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Volume 9, Chapter 6: “Something Vague” Part 9

Haruka excitedly greeted us as we returned to our own classroom.

“Hey, how’s Class B? It looks like a lot went down.”

“It went in an unexpected direction. Ichinose managed to repel Sakayanagi.”

Akito gave a straightforward account of what had happened.

The truth behind the rumors about Ichinose and the details about the ban the school had placed on spreading rumors moving forward.

“There should be an official warning during class this afternoon.”

“Shoplifting huh? It’s surprising to say the least, but I guess I can accept that. If there’s a past mistake floating around that you don’t want to face, it’s only natural that you would take some time off school like she did.”

Haruka, now fully informed on the specifics of the situation, spoke words of support for Ichinose.

“In any case, the whole ordeal is over with this. We can put all these rumors aside and concentrate on the exam.”

“Isn’t that great Kiyopon?”

“Well… I guess.”

And then, my cellphone rang.

“Who’s calling?”

“A number that I don’t have registered.”

I showed my screen to Haruka and the others. It was a different number from the one that had called me in the dead of night a little while ago.

I got up from my seat, took some distance from everyone else, and answered the call.

“Hello?”

“Is this Ayanokōji-kun?”

I recognized the owner of the voice immediately. It was Sakayanagi.

“How do you know my number…? Well, it’s not too hard to figure out.”

“Yeah. As there are still about ten minutes left before lunch ends, would you mind coming out to meet me for a moment?”

It would’ve been easy to decline, but it also would’ve been troublesome to make time to meet up with her later.

“Where do you want me to go?”

I walked out into the hallway.

“Well, how about in front of the first-floor entryway?”

“Okay.”

I ended the call and headed to the entryway.

I thought that Hashimoto and Kamuro might have come along with her, but Sakayanagi was alone when I arrived there.

“Do rest assured, there’s no one else with me right now. I must say, you’ve really outdone yourself this time, Ayanokōji-kun.”

“What are you talking about?”

“It seems as though, without me noticing, you’ve gone and made your move behind the scenes. There are still a few unsolved mysteries left, but I’m not interested in talking about what happened back there. That said, there’s one thing that I’ve been curious about. Why did you decide to protect Ichinose-san?”

With that, Sakayanagi stared at me, waiting for my answer.

“Wait. I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”

“Simply because you saved Ichinose-san, she became defiant… no, she was able to stand back up on her own two feet again. I can’t imagine any other reason for what happened. Perhaps it’s possible that this wasn’t the first time she’s confessed to everything. Perhaps she already told everything to someone beforehand?”

“And you think that someone is me?”

“Precisely.”

It was a completely natural conclusion for her to arrive at.

“Didn’t you use Kamuro to force me to take action?”

“Use Kamuro-san?”

“Before Ichinose’s past as a shoplifter was revealed, she told me everything.”

“That was something she did of her own accord.”

“No, that’s not true.”

“What makes you so sure?”

It seemed like, for some reason, she wanted to see what information I already had.

“She presented me with a can of alcohol as proof of her shoplifting. But, she hadn’t stolen it that day. Kamuro had stolen it when she first enrolled here.”

“And what’s the basis for that?”

“The sell-by date. After I saw the sell-by date on the beer that Kamuro showed me, I went to the convenience store and compared it with the beer there. The sell-by date of the cans on sale in the convenience store and the can she gave me differed by more than four months. It’s difficult to imagine that the can of beer she grabbed just so happened to be four months older than the rest of them. Kamuro said that you had received the can of beer she had stolen in the past, telling her that you would dispose of it. If that’s true, she either gave me a can that the two of you had prepared for me ahead of time, or she got in touch with you after she left my room and got the can from you directly.”

Back then, Kamuro getting in touch with me and speaking about Ichinose’s past was all within my assumptions.

“Why would I go about things in such an indirect manner?”

“To lure me out, right?”

“Fufufu. Perhaps an ‘as expected of Ayanokōji-kun’ is in order here.”

“In this case, it would’ve been easy for me to sit back and do nothing. Rather, that’s what I had wanted to do in the beginning.”

The one that prevented me from doing so was none other than Sakayanagi herself.

She had brought Ichinose down with her own hands, and then went and offered her a hand of support immediately after.

Of course, she had utilized a very roundabout means of doing so.

“It was all for the sake of getting you involved, Ayanokōji-kun.”

Cane in hand, Sakayanagi slowly walked forward, shortening the distance between the two of us.

“It didn’t matter to me if Ichinose-san broke down along the way, but if there was even a slight chance that you may decide to intervene, I was hoping that you would seize the opportunity to do so. The odds were only about fifty-fifty, but… I got the outcome that I was hoping for in the end.”

In other words, for Sakayanagi, Ichinose’s existence didn’t matter at all.

“Let’s have a competition, Ayanokōji-kun.”

“What if I say no?”

“While you may claim that it wouldn’t cause much damage, I’d expose you as the mastermind leading Class C from the shadows. You should be able to understand that if I did something like that, you wouldn’t be able to resolve everything with a couple of rumors.”

Even though the school had officially placed a restriction on spreading rumors, Sakayanagi would probably still spread that information without hesitation.

“So how about it? Not willing to accept?”

“What would we compete over? You’re in Class A, I’m in Class C. The difference between us is obvious.”

“I don’t know anything about what the next exam may entail, but how about we compete over the rankings? Should you win, I’ll promise not to divulge your past to anyone moving forward.”

While that condition wasn’t too bad, there was no guarantee that she would keep to her word. I didn’t have any intention of signing an agreement or vocally recording my consent on the matter either.

“You don’t believe me, do you? But it doesn’t seem like you have any other choice but to trust what I’m saying. If you don’t, your past will be exposed under broad daylight. It would become difficult for you to live an ordinary life.”

“Do whatever you want. Just know that if that happens, you’ll never be able to have your face off against me.”

“…Fufu. That’s right, isn’t it? That’s exactly what I’d expect you to say.”

Sakayanagi herself should know that I wouldn’t easily agree to face off against her.

Which was why, so far, Sakayanagi had yet to talk to anybody about my past.

“So what if I wager that I would drop out of school myself? Furthermore, you can have my father, the chairman of the school, act as a guarantor for our contest.”

Sakayanagi gave off an air of absolute confidence.

“Of course, even if you should lose to me, I wouldn’t require for you to drop out as well. I don’t intend to ask for anything special either. I would, however, announce to the school that you’re the mastermind behind Class C. If I don’t have you risk at least that much, you might just withdraw from the contest altogether.”

She looked at me with an expecting expression.

“If you’re really alright with those conditions, I’ll agree to it.”

“Thank you very much, Ayanokōji-kun. With this, at last, my boring school life will come to an end.”

With a content smile, Sakayanagi took her leave.

I decided to make a call to the central figure behind this entire incident.

Not Kei, not Horikita, and not her older brother either.

“I was just thinking it was about time for you to get in contact with me. Good evening, Ayanokōji-kun.”

(Chapter 6 End)