Chapter 82: Saiki, This Stage is Prepared for You!

Soon, two days had passed.

During this time, the meetings within the Rabbit Group had made no progress. The students from Class A refused to participate in the discussions, leaving everyone else at a loss.

However, the one-hour meeting time had to be spent, so the others resorted to playing board games to pass the time. The girls from Class D didn't participate much either, so it ended up being a game between Class B and Class C.

Saiki joined in, but he mostly just went through the motions.

'Given the current situation, no one should be able to guess the identity of the Privileged Student. This outcome is acceptable.'

Saiki thought to himself.

At the same time, he noticed that Manabe Shiho and the others seemed to harbor increasingly hostile feelings toward Karuizawa Kei.

Although Saiki wasn't sure what had happened, it made sense given the growing tension between Karuizawa Kei and Manabe Shiho.

However, Saiki had no intention of intervening. This was a conflict between Karuizawa Kei and Manabe Shiho.

That said, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's thoughts during this time had caught Saiki's attention.

[I remember a psychological experiment conducted in the 1960s called the Milgram Experiment, also known as the Eichmann Experiment. It involved roles of a teacher and a student in an isolated setting. First, the teacher—the subject—was given a mild electric shock to make them remember the pain and fear...]

[...Then, the person assigned as the student was placed on the other side of a glass partition, with an electric shock device attached to them. The shock button was handed to the teacher...]

[...Next, the experimenter instructed the teacher to ask the student questions and administer a shock for each wrong answer, with the voltage increasing with each mistake... Under these conditions, anyone could exhibit cruel and sadistic behavior...]

'What on earth is this guy thinking? Why is he recalling such knowledge at a time like this? What's going on in his head all day?'

Saiki felt a bit helpless and tried his best to ignore Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's thoughts.

Telepathy wasn't something you could block by covering your ears. Unless he used his germanium ring, Saiki was forced to hear these thoughts.

However, unless absolutely necessary, Saiki wouldn't use the ring—after all, there were no normal people in this school, and who knew what they were thinking?

[Time's up. Students may now move freely.]

As the announcement sounded, everyone began to leave the meeting room. Karuizawa Kei was the first to leave, and as soon as she stepped out, Manabe Shiho and the other two girls immediately followed her.

[I'll definitely make her suffer.]

The moment they left, Saiki clearly heard their thoughts.

'Yare yare.'

Saiki narrowed his eyes slightly.

'To prevent any unexpected incidents, I'd better follow them.'

After waiting a few seconds, Saiki followed them, eventually arriving at the ship's emergency exit.

There were no cameras there, and it was a place where students and teachers rarely went.

"Why did you bring me here?!"

Karuizawa Kei shouted, but because the emergency exit was so remote, no one else could hear her.

"Was it you who bullied Rika before?"

Manabe Shiho's tone didn't soften at all as she spoke.

"I already told you, it has nothing to do with me! You've got the wrong person."

Despite Karuizawa Kei's words, Manabe Shiho and the other two girls surrounded her, pinning her against the wall to prevent her from escaping.

"I have something to do later. Can you let me go?"

Karuizawa Kei said, trying to suppress the trembling in her voice and maintain her tough facade.

But even so, the fear in her eyes was unmistakable.

"If that's the case, then let us confirm. I'll call Rika now. If it's not you, we'll forgive you!"

As she spoke, Manabe Shiho took out her phone and dialed Rika's number.

"...I just remembered... There was someone who bumped into me before."

"Stop playing dumb. You knew from the start—whatever. Will you apologize properly to Rika?"

Manabe Shiho continued to press Karuizawa Kei, as if willing to forgive her if she apologized.

'Yare yare, it's Karuizawa's own fault. If she had apologized earlier, maybe all of this could have been avoided.'

Saiki shook his head and prepared to leave. In a way, Karuizawa Kei's actions were self-inflicted. If she could just apologize, this matter could be put to rest.

But just then, Saiki heard Manabe Shiho's thoughts again.

[How could I possibly forgive you? After you apologize, I'll make sure to watch you suffer! Should I start bullying her now?]

"That's not it! It's that girl's fault! She's so slow!"

Karuizawa Kei continued to argue, but her sharp instincts had already sensed that Manabe Shiho was just using this as an excuse to pick on her.

From the very first meeting, Manabe Shiho's goal wasn't just to stand up for her friend—it was purely to target Karuizawa Kei.

"Shiho-chan, I've reached my limit. Maybe we really can't forgive Karuizawa."

"Right? I'm sure she treated Rika the same way. Should we really bully her?"

"I hate Karuizawa's face. She's so ugly! Seriously, should we just ruin her face?"

Manabe Shiho grabbed Karuizawa Kei's hair and slammed her against the wall.

The earlier words weren't just threats—Manabe Shiho was seriously considering acting on them.

But at that moment, the heavy door to the emergency exit was suddenly flung open. As everyone was stunned, Saiki appeared before them.

"You... why are you here?"

Manabe Shiho was shocked. She hadn't expected Saiki to follow them.

"Sa... Saiki-kun?"

Karuizawa Kei was equally surprised.

'Yare yare, I really didn't want to interfere in other people's affairs, but if I don't step in, things might spiral out of control.'

Saiki narrowed his eyes, scanning Manabe Shiho and the others.

'Although Karuizawa has her own issues, using this as an opportunity for bullying is even more unacceptable.'

"You four-eyed freak, what are you doing here?!"

Manabe Shiho sneered at Saiki's arrival.

"The teacher is nearby. They should be here soon."

Saiki said calmly.

Normally, Saiki would use his psychic powers to guide a teacher here to stop the situation, but given the urgency, he had to step in himself.

'Yare yare, more trouble.'

Not only that, but Saiki also heard another set of thoughts nearby.

From Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.

[Just as expected. That Milgram Experiment...]

'So it was Ayanokoji's doing after all? What is he trying to achieve?'

Saiki felt annoyed. The students at this school always brought him trouble.

"Also, a few other boys from our class are nearby."

"Tch."

Manabe Shiho was clearly frustrated, her emotions written all over her face.

[This four-eyed guy is so annoying. I really want to punch him!]

'Oh? You can try.'

Saiki stared directly into Manabe Shiho's eyes.

[Ugh, if the teacher comes, it'll just cause more trouble! Let's call it a day for now!]

"I'll make sure you apologize to Rika!"

After leaving this threat, Manabe Shiho and her group quickly left. However, just before leaving, she "lost her balance" and fell, looking utterly pathetic as she scrambled to her feet and hurried away.

This, of course, was Saiki's "little revenge."

'This isn't over yet.'

Saiki turned to look at Karuizawa Kei.

[Thank goodness... Saiki-kun came and chased them away...]

Even without telepathy, Saiki could see the relief on Karuizawa Kei's face.

Karuizawa Kei had been on the verge of an emotional breakdown, and the persona she had built up was about to crumble.

[What should I say to Saiki-kun? Did I reveal too much just now... What should I say if he asks?]

Karuizawa Kei's mind raced as she tried to figure out how to talk to Saiki—

But Saiki simply turned around and left.

'I just wanted to prevent the situation from escalating. I don't want to get involved.'

"Huh?"

Soon, Karuizawa Kei was left alone, utterly confused.

...

Saiki returned to the hallway and immediately saw Ayanokoji Kiyotaka leaning against the wall, waiting for him.

"Saiki, I've completed what you wanted to do."

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka said expressionlessly.

"Okay."

Saiki nodded expressionlessly, but internally, he was completely baffled.

'Huh? What do I want to do?! What are you talking about?'

[Saiki mentioned Karuizawa Kei's name earlier, hinting that I should pay attention to her hidden side.]

[That fear in her eyes couldn't be hidden. Karuizawa Kei likely suffered severe bullying in the past. Her current status and image in the class are just a facade.]

[Saiki noticed this before I did. By mentioning Karuizawa's name in front of me, he was hinting that she could be used. So I set up this stage to make Karuizawa realize that Saiki is the one she can rely on. I also took the opportunity to secretly record Manabe and the others threatening Karuizawa. This footage could be used as leverage against Class D. With this recording, Manabe will also become a tool for me.]

'??????'

Saiki's mind was filled with questions. He hadn't expected things to turn out like this.

Normally, he acted alone and had little contact with Ayanokoji Kiyotaka. They only met during meetings, so Saiki had no idea what Ayanokoji usually did.

[To set up this stage, I deliberately fueled the conflict between Karuizawa and the Class D girls.]

'So it was you all along?'

Saiki's gaze locked onto Ayanokoji Kiyotaka. He had been wondering why Manabe Shiho's hostility toward Karuizawa Kei had grown so much recently. Now it made sense.

'But... in a way, did I indirectly cause all of this...?'

Saiki seemed to realize something.

He had accidentally mentioned Karuizawa Kei's name in front of Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, and the latter had taken it to heart...

It seemed like, without realizing it, a lot of trouble had been created...

And the person in front of him was the biggest troublemaker of all.

"By the way, Saiki, what do you think of Chabashira-sensei?"

At that moment, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka asked.

[Chabashira claims to have contacted that man, but I can't confirm it yet. If it's Saiki, he might know something about it. I can use him to probe for information.]

'So that's what he's after... Wait, Ayanokoji only started taking action in class because of Chabashira-sensei's lie. If he knew the truth, maybe he'd stop causing trouble?'

Saiki hoped inwardly.