Tuesday afternoon, the lingering echoes of the dismissal bell had not yet faded.
In front of the Student Council office, Natsukawa Sosuke and Horikita Suzune stood side by side.
Today, Horikita's school uniform was as immaculate as ever, and she held a document bag in her hand. Her face bore its usual cold expression, but her tightly pursed lips still betrayed her inner nervousness.
Natsukawa Sosuke originally didn't want to come.
However, the thought of Horikita Suzune immediately turning into a bowing quail, unable to even speak properly whenever she saw her brother, ultimately made him decide to come along for support.
After all, watching her get flustered in front of the Student Council President was a rather enjoyable pastime.
Pushing open the heavy wooden door, the oppressive and solemn air of the office immediately assailed them.
Both sides of the long conference table were already filled with people.
On one side were Ishizaki Daichi, Komiya Yōgo, Kondō Reion from Class C, and their Class teacher.
On the other side, Class teacher Chabashira Sae and Sudo Ken had already arrived. Sudo sat with his arms crossed over his chest, impatiently shaking his leg, looking as if he could explode at any moment.
At the head of the conference table sat Student Council President Horikita Manabu. His face was expressionless, his gaze sharp as a knife, and simply sitting there, he exuded an intimidating aura. Standing beside him was Tachibana Akane, the Student Council Secretary.
Natsukawa and Horikita took the empty seats next to Sudo. From the moment she sat down, Horikita Suzune's gaze unconsciously avoided the man at the head of the table, and her body stiffened slightly.
"Everyone is here."
Horikita Manabu glanced at his watch and announced the start in a toneless voice.
Tachibana Akane stepped forward, opened the document in her hand, and read out the course of events and the testimonies submitted by both parties in a formal voice.
"...In summary, there are significant discrepancies in the testimonies of both parties. The only verifiable fact at present is that Class D student Sudo Ken committed acts of violence against Class C students Komiya Yōgo, Kondō Reion, and Ishizaki Daichi, resulting in injuries of varying degrees to the three."
As soon as Tachibana Akane finished speaking, Sudo Ken slammed his hand on the table and stood up abruptly.
"Bullshit! What do you mean I committed violence! Those bastards were the ones who provoked me first!" His face turned crimson, veins bulged on his neck, and he roared, pointing at the three Class C students opposite him, "They're just jealous that I made it onto the Basketball Club's main roster, so they deliberately picked a fight! I was acting in self-defense!"
His roar was particularly jarring in the quiet office, yet it was also pale and powerless.
Natsukawa Sosuke watched this scene with interest, then glanced at his side.
Sure enough, under her brother's cold gaze, Horikita Suzune had completely turned into a quail, her body stiff, her head bowed, not even daring to breathe, showing no intention of standing up to restrain Sudo.
While Natsukawa Sosuke enjoyed seeing her like this, he also knew that Sudo couldn't be allowed to mess around any longer, as it would seriously damage Class D's image in the Student Council's eyes.
So, he reached out and, without the quail lady's guard up, lightly poked her soft rib area.
"Ah!"
A short, irrepressible shriek instantly escaped Horikita Suzune's mouth.
This startled cry was so sudden that it instantly drew everyone's attention. Even the enraged Sudo Ken and the three unhurried individuals opposite him all turned their gazes simultaneously.
Horikita Suzune's face flushed. She snapped back to reality and immediately realized what kind of occasion this was. She glared fiercely at the innocent-looking culprit beside her, then took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down.
She stood up and opened the document bag in her hand.
"I have a question for the three students from Class C." Her voice returned to its usual coldness as she looked directly at Ishizaki Daichi opposite her. "You stated in your testimony that Sudo-kun initiated the provocation and arranged to meet you at the Special Teaching Building. So, how did he arrange for the three of you to meet in that remote location?"
The three Class C students exchanged glances, seemingly having already coordinated their statements.
Komiya Yōgo stood up and vividly described, "It was Sudo Ken. Relying on his strong physique, he deliberately bumped into me on the basketball court and said he'd been annoyed with Class C for a long time. He told me to wait behind the Special Teaching Building after school if I had the guts, saying he didn't care how many people I brought, he would teach us a lesson by himself! After that…"
"That's right!" Kondō Reion immediately echoed, "Although Ishizaki-kun isn't in the Basketball Club, he was worried about us and feared Sudo would really hurt someone, so he came along with us!"
Their statements sounded flawless, even proactively providing a reason for Ishizaki Daichi's presence at the scene.
Horikita Suzune listened, a cold smile appearing on her face.
"Is that so? But according to our investigation, the truth may not be as you claim."
She pulled out the convenience store purchase record from the document bag.
"We have evidence to prove that the actions of the Class C students were a premeditated setup!"
She slapped the record onto the table, her voice suddenly rising.
"Our witness, Class D student Ike Kanji, can testify! At 12:30 PM on the day of the incident, Class C student Ishizaki Daichi purchased a large quantity of medical supplies, including bandages and adhesive plasters, at the school's convenience store!"
"I ask you, if this was an accidental conflict, then Ishizaki-kun, why did you prepare these healing medicines several hours in advance?!"
This question was forceful and impactful.
Ishizaki Daichi's face, as expected, showed a brief moment of surprise and panic.
However, it was only brief; he quickly calmed down and, according to the pre-rehearsed script, stood up unhurriedly.
"Regarding that, I can explain."
He took out his personal terminal, brought up a chat log, and showed it to the Student Council members.
"That afternoon, my classmate, Komiya, who is also a Basketball Club member, messaged me to help him prepare some common medicines." Ishizaki's tone was very candid. "Because Basketball Club training is very intense, there are often minor bumps and scrapes. Sudo-kun, as a key member of the Basketball Club yourself, you should know better than I how often injuries occur in basketball, right?"
Sudo Ken was speechless by this question, unable to refute it.
The message Komiya sent to Ishizaki in the chat log, although vague, only saying "Training this afternoon, help me prepare some," was entirely explainable in this context.
Horikita Suzune's trump card evidence was instantly dismantled by the opponent's calm explanation.
The Class C Class teacher, a middle-aged man wearing glasses, let out a timely, mocking sneer.
"So, this is Class D. Always resorting to petty, underhanded tricks."
These words were like a resounding slap, harshly striking Horikita Suzune's face.
Her face turned incredibly grim, and the knuckles of the hand holding the purchase record were slightly white from gripping it tightly.
Just then, she looked at the document bag Natsukawa Sosuke had given her.
Although she was very reluctant, although it meant she had once again lost to that man.
But now, she had no other choice.
Horikita Suzune took a deep breath, forcing herself to suppress that feeling of humiliation. She slowly opened the plan Natsukawa had given her, her gaze falling on the first line of the first page.
She calmed her mind, and when she looked up again, the panic in her eyes was gone, replaced by a desperate calm.
Then, she spoke.
Her first sentence stunned everyone present.
"Three against one, and you got counter-killed? Do you even know how to play?"
..
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