All or Nothing
By : rainy26541
...
V2 Epilogue
Intro
10 minutes after the end of the final Commander Event finished, the students and outside spectators were called to gather at the front of the school. Kiyotaka stood with his class, lined up in 2 straight lines for male and female respectively. Kei was directly next to him on the girls side, Akito was in front of him and Sudou was just behind him on the boys side. For Kei's side with the girls, Onodera was behind her and Horikita was in front of her.
Kiyotaka noted that where they were right now was the exact same spot where they were at from the start of the sports festival. The same stage was there, microphone, speakers and everything. However, there was a difference here. Somehow one way or another, the teachers had moved the large screen they had for the Commander Events to directly just behind the stage. This was sure to be for the results announcement, Kiyotaka noted.
"Thank you all for your patience. We have now counted the allocated points and have the results available in our hands, and we will now announce them slowly. But before that, word from the Chairman once again, who will then announce the results after."
The Principal, who was making the announcement to the students, then handed over the microphone to Chairman Sakayanagi who took it on with a smile on his face. He took a look at everyone surrounding the stage before bringing the mic to his chin and speaking into it.
"Congratulations everyone once again for a great Sports Festival. As I have said before, this has been one of the most influential sports festivals of all time, so you should all be proud that you managed to make this one of the best ones of all time. Thank you once again to those who accepted the invites and attended. I hope some of them have caught your interest too so that when they graduate, they can be a part of your future endeavours."
Continuous applause and agreement could be heard from the spectators. A few of the students were smiling of course, but most were just waiting in anticipation for the ending results.
"Now it's time to announce the results from the sports festival. I will announce the class results for each year last, but let me start off with the standings for the MVPs. I will only be announcing the top three players in each of these standings. If your name or class isn't announced, you will be able to see it being displayed on the screen behind me."
With nods of agreement and stiffened bodies, the students awaited for the Chairman to make the announcement. After a moment's silence, the screen behind the Chairman changed to show the standings of the MVPs, both boys and girls, and at the same time, Chairman Sakayanagi started to speak into the microphone again.
"Starting with the MVP for the boys side. Thanks to his great abilities in the athletics events, third place goes to Ikuto Kiriyama from Class 3B. You did well for your class, congrats on grabbing 3rd place. Shibata Sou from Class 2C managed to snag second place. You were the one who got the MVP from last year's sports festival too. Congrats, though you only just missed out this year."
Kiriyama and Shibata received praises from their respective classes and claps of applause from everyone else. However, they were only 2nd and 3rd place respectively. Which meant that 1st place was still unannounced. Looking at the screen at the front, they saw that the real MVP for the boys in this sports festival was none other than...
"And now, congratulations to Sudou Ken in Class 2B. You came first place and are the MVP for the boys in this year's sports festival."
"YES!"
Sudou immediately pumped his fist in the air and smiled in happiness and pride. His classmates immediately surrounded him and cheered for him. Unlike last year, where he caused a lot of trouble mostly because he fell into Ryuuen's trap and still had trouble controlling his anger, this year he completely destroyed everyone in the events he participated in. That managed to get him MVP for the boys.
"I will also now announce the MVPs for the girls. Like before, if your name isn't called out, your name will be on the screen to see what place you came in."
Chairman Sakayanagi announced the top three places for the girls. Kiyotaka decided to not pay attention to him and just look straight ahead at the screen displaying the standings. The top three were displayed as such.
MVP Girls - Final Standings:
1st: Onodera Kayano (Class 2B)
2nd: Nanase Tsubasa (Class 1D)
3rd: Andou Sayo (Class 2C)
Once again, Class B took the victory in the MVP awards, just as Kiyotaka had wanted and predicted. His class cheered once again as both their MVPs managed to get the top MVP place.
"We did it Onodera! We smashed everyone! We won!"
"E-eh!? A-ah. Yeah, Sudou-kun. W-we did it. C-calm down a bit! Woah!"
In the middle of all this, Sudou went up to his partner Onodera and hugged her out of excitement. Since the two of them had teamed up to try and win the MVP rewards, it wasn't a surprise to see them celebrate together. However, it seemed that Onodera didn't expect it and she appeared to be flustered from the hug Sudou gave her. That only gave a few of her classmates a teasing opportunity, which only made her more flustered when Sudou let go.
"Congratulations to all the MVPs and to those who won. I will now move onto the Commander results, but before that, I would just like to mention that the rewards you will get from whatever place you manage to snag, the points will be distributed at the start of next week, while the ticket rewards will be given to you immediately."
That meant in the case of Commander rewards, since the top place Commander would receive both Private Points and a School Request Ticket, the winning Commander would receive the School Request Ticket immediately but would have to wait a week for the Private Points to be distributed. And in Sudou and Onodera's case, since they had to choose between a Class Transfer Ticket and Private Points, if they chose the former they would be given it immediately. Otherwise if they chose to receive the Private Points instead, they would have to wait until next week to get them.
"So in that case, Sudou-kun and Onodera-san. Out of the two rewards available to you two, which would you like to receive as your reward? The Class Transfer Ticket or then 2 million Private Points?"
Attention immediately went to the two MVPs, anticipation and curiosity rising in what they were going to pick as the rewards. Even Kiyotaka was slightly interested, but he knew what they were going to pick. Sudou and Onodera turned to each other and nodded their heads as if coming to an unspoken agreement. It was Sudou who spoke up for the two of them.
"We'll take the Private Points of the two rewards. We like our Class and we don't want to leave it anytime soon. It would be pure betrayal to leave a Class we got so acquainted with."
A well thought out answer and completely within Kiyotaka's calculations. A few "awws" could be heard from nearby, though this mostly consisted of their own class and Ichinose's class. Chairman Sakayanagi also smiled at the decision.
"Private Points it is. They will be distributed to you at the start of next week. Now it is time for us to move onto the Commander rewards. Just like with the MVP rewards, I will only announce the top 3 placers and the other standings will be displayed on the screen behind me."
The screen moved the results from the MVPs to the side and then immediately displayed the Commander results.
Commander Events - Final Standings:
1st: Ayanokouji Kiyotaka (Class 2B)
2nd: Yagami Takuya (Class 1B)
3rd: Nagumo Miyabi (Class 3A)
4th: Tsubaki Sakurako (Class 1C)
5th: Kanzaki Ryuuji (Class 2C)
6th: Kiryuuin Fuuka (Class 3B)
7th: Katsuragi Kohei (Class 2D)
8th: Ishigami (Class 1A)
9th: Fodder Character (Class 1D)
10th: Fodder Character (Class 3C)
11th: Fodder Character (Class 3D)
12th: Sakayanagi Arisu (Class 2A) - Did Not Participate
Unsurprisingly, the three people at the top were Kiyotaka, Takuya and Nagumo. But the finishing order between the former two ended up being both praiseworthy and surprising. Although, at the same time, it also wasn't surprising the results ended up like this.
"Nagumo Miyabi, well done on your 3rd place. You were a valiant participant in the Commander Events so congratulations. However, it was very close for the top two. You did really well Yagami Takuya-kun, unfortunately you were 30 points away from taking first place," Chairman Sakayangi then wore a very warm smile as he said the final words. "Which means first place in the Commander Events is Ayanokouji Kiyotaka-kun from Class 2B."
Once again, cheers from Class 2B were heard, much louder than most. Surprisingly, a lot of the second years actually cheered for Kiyotaka's win in the Commander Events. Even though he knew his reputation was building for the better, he really didn't expect everyone in second year to be cheering for him. Perhaps he had Ichinose, Ryuuen and Sakayanagi to thank for that.
But that wasn't important right now. What was important was the rewards he was set to gain. Placing first place in the Commander Events just like he wanted, he was going to receive 2.5 million Private Points and, more importantly, the School Request Ticket. The latter was his real goal in winning the Commander Events.
"Just like I said before, you will receive your School Request Ticket later today, Kiyotaka-kun. When you want to use it, talk to your homeroom teacher and as long as it's a request the school can fulfil, we will fulfil it," Chairman Sakayanagi then turned back to everyone. "Now, it's time to announce the results for each year. These results were calculated from all of your participations and the final point results from the Commander Events were also added to these results. Of course, whatever place your class placed in will affect your class standings."
That much was obvious. Once again, the students froze in anticipation, waiting for the results for their classes. The screen changed once again to finally show each year's class standings, with Chairman Sakayanagi announcing them as well. Knowing how it was pretty much gonna turn out, Kiyotaka closed his eyes as if it didn't matter anymore. However, the results were as followed.
Sports Festival Final Class Results - First Year:
1st: Class 1B
2nd: Class 1C
3rd: Class 1A
4th: Class 1D
Sports Festival Final Class Results - Second Year:
1st: Class 2D
2nd: Class 2C
3rd: Class 2B
4th: Class 2A
Sports Festival Final Class Results - Third Year:
1st: Class 3A
2nd: Class 3B
3rd: Class 3C
4th: Class 3D
Ignoring the first year and third year results, it seemed Ryuuen had done exactly what he said he would do - win the sports festival. Ichinose's class also seemed to do pretty well, though they were only just a couple of points ahead of Class B. It was quite close. And as for Class A, they were pretty much at the bottom.
These results went exactly as Kiyotaka had expected.
"Well done everyone once again. This has been an amazing sports festival and starting Monday next week after the weekend, we will return back to normal classes. Remember you all have the cultural festival to prepare for too so keep making your preparations for that. Thank you to our alumni and spectators for coming, you can follow the teachers to exit the school and we do hope to see you again when the cultural festival happens. That is it for the sports festival."
After that announcement, the crowd dispersed, students and outside spectators alike. Most students went with their friends back to the change rooms while others stayed around the campus area temporarily until there were less people. Kiyotaka was one of them.
However, while he didn't exactly like crowds, that wasn't the reason he stayed where he was. Rather, the reason was because he was specifically looking for a certain person. Rather a certain man.
That man.
Professor Atsuomi Ayanokouji.
Yatei Ayatouji.
Even though he scanned the entire surrounding area like a hawk overlooking an American desert, Kiyotaka could not find the large towering figure that he was used to seeing back in the White Room. His father's presence was always quite obvious to him whenever he looked, even if he was hidden in plain sight. However, that was nowhere to be seen here.
"Looking for Ayanokouji-sensei?"
Kiyotaka was surprised for a moment, but he relaxed a little after realising it was just Chairman Sakayanagi. He likely approached because he was going to hand Kiyotaka the School Request Ticket. Regardless, Kiyotaka nodded to the Chairman's question and that only made him smile and reply with:
"Just as I was making the announcement of the results, I caught Ayanokouji-sensei leaving the crowd with his bodyguards, likely leaving the school. So he's probably left entirely now."
"I see."
That was a slight relief to Kiyotaka. Even though he was looking for his father here, he didn't actually want to talk to him again. That was mostly because Kiyotaka didn't really have anything else left to say to him since the meeting during the lunch break.
"Anyway. Here, Kiyotaka-kun."
Chairman Sakayanagi handed Kiyotaka a piece of paper. Taking it and looking directly at it, Kiyotaka noted it was indeed the School Request Ticket that he won. Part of him thought it was just going to be a digital ticket placed on his student ID.
"Just to let you know. There is a digital version attached to your student ID in case you do happen to lose this paper version. In fact, the digital one was the one we were going for in the first place, but one of the boards wanted to have their daughter design a paper version to carry."
It seemed that Chairman Sakayanagi read Kiyotaka's mind. But now that his question was answered, he didn't need to think of that. However, since Chairman Sakayanagi was still here, Kiyotaka decided to take advantage of that and check something.
"I see. Chairman," Kiyotaka started. "There's a question I would like to ask about this School Request Ticket."
Chairman Sakayanagi raised his eyebrows, interest present on his face combined with the warm smile he was already wearing.
"I'm happy to answer. Go ahead."
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Part 1
Earlier on when Chairman Sakayanagi was just giving his speech before announcing the results, a certain man had left the crowd earlier than most and made his way to the school's exit. Around him were men in blacksuits and black sunglasses, the types of outfits only bodyguards of a high ranking official wore.
It was needless to say that this was none other than Professor Ayanokouji, aka Yatei Ayatouji.
"Professor? Are you sure we shouldn't have stayed for the final announcement? Wouldn't it have been better to see how well your son did?"
Professor Ayanokouji's assistant asked this question as the two were slowly approaching the gate. The Professor's gaze did not change direction, only staring at the path directly in front of him.
"It's pointless to stay there now. All I came here for is to see Kiyotaka's current state and whether he still intends to defy me. Now that I got my answer, I don't need to be here anymore. In fact, after that meeting I had with him and Sakayanagi and her daughter, I could have left straight away, but I decided to entertain Kiyotaka's thoughts."
"...And what did you think?"
"Pointless."
Even though he said that and was aiming to leave the school as quickly and discreetly as possible, Professor Ayanokouji stopped walking, prompting his bodyguards and his assistant to do the same.
"Professor?"
"However. I believe I gained some new important information from staying here longer."
Professor Ayanokouji then turned to face his assistant, sharp glare piercing his body and soul and tearing them up inside and out. If the assistant wasn't used to seeing them all the time, he would've ragdolled on the floor and played dead just to get them off him.
"There was a girl that shouted Kiyotaka's name as a cheer during the triathlon event. It was louder than most of the other people cheering for him. You saw her too, it was a blonde girl with a ponytail and purple eyes in his class's tent. Tell me the name of this girl."
The assistant quickly brought out his tablet, containing all the school records. It was the exact same tablet Tsukishiro used to gather information on all the students for Amasawa Ichika and Yagami Takuya. The assistant scrolled through the information on the tablet, scrolling through the entire Class 2B list and finally arrived at the student's name.
"Hold on, Professor. Ah. Yes, I found her. Her name is Karuizawa Kei."
"Karuizawa? That name sounds very familiar for some reason."
"Professor. Your previous assistant told me this before but I believe Karuizawa is the surname of the man who brought you quite a lot of children for the 4th, 5th and 6th generations before he was ultimately arrested for an incident caused by his own selfish and idiotic drunken self. I believe he was also the 'blood related father' of that girl who was very close to Kiyotaka-kun. Suzuki Shizuku-san, I think her name was?"
That name rang a bell in Professor Ayanokouji's mind. Of course he remembered Suzuki Shizuku as one of the last remaining 4th generation White Room students. He was surprised that girl lasted so long, but he deemed it due to her determination and relationship with Kiyotaka.
However, more importantly, he began to remember the man who had the surname "Karuizawa" that supplied Shizuku and a lot of other children to him. Even though a lot of things had happened over the last 16 years since the White Room started operations, Professor Ayanokouji at least remembered faces of those who had assisted him in his journey to create and manage the White Room.
"I see. Then that makes this a little more interesting then."
"What do you mean, Professor?"
Professor Ayanokouji then continued walking again, causing the assistant to meekly go after him. His bodyguards also continued walking, forming a circle around him for protection.
"Have you not realised it already? When that Karuizawa Kei cheered loudly for Kiyotaka, he seemed to instantly do better in that triathlon event. Of course he was holding back but it's not a coincidence that he fought more after that girl cheered him on. And when I got a good look at Kiyotaka when he was meeting his class again, those two had a very familiar and comfortable atmosphere. There's no doubt about it, that Karuizawa girl is Kiyotaka's girlfriend."
This was only an answer one could come up with if they carefully analysed Kiyotaka and Kei's relationship and situation, something which a powerful man such as Professor Ayanokouji could do easily. When he explained it, his assistant began to understand.
"Ohh. That makes sense. Who thought Kiyotaka-kun would get a girlfriend. But what did you mean when you said it could be interesting?" The assistant asked back.
"Knowing this information will make things more interesting in terms of how I intend to bring Kiyotaka back. We could use her to get to Kiyotaka."
In an almost similar manner to how Ryuuen got to Kiyotaka through Kei, Professor Ayanokouji appeared to come up with a plan to use Kei. Feeling a little afraid of what he was thinking of, Professor Ayanokouji's assistant shivered.
"E-eh... B-but Professor. Tsukishiro-san has been removed from his position as an Acting Director and Chairman Sakayanagi has been reinstated. And Yagami Takuya-kun and Amasawa Ichika-san have completely gone rogue and betrayed their orders. How are you going to try and get Kiyotaka-kun back without their help?"
"A good question. Yagami and Amasawa were both good subjects, but since they've gone rogue and the fact the former failed to beat Kiyotaka, there's no point in using them anymore. However, that doesn't mean I don't have another person in my arsenal to use."
The assistant was confused at what his boss was saying. However, instead of further clarifying what he meant, Professor Ayanokouji took out his smartphone from his pocket and began scrolling through his contacts list. His finger then landed on a certain name, hidden from the assistant's view. The phone started ringing a couple of times until the person on the other side finally answered.
"Atsuomi-sama. I thought you weren't going to call until tomorrow? Do you need me for something?"
The voice was from that of a young female. It sounded mature but also quite monotonous. Cold and robotic in a way. Hearing such a voice immediately made Professor Ayanokouji's assistant realise exactly who it was. He felt a shiver down his spine again.
"That was meant to be the case," Professor Ayanokouji started. "However, circumstances have changed. In fact, I lied. I was planning on calling you today after Sakayanagi's school's damn sports festival."
"I see. In that case, what do you need from me?"
"I think you already know why I'm calling. It's your turn now, ******. I know you're controlling someone from inside the school. So now you can expand on that and do whatever you can to get Kiyotaka expelled and returned back to me."
The other side of the phone call was silent for a few moments before replying back.
"Is that so? You're going to count on me now to bring Kiyotaka back? All I was doing was using someone to understand his situation inside the school. I hadn't fully planned to strike using them, but if Atsuomi-sama's going to give me the go ahead, then I'll use all my abilities and the people I control to have some fun."
"Your main goal is to just bring Kiyotaka back. You can do whatever you want to get it done, just make sure that it is done." Professor Ayanokouji reiterated in a colder tone.
"Sure. But please remember, even I can't get it done fast. I need to understand the situation inside Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing High School before I can make any moves. So for now it'll just be the waiting game and it could be a while before we see any results. Especially now that your 'Acting Director' move was ousted out of his position."
"Are you mocking me? Anyway, that's fine. But if you want a bit of information now, one thing you could do to get to Kiyotaka is to use his supposed girlfriend. Her name is Karuizawa Kei. I'm sure you have information on her already. If not, we can get you it."
"Interesting. I do have some information about Karuizawa Kei. But if you have any more about her, it will be appreciated. I can have fun with her and Kiyotaka."
"Then consider it done when I get back. Remember. Do whatever you can to rifle up Kiyotaka and get him expelled, either forced from any means or in a situation where he chooses it himself. I'll talk to you later."
Professor Ayanokouji then hung up the phone, not bothering to wait for a reply. It was rather rude of him, but he knew the person on the other side of the phone call didn't really care about that. Seeing the phone call was now over, the assistant decided to speak up.
"Professor. That person you called... It was ******-chan, wasn't it?"
They had finally arrived at the limousine that happened to be waiting for them at the front entrance of the school. Professor Ayanokouji entered the opened door with the assistant following in directly after. One of the bodyguards closed the door when they were both inside.
"Yes. ****** will be our only means now in trying to bring Kiyotaka back. I'm sure she'll cause some chaos in between all this, but as long as she achieves her goal, nothing else matters."
"I see. Well, the future might become hectic for both ******-chan and Kiyotaka-kun. I kinda feel bad about the situation..." The assistant frowned as he said this.
"Don't think about that pointless stuff. Kiyotaka won't care about it at all even if he finds out. And ****** doesn't even care either."
The assistant nodded at Professor Ayanokouji's cold but factful answer. The limo finally drove off, destination likely to Professor Ayanokouji's office back in the White Room. As they were driving, Professor Ayanokouji looked out the window to see the surroundings.
[Now then, Kiyotaka. This outside world you so desperately care about at this moment. The people you care about and the goal you are searching for, let's see you protect them in this new coming battle. You'll regret trying to go against me the minute you taste ******'s abilities.] He thought.
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Part 2
The weekend was uneventful to most. After a long sports festival on Friday, around 85% of the students at Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing High School just wanted to lie down and take things easy as a form of rest. Other students were out and about making the most of their lives at this school.
For example, in Class B, students such as Ike, Satou and Sotomura who weren't very athletic, took the weekend off to just relax and recover from using a lot of energy. However, other students like Hirata, Onodera and Sudou were out and about doing club activities or hanging out with friends. And Kiyotaka and Kei meanwhile took the weekend to go out and have a date at Akuisha again.
Speaking of Class B, it was now the end of the final lesson on Monday. Sakagami left the classroom after teaching the maths lesson for Class B. The only thing left was the final homeroom session with their homeroom teacher, which was set to begin in 5 minutes. Using that time effectively, the students started up conversations with their friends.
"Ayanokouji-kun. You said there was one more thing that was a part of your plan. Are you going to tell us what it is?"
In Kiyotaka's case, he sat where he was and immediately was brought up into a conversation with Matsushita. Haruka, Kei, Mori and Satou also arrived in front of his desk and joined in the conversation too, eager to know what else Kiyotaka had planned. However, Haruka didn't have much of an eager and curious look compared to the other girls. Rather, hers was dark and mimicking a smug expression.
"I said that to you girls?" He was immediately met with deadpanned expressions. "I'm joking. Of course I remember. Anyway, you'll soon find out exactly what else I had planned."
"Take your seats everyone. I'd like to start straight away since I have two things to say and an announcement before I let you go."
Before Matsushita and the rest had time to try and question Kiyotaka further, Chabashira walked into the classroom and immediately instructed her students. Knowing better than to not obey, the girls and the other students who were away from their seats moved back and sat down, all ready to listen to their homeroom teacher.
Chabashira stood at the podium, overlooking her class with a small smile before speaking up again.
"First of all, I would like to say good work to you all. Even though you got third place overall, resulting in no Class Point gains, your class is still in the same position as before. Meaning you are all still Class B students. Well done. However, the new Class C is catching up to you, so you may want to take the cultural festival even more seriously to try and earn those points and get closer to Class A, who lost 150 Class points for coming last place in the sports festival."
Cheers could be heard from a few students. It was true that they hadn't moved positions since they didn't gain any Class Points. However, because of Sakayanagi's deal with Kiyotaka and her insistence that winning the sports festival was pointless, her class had lost points which meant Class B was 150 points closer to overtaking their class than they have ever been. That was sure to motivate the students in Class B to continue to do well.
"Secondly. Congratulations to Sudou, Onodera and Ayanokouji for taking 1st place in the MVP and Commander rewards. You three have already earned your personal rewards, which are extra private points for all three of you and in Ayanokouji's case, a School Request Ticket. However, Ayanokouji has already used his School Request Ticket for a request so that ticket can no longer be used."
Most students let out a gasp of shock. Some even glared at Kiyotaka, probably a little mad that he used it already. However, they didn't know what his request was so it was a little premature to get angry at him.
"Finally..."
As Chabashira was about to make her final announcement, Kiyotaka closed his eyes. He knew what was coming next and it was about to affect the class greatly. Chabashira turned her gaze to face a certain student in the classroom.
"Kushida Kikyou. When this homeroom session ends, come see me in the staff room. After that, you are to pack your things that you would like to take back with you in your room as this will be your last day at this school."
The room was silent. All eyes turned to Kushida, who was extremely shocked for a moment. She recovered a little bit and then spoke up hesitatingly.
"M-my last day h-here?"
"Yes. Kushida. This is your last day here because you have now been expelled."
"HUH!?"
It wasn't Kushida herself who exclaimed in shock, but Horikita and a few other classmates. Horikita immediately stood up, hands smacking the desk as she did so with a loud bang.
"Sensei. What is the meaning of this? Please explain why Kushida-san is being expelled so randomly."
It was understandable why Horikita would be the first to protest. Being the one who protected Kushida from expulsion in the last special exam, it would be weird to see her not protest unless she truly regretted her decision and wanted to change things, which unfortunately she wasn't.
"A case with really reliable evidence was brought up against Kushida. The original plan was to go through a trial, however the evidence itself has been too reliable that the Principal and the Student Council President had no choice but to just carry out justice, which is the result we have here - Kushida getting expelled."
"Wha... What was the case against her?"
Chabashira gave one small glance to Kiyotaka, who still had his eyes closed. Seeing he wouldn't look at her and that, to her, she thought it was alright, Chabashira turned back to Horikita and answered.
"Blackmail and attempted sexual blackmail. Class ridicule. Defamation from rumour spreading. Rumour spreading in general. I can't say any more than that."
"...Ayanokouji-kun, do you know anything about this?"
Horikita, Kushida and the rest of the students turned to the silent and indifferent Kiyotaka. Being the victim of Kushida's "sexual blackmail", it was understandable that Horikita would ask him if he knew about this case. However, for all she knew, the person who submitted the case could have been another person from another class or another year who also happened to run into Kushida's true nature by accident.
However, those who were thinking that were thinking far-fetched, as Kiyotaka's response completely blew those thoughts out of the window.
"Of course I do. I am the one who submitted the case after all."
"HUH!?"
This time, it was Kushida who exclaimed in shock and horror. Horikita was also shocked and so were the rest of Class B. After Horikita had made her decision to protect Kushida in the unanimous vote special exam and pledged to bring her back and change her, everyone believed that she was pretty much on the path to redemption and that they would just have to accept that path.
[What utter nonsense. How naive to think something like that.] Kiyotaka thought, eyes still closed as he waited for the one person who objected to this the most to speak up.
"You... Ayanokouji-kun... You submitted the case against Kushida-san and got her expelled?" Horikita asked with hesitation, as if she couldn't believe what he had done.
"Yes. I did what had to be done. What should've been done long before. Thanks to the sports festival, I was able to achieve it."
Horikita immediately stiffened again upon realising the hidden meaning there. Kiyotaka had come first place in the sports festival Commander Events, which meant he gained a certain reward that Chabashira had mentioned he had used already.
"Ayanokouji-kun... Don't tell me you used the School Request Ticket you won just to get Kushida-san expelled...?"
That was exactly what Kiyotaka did. When Chairman Sakayanagi handed him the School Request Ticket, Kiyotaka asked the Chairman about how far the school could fulfil a request using the ticket. Of course, the Chairman gave school-like answers, but that didn't stop Kiyotaka. When he probed about whether the school could fulfil a request to expel a dangerous student with evidence, Chairman Sakayanagi answered they could investigate but it wouldn't be a guarantee and expulsion was very harsh as a form of punishment.
That was enough information for Kiyotaka, since he knew the Chairman wouldn't go too far for him. With that information, Kiyotaka made a few moves, using both Haruka and Kei before finally bringing the case and evidence to Chabashira. He was also able to infer that Private Points could be used to a certain extent to help with the case. When Chabashira finally brought the case with the school on behalf of Kiyotaka, it seemed the school made a decision right away instead of prolonging and investigating the case further.
[That was a little unexpected, honestly. Perhaps the information they had on Kushida and her past, plus the evidence Chabashira-sensei brought to them, and with help from Haruka and Kei, allowed the school to just make a decision to expel Kushida straight away. That has definitely saved me some time.] Kiyotaka thought.
Kiyotaka didn't say anything, but that was enough for Horikita and the rest of the class to confirm that Kiyotaka did indeed use his School Request Ticket just to bring a case against Kushida and expel her.
"Ayanokouji-kun... Why would you do this!?"
Horikita was a little furious, to say the least, with what Kiyotaka had done. But she knew she shouldn't have been too furious considering she too had directed the class to expel Airi in the previous special exam.
"Didn't I tell you already, Horikita? Kushida is a lost cause, whether she changes or not. Even if she is useful in one small case, her betrayal is just as possible as shown in the past. It would be better for the class if she were gone from this school entirely. I also cannot accept that she is still here while Airi, who while wasn't as useful as Kushida but wasn't likely to betray and cause problems for the class unlike Kushida, was expelled in her place."
A grudge essentially for getting rid of Airi was what part of it boiled down to. But Kiyotaka was also looking out for the class. Kushida still held the secrets of many others both in the class and around the school. Keeping a monster like that was too dangerous, especially after she already broke this class once. Even if that danger could be made useful, the matter was she was still too dangerous to keep around, and it wasn't a guarantee that she would be make that useful at all.
This was the conclusion Kiyotaka came to. A complete opposite point of view to what Horikita wanted.
"You... It's better for the class? How are you so sure about that!?" Horikita shouted.
"How are you sure that keeping Kushida is better for the class?" Kiyotaka retorted, throwing her argument right back at her similar to how Horikita herself did with Shinohara just a few weeks ago. Horikita obviously couldn't retort back to that.
"But if you want an actual reason as to why it's better for the class, why don't you ask our classmates what their actual opinion is of this outcome. Rather, why don't we do a show of hands as to who opposes Kushida's expulsion and who doesn't." Kiyotaka then said.
If one looked at this situation, it was like a recreation of how the class had come to pick its expulsion target in the unanimous vote special exam. Only this time, the expulsion victim was already decided and about to be thrown out. Even if there were people who objected to Kushida's expulsion, they couldn't overturn the decision. Horikita probably knew that.
"Can anyone that is opposed to Kushida's sudden expulsion, raise their hands right now," Kiyotaka announced, appearing to be the mediator in this situation.
Horikita knew that she couldn't overturn the decision now. And yet she still objected, still holding onto what little hope she had left. Unsurprisingly, Horikita raised her hand immediately. She then turned to face the rest of the class, asking for support when Kiyotaka asked the question.
Only two other hands were raised. Surprisingly, one of them was Mei-Yu, who had been one of the people most affected by Kushida's onslaught just weeks ago. It was likely that even after the half baked yet somewhat genuine apology Kushida gave to her, Mei-Yu still forgave her and wanted to be her friend again.
The other person was Hondou. This didn't surprise Kiyotaka at all, since Hondou had a huge crush on Kushida before she was exposed to be a two-faced bitch who munched on people's secrets and caused despair if she never got what she wanted. It was likely either he still had that crush on her so he wanted to defend Kushida or he just didn't want to agree with Kiyotaka after his dreams were crushed by reality.
"Only three people huh...?" Kiyotaka was honestly surprised there was more than just Horikita who opposed it. Of course, Kushida herself put her hand up but he didn't count it for obvious reasons.
"Now then. Those who are not opposed to Kushida's expulsion, please raise your hands now."
This time, more people raised their hands. Excluding Kiyotaka himself, there was Kei, Haruka, Satou, Matsushita, Mori, Akito, Yukimura and, surprisingly, even Hirata. That was just 9 people in total already, but the number went higher. Shinohara and Ike. Ichihashi and Onodera. Sotomura and Miyamoto. The number pretty much reached just over half the class.
"27 people including myself voted. I'm going to assume the rest abstained. There's your answer, Horikita."
Kiyotaka knew he would reach this number on his side at the very least. Before he used the School Request Ticket to bring the case against Kushida, Kiyotaka had tasked Haruka and Kei with gathering information on the class's current view on Kushida and whether they thought it was good to keep her or not. Of course, with the latter part, Haruka and Kei made sure to not directly mention that Kushida WOULD be expelled, only stating it was theoretical.
Through that, he was able to determine that most of the class either despised Kushida after her change or were just disillusioned with her, and would prefer to see her go instead of seeing her stay even if she changed. That information was useful to his plan to get rid of Kushida with the School Request Ticket as it allowed him to get the school to understand that their class was greatly affected by Kushida's existence. That further resulted in the expulsion result.
"And I'm sure you've realised already, but even if you garnered support from this class to oppose Kushida's expulsion, it won't matter unless you have the points to actually reverse it. Our class doesn't have enough points to do so, and unless the other classes have reason to save Kushida, they won't give them to us either."
Kushida had a large network of people she called her friends in other classes. It was possible if probed, the "simp-kind" friends would probably give some points, but it still wouldn't be enough to reach 20 million private points. Horikita should know that all too well.
"...Damnit..."
At this point, Horikita had given up. There was nothing she could do to save Kushida. All she could do was accept the situation without any further deliberation, like a child who lost an argument with their parents.
"Ayanokouji..." It was Kushida herself this time who called out to her. "You... You betrayed me again!"
"Betrayed you again? Are you making a joke, Kushida? Sure I've betrayed you here, but I never betrayed you before this. You were the one who betrayed me countless times. Do I need to remind you of that? Anyway, aren't I doing you a favour? You wanted to get out of this school, didn't you?"
"Screw you! Have you forgotten what I said would happen if someone would come at me with hostility!? I still have more secrets I can expose in front of the class!"
Hearing that, a few of the students shivered in fear. While she did expose quite a lot already, being someone who was trusted with a lot of secrets, what she exposed was just the minimum she needed to cause a blackhole to form. Said blackhole, to her, was quite tiny and all it needed was more information to materialise larger. In other words, Class B was a walking bomb, ready to explode when provoked by the lighter Kushida.
"Then go ahead and do it."
But Kiyotaka was not deterred. In fact, he outright provoked Kushida to do it right here and now. It was a huge risk to take, especially since Kushida was the person who wouldn't hesitate to do something. She would immediately take that as an opportunity and expose the rest of the secrets. There would be no reason for her not to.
However, Kushida did not do that. Instead, she stayed as silent as a spider. Some students were wondering why that was the case, but all they needed to do was to look at the instigator to find out why she was silent.
Kiyotaka had gotten up from his seat and started making his way towards Kushida's desk. However, the expression on his face as he approached Kushida's desk was not his normal apathetic gloomy self. Replacing it were very dark eyes as sharp as the sharpest knife on earth ready to stab its target and as cold as the North and South Pole. Those eyes glared at Kushida, freezing her in place.
It wasn't just Kushida who was stuck on the edge of her seat in fear. The rest of the class also felt scared seeing someone who was once considered boring and gloomy, now becoming more popular, with a face that almost rivalled that of a murderer. It was terrifying to them. All they could do was sit and watch the spectacle.
"Go ahead and expose everyone's secrets again. This class has already felt the impact of your stupid pride and your idiotic backstory. Whether you expose more secrets now won't change that the class has only gotten closer after rebuilding itself. You've already seen that yourself. Your weapon is no longer as powerful as it once was. You're now weak in other words."
"W-w-w-w-wha-"
"Kushida Kikyou. I've said it already. But you're such a stupid girl. You have no place here any longer. So why don't you just give up and start another life like you did after middle school. You've caused enough problems here, and you won't cause anymore. You can't anyway. So be the goodie tooshoos you claim to be and quietly leave this school. You'll never have a life here again."
Kiyotaka's tone was colder and darker than he had portrayed when he exposed Kushida. Class B couldn't have even pictured Kiyotaka like this. Kushida, who was taking the full brunt of his direct attack, almost felt like she was going to wet herself. She already realised that making an enemy out of Kiyotaka was a bad idea, but now she royally regretted everything she had done to try and expel him.
At that moment, the final bell rang, indicating the end of the day. One thought that would stop this escalating confrontation, however, Kiyotaka still kept his dark, cold eyes on Kushida and the latter just stayed frozen in place with fear. It was only until the sound of hands clapping from the front of the classroom stopped this escalation.
"Kushida. It's time. Come with me to the staff room so we can discuss this further," Chabashira said with caution, not wanting to make the situation any worse than it already was.
Kiyotaka lessened the icy stare he kept on Kushida to the point where she could move while under it, but it was still present on his face. Like a timid bunny, Kushida grabbed her belongings and left the classroom with Chabashira. The latter stopped at the door and turned to glance at Kiyotaka before walking off to the staff room.
The icy cold atmosphere in the classroom finally disappeared when Kiyotaka returned his expression back to his usual one. A few students almost felt like they were about to hyperventilate, so they felt fine again once Kiyotaka returned to normal. Kiyotaka sent a look to Hirata, and he immediately understood what the look meant.
"Everyone. A lot has happened now. I think it's best we all just go home for today and talk about what happened tomorrow. Since part of our year already knows about Kushida's true nature now, there won't be a gag order on her expulsion. But I would recommend not mentioning anything about it at the moment, at least until tomorrow. Is that okay with everyone?"
No one objected to Hirata's offer. There was nothing else they could do anyway. In just the space of a couple of weeks, 2 people from Class B had now been expelled. Class B also now just lost a precious figure/leader and learnt about someone else's possible hidden side. They needed time to let all this sink in smoothly.
Students began packing their things and leaving slowly. Kiyotaka began packing his own items and just as he finished, he found Kei and Haruka coming up to him, looking ready to leave with him. Kiyotaka nodded and the three of them left the classroom together with one destination in mind.
Destination: The School's Front Gate.
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Part 3
The three of them walked in silence side by side, though in Kei's case, this was arm-in-arm with Kiyotaka. After a couple of minutes, they finally arrived at the school's front gate, the same place they had their final meeting with Airi before she walked away from the school grounds. Upon arrival, the silence stopped with Haruka speaking up.
"Kiyopon. Is it really worth seeing Kushida-san one last time before she completely leaves this school?" she asked.
Their main reason for coming here to the school's front gate instead of going home straight away was because Kiyotaka wanted to talk to Kushida one last time before she was gone forever. Kiyotaka was the only one who wanted to do this and his original plan was to do it alone. However, Kei and Haruka for some reason wanted to join him too, and they weren't accepting no for an answer so Kiyotaka was forced to accept their insistence on being the +1s.
"Honestly, no. However, even still, I feel like there's still a few things I want to say to her before she goes. Things only I can tell her right before she leaves."
"You aren't going to confess to her or something, are you Kiyotaka?"
Where Kei got the deduction from, Kiyotaka did not know. In fact, she should know far too well that, like Horikita, Kiyotaka never liked Kushida as a person or a friend. Perhaps it was just random girlfriend jealousy or she was just teasing.
"Far from it."
The three of them waited by the gate, the girls taking a seat on the nearby bench while Kiyotaka just leaned on the gate. After a while, they heard the sound of footsteps approaching and upon looking in the direction of them, they witnessed their intended target approaching with her suitcase.
Kiyotaka moved to stand in her path, the girls moving to stand next to him. Seeing thwomps in her path blocking her means of escape, Kushida stopped and cautiously glared at them. She was careful to not glare too hard at them considering Kiyotaka was directly in front of her.
"You really did a number on me, Ayanokouji-kun," Kushida started with a lifeless tone, very different to the angry and cheerful tone she was used to using. "I admit that I was in the wrong trying to constantly attack you. You are definitely an opponent who shouldn't be reckoned with and now I'm paying for it. But I wanted to live my life my way so I had to get rid of people who knew about my true nature."
"Of course, I understood that all too well. But that stupid naivetee is what caused you to lose everything you gained. If you really wanted to live your life the way you wanted, all you needed to do was to build a trust bond where people who knew about your past and true nature would never betray that trust and never tell anyone. Isn't that what friendship is? Horikita and I were people who never cared about your past and nature, so we were the perfect people to build that bond with."
Kushida's adamance in wanting both Kiyotaka and Horikita expelled stemmed from the two of them knowing about the real her. Kushida's main argument for Horikita's main point in saying they would never tell anyone either way was that she couldn't know or trust that they would keep it a secret either way. So what if she just built that trust so that she wouldn't have to worry? She was so full of trust from others so why couldn't she redirect that trust back at them?
In other words, why go with a one-way trust road when the road can go two ways? Unlike actual roads in towns and cities, a one-way trust road wasn't efficient enough to direct traffic.
"From my point of view, the reason why you didn't do so is because the monster in you just wouldn't want that and blinded you. In other words, your pride wouldn't allow you to build trust where you could share your own secrets with others but you wanted to keep the secrets of others. How utterly stupid for a stupid girl like you."
Kushida stayed silent at that explanation. Whether Kiyotaka was right or wrong didn't matter too much. This was just what he could infer from his point of view with the information provided. But he couldn't know what Kushida's true answer was and it didn't look like she would tell him anyway.
"Did you come here just so you could insult me further?" She finally asked.
"Not really. I'm just telling the truth. I'm calling you stupid because you are stupid. Just like how I call Horikita useless because she is useless sometimes."
That part about Horikita made Kushida smirk a little. But it didn't last long.
"But if you seem quite impatient as to the actual reason why I'm here, then I might as well start then. I also do not want to be here too long talking with you." He paused for a moment before asking: "When Horikita brought you back to school, did you ever plan on changing from the person you currently are?"
It was safe to say that Kushida was surprised by that question. She was expecting Kiyotaka to say to never mess with him again even though she couldn't do that anymore anyway. She wasn't expecting a question about her changing her ways. Kushida already had her answer.
"I told Horikita-san already, but I can't change the way I am Ayanokouji-kun. I was born this way."
"Were you really born that way or is your pride just telling you to believe that?" Haruka retorted back. Unsurprisingly Kushida glared at Haruka due to her response, which resulted in Haruka glaring right back at her.
"Either way. I can't change and I won't change. This is who I am."
That was Kushida's resolve. That was the decision she set herself on moving forward. However, Kiyotaka knew it was the wrong one for her. He sighed before speaking again.
"Do you plan to function in society the way you are, Kushida?"
"Huh?"
"If you plan to get a job in society with the current personality and attitude you have, you'll find yourself either homeless on the streets with no money or behind the bars of a prison cell. You'll find yourself in the court of justice, sentenced for the wildest cases, more so than what I had done to you in this school. Do you still plan to stay the same as you always have been if your future looks bad?"
Kushida didn't have a response to that. Of course she knew that her personality was not welcome when she would get a job as a working class adult. That much was obvious. She wasn't that stupid.
But her pride just wouldn't allow her to change. Her plan was to just try and find a way to fit into society when the time came.
"Unless you find a way to change, you won't become a working class member. Unlike middle school and this school where you can just adapt on the fly, the outside world isn't that simple. I can see what you're thinking and it just goes to show how stupid you can be." Kiyotaka said as if he completely read her mind.
"Grr... Stop insulting me! I know that much!"
"Then will you continue to be the stupid girl you are being known as right now? Or will you make the change that will make you a more trusted friend and employee in the society you were born into? You will have to choose now or you will lose even more than just your friends and pride."
She wilted under that harsh tone and those cold dagger-like eyes again.
Haruka and Kei just continued to watch the talk between Kiyotaka and Kushida. The two of them didn't understand why Kiyotaka was trying so hard to get Kushida to change. In their opinion, she was a lost cause, so she should walk the land of fire and die when she couldn't handle it anymore.
Kushida didn't say anything, still terrified by Kiyotaka's darker nature. Seeing that she wouldn't move and wouldn't answer him, Kiyotaka sighed and walked over to her. Kushida herself was too terrified to move so she stood frozen in place.
Kiyotaka stopped in front of her and then brought something out of his pocket, handing it to Kushida. She was confused but ended up taking it in her hands. It was a folded up flyer and a business card showing a name and a certain company.
"W... w-what is this?" She cautiously asked.
"An advertisement and business card for a professional therapist."
"H-huh?"
"You still want to vent your frustrations out loud so you can feel better. But you also feel like you want to change but just don't know how. If you really want to find a way to change but also vent your frustrations, why have you never considered going to therapy? A therapist's job is to help people who have mental problems or are just not on the right path but want to be on the right path. This is your ticket to becoming better and finding someone who can finally understand you. That's what you wanted, isn't it?"
Therapists provided different types of therapy services. Some of the most obvious ones were guided self-help, couple therapy and counselling. But there were other services therapists offered which included cognitive behavioural therapy, interpersonal therapy and psychodynamic psychotherapy.
In Kushida's case, the therapy she needed was cognitive behavioural therapy. This type of therapy was aimed at people who wanted and needed a change in their life, thoughts and behaviours. Kushida needed to change her personality disorder and view of life.
Kushida stayed silent looking between the advertisement leaflet and Kiyotaka. Even after Kiyotaka had exposed her true nature, continually threw her down and got her expelled, he was still trying to help her. Kushida couldn't figure out why he was trying to help her. After all, she was his enemy. She tried to expel him on multiple occasions. Why help someone who kept trying to cause issues?
"Have you ever heard the song 'Live and Learn' by Crush 40?" He asked her.
"...No...?"
"You should listen to it. Your situation and life resonates with that song. Though, it's in English so I hope you somewhat know the language to understand what I mean. Anyway, consider going to this therapy if you really want to become someone better on the outside and inside. If you want to be a real person in this broken society, you better make your choice wisely."
Kiyotaka finally walked past her, having finished everything he wanted to say apparently. Seeing him leave, Kei and Haruka also walked past Kushida to catch up to Kiyotaka, taking a small moment to glare at Kushida while they were at it.
"By the way, Kushida."
However, before Kushida could walk free of the school forever, Kiyotaka stopped walking and called out to her. Surprised for a moment, Kushida also stopped and looked back at him.
"...What is it?"
It was silent for a moment since Kiyotaka didn't bother turning around to face Kushida. That only made her more anxious about what he was going to say. Was he going to use that cold tone he had been using on her lately? Was he going to insult her more than he had before? Will he turn around and glare at her with those dagger-like eyes that could kill anyone under them? She wasn't sure.
"If you let any random guy touch your breasts just so you can blackmail them, then I feel sorry for your future. You might as well just join a strip club or become one of those 'hookers' I think they're called." was all he said before he walked away with Kei and Haruka.
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Part 4
Leaving Kushida, who appeared to be stunned by Kiyotaka's statement, Kiyotaka, Kei and Haruka walked towards the second year student dorms. Even from the distance they were currently at, which was quite far away at this point now, the three of them could hear Kushida only just realising what Kiyotaka had just said to her.
"Kiyopon. What was that comment about...? Do you mean to say that when Kushida talked about the fact that you touched her breasts one time, that was actually true?" Haruka asked him after they were far enough away from Kushida's shouting.
"Yeah. Kiyotaka. What. Was. That. About. Explain. Now."
When Kiyotaka looked back at the girls, he saw their expressions had changed to be concerning. Haruka's was one of complete disappointment, as if she didn't want to associate with her friend anymore. However, Kei's was even more concerning. Though it wasn't visible to the eye, Kiyotaka easily noticed the dark aura surrounding Kei, as if she was ready to kill someone if prompted. The ominous smile and darkened eyes were not helping either.
Kiyotaka knew he had to quickly explain himself but he needed to be cautious about it too.
"Only part of what Kushida said back then about me touching her breasts was true. It is true that I touched her breasts last year, but that was more her forcing me to touch them so she could use it as blackmail against me. Remember she tried to accuse me of rape when I exposed her true nature? She forced my hand on her breasts so she could have an excuse to say I raped her and she had fingerprints on her uniform to prove it."
When he explained it carefully to the girls, they began to understand. Kei's yandere-like aura slowly dissipated into thin clouds. Kiyotaka inwardly sighed in relief.
"Why didn't you pull your hand away before that could happen, Kiyopon?"
"You think I didn't? I did, but she still forced my hand onto her breasts. At the time, I was just trying to remain as a harmless loner who wouldn't cause any trouble because he disliked trouble. I think if I tried to avoid it any more, it would've been bad for me at the time. So I just let it happen in the end."
It was thanks to that situation that allowed him to learn more about Kushida before ultimately deciding she was just a thorn in Class B's side and needed to be thrown away.
"Uh huh. What if you just wanted to touch a girl's breast because that might've been the first time in your life to do so? Maybe that's why you didn't resist as much."
"Haruka. Are you trying to ridicule me for no reason? I'm not that kind of guy and I've never given off any vibes to say I'm that type of guy. Don't try to paint my image the wrong way, even if you are teasing."
Haruka just shrugged but smiled nonetheless, amused that Kiyotaka got her joke. However, he turned to face Kei as he came to realise that she hadn't said anything since he explained what happened with Kushida. Kei was pouting with frustration and Kiyotaka couldn't blame her. But he managed to escape being killed so that was a plus.
However, Kiyotaka couldn't be ready for what happened next. After pouting for who knows how long, Kei finally moved her arms to grab Kiyotaka's left arm. Unexpectedly to both him and Haruka standing next to her, Kei moved Kiyotaka's arm and opened his hand before placing it directly on her right bosom.
"Kei... What are you doing...?"
Unsurprisingly, Kiyotaka was stunned that it took him more than a moment to react to such an action. Haruka was also speechless and just watching this little "grab" in front of her. Kei looked at Kiyotaka with a flushed face before answering.
"From now on, the only girl's breasts you touch is mine and mine alone. No touchy other girls. Got it?"
It appeared that Kei was just plain old jealous. Kiyotaka had a lot of girls around him nowadays and the fact that even before he dated her, Kei was still jealous that Kiyotaka unintentionally touched another girl's breasts and not just hers. In a way, this was both cute and weird to watch.
"...Understood. But can you please let go of my hand so I can retract it? We're still in a public place so people can see our little trick-or-treat."
"Ah... right!"
Kei immediately let go of Kiyotaka's hand upon realising a few nearby people had their eye on the little "booby trap". It took a few moments for the glares of the boys and the jealous eyes of other girls to disappear, but by the time they did, Haruka finally decided it was time to speak up.
"Back on Kushida-san by the way. Kiyopon. Why did you help her in the end? Didn't she cause us a lot of trouble?"
It was a good question. Even after exposing Kushida to his classmates. Even after setting up this entire plan to ensure her expulsion this time around. Even after constantly ridiculing her over her stupid personality and pride. Kiyotaka still decided to help her somewhat in the end. Why that ended up happening, even he didn't know.
But if he was going to question why he ended up helping Kushida, Kiyotaka had to question why he helped other people that were once his enemy. Ryuuen. Arisu. Nanase. All three of them were once his enemy, but soon later became allies and people that were helped by Kiyotaka. He didn't need to help them, but he did so in the end because he thought it was right.
Did Kiyotaka just enjoy helping people? Did his curiosity want to see people grow into better human beings? Did his time in the White Room make him want to nurture people into elite and powerful human beings in a way his father couldn't possibly imagine? Kiyotaka kept asking himself these questions in his mind.
Seeing as though Haruka was still expecting an answer, Kiyotaka tried to conjure up the best one he could based on his thoughts and feelings at this very moment.
"To be honest with you, I don't know why I actually helped Kushida. But if I were to give a reason, I guess it was the right thing to do and I felt like doing the right thing there," he answered.
"Is that so? Airi was right. Even though you are cruel, you really are kind in a way. It's admirable, Kiyopon." Haruka closed her eyes and smiled, probably happy about that comment. Kei smiled as well. "Well either way, your plan worked out. Keipon and the rest of us worked hard to ensure our class lost the sports festival by coming in 3rd place. And then we worked to get Kushida-san expelled today and lower Horikita-san's position in the class."
"You're satisfied with the result? Are you going to continue to get your revenge? There might be more opportunities moving forward you know."
Haruka shook her head as if to say no.
"I'm satisfied with what happened today and during the sports festival. My main revenge was on Horikita-san who chose to keep Kushida-san over Airi despite Airi being the better choice. Now that we got Kushida-san expelled, Horikita-san's promise to try and change her has been pretty much rendered useless, which means the class now is losing trust in her. That right now is enough for me. All I want now is to see if we can bring Airi back and to help you with your other plans. It would've been great if we could bring her back now with that ticket, but I understand what you said about it probably being a little too early to do that."
"I see. Well be ready moving forward because I'll be enacting the next couple steps soon and I'll need your help, Kei's and likely the rest of our friends' help too."
"Sounds good. Well I'm going to head back now. I want to rest like the rest of our class. Today has been quite the day."
Waving goodbye, Haruka went ahead to get back to the dorms first, leaving Kiyotaka and Kei. The couple watched her go on before ultimately turning to face each other. It was the latter who spoke up first.
"What are you going to do now Kiyotaka? With everything that's happened now, our class will need a new leader to assist Yousuke-kun and I. You're going to take that role now, aren't you? As the new 'King of Class B'?" She asked him.
"From now until I get what I want, yes I will be taking leadership of the class. Horikita is still underdeveloped and the Kushida situation only showed that more. In another universe, maybe I would've agreed with her decision and kept Kushida in the end just so I could see how much she has grown. But that universe is not this one. I need to do what I can and in order to achieve that, I'll need the class behind my back too. Perhaps I can nurture Horikita while doing it so she doesn't make the same mistake, but that's not important."
Kiyotaka looked towards the main school building directly in front of him. During this sports festival, he achieved many of his goals and started new ones. What he had just done was just the beginning of what was set to come for him, Kei, Class B and the rest of the school. As time continues to move forward, he would need to do more to protect himself and the people around him. But those would only come when the next part of his plan begins in the next few weeks.
He turned back to face Kei and held his hand out.
"Shall we head back then, 'Queen of Class B'? We'll have another indoor date in my room."
Kei smiled with a blush and took his hand, holding tightly as if to say she would never let go. Even though it was the autumn months, the sun was already setting and the beauty of the orange horizon shone over the couple. That could have only meant good luck for them moving forward. The couple walked back towards the dorms to start another new day ahead of them.
Second Year Class standings after Sports Festival:
Class A led by Sakayanagi: 1106 points
Class B led by Ayanokouji: 765 points
Class C led by Ryuuen: 721 points
Class D led by Ichinose: 678 points
End of Epilogue...