April 2nd.
Yesterday on April Fools', the first-years at ANHS enjoyed the happiest day of their spring break—but their acting chairman, for the time being, had to spend today waiting bitterly inside the White Room.
Tsukishiro sat patiently in the reception room, not showing the slightest hint of anxiety, even though he had already been waiting there for an entire day.
He had woken up as early as six in the morning and driven from ANHS to the White Room. By a little after eight, he had already arrived, intending to seek an audience with Ayanokouji Atsuomi. Instead, he'd been met with a firmly closed door.
As night fell outside, many people had gone in and out of the office right before him—some to report to Atsuomi, some to receive their next orders from him—but the one person who never got called in was Tsukishiro.
The subordinates passing by, who served under Atsuomi, couldn't hold back their snide comments anymore. They openly mocked Tsukishiro—the man who had once been Atsuomi's most capable right-hand—for failing so miserably this time.
Tsukishiro himself knew very well that this was completely intentional on Atsuomi's part.
The man was a tyrant through and through; when he saw an underling botch a job, "making an example of them" was the only response in his repertoire.
It was impossible for him to act like some benevolent ruler who, even after a failure, would offer gentle comfort and guidance. That simply wasn't Atsuomi's way.
Since he had already expected this treatment, Tsukishiro never left his seat for even a single step. Nearly nine hours without food, yet there was not a trace of anxiety in him—he just sat there with a mild smile, obediently waiting.
Finally, around nine at night, Atsuomi stepped out of his office.
His face was dark, making his displeasure plain at a glance, and the first thing out of his mouth was a single vicious word that stabbed like a knife.
"Trash."
That was an exact reflection of Atsuomi's feelings in that moment. An acting chairman of a prestigious school who couldn't even expel a single ordinary student—what use was such a subordinate?
If, say, the failure with the hastily added in-class vote had been because Tsukishiro wasn't yet familiar enough with ANHS, then the way the expulsion penalty in the Project Selection Special Exam had been revised by the student council—that had truly cracked Atsuomi's composure.
He'd thought Tsukishiro would have it wrapped up in a matter of days: expel Kiyotaka and bring him back with ease. Instead, they'd dragged things all the way into April without success!
Given Atsuomi's naturally short temper and violent disposition, the fact that he'd stopped at a single word of abuse was purely because Tsukishiro had actually produced decades of solid results up until now.
If not for that, this wouldn't have ended with just scolding—there would absolutely have been fists and kicks on top.
But Tsukishiro, who had followed Atsuomi for decades, had long since developed a mental defense against this. A little word like that wasn't going to shake him the way it might shake some young upstart.
As if the insult hadn't landed at all, he let it pass with a mild smile.
"Ayanokouji-sama is correct. I failed to complete my mission this time. Please, punish this subordinate as you see fit."
"!"
Atsuomi's face went jet-black, and his deep wrinkles stood out even more sharply with anger.
"Don't tell me you've gotten the idea that, just because I pushed you into the acting chairman's seat at ANHS, I can't punish you anymore?"
Tsukishiro's words had been deferential on the surface, but behind them, there was indeed a faint sense that Atsuomi's hands were tied—and Atsuomi had seen straight through that.
He made it clear: just because he'd spent a mountain of resources to get Tsukishiro that acting chairman position didn't mean Tsukishiro could do whatever he wanted.
He'd paid too much in back-room bargaining for the one-year value of that acting chairman seat.
If the one sitting in it turned out to be useless, he could simply swap in someone else at any time—and the other factions wouldn't complain much.
After all, the only thing those deals had bought him was control of the position for a single year. As long as it was still within that one-year period, if Tsukishiro didn't work out, then at worst, he'd go handle it personally.
"This subordinate wouldn't dare." Tsukishiro sighed inwardly. Dealing with a tyrant really was a pain…
But even so, he forced a look of genuine fright onto his face.
"I would never even think such a thing. Ayanokouji-sama, please believe me—this acting chairman position at ANHS is something you entrusted to me. How could I possibly lean on a position you granted and grow arrogant from your favor?"
"Hmph." Atsuomi snorted. His expression thawed slightly, and the deep wrinkles in his face eased by a fraction.
"For the sake of your past achievements, I'll overlook it this time. However, if you bungle the matter of that tool Kiyotaka again, there won't be a next time."
The unspoken meaning was clear: if Tsukishiro failed, there might not be a Tsukishiro anymore. At most, there would just be one more barrel of concrete quietly sunk into Tokyo Bay.
Even Tsukishiro felt a wave of disgust wash through him at that thought, but outwardly, he could only maintain his mask of trembling gratitude, as if deeply moved by this "magnanimity."
"Yes, yes. I will resolve this as quickly as possible. I'll absolutely settle it as soon as possible."
"All right." Atsuomi glanced at the time. It was getting late, and he couldn't be bothered to waste more words.
"You didn't come all the way here just to beg forgiveness, I assume. What else?"
Here it is. Tsukishiro knew very well: whether he succeeded or failed would be decided in the conversation that followed.
"I wish to bring a few outstanding fifth-generation White Room students with me as reinforcements to ANHS, to assist me in the mission of retrieving Kiyotaka."
"What did you just say?!" The composure on Atsuomi's face vanished in an instant. He glared at Tsukishiro.
"Tsukishiro! Have you degenerated to the point where you need backup to expel a single student from school, even while you serve as acting chairman?!"
"And on top of that, you want the fifth-generation White Room students? You should know better than anyone just how exceptional the fifth generation is!"
"They are the most satisfying batch I've produced since Kiyotaka—my proudest works. And you want to drag them all off to ANHS?!"
Faced with Atsuomi's sudden explosion of fury, Tsukishiro was extremely tense, but with his core objective on the line, he had no choice but to force himself to argue.
"Ayanokouji-sama…"
"The truth is, ANHS is simply too… unusual. With the student council in place as an institution, even as acting chairman, I can't directly expel a student at will."
"That is why I considered bringing in a few competent, obedient students—have them enroll directly, infiltrate the student body, and help me bring about Kiyotaka's expulsion from within."
Atsuomi's expression remained sour, but he didn't continue yelling. He understood all too well the tangled web of rules at ANHS.
Especially the existence of the student council, which was specifically there to protect the students' interests. Even if he personally went to the school, he would face the same roadblock as Tsukishiro—it would be extremely difficult to bypass the student council and force an expulsion through the special exams.
If they wanted to expel one student, the best method really was as Tsukishiro had described: bring in obedient, capable students, plant them inside as classmates, and strike at Kiyotaka from the student side, not via the exam system.
By doing so, they could effectively circumvent the student council's authority and still drive him out of school.
"And if that still fails?"
Atsuomi understood the logic, but as the one on top, he still had to preserve his overwhelming pressure—so he deliberately tossed out another question.
Got him. Joy surged in Tsukishiro's heart, though he didn't allow even a flicker of it to show on his face.
Instead, he made a show of hesitating, then steeled his expression and gave a decisive commitment.
"If even that fails… This subordinate is willing to commit seppuku to atone."
"Good." Hearing Tsukishiro bring up ritual suicide, Atsuomi's tone eased at last.
If he dared say that much, it meant he truly believed he had a flawless plan, and that was something Atsuomi could trust in.
"In that case, pick the two best among the fifth generation and take them with you."
....
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