Chapter 30

I wondered what was going to happen with Class E. Honestly, I didn't really care whether Sudō, Ike and Yamauchi got expelled or not – I only agreed to help them because a favour would be useful in the future. I would tutor them to the best of my ability but if they don't put the effort in themselves, then they will drop out.

Back in my room, I started to watch some kind of variety show with a feeling of complete apathy. Glancing at my phone, I saw I had a message from the group chat.

Sora: [How was your study group?]

I thought about replying, but Lelouch did before I could.

Lelouch: [Painful. But if you meant progress-wise, they're at least willing to learn.]

Sora: [You think you can make them pass then, Lelouch-sensei?]

Light: [That depends entirely on what they do with our teaching.]

Light joined the conversation, expressing an opinion that Lelouch and I shared.

Lelouch: [And how was your meeting, student-council-kun?]

Sora: [I got an appointment after the midterms.]

Light: [So, are you going to join if they accept you?]

Sora: [Idk, it looks annoying. Plus, Shiro won't be there.]

Ayanokōji: [Why not use this as a chance to start working on being apart from her?]

I decided to send a message of my own. If Sora and Shiro were forced to be apart for an hour every day due to student council business, they could start to reduce their dependency on each other.

Sora: [Maybe I could try it, but what about Shiro?]

Light: [She might not trust us nearly as much as you, if at all, but we can try to take care of her. It would be good for her to be accepted by other people when you aren't there.]

There was a lull in the conversation. I assumed that Sora was deep in thought, weighing up the pros and cons of my and Light's suggestions. After a few minutes, there finally came a reply.

Sora: [If you can promise you'll make sure Shiro is ok, I'll join when they accept me.]

It seemed like Sora came to the decision that he couldn't rely on Shiro forever, and that they had to overcome their co-dependency someday. Might as well do it sooner rather than later. He also seemed pretty confident he'd get in, using 'when,' as opposed to 'if'.

I closed my phone and opened my window, the sounds of insects buzzing from the nearby trees drifting into my room. Should I tell the rest of my class about Kushida? It could become a rather strong weapon for our class, but at the same time I wanted to keep her for myself.

There's no telling when I might have to fight against my classmates, after all. In that situation, Kushida could be quite the ace for me.

My time at this school had flown by without much notice at all. I had met my classmates who, similar to myself, all possessed outstanding talent. I had started to feel more and more comfortable around them over the course of my time here, because I felt like I didn't have to hide myself behind mediocrity all the time.

Those in Class E were in a very precarious position, specifically the Idiot Trio were in severe danger of being expelled. I didn't really feel much urgency, though, even when I became the one responsible for ensuring Sudō's future at this school. This was there problem, not mine, so it just didn't register as important.

"Only a fool wouldn't use his innate abilities."

Those words stuck in my head.

"A fool, huh? I wonder if that's what I'll end up as by the end of my time here."

As I closed the window, the television's cacophonous laughter pierced my ears.

I couldn't get to sleep, so I got up and left. I bought some juice from the lobby's vending machine and headed back for the elevator.

"Hmm?"

I could see that the elevator had stopped on the seventh floor. Curious, I decided to check out the CCTV, which showed what was happening inside the elevator car. I saw Horikita, still dressed in her school uniform.

"Well, I don't really need to hide, but..."

Where could Horikita be going this late at night? I felt a feeling of déjà vu as I hid myself behind the vending machine. I'd already done this once already today. Horikita arrived at the first floor.

Looking wary of her surroundings, she exited the building. After she'd vanished into the night, I followed after her. However, I instinctively hid again after I turned the corner.

Horikita stopped in her tracks. I sensed another person was with her.

"Suzune. I didn't think that you'd follow me this far," he said.

Had she left in the dead of the night to rendezvous with some guy?

"Hmph. I'm far different from the useless girl you once knew, nii-san. I came here to catch you."

"Catch me, hmm?"

Nii-san? In the dark, I couldn't see the person she was talking to. Was she meeting her older brother?

"I heard you were placed in Class D, and then got demoted in the first month. I suppose nothing has really changed in the last three years. You've always been fixated on following me, and as a result you don't notice your own flaws. Choosing to come to this school was a mistake."

"That's... You're wrong about that. I'll show you. I'll reach Class A right away, then—"

"It's pointless. You will never reach Class A. In fact, your class will fall apart soon enough. Things at this school aren't as simple as you think."

"I will definitely, definitely reach—"

"I told you, it's pointless. You really are a disobedient little sister."

Horikita's brother stepped closer to her. From my hiding spot, I could see him plainly.

It was Student Council President Horikita. He displayed no hint of emotion. It was like he was staring at an uninteresting object. He grabbed his younger sister by the wrist – she offered no resistance – and pushed her against the wall.

"No matter how I try to avoid you, the fact remains that you're my little sister. If people around here learned the truth, I would be humiliated. Leave this school immediately."

"I-I can't do that... I will definitely reach Class A. I'll show you!"

"How incredibly stupid. Do you want to relive the pain of the past?"

"Nii-san, I..."

"You possess neither the abilities nor the qualities needed to reach Class A. Get that through your head."

He moved forward, as if about to act. The situation looked fraught with danger. Resigned to facing Horikita's anger, I leapt out from my hiding space and went after her brother.

Before he knew I was there, I grabbed his right arm, which he was using to pin his sister.

"What? You..." He stared at his arm and slowly turned to me with a sharp gleam in his eye.

"A-Ayanokōji-kun?!" Horikita cried.

"You were about to throw your sister to the ground, weren't you? You do realize the floor here is concrete, right? You might be siblings, but you should know the difference between right and wrong."

"Eavesdropping is not an admirable quality," he said.

"Fine. Then let go."

"That's my line."

We glared at each other in complete silence.

"Stop it, Ayanokōji-kun," said Horikita, her voice strained. I'd never heard her voice like that before.

Reluctantly, I released her brother. Instantly, he tried to backhand me in the face. I instinctively took a step back to avoid it. For such a lightly built guy, he was a nasty attacker. He then aimed a sharp kick at my unguarded spot.

"Watch it!"

"He had enough power to knock me out with one blow. Looking slightly confused, he exhaled deeply, extended his right arm, and opened his hand.

If I grabbed his hand, he'd probably throw me to the ground. Instead, I slapped his hand away.

"Good reflexes. I—"

The elder Horikita started to speak, but I stopped him by rushing forward and lifting my right leg. I spun my body and aimed the kick at his right cheek. His eyes widened as he stumbled backwards, barely managing to dodge it.

He was off balance, so this was the perfect opportunity. I planted my right foot back on the ground after it cut through the air and chased after him. Still recovering from flinging himself away from my attack, the elder Horikita could do nothing to stop my fist from burying itself in his abdomen.

The student council president keeled over, gasping for air. His arms trembled slightly as he supported himself on his hands and knees and, after around twenty seconds of heavy breathing, he stood back up. Horikita could only watch the scene in silence, her eyes wide.

"What kind of idiot drops his guard and starts talking mid-fight?" I said, staring at him.

"You're strong. You move well, your reactions are good, and your attacks are deadly. How long have you been taught for?" He ignored my question and asked one of his own.

"For about twelve years now," I replied nonchalantly.

"So, since you were about three or four? That's a ridiculously young age to start fighting at."

I didn't say anything in response, and just stared at him. Despite him being struck down by me just now, I still considered Horikita Manabu to be very strong. There probably weren't many in this school that could beat him. Horikita, still by the wall, watched our interaction in confusion.

"You're in that 'experimental class,' aren't you? I must say I was very surprised when I heard about it. Is this boy your friend, Suzune?"

"He's... not my friend. Just someone I've met a few times." Horikita faced her brother fully, as if denying him.

Her brother looked as if he was about to reprimand her, but I started speaking first.

"This is why you're in that class of defectives," I said with a sigh. "Do you really think that you alone are good enough to carry thirty-nine people to Class A? Don't kid yourself, Horikita. You couldn't even beat one person from my class in the pop-quiz exam, so how do you expect to beat us all working together?"

Horikita fell silent as I mocked her, and her brother looked initially surprised before his mouth quickly formed into an amused smirk.

"I don't care what you think, Ayanokōji-kun. I'm going to drag myself up to Class A even if it kills me," she said.

"That line of thinking is so wrong it's funny." An unexpected fourth voice rang out from behind me.

Both the Horikita's eyes wandered over my shoulder, and I turned my head. Standing there was a boy with spiky, maroon hair and a smug grin on his face.

"Sora? Why are you here?" I asked as he walked over