[Come to the public bathhouse after school.]
"…"
Hachiman received a message the next day after school, during the last class of the afternoon.
The sender probably sent it right at the end of class.
And Hachiman had saved the sender's number as Horikita Manabu.
So this was a message from the Student Council President.
At the same time.
There was no reason to refuse.
Because.
[Your private account has received 20,000 private points. Current balance: 233,000]
Uh.
President Horikita seemed to be going a bit overboard. Was he the type who would agree to meet just for points?
After school in the afternoon, students began to leave the classroom.
Yesterday, they were still very curious, staring at Hachiman and Horikita Suzune.
But by the second day, the students' enthusiasm had greatly diminished.
And today, Hikigaya also ate in the classroom. A few students who didn't go to the cafeteria witnessed Hikigaya and Horikita Suzune eating bentos together.
And it was a bento made by Horikita Suzune herself.
In other words.
Their relationship was quite intimate.
So the classmates in the class could basically confirm… that even if these two weren't dating, they were not far from dating.
Because if they were just ordinary friends, would they share bentos?
Impossible.
There's no such friend.
So upon learning this fact, many boys felt a bit disappointed, and even some jealousy.
After all, although Horikita was cold, it was undeniable that her looks were super high.
There were also many people who only looked at faces.
And now Hachiman wasn't looking at Horikita's face, but at his phone.
"Speaking of which, are you coming to my dorm next?" Horikita Suzune said to Hikigaya.
Hmm.
This Horikita still didn't observe the atmosphere.
Didn't she see the few students still remaining in the class looking over in surprise?
Because a confession was one thing, eating together was one thing, but now it had even developed to going to the dorm?
Actually, it wasn't that impure.
Going to Horikita's dorm was just for discussing the exam.
It was strange for a girl to come to a boy's dorm, so Hachiman often went to Horikita Suzune's room. Her room had also been lent to Karuizawa before, and later, during the written exam, Kushida was even allowed in.
So, Horikita now seems to have no objection to her room being used as a command center.
Especially since these past two days, she confirmed her goal of gaining her Oni-chan's approval and being promoted to Class A.
Horikita was willing to help.
"Ah… mm."
Hachiman then looked at Horikita.
Considering Ryuen Class's strange behavior, Hachiman had arranged for Kushida to contact the Third Year to get information. It seemed she had already obtained the information, and they were scheduled to meet at her place to share it after school this afternoon.
However.
"Today's information discussion after school has been postponed," Hachiman said. "I might be a bit late."
"I was invited by this person." Because they were still in the Class, Hachiman didn't use "your Oni-chan" but opened his phone screen for Horikita to see.
At the very top of the screen, Horikita Suzune saw "Horikita Manabu."
"Ugh!"
Perhaps because she saw her Oni-chan's name, Horikita Suzune's demeanor changed.
She seemed to become weaker.
Although it's rude to say, Hachiman found a slightly weaker Horikita somewhat cute.
However.
"But."
Horikita-san said, "If he invited you, it must mean he acknowledges you."
Then she looked at him with what seemed like a hint of jealousy.
Hey.
Is being acknowledged by your Oni-chan that important? Perhaps it is, after all, Horikita has always been chasing her Oni-chan's footsteps.
However.
Hachiman felt that Horikita Manabu probably didn't mean that.
"By the way, have you encountered him these past two days?" Hachiman asked.
"I met him after school yesterday," Horikita Suzune said. "And then."
She paused. "I expressed my thoughts to him. I won't be chasing his back anymore."
So, you want to be yourself now?
Hachiman's probing words into Horikita's heart had actually resonated with her.
And like this, Hachiman probably knew the reason why Horikita Manabu was looking for him.
Because.
As an Oni-chan, Horikita Manabu surely knew what his sister was like.
And Horikita Suzune had always imitated him, so he must have known.
And now, she suddenly expressed a desire to stop.
So.
Perhaps it was an accountability or an award.
…
Being held accountable by the Student Council President is not a good thing. But if it's an award, perhaps he could try to get some information from the other party.
Thus.
After school, Hikigaya first put his bag back in his dorm, then headed to the location Horikita Manabu had sent.
There was a public bathhouse far from the student dorms. Because it was far, very few students usually came here.
Public bathhouses, Hachiman's original residence also had them nearby.
He remembered going once with his sister Komachi when he was little because the bathtub at home was broken.
He remembered the bathhouse milk tasted good back then.
However, it still felt a bit strange.
Why was the meeting place a bathhouse?
And the school's bathhouse didn't require payment, but buying towels, shampoo, soap, etc., all required payment.
The total cost was 700 private points.
However.
When Hachiman rinsed his body and wrapped himself in a towel, he suddenly realized.
That he came for an appointment, so why did it turn into taking a bath?
But Horikita Manabu's location was inside the bathhouse, probably in the sauna room.
He probably arrived very early, there weren't many people in the bathhouse.
And Hachiman pushed open the sauna room door. Because the heat inside was very strong, the door was also set to be very heavy.
Yet, he only pushed open a corner.
"…." Hachiman felt a sense of shock.
Because.
Someone was already there.
The other party was sitting there, wrapped in a towel. Bare-chested.
And in this place full of steam, he was still wearing glasses.
And he had already noticed him.
"Oh… Hikigaya, you're here. Then don't just stand there, why don't you come in?"
The other party even said that.
And this other party was the Student Council President - Horikita Manabu.
Horikita Manabu seemed to be quite enjoying himself.
Sitting directly there.
However, Hachiman noticed that his glasses were already fogged up, yet he could still distinguish him, which was quite peculiar.
"…Then, excuse me." Hikigaya would still agree to the Student Council President's invitation.
However.
This feeling now was indeed a bit strange.
Because there was only one bench inside, so he could only sit next to Horikita Manabu.
It was indeed a bit strange.
By the way, Horikita Manabu was clearly busy with official duties, but his physique was very toned. Specifically… he had a six-pack.
Which means he trained hard.
Horikita Suzune studied every day.
And Horikita Manabu, as the Student Council President, was busy, but he didn't forget to exercise.
These two siblings seem to have a common trait - self-discipline.
"You're a bit thin. How about exercising more to gain some muscle?" Horikita Manabu pushed up his glasses and observed Hikigaya before speaking.
Is that so.
But Hachiman felt his goal was to be a househusband, and he didn't need to become a hunk.
"So," Hachiman said after sitting down, "is there something specific this time?"
"First," Horikita Manabu said, "in the written exam that just ended, Sakayanagi got 100 student votes from the Third Year."
"These are votes from some Class B students, and all of Class C and Class D."
This statement was interesting.
It means Horikita Manabu's Class was not involved in the voting, but chose votes from other Class.
Among them, Third-year C Class and D Class were very realistic; most of them were poor students, so they were very resistant to the idea of possibly leaking exam questions and then everyone taking a bare exam.
But this also means that Third Year B Class might not be that great.
Because some people in Third Year B Class were also worried about the test paper being changed.
But Hachiman remembered that when he first entered school, he had checked the data on the upperclassmen's blackboard.
At that time, the Class evaluation scores of the four Class were like this:
Third Year A Class 2530 points
Third Year B Class 1300 points
Third-year C Class 300 points
Third-year D Class 20 points
Third Year A Class was far ahead.
And before coming to the bathhouse, he specifically went to the Floor where the Third Year were.
Then he saw changes on the blackboard.
Third Year A Class 2330 points
Third Year B Class 1700 points
Third-year C Class 250 points
Third-year D Class 100 points
After this written exam, because they had the test papers in advance, all four Class gained points.
However, the scores of Third Year A Class, C Class, and D Class, where Horikita Manabu was, decreased instead.
This means that President Horikita's three Class all failed in last month's special exam.
It was Third Year B Class that won.
But Third Year B Class was not that strong.
This means that President Horikita must feel that there was some problem in this, right?
For example, was there external interference?
For example, was it possible that they received assistance from Nagumo-senpai?
After all, that man has Grade 2 as a backing. It's entirely possible for him to assist a Class.
But do you want to find him for this?
Even though he contributed Sakayanagi.
Sakayanagi is very aggressive and offensive, and she even directly went to canvass votes, standing in opposition to Nagumo-senpai.
She can play the role that Horikita Manabu played in bringing Kiriyama into the school to suppress Nagumo.
So, it would be assisting Horikita Manabu.
Therefore, if you want to deal with Nagumo, you should commend Sakayanagi.
"So, Senpai really dislikes Nagumo-senpai?" Hachiman asked.
"Nagumo," Horikita Manabu said.
"I didn't expect you to bring him up voluntarily."
"But rather than disliking him, I cannot agree with his philosophy. I adhere to the school's philosophy, which is mainly Class versus Class, hoping that students will grow through competition as a Class unit."
"But Nagumo is different; he advocates for individual strength more," Horikita Manabu said.
"He is currently the Vice President, and if he becomes the President, he might promote more special exams based on individual performance."
Is that so?
Hachiman thought this idea was quite good.
Because in Class D, where they are, there are some problematic students who are like bombs, but it's undeniable that these individuals have offensive capabilities.
It's just that too many people are holding them back.
So, if individual performance could be boosted, it might be an opportunity for these problematic students.
Because some people are truly unmanageable.
Otherwise, Hachiman wouldn't have only agreed with Chabashira-sensei to help the Class ascend to Class A just once, instead of staying there indefinitely.
"Moreover, Nagumo has no hesitation regarding students being expelled."
"So, if he becomes the Student Council President, he might implement a survival-of-the-fittest approach, and the number of expulsion exams would increase," Horikita Manabu said.
Is that so?
Then it would become even more brutal.
But if expulsion exams were increased, and those who couldn't keep up in the Class were expelled… wouldn't that actually be a good thing for the Class?
Hikigaya pondered.
However, manipulating things this way would be heartless.
It would also go against the school's initial philosophy.
Why did they choose so many different students for enrollment? It was to increase diversity.
To simulate society.
To let students experience encountering all kinds of people.
So, if these underperforming students were expelled, then perhaps others would be like those in a greenhouse.
Lacking experience.
"And this time, Sakayanagi's proactive move," Horikita Manabu continued, "must be your doing, Hikigaya. I originally wanted to pull you into the Student Council to see if you could suppress Nagumo, but you chose to abstain. However, you did send a Sakayanagi."
Is that so?
Yes.
Hachiman went to report the exam papers, and then Sakayanagi produced the questions she had already prepared.
They looked like they were working together.
So, Sakayanagi's active bid for the Student Council President position was mistaken by Horikita Manabu as her helping him suppress Nagumo.
But Hachiman wasn't there to solve his worries; arranging for Sakayanagi to go for the Student Council was actually offering the Student Council as a sacrifice, to make Sakayanagi focus on the Student Council.
And then neglect her duties and slip through the Class competition.
However, such a shameless thing couldn't be spoken aloud, and it didn't matter if Horikita Manabu misunderstood.
After all, this was a moment to increase the other party's favorability.
Then, Horikita Manabu adjusted his glasses.
"Speaking of which, Suzune came to see me yesterday."
"She said she no longer wanted to chase my back," Horikita Manabu said.
Hmm.
Hachiman knew that all the talk about suppressing Nagumo and such was false and illusory.
For a qualified Oni-chan, the most important topic was indeed his sister.
And Horikita Manabu indeed brought up the topic of his sister.
"Suzune has a fatal flaw."
"She hasn't noticed her flaw, but has blindly pursued my shadow."
In other words, Horikita Manabu also understood that his sister was using him as a goal.
"Then how about telling her about this flaw?" Hachiman had already told Horikita Suzune yesterday what her flaw was.
Yes.
Chasing someone's back, taking them as a goal, is a positive thing.
But ultimately, people cannot live as someone else.
People need to be themselves.
To be oneself.
Horikita Suzune needs to become Horikita Suzune, not Horikita Manabu.
Just like Hikigaya, he wanted to be the one who was supported, not the one who actively went out to work.
He had always been very clear about this.
And he knew that he didn't like working.
------------------------------
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