Chapter 252: Confrontation

Rinji's words instantly changed the expressions of everyone below.

Everyone had their secrets. Things they'd never told anyone—not even friends or parents.

And now Rinji was saying he'd expose them all in public.

Even if some doubted whether he had the evidence, the previous photos made them nervous.

One exposure could ruin them. Social death. They'd never lift their heads again in this school.

"You might think I'm cruel. I don't care."

Rinji smiled as he looked down at the now pale students.

"A lot of people already want me gone. You few don't make a difference."

Students were panicking. Some approached teachers, asking them to stop Rinji.

Then he added, "Oh right, go ahead and stop me. If I don't show it now, I'll just upload it to the school forum."

Several teachers hesitated and turned toward Mrs. Sagawa.

"Mrs. Sagawa, what do you think…?"

They knew she had a good relationship with Rinji. She might be the only one who could stop him.

But she simply shook her head.

"Let it go. No need to stop him."

"But—"

"Stay calm."

She had no intention of stopping Rinji.

She'd seen worse. To her, this was just child's play.

Meanwhile, the people backstage looked dumbfounded at Rinji.

"Eh!? What's he doing!?" Fujiwara was clearly freaked out.

"Rinji… what is he trying to achieve…?" Shirogane couldn't understand his actions.

He never expected Rinji to threaten students with their secrets.

"This is what I meant. Rinji wants to become the 'villian'" Ishigami said.

Then he looked over to where Iino stood.

"To wait for the 'hero' to appear."

And at the end of his gaze, Osaragi was speechless with her mouth wide open.

"Has he gone mad?"

"We have to stop him!" Iino shouted. She ran toward the stage to drag him down.

She truly appreciated Rinji's help—but not this way.

Rinji's speech was reaching its climax.

"You think I'm doing this to make you vote for Iino? Wrong. I'm not forcing you—I just want you to suffer."

He raised the remote.

"Let's start with student ID number one. I'll show each of your dirt, one by one. You're all trash—rule-breakers with no self-control. If you can't be managed, then you don't deserve freedom. Shuchiin students? You're just worthless mud that won't stick to the wall."

"You're full of crap!!"

A loud voice cut through the tense air.

Iino stormed onto the stage, furious.

She regretted ever asking for Rinji's help.

Seeing her, Rinji let slip a barely noticeable smile—then quickly acted troubled.

"Iino, it's not your turn yet. I'm not done."

"You are now!"

She snatched the remote from his hand and tossed it aside.

The students collectively sighed in relief—especially student number one.

Even if he hadn't done anything terrible, he feared Rinji had taken embarrassing photos of him.

"What are you doing?"

"What am I doing? Look at yourself!" Iino yelled. "Why did you choose to hurt students this way?"

"Isn't it right to punish those who break the rules?" Rinji said with a smile. "You agree too, don't you? These people bring shame to the school. They deserve unforgettable punishment or they'll never learn."

"You want to rule through fear?!"

"Exactly. Trash that can't stand on its own shouldn't be treated as people. All they need is to fear me."

"Unbelievable!"

Iino grew more emotional and shouted:

"Shuchiin students are not worthless mud!"

Backstage, Osaragi was stunned.

She never imagined timid Iino, who got stage fright in front of a crowd, would shout like this at Rinji.

But she quickly understood.

Right now, Iino saw only Rinji. She had forgotten the crowd entirely.

And with Rinji as the enemy of the entire school, lino… had become their defender.

Osaragi now understood the extreme method Rinji had used.

Back on stage, the confrontation continued.

"Iino, do you really think your soft approach will make anyone listen to you?" Rinji asked. "I've wanted to say this for a long time—everything you've done is meaningless. You try to fix the rules every day, but the delinquents keep doing whatever they want. You volunteer for charity work, but our reputation keeps falling. It's all useless. Pointless effort."

"That's not true! Education is about guiding people. Using fear is wrong!" Iino shouted. "Shuchiin students are not criminals. They don't deserve to be treated like that!"

"Then how do you want to deal with those rotten students?"

"Shuchiin students are definitely not rotten!" Iino said angrily. "They're all excellent students! They're my classmates!"

Iino was seriously confronting Rinji.

What she hadn't noticed was that the students who had always disliked her were already beginning to change their impression of her.