"Ryūen, don't think you can just do whatever you please," Katsuragi Kōhei said coldly.
"Oh? Save that line for when you make it back to Class A," Ryūen Kakeru replied, utterly calm.
The jab struck home. Katsuragi's expression stiffened, and after a tense pause, he turned and walked off without another word.
"Ryūen, scheming like this will never earn you anyone's respect," Ichinose Honami said seriously.
"A lecture? How dull," Ryūen sneered. "You naive idealists are just begging to be crushed."
"I'm done here. Let's go, Ibuki."
After finishing his breakfast, Hikigaya Hachiman stood up.
Ibuki Mio gave a curt nod. "Yeah. Meet you after school."
"Hey, Ibuki, not even a word for me?" Ryūen frowned. "You're kind of a brute, but your taste in men isn't half bad."
(Ryuen lowk sus)
"Its none of your business!" Ibuki snapped back instantly.
"Oho~ With a temper like that, it's hard to picture you landing that dead-fish-eyed guy," Ryūen said mockingly, then smirked. "If it were Hiyori, though, she might actually stand a chance."
"Huh? What does Hiyori have to do with this?" Ibuki shot back, confused.
"Oh, they could have plenty to do with each other," Ryūen said with a grin, clearly enjoying himself.
"Ryūen, just die already!"
***
The usual chaos filled Class D's room.
After that cafeteria showdown, the rivalry between classes was now out in the open. The rumor that Yamauchi and his gang had taken bribes from Class C couldn't be contained anymore.
"You guys harassing people like that is just disgusting!" Karuizawa Kei snapped, glaring at them. "You're making the entire class look bad! Everywhere we go, people are pointing fingers!"
"Th-This is tactical harassment! We're doing this for Class D's sake!" Ike Kanji protested, his tone self-righteous rather than apologetic.
"For the class? Are you serious? Our points are basically zero now!" Satō Maya fired back.
"Hey, that's not fair to say…" Sudō Ken — usually the first to start fights — surprisingly came to Yamauchi's defense. "If everyone's points get docked, Classes A and B lose more. That means the gap between us shrinks."
"Huh? Sudō, since when are you on their side?" Karuizawa stared at him, bewildered.
"I'm just stating facts!" Sudō said, voice rising defensively.
"Sudō, I know you've gotten close with her lately," Karuizawa said, eyeing him sharply, "but that doesn't mean you should defend them."
"Wh-what are you implying?" Kushida Kikyō quickly jumped in, feigning innocence.
With Kushida backing them — the girl who had most of the female students wrapped around her finger — Yamauchi's group grew bolder.
"See? We're doing this for the class!" Ike declared self-righteously.
That girl's definitely been bribed too, Hachiman thought from his seat, watching the farce unfold.
What baffled him was how Karuizawa, supposedly the leader of the girls' group, looked more irritated than outraged. She wasn't even calling Kushida out directly.
Your fake smile act is really starting to lose its touch…
"I'm sure Sudō understands their good intentions, right?" Kushida said sweetly, forcing a smile to preserve her image. "I believe in them."
Seeing Sudō stay neutral, Karuizawa turned to the class's moral compass. "Hirata! Say something!"
"Um, let's all calm down and talk this out," Hirata Yōsuke said in his usual peacekeeping tone.
That's the same as saying nothing, Hachiman thought dryly.
"Seriously? That solves nothing!" someone muttered.
"Exactly!" another agreed.
Even diligent types like Wang Mei-Yu were losing patience.
"We're one class," Yamauchi Haruki said self-righteously. "Sometimes you have to put personal feelings aside for the greater good."
"Yeah!"
"Right!"
A few others — likely also on Class C's payroll — quickly echoed his words.
Seeing the tide turn, Ayanokōji Kiyotaka offered a neutral, "I think so too."
Hachiman shot him a disgusted glance.
You opportunistic fence-sitter…
"You're all a bunch of self-serving hypocrites!" Karuizawa finally exploded. "Hikigaya—aren't you going to say anything!?"
"Hah."
Hachiman let out a short, cold laugh.
He didn't care enough to intervene.
From day one, he had already seen what Class D truly was — a collection of misfits and rejects. Trying to unify them was pure delusion.
"Wait, Hikigaya… don't tell me you—" Yukimura Teruhiko narrowed his eyes suspiciously.
Hachiman neither confirmed nor denied.
If they thought he'd been bribed, all the better — less hassle for him.
"See? He's not even denying it!" Yamauchi said triumphantly.
"Wrong!"
"Hachiman would never do something that selfish!" Hasebe Haruka protested fiercely.
"I—I believe in Hikigaya too!" Sakura Airi said softly.
Hasebe and Sakura… loyal as ever.
Man, I wish I could fake being two-faced like the rest of them.
"Enough!"
Horikita Suzune slammed her hand on the desk. Her icy glare froze the entire room.
Every face went rigid.
Horikita's verbal strike hit both sides at once.
Watching Horikita take control so effortlessly made Karuizawa's feelings twist with frustration, while Kushida quietly clenched her fists — bitterness flickering in her eyes.
"Everyone, stop arguing," Hirata finally said. "Let's continue this later. Class is about to start."
Hachiman's face stayed blank — though he was dangerously close to laughing.
Leading this bunch of idiots and calling it 'competition'?
Please. Better to spend that time chasing your own ideals.
***
During Class
After that blow-up, the atmosphere was split between awkward silence and restless tension.
The teacher, used to this chaos, droned through the textbook expressionlessly and dismissed them as soon as the clock ran out.
"Today's lesson was a bit hard to follow…" Sakura murmured.
"Forget it. Who can focus after that mess?" Hasebe sighed.
"It's fine. I'll go over it with you after school," Hachiman said casually.
"Really? That'd be amazing!"
"Teacher Hachiman's so reliable!" the two girls said brightly.
"Hachiman, do you want to come with us to—"
Snap!
"I'm good," he said flatly.
"I see…" Hasebe pouted.
Bored, Hachiman picked up a book titled 13.67 and started reading.
"13.67?" Horikita glanced over curiously.
"What, you've read it?" he asked offhandedly.
"My brother owns the Chinese collector's edition," she said. "For a foreign author to win the Naoki Prize, it must be exceptional."
Your brother, huh? Figures.
Wait—can she even read the Chinese text?
"Hikigaya, since when did your reading taste get so refined?" Horikita asked unexpectedly.
"Stop that. You're creeping me out," he replied with a strange look. "Hiyori recommended it."
"I knew it," Horikita muttered, unimpressed.
As if he'd ever pick that up on his own.
Her expression stiffened as he turned a page.
What's with that look…?
Five minutes later, Hachiman started feeling genuinely uneasy. Combined with the murder mystery plot in the book, her silent staring made it worse.
Is the killer standing right behind me or something?
"…Fine, you win," he sighed. "If you're that curious, just read with me. That should satisfy you, right?"
"Okay."
Without hesitation, Horikita pulled her chair next to his, leaning in close to see the page.
Seriously? Read the room, woman.
Hachiman could feel everyone's shocked stares drilling into him.
"Turn the page," Horikita said calmly.
Tch. If you're not embarrassed, then neither am I.
He ignored most of the glares.
But not all of them —
because a few of those gazes were especially sharp.
Like they were trying to burn a hole right through him.