COTE: The Eroge Playlist: h-t-t-p-s-:-/-/-you-tube-.-com-/-playlist-?-list=PLzapQr6Br4elz3lo7fOkE34DjcBEnJB87
Discord link: [discord . gg / 4y5QVPj]
Disclaimer: I don't own Classroom of the Elite but if I did, there will be MAJOR CHANGES.
What started out as a fairly normal hearing in the student council room quickly turned into a verbal exchange of accusations and demands as the case regarding Miyake Akito and three students of Class C continued on. Wait no, that would be quite unfair for the former when he has remained quiet the entire time, despite the continued ramblings of the opposite class.
It's more accurate to say that Komiya, Kondo, and Ishizaki have been trying to put an end to this hearing for a while now, but they were unsuccessful in that regard.
"Look! Just look at us! Look at what happened to us because of Miyake's violent attitude! I don't know why you're not punishing him yet for what he did," He peeled off the gauze that covered his cheek, exposing the scrapes underneath.
"Calm down, Komiya-kun. We are here to properly assess the situation so that the truth of the matter would come to light," Tachibana gave him the same reply that she's been telling them for a while now and if she had to be honest, she's getting tired of it.
"The truth is that he attacked us and left us in this state!"
"Control your attitude, Komiya. The more you keep on making demands like that, the more you won't get it. Let this hearing proceed like how it is supposed to," Sakagami-sensei scolded his student for speaking out of turn.
The cold look on his face was enough to silence his student, which got his fellow teacher to let out a small laugh. This caught the attention of everyone else, who were confused at why she would even laugh in the middle of a serious case.
"It's strange how your students are impatient and looking desperate to end this when they aren't even the ones being accused, Sakagami-sensei. Why the rush? We're not in a hurry to do something, are we?" the woman smirked before shaking her head in amusement.
Sakagami didn't say anything, but it was clear that he wasn't pleased with Chabashira's words.
Meanwhile, Suzune listened to their homeroom teacher's words, as she actually had the same thought in mind. She had no idea how, but she managed to keep this trial from ending until now… though it's mainly because of Class C's impatience this whole time.
"They're getting desperate now. For them to rely on getting sympathy by flaunting their injuries, it must mean that they're running out of options… or they're trying to avoid the possibility of Ayanokouji-kun bringing Sakura-san here to testify for the case."
Suzune shifted her gaze to the door. Ever since Kiyotaka left the room to find Airi, she did her best to stall for as long as she could and somehow, she managed to succeed. It also helped that Class C easily gave in to impatience and tried multiple times to convince her brother and Secretary Tachibana that since Miyake's side didn't have any witnesses, he was automatically guilty.
However, they were either rejected or ignored completely during all those instances.
Of course, that didn't mean the student council was particularly on their side. Her brother simply gave Ayanokouji a chance to bring Sakura to the hearing so she could testify for the case, and that's why she was hoping that her classmate was successful in his endeavor. She had no clue how much time was left, but she was sure that her brother was counting in his mind.
"Have you nothing else to show everyone here, Class D?" Manabu spoke up after being silent for a while. "I have already given your classmate ample time to bring your so-called 'witness' here, but I see that he has not returned yet. As of now, I am inclined to side with Class C, seeing that you and your classmates are unable to show us any proof that Miyake-kun is innocent."
Akito frowned, while Haruka was gobsmacked that the student council president switched gears just like that. He was on their side earlier, right?
Suzune propped her elbows on the table and breathed into her hands, hiding the look of frustration she had on her face. She already saw this coming so she wasn't surprised, but it didn't make things any easier.
Now more than ever, Suzune was hoping that Kiyotaka's already heading back here with Airi because they didn't have much time left.
On the other hand, the three students from Class C grinned triumphantly, believing that their victory was sealed. Why would it not be? Horikita Manabu made his decision and he was on their side. With one word from the student council president, this hearing will finally come to an end.
However, one individual bravely denied that outcome.
"With all due respect, President, but I would say that it would be unfair of you to do such a thing," Suzune argued, pushing down her growing nervousness just from facing off against her older brother.
Manabu narrowed his eyes at her. "No. I simply do not want to waste anyone's time during this hearing when it can end now, because you do not seem to have any credible evidence that proves Miyake-kun's innocence. How exactly would that be 'unfair'?"
"That can work the other way as well, President. All that Class C has done is point their fingers towards Miyake-kun, but they have not provided any concrete or substantial evidence to actually support their claim."
"The hell are you talking about? These are the injuries he gave us!" Kondo bellowed, fearing the possibility of this case continuing to be under investigation when their victory was all but guaranteed a while ago. Why can't these Class D losers just accept their defeat?!
"I agree with Horikita-san," Akane nodded in agreement, giving her own opinion on the matter. "Kondo-kun, Komiya-kun, Ishizaki-kun. It is clear that you three all have injuries but we have yet to see any indication that Miyake-kun was indeed the one who inflicted those."
"W-What? All three of us are saying he did, isn't that enough?" Ishizaki exclaimed, fearing that their chance to win this may have slipped through their fingers once again.
"That is not solid proof to support your claims, I'm afraid."
Sakagami-sensei pushed his glasses coolly, looking relatively unbothered. "But my students were the ones who sustained greater injuries that a simple trip to the clinic wasn't enough, while Miyake seemed to receive only minor ones. Surely that can count as a start, Secretary Tachibana."
While Akane was left in deep thought regarding that statement because of how true it was, Manabu's younger sister managed to come up with another argument in her thoughts. She was completely sure that this won't really work in convincing anyone, but that wasn't her goal anyway. She had to stall in any way possible to give her classmates time…
"Komiya-kun, you said that Miyake-kun called you over to the special building. But who exactly did Miyake-kun call, and why?" Suzune questioned the three Class C students, who all looked at one another in response while having the same thing in mind.
Why the hell is she asking that question now? And what's the point?
"Please give us an answer," the girl pressed on, her tone shifting to a more aggressive one that showed the gravity of their situation. It kept the three from possibly formulating any kind of strategic response against her."
"Komiya and I don't know why he called us over. It was still early in the morning when he called us and told us to go to the bathhouse. Why the hell are you asking?" Kondo answered, masking his inability to give a proper answer with agitation.
However, Suzune wasn't affected one bit. "I see. However, according to Miyake-kun's words earlier, he did not even know who you three were. According to one of my classmates, two of you are in the basketball club. Miyake-kun is part of the archery club. There is no commonality between the two sides for you to even be involved with each other."
Realization dawned on the three students like a ton of bricks falling on them, and their jaws almost fell to the floor. They completely let that fact be unaccounted for up until now and as a result, they had no idea what to say.
"In fact, how could Miyake-kun even call you if he doesn't have your contact information?" Suzune added, noticing that her tactic worked. "Do you have the contact number of either one of these three, Miyake-kun?"
"Nope," Akito shrugged and even snorted in amusement.
"H-He's lying!" Komiya cried out in denial, because it was the only thing they could do at this point.
His two friends nodded furiously in agreement, but no one was even convinced in the slightest. Horikita actually raised a very good point and to an extent, both her brother and the student council secretary were intrigued about the possible answer.
However, the homeroom teacher of Class C would prevent any possibility of an answer from the three when he began to slowly clap his hands in a mocking manner.
"I applaud the attempt at bravado, but how can we be sure that you are not just fabricating yet another story to prove your classmate's innocence? How do we know that Miyake-kun isn't lying to save himself from his fate? For all we know, he could have deleted any conversation he had with my students before this trial began."
"But my student made a good point too, Sakagami-sensei. All this time, your three boys have done nothing but point their fingers at Miyake, as if there was no need for any kind of evidence to support their claims," Sae pointed out the hypocrisy behind the man's words, as the two teachers began stared daggers at one another.
"This is going in circles. Without Sakura-san and her video file to be solid proof, we will continue to throw accusations and meaningless assumptions at each other with neither side gaining an advantage. But if nii-san is truly going to side with Class C, then we need our witness now more than ever…"
As Suzune retreated into her mind regarding her thoughts on the mess that this trial ended up becoming, the sound of the door opening followed by a voice that nobody thought they would hear for the rest of the hearing, at least that's what the students of Class C hoped.
"Then why don't we put our claims to the test through a witness who saw the whole incident from start to finish, Sakagami-sensei?"
All pairs of eyes in the room turned to the door, where one Ayanokouji Kiyotaka stood with his usual emotionless mask, while being accompanied by a girl with red hair that was tied in twin-tails. EVeryone's attention shifted from Kiyotaka to the girl fairly quickly, and they
Suzune quickly realized this person to be Airi because of the discussion she had with her friends last Saturday, so she was able to regain her focus right away and breathed out a sigh of relief. He managed to come back with their witness while the hearing was still ongoing, though Suzune couldn't help but wonder why the girl was now exactly like how she looked in her idol pictures.
On the other hand, Akito and Haruka were confused and exchanged looks. They had no idea who this was but because Kiyotaka had left to find Airi and bring her here in the first place, they realized that this was the exact same girl who was at the classroom with them earlier. They wondered what caused the girl to change her appearance all of a sudden, but that's not what's important right now.
Chabashira didn't know whether to feel angry with Sakura for her absence up until now, or be at ease that she was finally here to give her testimony. Sakagami had no visible reaction on his face, but his gaze was solely directed towards the red-haired girl. Lastly, the Class C students were all visibly sweating out of nervousness, although no one noticed it because the attention was directed to the Class D student who returned to the hearing just as he said he would.
"Ayanokouji-kun. I see you have returned in the nick of time," Manabu acknowledged the young man's presence with a nod, before shifting his gaze to the girl who was with him. "And I assume that this person is the witness you were referring to earlier."
Kiyotaka turned his head slightly towards her, and Airi took a deep breath. She knew what she needed to do from here and prepared herself for it. A part of her still felt a bit shaken from the attention she received from everyone here, but it doesn't compare to the event at Keyaki Mall earlier…
"My name is Sakura Airi, President."
Airi bowed upon saying those words, as someone could be heard snickering in the background. It caused everyone to turn to this person and Manabu raised an eyebrow at him for the sudden distraction. This is not how a teacher's supposed to act in any way, even if it's towards a student from another class.
"Is there a problem, Sakagami-sensei?"
The older man shook his head, a smirk of amusement gracing his lips. "No, no, please. Go ahead. You may begin your testimony, Sakura-san."
Airi noticed the expression on the teacher's face and turned towards Kiyotaka for advice on what to do next, because she had an ominous feeling regarding Sakagami-sensei. The young man responded by nodding slowly, giving the girl some reassurance at the very least.
Kiyotaka then walked to the back of the room with Airi following behind him; there, he showed something to the student council secretary as they began to discuss something without anyone else interfering. This left Airi completely on her own while she stood in front of everyone else and all pairs of eyes were directed towards her.
Manabu turned his chair around so that he was facing her. "Let us not waste any more time. You may begin your testimony, Sakura-san."
Airi looked at her audience, which consisted of her classmates, the three Class C students, two teachers, and the student council president. Her anxiety began to grow as a result, but she ignored it for now and focused on the task at hand.
"I was at the place where the incident happened, and I saw everything. I don't know how the whole situation unfolded or who exactly threw the first punch, but Miyake-kun was beaten up badly. He didn't stand a chance, so it's impossible for him to have injured these students from Class C. That is the truth!"
Her words were concise and conveyed everything she wished to tell everyone. She looked serious but at the same time, she seemed desperate as well, as though she was pleading for people to believe her. Still, she was successful in getting her message across and even got Miyake's attackers to widen their eyes in fear, something that Suzune took notice of. It was just the start of the redhead's testimony, but it seems like things are already going well!
However, like any normal court case, someone would always step up to counter a witness's testimony and in this instance, it was someone who was looking at Airi as if she was a lost child who had no idea what she's talking about.
"In regards to what you have said, Sakura-san, I do not necessarily doubt you and your claim. However, I have one thing to ask," Sakagami-sensei said. "Yes, you stepped forward to testify as a witness, but you were rather late in doing so. You even took your time to get here, for whatever reason. May I ask why? I would think that if you really wanted to help, you would have come forward much earlier."
The man had the same question that Chabashira had when she found out that Sakura was the witness yesterday, so the girl felt somewhat relieved because it was a question that she already answered before.
"I didn't want to get involved…" she averted her gaze to the side, once again berating and cursing herself in her mind for taking so long to step up and do something of importance.
"Why didn't you want to get involved?"
"Because I get nervous when I'm around a lot of people and I was afraid of the attention it would have brought me."
Sakagami pushed up his glasses and nodded slowly. "I see. I understand that. However, I'd like to say something else for everyone to hear. You say that you are not good at talking with others, and now that the hearing is finally taking place, you stepped forward as a witness. Doesn't that seem rather odd?"
"What is your point, Sakagami-sensei?" Suzune folded her arms and gave an unamused look.
"In my eyes, it seems that Class D secretly put a story together and are having you act as a witness to only give a fake testimony," he admitted, with his students nodding furiously in agreement.
Airi frowned in confusion. "W-Wait, I'm telling the truth…"
"Are you tormented with guilt, the fact that you know what you're saying is actually a lie?"
"That's not it—"
"I'm not blaming you. You were probably forced to lie for your class's sake, to save Miyake-kun. Weren't you? If you come forward and confess honestly to us now, you won't be punished. Was guilt the reason why you weren't here with your classmates instead of the lack of evidence?"
Sakagami didn't allow the girl to finish a sentence and simply continued on with the psychological attacks by overwhelming her with questions like this. Whether she truly had evidence or not doesn't really matter… not if the girl isn't in the right state of mind, that is. If this keeps up, she wouldn't even be able to think straight and give a proper answer to any question at all.
However, it was immediately thwarted by Horikita with the next words that she uttered.
"That is not the case at all, Sakagami-sensei. It is true that Sakura-san doesn't like being around other people and she doesn't like attention. However, she is standing here today because she witnessed everything that transpired. Otherwise, she wouldn't be here, even if we asked her. If we needed someone who could speak boldly and tell everyone here a believable story, then we would have asked someone else instead of her."
"I don't think so. Class D may be the worst out of the four classes, but I cannot deny that it also has a few excellent students such as yourself, Horikita-san. By setting up a person like Sakura-san as your witness, it would establish a sense of realism that you yourself could not."
"That's a pretty bold claim, Sakagami-sensei. What proof do you even have that my student is making a fake testimony?" Chabashira-sensei finally spoke up and narrowed her eyes at her fellow teacher. She had been observing the whole situation silently ever since Sakura arrived, choosing to see how her student would handle herself but now, she took notice of Sakagami's strange behavior.
The homeroom teacher of Class C gave a hostile grin. "Are you really going to ask me that question, Chabashira-sensei? Your student is the one who is labeled as a witness, and yet she hasn't shown anything yet."
With those words, both Suzune and Sae were convinced that the man was deflecting the question intentionally to keep the attention away from him and towards Airi instead. At the same time, he was trying to prevent the redhead from giving her testimony by attacking her confidence and self-esteem.
They couldn't do anything against him, though. Not without getting the spotlight on them in which he would continue his psychological attack on Airi by pointing out that she hasn't done anything noteworthy as of yet. It would be preferable if Manabu Horikita is the one to call Sakagami out on his actions…
"It may have been true that I was , but I'm here! I'm not going to let my classmate be a victim of false accusations!" Sakura exclaimed, showing her conviction through words alone as she frowned at the older man.
Sakagami-sensei was taken aback at the sudden outburst from the girl, to the point that he wasn't able to give a proper response at first. She was supposed to be a nervous wreck who has a hard time conversing with others, right? Where did this sudden burst of confidence come from, exactly…?
"Please, do not force yourself in this situation any further. If there really was evidence, you would have presented it at an earlier stage—"
"Can everyone turn their attention to the projection behind the President?" Kiyotaka's voice drew everyone's attention towards him before instructing them to look at the large projection behind Manabu.
The projection of a phone screen was shown for everyone to see and it was a video file to be played. Four people were on display, one of which was Miyake from his magenta-colored hair. From that alone, it was obvious to everyone who the other three were… so much that the Class C students beside Sakagami paled in fear at what was shown before them.
"This is the evidence you're looking for!" Airi continued as the video file was played.
And so, everyone in the student council room watched on as the video retold the events of that day, all while being from a safe distance that the boys didn't notice anything. True to Airi's words, it wasn't clear what took place before this, but from the way that Miyake was restrained by the three students in the video before being ganged up on without mercy, things were made clear.
For the first time since the hearing had begun, Sakagami-sensei's expression stiffened and showed a hint of nervousness.
"This is proof that I was at the place of the incident that day, and it's proof that Miyake-kun was the victim in all this!" Airi added, which was enough
"A-Are we really sure that it was even her who took that video? I find it odd that she was there and none of them noticed her," Sakagami-sensei spoke up in a hopeless attempt to get the attention towards him instead of his students. "I believe that it should count as an offense if Sakura-san was lying about being there to record the incident."
"Even if she wasn't, why should it matter, Sakagami-sensei? It's a solid piece of evidence, either way. Are you saying that the evidence should be ignored in favor of pointing out a minor inconvenience that isn't even relevant?" Kiyotaka asked, playing the video back from the start.
"I'm simply saying—"
"We have done as you asked and provided our evidence, Sakagami-sensei. What about you and your students? Where's your evidence that shows it was our classmate who threw the first punch and won against those three single-handedly? Where is the evidence that it was Miyake-kun who caused those injuries?" Suzune added.
The Class C teacher couldn't say anything to argue against those words. While this was happening, Sae leaned back against her seat while folding her arms across her chest. A look of pure amusement was etched across her face, and it was clear she's enjoying this. Sakagami was cool and composed earlier like he was sure that nothing would go wrong, only to receive a reality check in the form of Sakura Airi.
Haruka was pretty much the same as she allowed herself to breathe out a massive sigh of relief. They're not in the hot seat anymore thanks to Airi and the video she took but ohhhh boy, did that girl make her worry about how this whole trial would go. On the other hand, Akito was as quiet as ever, though he was keeping himself wary of anything that could be used against him.
As the dispute continued between Sakagami-sensei and everyone else that felt like it was the teacher who's being accused of something heinous, Ishizaki, Kondo, and Komiya formed a small huddle amongst themselves to talk about what they should do next. They had been caught in the act through the video that was being played over and over, there's no doubt about that… but how exactly did this happen? Where did it all go wrong?
"How could she still have it?"
"Did Nomura and Yamawaki fail?"
"What else could it be? There's no way she could still have it if they did!"
The three students kept on conversing with each other despite being in the presence of many people, and even if it included the student council president himself. All of this didn't make sense, because Miyake and his class were supposed to be the ones in the limelight. Thanks to a simple video, their positions had changed and now they're the ones who are about to get in trouble!
"But how did they fail? Were they caught or something?"
"They might have been. I don't see how else they could have messed up."
"Damn it! We were so close…"
"Oi, keep your voice down. Do you want us to—"
"What are you three talking about over here?" Kiyotaka's voice cut through their conversation like a sharp knife, causing them to look at him in growing anxiety. "Something about two of your classmates failing in something they are supposed to do?"
"W-We're not talking about anything! Mind your own damn business!" Kondo snapped.
"You were clearly talking about something instead of paying attention to the evidence that could prove to be your downfall. I wonder what you three were discussing that could be more important than this," the brown-haired teen tilted his head curiously.
Sakagami glared at him. "I would appreciate it if you stop harassing my students about something that isn't even relevant to this case, boy."
Manabu shook his head as he threw a serious look at the three students. "No, I agree with Ayanokouji-kun. You three seem to be having a conversation of your own while your credibility is at stake here. Would you mind sharing it with everyone here?"
With the student council president joining the fray, followed by everyone else who was in the room, Class C was further driven into a corner. Neither Kondo, Ishizaki, or Komiya could say anything, and nor did they want to. Even their teacher couldn't do anything of note to save them, mainly because he was busy scowling at the idiots who couldn't be bothered to keep their mouths shut
Seeing that neither of the three looked like they were going to answer anytime soon, Kiyotaka turned to the student council president. "Do you want to know why Sakura took so long to get here, Horikita-senpai?"
"I assume it's not because she was nervous about speaking in front of everyone."
Kiyotaka shook his head. "I wish that was the reason, Horikita-senpai. However, it's very different from what you might think."
The young man took a glance at Airi, who took it as her signal to speak up. "I was heading here with one of my classmates after I grabbed a flash drive from my dorm, which has a copy of this video in it. I could have gotten here ahead of time and there would have been no need to wait for me, but I couldn't… because some people stopped me," she explained.
"A pair of students bumped into Sakura and our other classmate from behind. Those two individuals were wearing caps on their heads and after seeing Sakura incapacitated wasted no time and began stomping on Sakura's flash drive that landed nearby, almost as if they were trying to get rid of it."
Manabu shifted his gaze between the two Class D students alternately with doubt in his eyes. "An interesting story, to say the least. Did you see who those people were, Sakura-san?"
"We don't know," Airi shifted her gaze to the floor. "But we believe that they're from Sakagami-sensei's class. It just seemed like those people knew what they were doing and they knew that I had video evidence of the fight."
"Yet another story that Class D has fabricated," Sakagami folded his arms and scoffed at them. "Disgraceful. Horikita-kun, you don't have to listen to their ridiculous claims any longer."
"Is that really something that you should be saying, Sakagami-sensei? Have we not already proved that your credibility is questionable because of the video of your students assaulting my classmate with almost no regard for his well-being? Are you willing to keep on defending your students and their thuggish behavior?" Kiyotaka pointed out.
"Let's not jump to conclusions. Horikita-kun hasn't given proper judgment yet."
"Let's not jump to conclusions?" Sae voiced out, a smug look taking over her features. She had no idea how her class managed to turn this around in their favor when she was sure that they would lose, but she was enjoying it. "Isn't that what you've been doing since this whole trial began, Sakagami-sensei?"
Sakagami Kazuma could do nothing but scowl at his fellow teacher. If he could, he'd lash out at Chabashira and argue that her class is filled with defects in spite of the few excellent students she had, but he was already going through a troubling issue as it is. He had no idea how he and his class would be able to bounce back from this, but he wasn't going to lie down and admit defeat either!
"Please remain silent, Sakagami-sensei. I was speaking to Ayanokouji-kun before you rudely interrupted us," Manabu merely gave the Class C teacher a side glance like he didn't matter, which made the older man seethe to himself.
Kiyotaka shrugged. "Well, he does make a good point, Horikita-senpai. Until we show evidence, our words are nothing more than pure conjecture. That's why we also made sure to provide evidence of this attempted sabotage and unprovoked assault on Sakura earlier."
Akane was about to open her mouth and say something, but Manabu beat her to it. "And where is this evidence?"
Kiyotaka turned his attention to the door, and everyone else followed suit. Several knocks could be heard from the other side before it opened, as a girl with long brown hair walked in with a smile on her face.
"Good afternoon. I'm Matsushita Chiaki, a classmate of Miyake-kun and the other Class D students. Is it okay if I come in?" she spoke while bowing her head politely.
Tachibana turned to the student council president, who gave her a simple nod. With that, she looked at Chiaki and gestured for the brown-haired girl to join them. "You may enter, Matsushita-san."
"What are you doing here, Matsushita? You're not involved in this case," the homeroom teacher of Class D remarked as the newly-arrived Chiaki joined Kiyotaka and Airi in front, handing over her phone to the former who began tinkering with it.
"Oh, I know that, sensei. But I'm only not directly involved, because I have something here with me that I'm sure everyone would be interested in seeing. Something related to a certain attempt in sabotaging Sakura-san."
"We'll be glad to review any form of evidence related to this case."
"Then you'll be very interested to watch what happens in this video that Chiaki took earlier, Tachibana-senpai."
Kiyotaka hit play, and the video began to show everyone the truth. It was there, for everyone to see, how Sakura and Karuizawa had been knocked to the ground by two unknown individuals who were wearing hats on their heads to conceal their identities, in the two girls' eyes, at least. Chiaki's camera got a good look at their faces, so they could be properly identified if it's investigated even more. The video then showed the two stomping on the flash drive that fell on the ground without any remorse, despite the girls' screams and cries for them to stop. They finally left only when Karuizawa managed to get back to her feet and tried running after them.
In the end, it only proved Class D's claims as the truth and nothing less. Class C was left completely silent, but the looks of shame and defeat on each of their faces were enough to show that they had nothing to say.
"He must have known that his classmate would get into trouble, so he tasked someone to keep an eye on her the whole time," Manabu thought as he snuck a glance at Kiyotaka. The bespectacled man had an indifferent expression on his face, while also struggling to keep himself from looking amused. "I never thought Ayanokouji-kun would think this far ahead."
"I can see what you meant when you said that they were trying to get rid of it," Tachibana watched on with a displeased look on her face.
"I don't suppose you could tell us who those two individuals were, Sakagami-sensei? Kondo-kun? Komiya-kun? Ishizaki-kun? It may not mean much, but your silence until now leads me to believe that there is something you are not telling everyone here. If you don't wish to say anything, it's quite alright, though it won't make you any less suspicious than you three are right now."
None of the Class C students spoke up, not even Sakagami-sensei. The video was too authentic for them to even think of opposing it. Even though they could still deny their involvement by saying that they had no idea who those two individuals were, all three felt like there was no point to it…
"Oh, and that's not all, President. I brought someone with me who's definitely involved in this whole thing too," Chiaki added.
"Another witness?"
As the girl nodded, the sound of someone knocking on the door filled everyone's ears again. After a few moments, the person from the other side made his way in, and it was someone whom a few of them didn't expect to see.
Akane blinked in surprise. "Oh, I see it's Tomose Shunsaku-san."
"Of course. The incident took place outside of the public bath," The older Horikita hid a smirk behind his hands that were clasped together. He just knew that Ayanokouji was behind this, and he really went above and beyond to ensure this as a victory for Class D. "Good afternoon, Tomose-san. I trust you are feeling well today?"
The man shrugged. "Eh, the usual. I was just managing the onsen but then out of nowhere, that girl came and asked me to testify for this case since I was involved. I didn't want to at first, but I figured this shouldn't take a lot of time."
"Then we would like a direct answer to this, Tomose-san. After this question, you can leave as we do not want to take up a lot of your time," the twin-tailed secretary said firmly while pointing to the three students who couldn't do anything except keeping their heads down at this point. "Did you perhaps see these three students attacking someone last week outside of your establishment?"
Tomose donned a serious look before shaking his head. "No. I didn't see any of them at all."
Sakagami's eyebrows rose slightly, as a spark of hope lit up from within him. He was initially scared for what this man was going to say and feared that his three idiotic students were actually seen by the very owner of the public bathhouse, but it turns out they weren't.
This could be just what he and his class needed!
Perhaps there's hope for them to get through this, after all!
"...but I did see that poor kid in terrible shape when I went outside of my bathhouse. He was with that girl," Tomose pointed to both Akito and Airi, "we brought him to the school's clinic together and left him there to get treated. Those three weren't at the clinic, either."
And just like that, Sakagami's hopes for evading a humiliating defeat were dashed away.
Tachibana bowed her head politely. "Thank you. You can leave now, Tomose-san."
As the owner of the bathhouse left, Suzune took it as an opportunity to follow through using the man's words as basis. She had no idea that Tomose would be present at the hearing today, considering his words last Saturday, but it was a welcomed surprise.
"Tomose-san may not have seen either of the three Class C students, but it is a clear fact that Miyake-kun was the one who was left in a beaten state, which directly contradicts their earlier statement."
She glared at the three students in front of her, who were now cowering before her gaze. It turns out they were just all bark and no bite after being shown a video that involved them.
"All of them were insisting that Miyake-kun took on all of them and won, yet he was the only one who was found lying there. There were no signs of anyone else being present; both Sakura-san and Tomose-san can attest to that."
Suzune then turned to her brother, who returned her serious expression with one of his own.
"If they were actually beaten up and left injured by our classmate, then they would have been present at the scene of the incident. The simple fact that they weren't puts all of their claims into question, President. That's all."
With that, the girl ended her statement and had no intention of continuing any further. Tachibana nodded in acknowledgement and shifted her attention to the opposite class, to see if they were going to respond to all the evidence that Class D presented in any way. However, none of them bothered to open their mouths, showing that they had all but accepted their defeat at this point.
"I believe that all the evidence we have seen is enough for us to make an honest judgment, Horikita-kun."
"Indeed. It doesn't seem like Class C has anything more to say as well," Manabu gave a firm nod and straightened his posture for his next words. "Based on the gathered evidence, it is quite obvious that Miyake Akito-kun of Class D is not guilty of any offense whatsoever. Interestingly enough, it's through this hearing that the truth of the incident came to light. The truth that these three students tried to play everyone here for fools, therefore wasting people's time with their ridiculous claims. Instead of being the victims, Kondo-kun, Komiya-kun, and Ishizaki-kun are the perpetrators who are guilty for committing a grave offense to their fellow student."
"Miyake-kun has been deemed innocent, rendering all accusations against him meaningless. With this, the hearing is now over," Tachibana announced, formally putting an end to the dispute.
Haruka was the first to react, almost jumping out of her seat to hug Akito tightly. There were tears in her eyes as she embraced her dear friend, with nothing but joy and relief emanating from her. In the end, the hard work and effort she had poured into this issue wasn't for nothing!
On the other hand, Akito almost couldn't believe it himself. Initially, he didn't have high expectations for this whole hearing and mentally prepared himself for the possibility of him being expelled. He didn't think that his classmates would be able to turn things around and expose Class C for the liars that they were… at least he didn't believe that they could. Clearly, he was wrong.
Airi sighed, overcoming with relief that the case was over and it ended up being a victory for Akito and Class D. She still hated that it took her so long to involve herself in this case, but everything still ended well. When she turned to look at Kiyotaka, she noticed him giving her a nod of acknowledgement, and that was all she needed before succumbing to a massive wave of solace.
It wasn't just them; Chiaki tapped Kiyotaka's shoulder to get his attention and when he turned towards her, she leaned her head towards him like she was wordlessly asking for something. Kiyotaka shrugged and patted her head softly, earning a purr of satisfaction from the brunette. Suzune leaned back against her seat and relaxed, satisfied with how this hearing turned out to be, which made her unaware of the proud look that crossed Manabu's face for a few moments.
Meanwhile, Ishizaki, Kondo, and Komiya all bore looks of shame on their faces while hanging their heads in defeat. Not only did they fail to win this case, but they had been exposed as the true culprits all along. They thought that it would have been an easy victory for their class, but they didn't anticipate just how solid and powerful Class D's evidence was. That's not even counting Tomose's testimony as someone who was only involved in this by chance!
On the other side of things, Sakagami-sensei was livid. Not only did he feel ashamed that his class lost this case and got exposed as the perpetrators this whole time, but he also felt disrespected. Disrespected by how this whole hearing seemed to favor Class D at every moment, to the point that his class never stood a chance in the first place. It only became worse when he saw Chabashira-sensei smirking at him…
And why wouldn't the woman be amused by this? Sae really had no clue how her class of misfits managed to win this case where they had every disadvantage against Class C, but she realized that it was due to Airi's intervention. If she wasn't here with the evidence she had, then her class would have surely lost this case. They were really lucky that she was here to testify like what she said last weekend…
"The hearing may be officially over, but no one is allowed to leave this room just yet. Please remain in your seats," Manabu interrupted everyone's actions and thoughts with these words, causing the atmosphere in the room to shift once again.
As everyone listened to him again, the stone-faced president observed the two opposing sides in front of him before locking eyes with the students of the lowest class. Tachibana actually had no idea what he had in mind either, but this must be something important if he didn't want anyone to leave yet.
"Since your classmate was the victim here, Class D, I will allow you to choose an appropriate punishment for the three of them."
Everyone in the room was taken aback upon hearing Manabu's words, especially Class D. Even Chabashira-sensei was surprised at what Manabu said, to the point that she almost thought he was joking. A student's punishment being left in the hands of another student? This was almost surreal to think about.
"What?" Suzune voiced her confusion.
"Because they have violated one of the most important rules of the school and several other offenses, I have no problem expelling all of them so we can put this matter to rest. However, I would like to leave this decision to your class because you were the unfortunate victims in this situation," Manabu explained.
"Miyake, you were their actual victim. What do you think should be their fate? Their life in this school is in your hands," Sae asked the magenta-haired teen as soon as she snapped out of her shock. She had no interest in making a decision like this, especially when she wasn't directly involved in anything regarding this case.
"I don't really know…" Akito muttered while being in deep thought.
"If I may suggest, Horikita-senpai…" Kiyotaka raised his arm all of a sudden, getting the attention of everyone else in the room. "Two of the three students here can be expelled. One can remain, it doesn't matter who. If there's someone who can tell Class C of what happened in this hearing today, then it should teach them a lesson not to pull off a stunt like this again."
The three Class C students felt as if their whole world shattered while Kiyotaka talked about their expulsion in a nonchalant manner with no concern for them whatsoever. It's like someone flipped an hourglass in front of them and it determined just how long they had left before it's time for them to leave.
"H-Hang on, maybe we can talk about—"
Manabu ignored the words that came out of Kondo's mouth and kept his attention locked on the brown-haired teen. "Is there anyone from Class D who objects to Ayanokouji-kun's demands?"
"Nope. I'm actually fine with that," Akito shrugged. These people attacked him with no remorse and attempted to pin the blame on him, so he could care less about any of them. He had no sympathy for what their life would be after being expelled from this place.
"C-Come on man, we can talk about this!"
Tachibana turned to give the opposing class a stern look. "Please be quiet, Kondo-kun."
Thanks to the student council secretary's words, Class C remained quiet and kept them from making any emotional outbursts, as much as they wanted to. However, it wouldn't last long when Kiyotaka continued to speak.
"Second, the corresponding points that two of them represent as a part of Class C. Class D would like for it to be transferred to our class instead. It would be such a waste if we don't take advantage of those points. Think of it as compensation for the trouble their class has put ours through for a week. This incident caused our monthly point allowance to be delayed, after all."
"T-That's preposterous! You don't get to make those kinds of demands here!" Sakagami rose to his feet and slammed his hands on the table out of anger, though the young man paid him no heed.
"Very well. Class C shall transfer a handful of its points to Class D once two of their students are expelled," Manabu nodded, completely ignoring the teacher's outburst.
Not even Tachibana's harsh stare was able to stop Ishizaki, Komiya, and Kondo from crying out in despair and pleading for a compromise of sorts with them. Class D could only watch them beg for forgiveness and for them to have mercy, but none of the so-called 'defects' showed an ounce of care because it would have been the same scenario if their situations were switched.
"I'm not done yet, Horikita-senpai," Kiyotaka continued on. "Class D would also like full compensation from Class C for their attempt to frame their own victim for their injuries that were caused by unknown means. They already did enough damage by beating up my classmate and they could have gotten away with their crime, yet they chose to do something stupid by accusing Miyake for an incident they caused. In other words, this hearing that was the result of their actions became nothing more than a moot case that wasted everyone's time."
Manabu thought about it for a few moments, before nodding in agreement. "You make a good point, Ayanokouji-kun. Very well, it shall be done."
"Horikita-kun, surely we can discuss—"
Kiyotaka interrupted the desperate teacher by using a louder tone of voice this time. "Lastly, Class D would like to have another compensation for their blatant attempt to sabotage Sakura and by extension, the evidence she was going to present to us. Even if they never said so, I believe the video we provided should be enough to show that it was indeed students of Class C who tried to sabotage my classmate. I have no exact idea how they knew that she was the witness who saw the incident, but that doesn't matter. The point of the matter is that they were willing to put her in harm's way if it meant destroying the evidence that she possessed."
"Even if Sakagami-sensei and his students don't say anything, a simple inspection of the student files will be enough to fully confirm that those individuals were a part of Class C," Manabu pushed his glasses up coolly. "Now then, judgment shall be given to the convicted students. Class D will get its compensation as soon as possible. In the meantime, you and your classmates are free to go."
While the rest of Class D was surprised that they were allowed to leave just like that, Kiyotaka bowed his head politely and turned around to leave the room.
"I didn't think Ayanokouji would have a sadistic side in him," Sae thought to herself as she watched the brown-haired teen leave the student council room with everyone else in her class following him almost right away. She did the same as well, but not before smirking at Sakagami's unfortunate situation once more. "Either way, Class D won against all odds… so I think I'm going to enjoy this for what it is. Might be the only time I'll get to enjoy this too."
"I think you went a little too far this time, Horikita-kun…" Akane almost sweat-dropped at the corresponding actions that they would take in punishing Class C as she took a hidden glance at Manabu, who was staring at the poor students who were left there with him as if they were mere insects.
Two expulsions on top of giving some of its class points to Class D? No wonder Sakagami-sensei looks like he's about to blow a fuse. Not like it matters though, she wasn't really going to tell her leader what to do because she trusted his judgment…
Outside of the room, Kei immediately snapped out of her bored expression when she saw her classmates leaving the venue one-by-one. The blonde girl had been standing here for the better part of an hour, doing nothing but wait for things to be over and hope for the best. She quickly went to Airi and asked if her friend was doing okay after whatever happened inside, to which the redhead responded with a nod.
Once she noticed that everyone had finally left the student council room, Kei decided to ask the question that's been bugging her mind ever since she got here. She had no idea what went down inside that room, and there was a part of her that feared the worst…
What if their class lost? What if Class C got what they wanted by expelling one of their classmates? What if Sakura wasn't able
"How did it go? Our class won, right?"
"It's over. We proved Miyacchi is innocent," Haruka smiled.
Karuizawa felt as if a massive burden had been lifted off her, completely overcome with relief that things ended on a good note for them. She had thought that with Sakura showing up to the hearing beyond the supposed meeting time, she wouldn't even be entertained for 'tardiness' but to her surprise, things didn't go that way.
"Really?"
"Yeah. The videos that Sakura and Matsushita had with them pretty much sealed it," Akito nodded, which was all that the blonde gyaru needed as a confirmation. "But Horikita and Ayanokouji… they deserve credit too. We wouldn't have won this without them, honestly."
The attention quickly shifted to the two aforementioned people. Kiyotaka shrugged and remained silent, choosing not to say anything while Suzune folded her arms and took in a deep breath.
"It was the right thing to do, as we're classmates. It would also hinder our class's progress if one of us were to be expelled from this school."
Haruka smiled through the tears that she was shedding. "Whatever your reasons were, you helped save Miyacchi, Hori-chan. You have our endless gratitude! We'll never forget this, and that goes to all of you!"
Suzune's eyes widened slightly the moment she heard a certain name out of Haruka's mouth, and it was enough to make her panic.
"No, she didn't…"
"'Hori-chan'? Hasebe-san has a nickname for you, Horikita-san?" Chiaki smirked in amusement.
"That's a pretty cute nickname for you, Horikita-san. I wonder if Kushida-san knows," Kei tried to stifle her giggles, but was failing in that endeavor.
A tick mark appeared on Suzune's head as her eyebrow twitched madly in annoyance. She tried to glare at her two classmates for daring to make fun of her, but her expression fell apart right away. It didn't help that her cheeks were bright red in embarrassment.
"I told her to only use that name when we're in the presence of Miyake-kun, Ayanokouji-kun, and Kushida-san!"
Despite her growing agitation, Suzune didn't berate or scold Haruka for her blunder… as much as she wanted to. After all, the girl was currently going through a myriad of emotions after what went down in the hearing earlier. Haruka probably used that nickname unintentionally, even.
Fortunately for Suzune, her moment of embarrassment wouldn't last long when their homeroom teacher walked out of the student council room with folded arms and an unreadable expression on her face.
"I suppose congratulations are in order," Sae told her students after taking a moment to observe them. "Despite the odds being stacked against you, neither one of you gave up and your persistence won the hearing for the entire class. I have to commend you for your efforts in particular, Horikita. Without you, there's no telling how things would have gone back there."
The raven-haired girl took a deep breath to calm herself. "I did what I had to do, Chabashira-sensei."
"On the other hand, I have a few choice words with you, Sakura."
Airi flinched at the cold stare she received from their teacher, but she was able to recover in an instant. She was already expecting something like this to happen, anyway.
"Yes, sensei?" she asked, steeling herself for what was to come.
"Honestly speaking, I felt disappointed and displeased with you when you failed to arrive on time at the hearing earlier. I was even planning to have a private chat with you if you ever showed up, because you swore not just in front of me, but in front of your classmates as well, that you will testify for Miyake last weekend. And in spite of that, you were not present at the event when it started."
Sae scowled at the girl for a brief moment, before she heaved a massive sigh.
"However, recent events must be taken into account. I can't blame you at all for being late to the trial because of what happened to you. In spite of what happened, you were still able to keep your word and testified for your classmate. Well done," she gave the red-haired girl a nod of acknowledgement.
A smile slowly formed on Airi's face. "Thank you, Chabashira-sensei."
Kei raised her arm as she suddenly grew concerned about a certain something. "Uh, about that, sensei… we need to talk to you about something. Something else that happened with Airi-chan earlier. I don't know if you talked about it in there earlier, but it's something really serious and you need to hear it."
The look of joy on Airi's face turned sour, as she was reminded of what happened at Keyaki Mall earlier, and it's not the two people who knocked her and her friend over. Honestly speaking, she didn't want to think about it again, but it's an issue that has to be addressed and for that to happen, they need to inform their homeroom teacher beforehand.
Chabashira tilted her head, her curiosity now piqued. She had no idea what this was about, if it's not regarding the attempt in sabotaging Sakura, but it must be urgent. "Is that so? Let's talk about it somewhere else then. I'm sure some of your other classmates would like to relax now that this whole debacle has been dealt with."
"You can't really blame any of us for feeling that way, sensei," Chiaki chimed in. Their teacher made a very good point though, and she couldn't wait to just relax in her dorm once she gets home.
"I suppose I can't. Not that I would in the first place," Sae shook her head in amusement. "Enjoy your victory this time, Miyake. You deserve it for being the victim of a moot case and for being wrongfully accused. Now, Karuizawa. Sakura. You two come with me. The rest of you, I'll be seeing you tomorrow in class."
With that, the woman walked off and left them on their own. Kei uttered a quick word of farewell to all of them before following after their teacher, as everyone else watched them leave.
"I'm guessing she's too stubborn to admit that she was happy Class D won the hearing, or she's just good at hiding what she really feels," Kiyotaka remarked in his thoughts, noticing how the woman only complimented them for a job well done, when he could tell that she really enjoyed herself back there.
Yeah, he noticed all the looks she was giving Sakagami-sensei while the man was in despair. Kind of cruel and a tad bit sadistic, but the young man knew that he's the last person who should be making a comment on that issue.
"Ayanokouji-kun."
Hearing his name being called, Kiyotaka turned his head to see Airi standing in front of him with a smile on her face. Even though she should be following after their teacher and her best friend, she remained where she was, smiling as if her dream had come true.
Now that there was nothing else in mind, Kiyotaka could be honest with himself. Seeing Airi like this, without her glasses and timid personality, it's like he was face to face with a completely different person. It really makes a person question how she was able to play two different people who are significantly different from one another but then again, the same can be said for Kikyo.
"Shouldn't you be following after Chabashira-sensei and Kei, Sakura?" he asked.
"I know, I know. I just… wanted to thank you again, Ayanokouji-kun. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you. You know why," she looked up at him with a smile.
He nodded, understanding what she meant. It's what she'll be discussing with their homeroom teacher, after all. Truth be told, it's supposed to be him who has to explain what happened earlier to Chabashira-sensei instead of Karuizawa, but he asked the blonde gyaru if she could do it instead. He didn't want to think about what their teacher would do with the information that he was the one who nearly ended that creep's life.
"I wasn't about to let that bastard do anything to you," he whispered in a voice soft enough that nobody else other than the redhead could hear.
Airi shook her head. "It didn't happen because you were there to save me, Ayanokouji-kun."
"If you think that you owe me because of what I did, don't bother. I'm not looking for anything from you in return, Sakura."
She blinked a few times before the smile on her face widened. She didn't think that Kiyotaka would be able to correctly guess her intentions but then again, this was the same person who tutors both her and Kei. Of course he would be clever enough to think of it.
"You know that's just going to make me try and do something for you as thanks for saving me, right?"
"Whatever it is you plan to do, I'm just going to turn it down and tell you to stop."
Airi stared at him for a few seconds before she burst into a fit of giggles, unable to hold in her amusement at his answer. Sometimes, it just baffles her that this boy can be unintentionally funny when he's not trying to, which mostly happens whenever they're having a tutoring session.
When Kiyotaka was about to tell her that she should get a move on and follow after their teacher, the girl lunged forward and threw her arms out wide, before wrapping them around him. The action itself caught the young man off guard, and it made their classmates look on with surprised expressions on their faces.
"Thank you again, Ayanokouji-kun."
As Airi hugged him, the young man took notice of three notifications popping up before him, one of which was something that brought back certain, erhm… memories.
[Special Event 'The Right Thing To Do' has been cleared! You gained 25 Affection Points with Sakura Airi!]
[You have completed the required number of Special Events to unlock a Bonus Scene!]
[Congratulations! You have unlocked Bonus Scene #2!]
The young man didn't bother dismissing them and simply waited for them to disappear, all while his mind was in deep thought regarding what he just read. He was completely buried in his thoughts that he didn't notice Airi letting go of him as she bid farewell to their other classmates.
"Another Bonus Scene, huh? The last one happened after five Special Events too, so I guess this is going to be a regular thing from now on," he sighed to himself as the red-haired girl walked off. "Wonder what it's gonna be about this time…"
Hopefully, it's not another bath at the onsen with his heroines, not that the first 'Bonus Scene' was bad in its entirety. Kiyotaka could admit to himself now that it was a somewhat enjoyable experience, but it was so hectic too that it's hard to tell what was happening at the time. It's already crazy enough that it caused a public bath to be built within the school premises, but to spend an afternoon with his heroines there and washing their backs until they couldn't take it anymore was a completely different story.
"Was that really Sakura-san…? If it wasn't for her hair, then I never would have guessed that girl to be her. She also looked… more confident, so to speak?"
"Yeah, she's like a completely different person."
While Haruka and Akito discussed the paradigm shift in Airi's personality, Suzune walked up to Kiyotaka with a thoughtful expression on her face. Even with the trial being over, there were still a few things about it that she couldn't help but mull over, and there's only one person
"I didn't think Class C would stoop so low as to try and sabotage Sakura-san to keep her from testifying for the trial."
Hearing the girl's voice was enough to snap the young man out of his thoughts, as he shifted his focus towards Suzune. "It shows us that their class is worse than what we expected. Forget framing their own victim, they're willing to hurt another person if it means keeping anyone off their trail," he commented.
"How did Class C know that she had important evidence, though? That's the one thing I'm confused about," Chiaki thought out loud while approaching them.
Suzune blinked in surprise. That's the last thing she expected to hear from the person who witnessed Airi's incident earlier. "You weren't aware of it when you recorded their attempt to sabotage our classmate?"
The brunette shrugged. "Not really. I just followed what Kiyotaka-kun told me to do."
"...she did that on purpose," Kiyotaka remarked in his mind, feeling a twinge of betrayal at how Chiaki threw him under the bus for no apparent reason. Seriously, why did she do that? To direct the attention towards him or something? Now he was feeling tempted to cut off their physical contact for a day as a punishment for her.
The raven-haired girl immediately turned her sights to the person who was apparently behind this, which is something that did not surprise her in the very least. If anything, Suzune was beginning to think that perhaps she should expect Kiyotaka to do things like this from now on…
"You knew?"
Kiyotaka just shrugged. "Why does it matter? The important thing is that the hearing is over, and we can now rest easy knowing that Miyake has been deemed innocent."
"Kiyopon is right. Honestly, I just want to go home and sleep for the rest of the day…" Haruka agreed while letting out a huge yawn.
Suzune sent him a serious frown. "It doesn't make it any less interesting how you knew about Class C's plan, Ayanokouji-kun. Tell us how you knew."
He sighed and shook his head. Chiaki just had to make things more complicated for him, huh? "I didn't know. I was only worried that something might happen to Sakura before the hearing, so I asked Chiaki to keep an eye on her. I didn't know that Class C was planning to do something against Sakura."
"So it was only a precautionary measure?" the girl narrowed her eyes in suspicion.
"That's all it was."
Suzune observed him for a moment, before ultimately deciding that he was trying to hide something from her.
"That doesn't explain how Sakura-san was still able to provide the video file for the hearing. Her flash drive must have been corrupted as a result of those events, which would explain why she used her phone to project the file instead. Did she have another copy at hand?" Suzune asked herself internally. "If she did, then there would have been no need for her to leave the flash drive in her dorm, because she had a backup copy. If Sakura-san didn't have a copy, then she would have headed back, unless…"
Her eyes widened in realization.
"...unless someone else had a copy of the video and sent it to her. Although, it still leaves the mystery of why she didn't bring her flash drive with her in the first place. I'm certain that Ayanokouji-kun told her to leave it in her dorm, but the only reason he would even ask her to do such a thing is if he knew that she was being targeted…"
Kiyotaka was glad that Suzune stopped bothering him after his last explanation, but it did nothing to quell his growing concern when he saw that the serious look on her face never disappeared.
"She's not going to stop thinking about it, huh?" he thought to himself, taking a moment to contemplate if telling her the truth is the better option at this point.
The group dispersed not too long later and soon went their separate ways. Contrary to what one would expect from Kiyotaka, he didn't actually head home right away. He first made a stopover to Keyaki Mall, where he bought some takeout from one of the popular restaurants before continuing on his way back to the dorm buildings.
It was the 'compensation' that a certain scarlet-haired devil insisted upon after agreeing to participate in his plan earlier, which was a very strange demand for someone like her. He had thought that Ichika would ask for something more straightforward, perhaps a kiss or something similar from him, but maybe she was still trying to recover from the embarrassment she endured when they took a bath together.
Either way, he wasn't going to complain about this. Buying food for his roommate is definitely more bearable than any ridiculous demand she could have asked instead, since he bought a meal for himself too. And speaking of which, he began to wonder how she's feeling right now. He told her beforehand to not leave the dorm under any circumstance and not to show herself to anyone at all costs, so it's easy to think that Ichika is bored out of her mind right now.
That being said, she'll probably whine to him about not being able to leave the dorm and go about how she wished or try to make him feel guilty about leaving her alone for almost a whole day, which he'll have to prepare himself for because that girl had a habit of pushing on with an issue until it's time to sleep.
Hopefully, the food he bought for her can keep her silent or less annoying for a while. If lucky, then they could even enjoy a peaceful dinner later on without Amasawa's usual teasing and constant attempts to get a reaction out of him.
"Hey, Kiyopon!"
Hearing a familiar voice that could out to him using a nickname that he was slowly getting used to by now, Kiyotaka turned his head to see Haruka waving at him happily before approaching him. They were together just earlier at the student council room and now they crossed paths once again. Kind of surprising, to say the least.
"Hasebe. I thought you'd be with Miyake," he remarked after recovering from his state of surprise.
"Well yeah, he's in there, getting food for the two of us. I figured we should celebrate this victory and then all of a sudden, I saw you outside!" Haruka pointed towards the nearby barbecue restaurant where Akito was choosing from the menu at the counter. ""I couldn't just leave you out here without asking you out to eat. Wanna join us, Kiyopon? My treat!"
He shook his head. "No, thanks. I just want to get back to my dorm and rest. We still have school tomorrow. I was just here to get some take-out because I don't feel like cooking anything tonight. I appreciate the offer, though."
"Aww, that's too bad. I really wanted to eat with you, you know?" her shoulders slumped in defeat, though she was able to recover from the disappointment quickly.
Kiyotaka shrugged. "Maybe next time, I suppose. And you don't have to do anything for me. Focus on yourself, it's not like I'm running out of points that you have to spend some for me."
"You say that, but I don't think you even know how much this means to me, Kiyopon. Maybe you do, but I'm telling you…" the girl let out a massive sigh as her gaze darted to the floor, unable to meet his eyes for a moment. "You don't. I think I might go crazy if Miyacchi got expelled or worse, I'd do something stupid like getting myself expelled too."
"Seriously?"
Haruka let out a small laugh of self-deprecation. "I just don't think I'd be able to live in a school where Miyacchi got wrongfully accused of something and got expelled for it. We laughed about it like it's a joke, but I don't think I'll be able to keep on attending this school if Miyacchi was gone. But you kept it from happening. Every single bad thing I can think of, you didn't let them happen, Kiyopon."
"Well, one thing is for sure. I definitely don't want to imagine you going crazy. I'd waste a lot of time laughing at how you'd look," he teased.
The girl puffed her cheeks in a big pout. "Hey, that's mean!"
She sent him a frown as a result, showing displeasure towards the joke he made. However, this moment of seriousness quickly ended when Haruka let out another massive sigh. She had lost all signs of seriousness and amusement, rendering her expression almost unreadable in the eyes of a normal person.
"You know, none of this would have been possible if you didn't help us that day. Miyacchi wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for you, Kiyopon. Even though you had every right to refuse to help, you still did…"
Instead of downplaying things like what he had done earlier, Kiyotaka simply nodded this time. Even he couldn't find a way to downplay his involvement, especially when it's something that began when neither he nor Haruka had interacted prior to this. He could have easily ignored the message that Haruka sent him that day, but he didn't.
He couldn't. For obvious reasons.
"I know," he nodded.
"T-That's why, uhm…"
Her cheeks now burning in embarrassment, Haruka took a deep breath and stepped closer to him, leaving them within a few inches away from each other. Before Kiyotaka could say anything, the blue-haired girl got up on her tiptoes and planted a short but sweet kiss on his cheek, before pulling away with a tomato red face.
"Thank you. F-For everything," she struggled to get the words out of her mouth as Haruka fought back the urge to cover her face and run away.
Kiyotaka only had his usual blank expression as he stared at her. Honestly speaking, he kind of saw that coming when Haruka got too close to him, otherwise she would have hugged him instead. He was surprised that it was just a simple kiss on the cheek and nothing more… but perhaps that can be accredited to him receiving nothing but lip contact from his other heroines lately.
He wasn't surprised when several new notifications showed up before him though, and just like with Airi, one of them left him with a dumbfounded look on his face. He was just lucky that Haruka was too embarrassed to notice it.
[Special Event 'Trials and Executions' has been cleared! You gained 100 Affection Points with Hasebe Haruka!]
[Relationship Status 'A Clingy Classmate' has been maxed! Relationship Status with Hasebe Haruka has been upgraded to 'The Best Boyfriend in the World'!]
[Congratulations! You unlocked the Achievement: 'Leap of Faith'! You gained +50 in Charm!]
"One hundred, just like that. In one sitting. That has to be a new record."
The young man was completely sure that something like this hadn't happened before. The most points he had earned in one go was 90, and that happened with Ichika. And truthfully speaking, this wasn't done in one sitting. It was the conclusion of a 'Special Event' that began over a week ago.
Kiyotaka blinked owlishly at the HUGE jump in Affection Points towards Haruka, before shifting his focus back to the girl who was trying her hardest to combat her own embarrassment. It was quite adorable to see. "Is there any reason why you kissed me?" he asked, feigning an awkward tone as much as he could.
"W-Well, I wanted to give you something in return for everything you've done for me and Miyacchi. Since I know you won't accept anything material because of what you told Sakura-san earlier, I… thought a kiss would be worth it, hehe…" she tried to get the words out of her mouth in a proper way that can be understood with no problems, but she just felt too embarrassed right now!
Haruka had no idea what she was doing, even. It's like she had lost control over her own actions, and she had no idea how to fix it.
"Ahhhh, why did I have to do that…? I could have just hugged him and it would have been less embarrassing…!" she shouted in her mind while wishing that she could go back in time just so she could undo her actions and correct them."I wanted to tell him how thankful I am, not show that I'm interested in him! T-That's what I want, right?"
While Haruka was having an ongoing dilemma with herself in her mind, the young man noticed that everything around him had lost its color while three familiar pink screens materialized in front of him. It's been quite a while since the last time these three choices showed up to lend him a hand, and it's when he was with Ichika. As of late, he's been the one doing the decision-making with no assistance whatsoever, all while making sure that he was making the right choices.
A. [That's how you want to play it? Let's go break Miyake's heart together.]
B. [I thought you were only joking when you said that you'll try to win me over, but I guess you were joking when you said that too.]
C. [So, should I start expecting you to be part of the girls who are lining up at my door every other night?]
Nope. He didn't even need to think about it. Kiyotaka already knew what choice he should pick. That first option is pretty crazy, though.
After making his choice, the world went back to normal as he slowly shook his head in amusement.
"I thought you were only joking when you said that you'll try to win me over, but it seems that you were joking when you said that too," he remarked while almost having the urge to just give in to the impending laughter. "I wonder what it is you truly want, Hasebe."
"O-Oh, right… I did say that…" she chuckled nervously, now reminded of her words yesterday. Of course, she wasn't being serious when she said it that time, but now she wasn't quite sure. Is it not true? Yes, but… at the same time, denying it outright didn't sit well with her, either. It was just too confusing to think about right now!
Deciding to let the girl rest her mind and eat her dinner in peace with her friend, Kiyotaka decided to take this time to leave and continue on his way. Ichika was waiting for him back in his dorm, and he didn't want to make her wait any longer than he already had. That scarlet-haired devil was still one of his heroines, after all.
"I'll see you tomorrow at class, Hasebe."
"Yeah, I'll… see you tomorrow…"
As he walked off and continued on his little journey back home, Kiyotaka couldn't help but be relieved that it was finally over.
Between an entire week of continuously working to find the evidence to Miyake's case, tying important points together, keeping an eye on Sakura, and kicking Class C's butt hard in the actual hearing… the brown-haired teen was glad that he could finally put this case behind him…
…even if it was just a waste of time.
MINASAN, YONDE KURETE ARIGATŌ! AISHITEMAAAAASUUUUU! *starts playing air guitar*
-Lance