Natsukawa Sosuke first clicked on the surveillance footage from the main road leading from the basketball court to the special academic building.
He didn't choose to play it normally, but instead dragged the progress bar with his mouse, fast-forwarding the footage at several times the speed. On the screen, the students' figures flashed by like a rapidly played slideshow.
Soon, a familiar figure appeared on the screen.
It was Sudo Ken.
He had already changed back into his school uniform and was walking with large strides, a sports backpack slung over his shoulder. From his tense profile and forceful steps, he seemed to be in a rather displeased mood.
Natsukawa Sosuke dragged the progress bar back and forth several times around the time Sudo Ken appeared, carefully observing everyone who passed by.
Neither before nor after him did he see the figures of those Class C students. This at least indicated that they hadn't followed Sudo Ken all the way from the basketball court.
Horikita Suzune watched silently beside him, not uttering a sound. Although she didn't understand the meaning of Natsukawa's actions, she patiently fulfilled her promise.
After confirming this, Natsukawa Sosuke decisively closed the video and switched the surveillance footage to cameras near the special academic building.
The surveillance angles here were more numerous and complex.
He no longer used fast-forward, but let the video play at normal speed. Time passed minute by minute, with people coming and going in the footage, but most were students in a hurry.
After a long while, just as Horikita's patience was about to run out, Natsukawa Sosuke's mouse stopped.
He paused one of the frames and pointed to a corner of the screen.
"Look here."
Horikita Suzune leaned closer and looked in the direction he was pointing.
She saw three boys walking from another small path, completely different from Sudo Ken's, towards the special academic building. The one in the lead had short black hair and was Ishizaki Daichi from Class C. Following him were Komiya Yōgo and Kondō Reion.
The three of them walked together, their posture looking very arrogant, as if they were looking for trouble.
"Isn't that them?" Horikita's tone was somewhat puzzled.
"Don't rush."
Natsukawa Sosuke rewound the video a bit, then played it in slow motion.
"Look at Ishizaki's right hand," he pointed at the screen. "From when he appeared until now, his right hand has subconsciously clenched into a fist and then relaxed, repeating several times. And Komiya next to him, his gaze keeps darting left and right, not daring to look straight ahead. This doesn't look like someone coming to pick a fight; it looks more like someone going to steal something."
As Natsukawa spoke, he opened the blank document and meticulously recorded these details.
Horikita Suzune looked at his focused profile and the increasing text on the document. Although she still didn't understand what use these details could be, she didn't raise any more questions.
Afterward, Natsukawa Sosuke fast-forwarded again, adjusting the time to after the conflict occurred.
He pulled up the surveillance footage of the shortest route from the special academic building back to the dormitory area.
However, from beginning to end, he didn't find any trace of the three individuals.
"They didn't take the main road," Horikita immediately concluded.
Natsukawa nodded and began to retrieve surveillance footage from several other secluded paths on the map, checking them one by one.
Finally, on a small path that almost no one walked, he once again captured three blurry figures.
"Is this them?" Natsukawa paused the screen and confirmed with Horikita beside him.
The clarity of this footage was very low, and with the sky darkening, the faces of the three people were unclear.
Horikita Suzune had to lean closer to the screen again, her body unconsciously tilting towards Natsukawa. She carefully distinguished for a moment.
...It's a bit blurry, I can't see their faces. And they seem to be intentionally obscuring themselves." She frowned slightly. "However, judging by their body types and hair colors, it should indeed be those three from Class C."
After confirming their identities, Horikita's doubts resurfaced.
"Even if we see them, what then?" she asked. "Their sneaking around on a small path only proves that they were beaten by Sudo and then guiltily fled the scene, doesn't it?"
"Horikita, you're too naive." Natsukawa Sosuke shook his head.
He didn't answer directly, but instead, based on their route, pulled up the next surveillance footage connecting to that small path.
This footage was much clearer.
"Look here." Natsukawa zoomed in on the screen, focusing on Ishizaki Daichi, who was walking in front. "This person should be Ishizaki Daichi. Look, although he keeps covering his left cheek with his right hand, looking very pained, and the injury report also states 'contusion of soft tissue on the cheek'—"
"But," he changed his tone, pointing to Ishizaki's other hand, "his left hand, which the report states has a'slight sprain,' swings very naturally as he walks, and the range of motion is perfectly fine. Someone with a truly sprained wrist wouldn't have such a relaxed posture."
Immediately after, he moved the screen to the second person.
"And this Kondō Reion, who even shares a name with you, Suzune..."
Natsukawa Sosuke was about to continue his analysis when he suddenly felt a cool hand placed on his waist.
His body stiffened, and he turned his head, meeting Horikita Suzune's icy eyes that seemed capable of dropping ice shards.
The hand wasn't pressing hard, just resting there lightly, yet it conveyed an undeniable warning.
Natsukawa Sosuke immediately returned to the main topic.
"Ahem, I mean, look at him. Although he keeps clutching his stomach and his body is slightly bent, if you look at his walking posture and core stability, it clearly indicates that his injuries are not as severe as stated in the report; it's more like an act."
"The same applies to Komiya Yōgo..."
Horikita Suzune silently withdrew her hand.
She watched Natsukawa Sosuke eloquently speak in front of the screen, precisely pointing out every subtle movement of the opponents, which could barely even be called flaws, comparing them with the injury report, and refuting them one by one.
At this moment, Horikita Suzune felt her perception of Natsukawa Sosuke being refreshed once again.
She looked at his confident and composed profile, at the insightful glint in his deep eyes, and couldn't help but lose herself in thought.
For some reason, she suddenly saw a trace of her brother in him.
That absolute confidence, that composure in controlling the overall situation, was so similar.
While Horikita Suzune was in a daze, her body had unconsciously, little by little, leaned closer to Natsukawa.
It wasn't until she could clearly smell the faint masculine scent emanating from him that she suddenly snapped awake.
Horikita Suzune's cheeks flushed instantly, as if electrified. She quickly pulled away, sitting up straight.
How could it be... how could he be compared to her brother!
She continuously denied the absurd thought that had just crossed her mind, but a faint blush uncontrollably appeared on her cheeks.
Natsukawa Sosuke was still talking volubly about the three people's oversights in detail when he suddenly felt the movement behind him disappear.
He turned his head in confusion, just in time to see Horikita Suzune sitting bolt upright, her cheeks slightly flushed.
He paused, then understood something, and a teasing thought immediately arose in his mind.
"Oh, Horikita? You're blushing? Come on, let me..."
The moment he spoke, he immediately received an icy, piercing glare.
That look seemed to say, "Say one more word and you're dead."
Natsukawa Sosuke wisely retracted his death-seeking remark that was about to blurt out.
He resumed a serious expression, looked at the night sky that had completely settled outside the window, and said, "It's getting late. Let's stop here for today. We've seen most of the footage."
"Next, I'll have Kushida spread a message in the class, and even throughout the entire first year, saying that our Class D has found crucial evidence that can prove Sudo's innocence."
Hearing this plan, Horikita Suzune's attention was immediately drawn back.
"Doing that... won't it alert the enemy?" she asked, somewhat puzzled. "Wouldn't the Class C students become even more vigilant if they caught wind of it?"
"The details we found today are not enough to convict them in the Student Council negotiations. At most, they can only shake the credibility of their testimony." Natsukawa shook his head. "Horikita, you still have a lot to learn. How can I, your emperor, entrust Class D to you in this state?"
Being spoken to in such a senior-to-junior tone, Horikita Suzune felt a small surge of anger.
She let out a cold "Hmph," stood up from her chair, and without another word, turned and walked towards the door, expressing her displeasure through her actions.