July 12th, Monday.
"I gotta give it to you guys. I can't believe your date was a success!" Miyamoto patted Ike's back.
"Heh, unlike Kanji, I have a lot of experience." Yamauchi bragged with a confident expression.
"Shut up, Haruki. I bet your hands were sweating all over."
"N-No, they weren't!"
Professor greeted me as I approached the five of them.
"My, if it isn't the Shadow Leader himself?"
Shadow Leader?
"Oh, that's a cool nickname, Professor!" Hondou jumped in.
"Heh, how about 'The Dark Hand Behind the Curtains'? Sounds pretty sick, right?"
"Oh! A wonderful suggestion, Soshi-dono. I shall add that to my database," Professor nodded in agreement.
"Stop calling me names so early in the morning..." I retorted.
I've been spending less time with the Ayanokouji Group, but I've explained the general idea of what's happening so my friends were fine with it. Frankly, I just want things to end quickly. We have our finals to worry about, for god's sake.
At that moment, a sound came from Ike's phone. Ike excitedly read the contents and his smile only widened after he finished.
"T-T-T-This is it!" he yelled reflexively.
"W-What the hell? What is it, Kanji?"
"Was it from Kinoshita-chan?"
"Look!" Ike turned his phone around so the screen would be clear for us to see.
(9:42) [Ike-kun...]
(9:42) [I have something to tell you after class. I'll be waiting for you behind Gymnasium #1. Please come alone. I'll be embarrassed if it's not just the two of us...]
Finally, huh?
"Holy shit, Kanji! She's gonna confess, isn't she?!" cried Yamauchi.
"I-I don't know! Probably?! Most likely?!" Everyone was getting swept up by the hyped atmosphere.
About a minute passed and Yamauchi's phone rang, too.
"K-Kanji, do you think-?"
"Ohh! Things are getting pretty spicy for you, huh, Kanji, Haruki?!" Miyamoto eagerly spoke.
Yamauchi showed us the contents of the message. They were fairly similar. However, Manabe asked him to come to the rooftop.
"I am happy for you, Kanji-dono, Haruki-dono," said Professor.
"Well, well. Let's not rush things. We never know what might happen..." I didn't want to be that guy, but they were getting too excited.
"What are you talking about, Ayanokouji?! These are obviously preludes to a romantic confession!" pressed Ike.
Apparently, they didn't even find anything weird about getting confessed to on the same day.
During lunch, I hung out with my friends along with Kikyou's group. The secret group chat that Miyamoto, Hondou, and I made was filled with shocked reactions from the two.
(9:51) [Holy crap!]
(9:51) [I can't believe it!] (Hondou)
(9:51) [You actually called, it Ayanokouji!]
(9:51) [You're insane!] (Miyamoto)
(9:51) [We can't be too sure.]
(9:51) [Let's just hope that these confessions will be normal.] (Ayanokouji)
(9:51) [Yeah, hopefully.]
(9:52) [But it's certainly weird.]
(9:52) [I didn't expect the two of them to confess at the same time.] (Miyamoto)
(9:52) [Dang...]
(9:52) [It's super likely that this is Class D's plot, after all.] (Hondou)
(9:52) [Get ready, you two.]
(9:52) [This entire plan relies on your stealth skills.] (Ayanokouji)
(9:53) [Heh, you can count on us.]
(9:53) [My lack of presence will finally come in handy.] (Hondou)
(9:53) [If they turn out to be normal confessions, then I'll just try my hardest to hold my laughter in.] (Miyamoto)
Hondou's role will be harder, for sure. If Manabe chooses a spot where they can see people entering through the door, then it would be extremely hard for him to get any decisive evidence. Anyway, all I can do is believe in them.
When the dismissal bell rang, I quickly approached the restless lover boy duo. As a friend, the least I could give them was some sort of encouragement.
"Ike, Yamauchi." I wrapped my arms around their shoulders. "Both of you, your times have come. Good luck, I'll be rooting for you guys."
"O-Oh... Ayanokouji... Thanks, man..." Ike scratched his head bashfully.
"Ayanokouji, dude. Thanks..." said Yamauchi with a similar expression.
"Heh, got get 'em, Kanji, Haruki." Miyamoto gave them a thumbs-up.
"It sucks that you guys got a girlfriend earlier than me, but I'd cheer my buddies on regardless," Hondou said with a smile.
Professor acted like a mysterious person, only fixing his glasses with a smirk.
When the two of them ran off, Miyamoto and Hondou nodded their heads to me as they proceeded with our plan.
This is it. It's your move, Class D— It's your move, Ryuuen. I'll wait.
————————————————————————
Ayanokouji went back to the dorms with his friends. Meanwhile, Miyamoto and Hondou went on their separate ways. Hondou walked inconspicuously until he finally reached the third floor. Amidst the wave of students, he successfully reached the decisive corner on the way to the rooftop.
Miyamoto, on the other hand, exited the main building and walked in the direction of the gymnasium. The two of them felt the thrill. The task that Ayanokouji gave made the two of them feel like trusted agents of Class B's secret leader. Miyamoto and Hondou put their phones out and launched the voice recording app.
-And that's when they appeared.
"Woah! Ryuuen-san's right! There really is someone!"
"He saw right through them."
"C-Class D students?!" Miyamoto flinched in surprise. He recognized one of the guys in front of him; Ishizaki Daichi, the one who clashed with Sudou.
One of them pinned Miyamoto against the wall, while the other grabbed his phone.
"W-What the hell?!" Miyamoto couldn't do anything as the student pinning him had more strength.
"Heh... You want to record stuff, huh, buddy?"
"Hey, give it back!"
"Sure, but tell me. Were you ordered by someone to do this?" asked Ishizaki.
"Huh? I just want to immortalize my friend's shitty reception of a girl's confession. What 'orders' are you talking about?" barked Miyamoto.
"Ohh... Ryuuen-san's bet was right, huh? Class B's leader really is something."
Ishizaki tossed the phone back to Miyamoto, who was set free by the other student.
"There ya go. Get your ass outta here. Don't spoil the fun that's about to begin," Ishizaki chuckled with a mocking tone.
"Tch..." Miyamoto could only glare at them in indignation. They didn't plan on making him pass through.
Seeing no way out of the situation, Miyamoto left the scene with haste.
————————————————————————
Near the rooftop stairway...
"Oho? Seems like a rat came to play."
"You're from Class B, aren't you?"
"W-Who the heck are you guys?" Hondou instantly panicked at the sight of three unfamiliar male students.
One of them quickly grabbed Hondou and rendered him unable to move. The student took the phone from his hand.
"H-Hey!" Hondou protested nervously.
He was terrified not only because he was outnumbered, but also because one of them was a largely built black male who didn't have the appearance of a high schooler.
"Oh... Ryuuen-san's right. He really did plan to record it."
"G-Give that back!" Hondou cried in a cold sweat.
"Who's your boss?" asked the student.
"Boss? The hell are you talking about, man?" Hondou feigned ignorance.
"Someone ordered you to come here and record stuff, right?"
"We're in a damn high school. I'm trying to play a prank on my buddy. Why do you guys even care?" he replied.
"Is that so?"
The student gave Hondou's phone back to him as the other guy let go.
"Here, don't get in our way. Get out of here."
They stared at Hondou, waiting for him to leave. At that point, he couldn't do anything but walk away.
Ike arrived at their promised location. There, Kinoshita Minori stood with her arms crossed.
"Sorry for making you wait, Kinoshita-chan."
"It's fine," she replied curtly.
"I-Is everything alright? Why did you call me here?" Ike asked nervously.
"Nothing much," Kinoshita responded without looking at him.
"Kinoshita-chan...?"
At that moment, Ike realized that something was off.
"Oi, Kinoshita. We finished shooing the recorder guy away."
Ishizaki arrived at the scene.
"E-Eh? What are you doing he-"
Smack!
Ishizaki walked up to Ike and punched him across his right temple. It was a direct hit. If Ike was any less fit, he would've been knocked out in an instant.
"Augh-?!" Ike cried in pain as his body dropped to the ground.
"Can we get this over with? I've been spending precious time on this guy for more than a week now. I have other things to do," Kinoshita said impatiently. She didn't like seeing this kind of stuff, so she tried her best to look away.
"Agh... W-What... K-Kinoshita-chan...? What's happening...?" Ike crawled up feebly. He seemed to temporarily forget the pain of Ishizaki's punch. He was more concerned about Kinoshita's attitude.
"Don't rush it, Kinoshita. We need to do one last thing."
"Fine, hurry it up."
The student with Ishizaki yanked Ike's weak body up. He punched his stomach once.
"Ugh-!"
Seeing him in this state, Ishizaki grabbed Ike's hands and used them to touch Kinoshita's shoulders and arms.
"There we go. We have the fingerprints on your blazer."
Ike's hands were forced to touch the chest area of the blazer.
The student laid Ike's body near the wall. He checked Ike's pockets and found his phone.
"No recordings whatsoever," he said.
If one's phone was recording, it can be seen from the lock screen. Ishizaki took a peek and nodded in confirmation.
"We don't have anything against you, Ike. But you guys got ahead of yourselves. Our boss needed to take some serious measures," said Ishizaki.
Seeing them walk away, Ike could only curse in pain.
"Damn it..." he whispered before finally losing consciousness.
On the rooftop, Yamauchi arrived and saw Manabe using her phone.
"Manabe-chan, I'm here! Did you wait long— Eh?! Who-?!" Yamauchi yelped in surprise.
Manabe stood by the tiny area beside the entranceway. Since the security camera only has a view of the open area up front, both sides were completely blind spots. Upon entry, Yamauchi saw a guy beside Manabe.
"Kukuku, our guest is here," the student said with a sinister smile.
"W-Who the hell are you, man? Why are you with Manabe-chan?" Yamauchi asked with a displeased yet nervous expression.
"Calm down, Yamauchi Haruki. Let's wait for the rest of the gang."
"The what? What the hell are you talking about? Manabe-chan, what is this?" Yamauchi turned to Manabe, who was busy fiddling with her phone.
"Tsk, can you not talk to me? It's really gross." Manabe didn't even bat an eye when expressing her disgust towards Yamauchi.
"What-?!" Yamauchi was shocked by Manabe's attitude. It was far from the Manabe that he had talked with for the past week.
"Ryuuen-san, we fended off the rat. We left Albert to guard the entrance."
Two of the three male students who confronted Hondou finally stepped foot on the rooftop. They ran up at a hurried pace, but that was all part of an act.
As it turns out, the person with Manabe was actually Ryuuen Kakeru. The rumored leader of Class D.
"Oh, good work, Kondou. Albert doesn't belong here. The place will be too cramped if he joins in," he said before widening his smirk. "Alright, hold him for me."
Yamauchi froze in fear and confusion after hearing Ryuuen's words. He stared at Manabe, who didn't even bother looking at him.
Kondou and the other student held Yamauchi on both sides. Ryuuen slowly approached Yamauchi.
"H-Hey! What are you guys-"
Smack!
Ryuuen punched him straight in the face without any hesitation.
"Aghhh-!" Yamauchi cried as his nose bled.
"That's no good, Yamauchi. Sexual assault isn't a cool thing to do. It might get you expelled, you know?" Ryuuen snickered with a dark yet ecstatic expression.
"Ugh..." Yamauchi was in a daze after Ryuuen's punch. He was on the verge of collapsing.
"Manabe, come here," Ryuuen ordered.
"Ugh, do I really have to? I can just take my blazers off and give it to you, right?"
"We don't want unnecessary fingerprints on your blazer, so shut up and do what I say. Or else, I'll have him touch your tits," threatened Ryuuen.
"Touch my-?! What the hell?! That's fucking gross." Manabe walked up unwillingly.
Ryuuen used Yamauchi's hands to touch Manabe in the same places that Ishizaki did with Ike's hands.
Ryuuen thoroughly checked each of Yamauchi's pockets. After looking at his phone, Kondou and the other student laid him against the wall.
"Let's get outta here," Ryuuen said with a grin.
————————————————————————
Ryuuen and his entourage met up with Ishizaki, Kinoshita, and the other Class D students.
"Y-You're amazing, Ryuuen-san! You predicted their every move!" said one of them.
"Ryuuen-san, why didn't you let us press Miyamoto and Hondou for an answer? We could've found out the identity of their boss," asked Ishizaki.
"Idiot," answered Ryuuen. "We don't even know if they even have one. And even if they did, their identity doesn't matter to me just yet. I've crushed two students on their side. Let's see how they can handle that."
"Haha, seems like their rise to Class B was a fluke, after all. They had much easier targets than Ichinose's Class C. If it weren't for that unlucky arrival of Sudou's friend, he might've been out of the equation, too," said Kondou.
"These Class B students sure know how to use their phones. In this school where lies, subterfuge, and foul play are key, things like voice recorders are powerful. Once you scheme, one piece of evidence can destroy you," he explained.
"As expected of Ryuuen-san," nodded the other student.
The student called Albert nodded with him.
At that moment, Ryuuen thought deeply.
"I'm confident in my ability to see through people. I can guarantee that Yamauchi didn't expect any of the things that just happened, and the same should apply to Ike. We were overt with our plan, just like what we did to Class C. Hondou and Miyamoto, huh? Someone did receive my message, after all."