Chapter 7 Part II

It took approximately 30 minutes for the discussion to start. I stood and began to leave the classroom, heading to meet someone at a certain rendezvous spot. Before I left, I decided to have a word with Sakura.

"Sakura. Are you heading back now?" I asked as she prepared to leave.

"Ayanokouji-kun… We're having the trial today."

"I'm not participating." I told her that I had to do some trivial work behind the scenes.

"I see…" she murmured.

Sakura cast her eyes down, as if she had something on her mind. She looked a little odd, like she was nervous. It was as if she couldn't settle down.

"What's wrong?"

"Huh?"

"Sakura, you don't really need to testify today. There's no need for you to be so worked up, right?"

Sakura looked like she was sweating.

"It's because everyone's doing their best. I thought I'd do my best, too." It felt like that she was saying that to herself, rather than to me.

"What are you thinking about?" I asked.

"Well, if there's something I need to move forward… I'll do it."

Even though I'd asked what she was thinking, Sakura wouldn't give a clear answer. I wanted to ask why she looked uneasy, but the cell phone in my pocket vibrated. My alarm told me the time. I couldn't stay any longer.

"See you later, Ayanokouji-kun."

Sakura's words and bright smile seemed so unlike her. They left me with an unpleasant feeling.

"Hey, Sakura. Do you have any time later? I wanted to talk to you about something."

The words felt like they were being squeezed out of me. Sakura gently shook her head.

"I have plans today. Maybe tomorrow?"

If she assured me that she was fine, I couldn't exactly keep contradicting her. I really had to be going. I turned my back on Sakura and headed off.

It was past 3:40. With classes over for the day, I went to the special building. This place had become increasingly hot and humid as the summer wore on. If things proceeded as planned, then the person I was expecting should arrive soon. Shortly thereafter, three guys showed up, all grumbling about how unbearably hot it was. They appeared happy, though, wearing optimistic expressions.

That was because the three of them had received emails from the class sweetheart, Kushida. Had the message contained an invitation to go on a date? Or perhaps, even more insane, a romantic confession? They were probably dreaming of such things. When they saw me, their fantasies were crushed.

"What's going on? Why are you here?"

Apparently they remembered me from the student council room. Ishizaki, the group's leader, stepped forward as if to intimidate me. He was rather forceful when no one was around to see.

"Kushida won't be here. I asked her to send an email to compel you all to come."

Ishizaki looked incredibly ill-tempered as he closed the distance between us. "This isn't funny. What did you do this for, huh?"

"If I hadn't used an underhanded method, you would've just ignored me, right? I wanted to talk to you."

"Talk to us? Why would we want to do that? Has the heat scrambled your brain or something?"

Ishizaki, who clearly was affected by the heat, grabbed his shirt and flapped it.

"No matter what you do, you can't hide the truth. Sudou called us over here and beat us up. That's our answer. Now he needs to quietly accept his punishment."

"I have no intension of arguing. That would be a waste of time. I fully understand that neither Class C nor Class D will retract what they claimed yesterday."

"So why do this? Are you going to abduct us so we miss the trial? Or are you going to have a bunch of people surround us and threaten us with violence? It'll be just like that time with Sudou."

Oh. That was a rather interesting idea, but it would only work as a stopgap measure. Such threats wouldn't work against these people. Quite the contrary; they looked like they'd welcome it. If they were the victims of another attack, they'd probably find a way to make their situation even more favorable.

"Just give up. See ya later."

Understanding that Kushida would not be coming, the three turned and tried to leave, but one other person stood in their way.

"I think you guys might want to consider that idea, actually."

Ichinose, who'd been waiting for all of the players in this drama to appear, quietly stepped forward.

"I-Ichinose?! What are you doing here?!"

The Class C boys were shocked. Given the unexpected appearance of someone from Class B, their shock was reasonable.

"What do you mean? What if I said that I'm here because I'm involved in this case?"

"Ichinose, you're a celebrity."

"Ha ha. Well, I guess I'm well known among the members of Class C."

Since the Class C students hadn't expected her to be involved, it looked like tension was rising between them. They were clearly starting to lose their composure.

"This incident had nothing to do with Class B, right? So butt out…"

But unlike when they'd spoken to me, their threats sounded weak. They sounded desperate to get away.

"You're certainly right that Class B has nothing to do with this. But how do you feel about involving so many people in your lies?"

"We didn't lie. We're the victims. We are. Sudou called us out here and beat us up. That's the truth."

"So evildoers remain obstinate until the very end. It's about time for you to pay the piper!" Ichinose declared, making a wide-sweeping gesture with her right arm as she did so. "You lied. We can all see through you. You got violent in the end. If you don't want that fact to become public knowledge, withdraw your claim right away."

Even though I hadn't explained every detail, I felt that things would be fine in Ichinose's capable hands.

"Huh? Withdraw? Don't make me laugh. What, were you half asleep when you came up with that argument? You can't just claim something and make it true. Sudou started the fight. Right?"

Ishizaki looked to his two accomplices, who immediately answered, "That's right! That's right!"

"Did you know that this school is one of the leading government-sanctioned institutions in Japan?"

"Of course we do. That's why we tried to enroll here."

"In that case, you should try using your heads a bit more. Your aims were obvious right from the start, wouldn't you say?" Ichinose grinned and talked with greater animation, as if relishing this. She walked slowly towards the three as she spoke, like she was a famous detective revealing the true culprit in an investigation.

"Didn't you think that the school's response to this incident was rather strange?"

"Huh?"

"When you raised the issue with the school, why wasn't Sudou punished immediately? Why give an opportunity to escape by granting a grace period of several days? What do you think was the reason?"

"Because he lied to the school and cried for mercy. If they hadn't given him the time as a formality, we, the victims, would have won."

"Is that really true? I wonder if you had a different aim, a different purpose."

The windows in the hallway were all closed. The sun, still high in the sky, glared down upon us, increasing the heat and humidity.

"I've got no idea what you're talking about. Ah, damn it. It's so hot!"

One's ability to think, that is to say, to concentrate, decreases as heat increases. One cannot exhibit sufficient logical, creative thinking outside of a comfortable environment. The more content you cram into your head, the more your brain will overload.

"Whatever, I'm out of here. I'm going to boil alive if I stay."

"Is that really okay, though? If you leave this place, you might regret it for the rest of your life."

"What do you want, Ichinose?"

They didn't seem to understand what she was getting at.

"Don't you understand? The school knows that you're lying, Class C. They've known from the beginning."

This statement probably came as a surprise to them. None of them had imagined such an outcome. Ishizaki and the others looked at each other for a few seconds, then snorted with laughter.

"Don't make me laugh. We lied? And the school knows it?"

"Ha ha ha ha. You guys are so funny," Ichinose said. "You've been dancing to my tune all this time."

"That's a nice try, Ichinose. But we're calling your bluff!"

"I have actual evidence," Ichinose continued, unfazed by Ishizaki's threats.

"Oh? Well, let's see it. Show me what evidence you—"

They thought there was no way we had any evidence, of course. Even after what Ichinose had said, they weren't shaking. However, when she began to speak, their defeat was decided.

"Did you know that there are security cameras installed everywhere around the school? It's a measure they've taken in order to monitor what we do every day."

"Yeah. So what?"

They seemed to have already known about the security cameras. Ishizaki and the others appeared unconcerned.

"Well, then. Did you not see that?"

Ichinose looked to a spot near the ceiling a little further down the hall. Ishizaki and the others tracked her gaze.

"Huh?"

They voiced complete disbelief. A security camera hung in the hallway and occasionally swung from left to right, capturing everything.

"That's too bad, isn't it? If you want to set a trap for someone, you'd need to do it in a place without any cameras."

"Buh, wh-what camera?! You're lying! But, there weren't any cameras in the other hallways, were there?! It's weird that there's only one installed here! Right?!"

Ishizaki looked back at his two accomplices, seeking their opinion. They nodded, confirming that yes, Ishizaki was right. They wiped sweat off their faces as they answered.

"You can't trick us like that. You guys installed that camera yourselves!"

"You're right that, by and large, cameras aren't installed in most of this building's hallways. However, there are exceptions, and several places in which security cameras have been installed, like in front of the faculty room and the science lab. Obviously, there are many valuables stored in the faculty room, you know? Additionally, the science lab has many chemical products. Since the science lab is on this level, it's only natural that a camera would be installed here."

For the first time, Ishizaki and the other seemed to be at a loss for words. Ichinose did not fail to notice how they faltered.

"Have you looked back there, behind you? There's one there too, right?"

Ishizaki and the others looked down the hall as instructed, and saw a camera. Of course, that camera was monitoring the hall's opposite end.

"So if we'd installed a camera, like you said, would we have prepared one on that side, too? Besides, how exactly would we have prepared surveillance cameras when we can't even leave campus in the first place?"

We were cutting off their escape routes one by one.

"Th-that's impossible… That… I mean, we…checked back then… We should have…"

"This is the third floor, but did you really check? Maybe you only looked at the second or the fourth? Perhaps the cameras were truly set up here as a trap?"

The three were holding their heads and sweating far more than normal.

"Also, you realize that you just destroyed yourselves, right? Normal people wouldn't think to check whether there were security cameras, right? That's basically admitting your guilt." Ichinose delivered the finishing blow.

"So, so… That time… No way…"

"The security cameras couldn't record the sounds of your voices, but they definitely captured the decisive moment you threw the first punch."

The cuffs of their uniforms were completely drenched with sweat. Ichinose passed the baton to me. My my, they probably would've been better off just talking to me, huh?

"The school's waiting, right? Go ahead and tell us the truth. After giving you a grace period, the student council president himself asked if you had lied. If you think back, don't you realize that the student council saw through everything?"

The three of them were probably frantically wracking their brains to recall what happened at the meeting. Of course, the student council had not seen through their lies at all. However, the student council had their doubts about who was telling the truth. If the Class C students interpreted that question to be focused squarely at them, it lent itself a certain credence.

"That's… I didn't hear about anything like that! It's all over!"

Komiya buckled. Leaning against the wall, he slid down to his knees. Kondou held his head in his hands. They all seemed to recognize what was happening. Or so I thought, but Ishizaki wasn't buying it.

"W-wait a minute. I'm still not convinced. Okay, let's say the security cameras did capture some footage. You should've been able to prove Sudou's innocence without having to really do anything, right? You didn't need to call us out here to tell us this. You could have just presented it at the trial. But you guys called us here, right?"

"Innocence? That depends on what you're innocent of. We know that both parties took damage during the incident. No matter the circumstances, Sudou hit the three of you. That's undeniable. Of course, if the security footage can prove that Sudou wasn't the one who called you three over here, he'd probably receive the lightest possible punishment. However, his position as a regular would still be threatened. He might not be allowed to participate in tournaments."

Sweat poured down Ishizaki's forehead like a waterfall. We were hot as well, but comparatively much better off than these three. Their temperatures kept rising as we cornered them.

"What the hell? Well then, if it's like you people say, the security footage shouldn't be any trouble at all, right? We'll be fine as long as we can get Sudou suspended for even one day."

"If that happens, you might be expelled. Are you fine with that?"

Clearly they hadn't thought that part through, and didn't notice the dilemma they faced.

"If someone checked the security camera footage, it would expose your lies. If that were to happen, chances are good you'd be expelled. Anyone could see that."

"Wha—!"

"W-wait, why expelled? You didn't say that we lied!" Kondou was trying to save himself, his voice weak and strained.

"The school is testing us. They're testing to see if we can solve problems, and what kind of conclusions we draw. Don't you think that's consistent with everything else in this case?"

"Why would… I-I definitely don't want to get expelled!"

"H-hey, Ishizaki. It's not too late to tell them we lied! If we do, the school might forgive us!"

"Damn it. This is ridiculous. Admit that we lied? Well, fine. As long as Sudou's punished, I'll prepare myself for the worst punishment possible, an honorable sacrifice! It'll all be over for Sudou!"

In other words, Ishizaki wouldn't withdraw. Instead, he'd press forward.

"It's rather early to draw a conclusion. We'll give you one last chance. There's only one way to save both Class C and Class D."

"Like hell we'd do that!"

If the incident existed, it would be impossible to save everyone. In that case, it would be better if the incident didn't exist at all.

"There's only one way to resolve this issue. Tell the school that you wish to withdraw your complaint. If you do that, the school will not bring forward the security camera footage. If there's no complaint, no one can be punished. Additionally, if the security footage is never brought up, Class D benefits, too. As we already know, if the security footage were brought produced, Sudou would still face some degree of punishment. In other words, Class C and Class D can come to a compromise together. The school can't investigate if they can't watch the video and see that you lied, right?"

"Ahh, ahh… Just…let me call…"

A shattered-looking Ishizaki took out his cell phone. However, Ichinose sternly told him no. She wouldn't give him time to think. We had to finish this now.

"Well, you're not being very cooperative. Therefore, we have no choice but to prepare. We'll have the school confirm the security footage right away, and you'll be expelled."

I nodded in agreement. Kondou and Komiya grabbed Ishizaki's arms.

"Come on. Let's just accept Ichinose's idea, Ishizaki!"

"W-wait. If I don't check with that person, it'll be bad," he murmured.

"We've already lost! I don't wanna get expelled! Please, Ishizaki!"

"Damn! Fine… We'll withdraw. It'll be fine if we withdraw!"

Ishizaki fell to his knees.

"Well, let's head to the student council room right away. We'll go together."

We went to the student council room, the three C students sandwiched between us. If we took our eyes off them for even one second, they might contact someone for advice. When we finally reached the student council room, we pushed the three inside. Horikita had put everything together really well.