Chapter 88: Chapter 88: A Brief Moment of Peace
The mystery behind Hirata's selfless nature of helping others was finally resolved, and the reason for him being placed in Class D was now understood. However, Kanda Shuichi still had one more question.
"If someone in the class ends up in an unresolvable conflict, what would you do?" Though it was just a half-joking question, Hirata's expression grew serious.
"If that time comes, I probably won't be able to make a decision. So, Kanda, could you help me then?"
Kanda Shuichi hadn't expected that a casual question would lead to this kind of trouble.
But Hirata had a point. If he ever reached a point where he couldn't mediate a situation, then things might have gotten serious. Not wanting such issues to disrupt his enjoyable school life, Kanda nodded.
"I understand, but I'm not as gentle as you are."
Hirata hesitated briefly before nodding in understanding; perhaps he entrusted it to someone else because he knew he couldn't handle it himself. And Kanda, not wanting trivial matters to affect his peaceful school life, agreed as well.
On Monday, the aftermath of Saturday's incident was finally settled. Thanks to Kanda Shuichi and Ryuen Kakeru's cooperation, both Class C and Class D were each awarded 50 class points for their efforts in "cleaning up" the school environment.
This brought the class points to:
Class A: 822 points
Class B: 759 points
Class C: 553 points
Class D: 140 points
Seeing the points posted in the first-floor lobby of the school building, many students felt puzzled. What had Classes C and D done to earn class points outside of a test, with each class receiving 50 points? Had they perhaps worked together?
These doubts lingered in the minds of many first-year students.
As for Kanda Shuichi and Ryuen Kakeru, they certainly weren't going to boast about the details. But soon enough, both homeroom teachers revealed the truth. Kanda Shuichi from Class D had uncovered inappropriate behavior by a school staff member and gathered evidence. Ryuen from Class C had caught the culprit, so what would have been a 100-point reward for one class was split into 50 points for each.
So, did this mean Classes C and D had actually begun to cooperate? Ichinose, who had just signed a cooperation contract with Class D, felt a bit uneasy, and even Class A started to feel suspicious.
However, those speculations quickly disappeared as the two classes began arguing.
"It was Kanda who discovered the problem! Why should Class C get 50 points too?"
"If Ryuen hadn't caught the culprit on the spot, the evidence might've been taken back! So it's Class D that doesn't deserve those 50 points!"
…
Initially, it was just mutual irritation, but somehow, it escalated into an all-out argument between the two classes.
Neither Ryuen nor Kanda Shuichi stepped in to explain; they already had their judgment, so they let the "little fools" argue if they wanted. But the dispute didn't last long, as they soon shifted focus to the upcoming semester finals.
Just like the midterms, failing would mean immediate expulsion. This time, however, Chabashira-sensei made it clear when announcing the exam that past exams from the previous year wouldn't help.
So this time, passing would purely depend on academic skill. Even without Hirata's study group funds, everyone voluntarily joined the study sessions, and even Sudou sought out Horikita for tutoring a whole month in advance.
There are still exceptions, though. Koenji Rokusuke, the guy who spends his time admiring himself in the mirror every day, didn't join. But this was expected—if that guy actually joined the study group, Kanda Shuichi would've found it odd.
As for Ryuen, he's been unusually quiet lately, almost as if he was shaken by his last attempt to frame Sudou. For about a month now, he hasn't made any moves. But anyone who knows him realizes he's likely plotting something, just waiting for the next opportunity to strike.
And so, Class C remained calm for the time being, while Class B and Class D began cooperating, bringing a brief period of peace among the first-year students.
As for Class A, Kanda Shuichi felt at a loss. "Sakayanagi, you're really useless. I handed you a huge gift, and you still couldn't take down Katsuragi."
In Room 404 of the first-year dormitory, Kanda Shuichi listened to Kamuro Masumi's report, feeling speechless.
"It's your fault for giving such a heavy 'gift.' It nearly overwhelmed Sakayanagi," Kamuro replied, still sitting on Kanda Shuichi's bed, legs crossed, arms folded, and looking annoyed.
Kanda Shuichi had gotten used to that look of hers—she looked cold, yet somehow appealing.
"By the way, you didn't come here just to report this, did you?" Kanda Shuichi sat next to Kamuro and lifted her chin, turning her head toward him.
Ever since discovering that Kamuro secretly had a submissive side, he'd been testing her limits.
"Or… were you planning to serve—" he began, but Kamuro reached out to grab him before he could finish. Fortunately, Kanda Shuichi was prepared and narrowly dodged her attempt.
Since that shopping trip with Kushida and Sakura, Kanda Shuichi had been quietly working on building up his strength.
Still, he hadn't pushed his body too hard, focusing on gradual recovery with plenty of nutrition and light exercise. By the school's standards, his physical ability was still rated as E, but he was no longer the same as when the term started. At least now he could walk at a normal pace and, as long as he didn't push himself, he didn't appear weak. He was now well above Sakayanagi's level in that regard.
However, if it came to fighting, he was probably only at Ike's level, and going up against Kamuro would mean getting knocked out instantly. Just now, he managed to dodge only because he was ready and Kamuro wasn't being serious.
"Hey, hey, are you trying to add to your list of offenses?" warned Kanda Shuichi after dodging.
"One offense or more doesn't really matter," Kamuro replied. "I just want to see how much your body has recovered."
Kamuro's words slipped, revealing a hint—Kanda Shuichi had never told her about his injury or his six months of recovery. But with Kamuro attacking again, Kanda Shuichi didn't catch that slip-up.
However, since it was late and the dorm's soundproofing wasn't great, Kamuro held back, and the two of them wrestled without going all out.
After a while, Kanda Shuichi sat in the chair, disheveled, while Kamuro, her face red, sat on the bed. It was hard to tell who had the upper hand and who had lost out in the end.
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