'From now on, I must avoid using superpowers around Sakura as much as possible.'
Unlike Ayanokoji's detailed logical reasoning based on utility, Sakura Airi relied entirely on intuition.
But, was this intuition a cheat?
"Sorry, I only just found out about this matter as well." Saiki shook his head in a fake, exaggerated way, showing that he didn't know anything.
"So the clerk from earlier in the day was actually that kind of guy? Good thing we didn't call him for repairs."
"Saiki-kun… you didn't know?"
"Mm, I also didn't know about this matter." Saiki continued shaking his head, his tone very firm.
"Alright then… It's so late, and I still disturbed you… I'm very sorry…"
"It's fine." Saiki said to Sakura Airi, who then left his room.
'That counts as barely brushing it off, I guess… Seriously, too many troublesome things today. I should finally take a break.'
Saiki activated his teleportation ability and returned to his home.
———
On the other side, Sakura Airi returned to her own room.
Only, the corners of her mouth seemed to be slightly raised.
"Even though Saiki-kun denied this matter… but for some reason, I feel even more certain that it was done by Saiki-kun… When seeing the messages in the group, Saiki-kun's face didn't show any surprised expression… From Kushida-san's behavior, she and Saiki-kun probably already know about my other side… But Saiki-kun didn't say anything…"
Sakura Airi hugged her camera in her arms and sat in a chair. Although she didn't have any particular strengths, in terms of intuition, she was very sharp. Saiki's denying expression only made her more certain in her mind that he was involved in this matter.
"During the day, Saiki-kun must have already seen through the clerk's true nature… That's why he deliberately stopped my hand and helped fix my camera… Just now, he also denied being involved in the matter with the clerk… Saiki-kun… was thinking of my feelings, afraid it would affect me… I didn't expect Saiki-kun to be this kind of person… Since that's the case… next Monday… I will also stand up…"
———
[The Next Day, Early Morning]
Saiki, as usual, returned to the classroom.
Just as he entered the classroom, he saw the idiot trio and Ayanokoji, Kushida Kikyo, and several others gathered together, excitedly discussing something.
"Hey, Saiki!"
Seeing Saiki enter the classroom, Sudo Ken shouted his name loudly and waved his hand.
'Hey, don't call me so loudly. People will think I'm close with you idiots.'
Saiki responded in his heart, but since someone had already called him, he had no choice but to walk over to them.
"Did you know! I just got a call from the student council, the complaint from Class D has been withdrawn, and those people from before are all going to be suspended for several weeks as punishment!"
Sudo Ken smiled as he spoke to Saiki, his face full of happiness and excitement.
"Oh? Why?"
Saiki followed Sudo Ken's words and asked, which would make him look more like someone completely unaware of the situation.
"Seems like a recording of them got leaked. Someone leaked a recording of those three talking! As expected, they were trying to frame me!"
"Recording?"
"Yeah! I don't know who did it, but it's amazing! Those three didn't just fail to frame me, they're also being punished by the school. It's really awesome! The student council didn't give many details, but at least this matter is finally over!" Sudo Ken said with a smile.
Sudo Ken only cared about the result and didn't care who actually did it. For Saiki, this was a good thing.
However, as for who did it, naturally, there were people who cared.
[Someone actually obtained a recording? Who was it? How did they manage to do it?]
Horikita Suzune stood nearby, brows furrowed, one hand across her chest, the other rubbing her chin, thinking quickly. She hadn't figured out what exactly was going on.
Clearly, just yesterday, their progress had been very slow.
Ayanokoji, on the other hand, turned his gaze to Saiki.
[I only found out about this matter this morning, but when Saiki heard it from Sudo just now, he didn't show any surprise. Did he already know? But he usually doesn't show any expression, so that doesn't prove anything.]
[This matter is directly related to the interests of our Class C and Class D, so it's almost certain that the person who did this is from one of our two classes.]
[Since the recording can be used as definitive evidence, it must be of very high sound quality. That means it was recorded from a close distance, and we can pretty much rule out the possibility of it being done outdoors, it's most likely that the three of them discussed it inside the dormitory, and were recorded by a fourth person. So that person is most likely…]
'Hey hey hey, aren't you being a bit too extreme?'
Saiki quietly observed Ayanokoji. The other party's reasoning ability was truly terrifying. If this continued…
[It must be someone from Class D. I heard that although Ryuen controls Class D, there are plenty of students dissatisfied with him. That must be why someone in their class tried to oppose him.]
———
Listening to Ayanokoji's reasoning, Saiki let out a long breath in his heart.
Fortunately, even the greatest masterpiece of the White Room wouldn't consider the existence of supernatural powers.
It was exactly because Saiki had calculated this point that he proceeded with the related actions, but even he hadn't expected Ayanokoji to reason out this much from the result. He was even more terrifying than expected.
But ultimately, he was just a human, not a psychic.
'Although he hasn't suspected me, I should be more cautious going forward… One has the brain of a detective, Ayanokoji, and the other has terrifying intuition, Sakura…' Saiki thought in his heart.
At that moment, light footsteps came from the back door of the classroom.
[Saiki-kun… is already here… Should… should I greet Saiki-kun?]
No need to look. Just from the voice, he knew it was Sakura Airi.
[Let's, let's greet him… But Saiki-kun… is… is talking with others…]
Seeing Saiki chatting with Sudo Ken and the others, Sakura Airi pressed her lips together. She wanted to speak but didn't say anything for a long while.
In class, she had always been nearly invisible. Even after walking into the classroom, no one would notice her. Normally, she had little to no interaction with others.
"Good morning, Saiki-kun…"
In the end, Sakura Airi's tiny bit of courage could only let her whisper in a voice only she could hear. It was almost instantly drowned out by Sudo Ken's booming laughter.
"Good morning." But at that moment, Saiki greeted Sakura Airi.
"Eh!" Sakura Airi was a bit surprised. She hadn't expected Saiki to actually hear her.
"Sakura-san, you're here!" Kushida Kikyo immediately ran over as well.
"Let me tell you some good news! Sudo-kun's charges have been cleared!"
"Huh?"
Kushida Kikyo then told Sakura Airi everything that had happened today.
Behind her glasses, Sakura Airi's eyes were filled with surprise. She hadn't expected things to turn out like this.
This also meant that she no longer needed to appear in court as a witness, which was undoubtedly a good thing.
However…
[C-Could this have been done by Saiki-kun?]
'Hey hey hey, isn't it a bit too forced for you to suspect me just like that? You're the one with the psychic powers!'
———
At the same time, in the flowerbed outside the school building, Daichi Ishizaki and the other two were beaten black and blue, lying on the ground, unable to get up for a long time.
Standing beside them were Albert, wearing sunglasses, and Ryuen, whose face was full of anger.
Ryuen had never imagined things would turn out this way.
Early in the morning, they had received a notice from the student council, informing them that Daichi Ishizaki and the other two had framed Sudo Ken, and even provided a recording file.
That recording wasn't fake, the student council had certainly verified it. Ryuen knew that very well. This was enough to show that their conflict with Sudo Ken had been premeditated.
In the end, Ishizaki and the others were suspended for three weeks, and their class lost 30 points.
The recording even mentioned Ryuen's name, but because it didn't explicitly say that it was Ryuen who planned it, he was able to avoid punishment.
Of course, Ryuen wouldn't forgive the three for failing the mission, so he had Albert beat them up badly.
But more and more questions appeared in his mind.
"Damn it, where the hell did that recording come from?!"
Ryuen couldn't figure it out at all, how did the recording exist? According to Ishizaki, the three of them had discussed it last night in the dormitory.
To figure it out, Ryuen had to ask other classmates for help.
At that moment, Shiina Hiyori and Ibuki Mio walked over.
Ryuen turned to look at Shiina Hiyori, she was the one he had asked for help. He knew her capabilities very well and had entrusted her with the investigation.
Shiina Hiyori agreed, this was a major event for the whole class, after all.
"How's it going, Hiyori?" Ryuen asked somewhat anxiously.
"Ibuki and I used the excuse of a missing item to investigate entry and exit on Ishizaki's dorm floor for about two hours. As students, that's all we could access."
Shiina Hiyori replied, "But we found nothing. We couldn't obtain any useful information. In the video footage, no one lingered nearby."
"What's your view?"
"Judging from the clarity of the recording, it must have been done at close range. The first suspects are those three themselves."
Shiina Hiyori looked toward Ishizaki and the others.
"But they have no reason to do this. One, because they aren't the type to oppose you, Ryuen-kun. And two, the result of this event is entirely negative for them. There's no benefit."
"Considering everything, the most likely scenario is that someone secretly installed a recording device in Ishizaki's room and retrieved it afterward. But since we couldn't see the full video footage, we can't identify who did it."
"It's only been two days since the setup against Class C, and they could do this already? And how did they enter the room?"
"I checked. Besides mobile phones, the school mall doesn't sell concealed recording devices. But online shopping sites do. Still, delivery takes one or two days. That means the person likely bought the bug in advance. Excluding coincidence, the person probably already knew your plan, Ryuen-kun."
Shiina Hiyori's eyes turned serious.
"As for entering the room, if someone got hold of the keycard and made a copy, it would be easy. Ishizaki's card was probably stolen and copied at some point. He just didn't notice."
"What…"
Ishizaki's eyes widened in shock, finding it hard to believe. He quickly patted his pocket.
"Judging by the current situation, I think someone in our Class D is the most likely suspect. After all, there are many people dissatisfied with Ryuen-kun's leadership."
Shiina Hiyori's words were calm and without emotion. Beside her, Ibuki Mio's brows twitched slightly.
"That's true."
Ryuen's expression turned serious. He instinctively suspected Kushida Kikyo, after all, she had provided intel on Class C, but many things didn't quite add up. For now, the most likely suspect was someone from his own class.
"In that case, we'll need to collect everyone's phones and check their point usage records. If someone bought a bugging device, there will definitely be a trace. You can't fake the point transaction history."
"This method is indeed feasible. If the culprit is from our class, that's actually the best outcome." Shiina Hiyori said.
"Huh? Having a traitor in our class is the best outcome?" Ibuki Mio looked completely confused.
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