal," Ibuki finally stated the core issue. "If you get your way, Manabe and the other two will be expelled, and our class will lose all of our points. So stop messing around."

"Why wouldn't anyone accept it? They could just take the 20 million points and transfer to another class." Hikigaya countered.

Ibuki shook her head. "You think Ryuuen wouldn't retaliate just because they transferred? That guy doesn't give a damn about school rules."

"Yeah, that's true."

That afternoon, back in Class C, Ryuuen hadn't held back in the slightest when he kicked Hikigaya, despite him being injured.

This guy was like a mad dog.

"But that's easy—just don't let him find out," Hikigaya said casually. "As long as you save up your points and transfer classes right before graduation, everyone goes their separate ways. You'll head off to your prestigious university, Ryuuen will join the underworld and probably get himself killed one day, and we'll all have a bright future."

"What nonsense are you spouting…? Wait! I never agreed to this!"

"Why not? Don't tell me you're close with those three?"

"Tch, as if." Ibuki scoffed, looking disdainful.

The reason was obvious.

With her personality, there was no way someone as proud as Ibuki would use this kind of method to climb to Class A. If word got out, she'd never live it down.

"Anyway, just don't come stirring up trouble in our class anymore. Otherwise, I might just spread this around."

Saying that Ibuki suddenly pulled out her phone and showed Hikigaya the screen.

It was a photo—taken during summer vacation, on the cruise ship.

Hikigaya's face immediately darkened. "That was a setup!"

"Heh, who knows? You looked like you were enjoying yourself."

Ibuki smirked, waving her phone smugly.

"…Actually," Hikigaya said after a moment of silence, "Manabe and the others might not necessarily get expelled."

Ibuki frowned but didn't interrupt, so Hikigaya continued, "Think about it. X contacted Manabe first, using her and her friends' grudge against Karuizawa to manipulate them. Then X lured Karuizawa to the ship's lower deck and called Manabe's group there. No matter how you look at it, X is the real mastermind."

"Hmph. Even so, it doesn't erase the fact that they bullied her."

"True, in a normal situation. But don't forget—X and Karuizawa are in the same class."

This was the biggest flaw in Ayanokoji's so-called scheme.

Only someone as brainless as Manabe would fall for it.

But judging from Ibuki's confused expression, it seemed like she didn't get it either.

…Dealing with idiots was such a hassle.

Sighing, Hikigaya had no choice but to explain further. "What I mean is, you can use this to your advantage. Counterattack by claiming it was a deliberate setup. That way, at the very least, their punishment might be reduced—they might not get expelled."

The school had strict anti-bullying rules, but Ayanokoji was not only the mastermind behind this, he was also in the same class as the so-called victim, Karuizawa.

In this case, would the school still see Karuizawa as an innocent victim? That was hard to say.

"So? Think about it."

"This… but you can't guarantee it."

Seeing Ibuki's attitude begin to waver, Hikigaya pressed on. "True, I can't guarantee that all three of them will escape punishment. But I can make sure only Manabe gets expelled. The other two will probably just get suspended as accomplices. And besides, you know how the school is—they hate making a big deal out of these things."

"More importantly, I know you, Ibuki. You act all cold and indifferent, but deep down, you care about your class. You don't want those 20 million points—you just want me to cancel the contract, right?"

"Wh-Who cares about those idiots?!"

"Right, right. Most of Class C just blindly follows Ryuuen, so of course you'd be frustrated." Hikigaya coaxed her patiently. "But that's exactly why you should take this opportunity."

Under the weight of his words, Ibuki slowly began to waver.

She frowned, hesitating. "Then… what exactly should I say? Just to be clear, I'm only listening—I haven't agreed to anything!"

Hikigaya smirked inwardly.

It wasn't about whether she agreed or not—what mattered was whether she was interested.

A picky customer was a real customer.

"It's simple. Just go to your homeroom teacher and tell them what happened. Then provide Manabe's account details."

"…That's it?"

"Yep." Hikigaya nodded before adding, "Of course, I can go with you if you're worried about explaining it clearly."

It sounded easy, but the hardest part was getting a Class C student to testify.

Even if Hikigaya had figured out the whole truth, and even if he could get Manabe's account details from Kushida, he was still an outsider. His words alone wouldn't be enough to make the school take action.

After all, students had privacy rights—the school wouldn't just take his word for it and accuse someone of bullying.

Just like with Sakura before, cases like these required someone directly involved to step forward. And there was no way Hikigaya could persuade Karuizawa to do that.

Luckily, this time another class was involved. Since Ibuki was in the same class as the bullies, if she was the one to file the report, the school would have no choice but to take it seriously.

"…Is it really that simple?"

Ibuki still seemed hesitant, which was understandable.

After all, if she wasn't careful, her own classmates would get expelled. The risks weren't small.

"Take your time and think it over," Hikigaya said, knowing better than to rush her.

"But I'll be blunt—you guys don't stand a chance against Class A and B without personal points. Spending 300 class points to secure a future? Sounds like a pretty good deal to me."

"…I don't need you to tell me that!"

The truth was always unpleasant to hear.

Ibuki shot Hikigaya a fierce glare before storming off without another word.

But Hikigaya was confident.

She'd make the right choice.