After a busy day, Saiki Kusuo returned to his dorm room, planning to rest a bit before heading home.
'With so many people in the class helping out, I probably won't be needed. If there's no progress later on...'
Saiki Kusuo thought to himself.
Just then, he suddenly picked up on some familiar thoughts, and a few seconds later, a knock on the door came as expected.
'Should I pretend I'm not in the room? No, I came back with them...'
After a few seconds of contemplation, Saiki Kusuo reluctantly walked over and opened the door.
"Saiki-kun!"
Standing at the door were the same troublesome bunch as before: Kushida Kikyo, the idiot trio, and Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.
"What's the matter?"
Saiki Kusuo asked, even though he knew the question was pointless.
"We need to discuss what to do next. We have less than a week left," Kushida Kikyo said seriously, stepping into Saiki Kusuo's room with the others.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's eyes wandered around Saiki Kusuo's room, searching for any valuable details, but he found nothing useful.
The group quickly started discussing their next steps in Saiki Kusuo's room, focusing on how to clear Sudo Ken's name as soon as possible.
Saiki Kusuo remained silent, his expression cold as he watched the group.
[Saiki's room is so clean. It would make a great base for future activities.]
'Hey, hey, hey, do you guys really have to discuss this in my room? You could just use a chat app on your phones.'
[I should secretly get a copy of Saiki-kun's room key later.]
'I advise you not to even think about it.'
[Discussing face-to-face will let me get closer to Kushida-san!]
'Can you not do that in my room?'
The group continued to chatter without reaching any conclusions, but just then, another knock came at the door.
'Another troublesome person.'
Using his telepathy, Saiki Kusuo determined that Horikita Suzune was standing outside. However, he quickly read her intentions and decided to open the door.
"Horikita, what brings you here?" Ike Kanji asked, surprised to see her.
[These guys have been wasting their time all afternoon. The witness is right beside us, but no one has noticed.]
'Actually, someone did notice, but we all pretended not to know.'
"Seeing you guys waste the whole afternoon, I thought I'd give you a little hint," Horikita Suzune said, shaking her head helplessly. "The witness is right beside us."
"Who is it?" Sudo Ken asked anxiously upon hearing her words.
"It's Sakura from our class," Horikita Suzune revealed.
"Sakura... Sakura Airi?" The others were surprised by the name, as Sakura Airi was practically invisible in class.
"Earlier, when Hirata was giving a speech to rally everyone to help Sudo, Sakura's expression was very unnatural. She must know something."
[Actually, Sakura gave herself away from the start, but Horikita eventually noticed too.]
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's thoughts echoed in Saiki Kusuo's mind, followed by the thoughts of the others.
[Horikita noticed that? She's amazing!]
The idiot trio's thoughts were surprisingly in sync.
[Tch, why didn't she say anything earlier? Is she trying to show off now?]
Kushida Kikyo's resentment towards Horikita Suzune grew, but she didn't show it. Instead, she took out her phone and immediately called Sakura Airi—but she didn't answer.
"She didn't pick up..."
"Just when we finally got a lead..."
Sudo Ken lay down on the bed, frustrated.
'Hey, hey, hey, that's my bed. Even though I don't usually sleep here, if you dare get even a speck of dust on it, every basketball you shoot from now on will be flat.'
"Even if she's willing to testify in court, it won't mean much. Whether it's self-defense or not, it's still a minor issue," Horikita Suzune said before leaving the room, leaving everyone stunned.
...
Soon after, the others also left the room one by one, leaving only Kushida Kikyo behind.
"Saiki-kun, what do you think Horikita meant earlier?" Kushida Kikyo asked deliberately.
'It's obvious. She's referring to Sudo's personality. His easily excitable nature is why this happened in the first place.'
Saiki Kusuo thought to himself, but he simply shook his head.
"I'm not sure."
"Really?"
Kushida Kikyo pursed her lips slightly, her gaze fixed on Saiki Kusuo's face.
[Does Saiki really not know? He doesn't seem particularly close to Horikita Suzune, but Horikita seems to care about him. If I ever have a falling out with Horikita, maybe Saiki could be an ally on my side.]
'Please, don't drag me into this.'
"Never mind. I'll go talk to Sakura-san myself tomorrow! She doesn't seem like the talkative type, and she might get scared if there are too many people around!"
"Mm."
Saiki Kusuo nodded, finally ending the day's conversation with Kushida Kikyo.
'Since Kushida is taking the initiative to talk to Sakura, this shouldn't have anything to do with me anymore.'
Saiki Kusuo thought to himself.
...
The next day, during the morning break.
As promised, Kushida Kikyo approached Sakura Airi.
"Sakura-san!"
Kushida Kikyo greeted her warmly, but Sakura Airi looked surprised and flustered.
"Wh-what is it?"
Meanwhile, Horikita Suzune, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka—and Saiki Kusuo—watched from a distance around the corner of the hallway.
'Why did I have to come along...'
Saiki Kusuo felt helpless, but he had no choice. Horikita Suzune had insisted, and there was no room for refusal.