"Hey, hey, did you guys hear? Horikita-san and the others seem to have found evidence to clear Sudo!"
"Really?! That's great! Our class points are saved!"
The group chat was filled with cheers and discussions. The rumors spread even faster than Natsukawa had anticipated.
By noon, Ichinose Honami's message also arrived.
"Natsukawa-kun, I heard that your Class D has found crucial evidence. Is this true?"
Natsukawa looked at the message and replied, "It's true, but it's also false."
On the other side of the screen, Ichinose Honami looked at the contradictory reply and really wanted to type a string of question marks. But in the end, she chose to trust Natsukawa.
"Is that so? That's wonderful! Congratulations to your Class D for solving this crisis!"
...Under Kushida Kikyo's manipulation, the news spread like wildfire, quickly circulating throughout the entire first year in just one Sunday.
There were many core versions of the rumor, but they all pointed to one outcome—Class D had found decisive evidence to clear Sudo Ken, and Class C's conspiracy was about to be exposed.
When this wind finally blew into Class C's classroom, some people's inner panic began to grow uncontrollably.
"Hey... Ishizaki, what exactly is going on? Did those guys from Class D really find a witness?"
Komiya Yōgo's forehead was already covered in fine beads of sweat. He restlessly leaned towards Ishizaki Daichi, his voice extremely low, but unable to hide the inner tension.
"What are you afraid of!" Although Ishizaki Daichi's words were tough, his constantly darting eyes revealed his equally flustered heart. "Ryuuen's plan is flawless. What evidence could those good-for-nothings from Class D find!"
Despite this, the two of them instinctively looked at Kondō Reion not far away. After a brief and anxious exchange of glances, they finally decided that they must immediately report this sudden situation to Ryuuen Kakeru.
Ryuuen Kakeru was sitting alone at his desk, his legs propped up on it. Hearing the sound of the three approaching, he didn't even lift an eyelid.
"R-Ryuuen-sama..."
Ishizaki Daichi bit the bullet and walked in front, while the other two followed behind him, not daring to even breathe loudly.
"What is it?" Ryuuen's voice was flat, showing no emotion.
"It's about the rumors from Class D..." Ishizaki recounted the news he had heard, word for word.
After listening, Ryuuen Kakeru finally raised his eyes, his sharp gaze, like that of a hawk, slowly sweeping over the three of them.
"I ask you," his voice was still flat, yet it felt as if the temperature in the room had dropped by several degrees, "that day's incident, you didn't expose any flaws, did you?"
Kondō and Komiya immediately lowered their heads, desperately recalling every detail of that day, trying to find any possible oversight.
However, after a moment of thought, Ishizaki Daichi's expression suddenly changed. This subtle change in expression naturally did not escape Ryuuen Kakeru's eyes.
Ryuuen stood up from his seat and slowly walked over to Ishizaki. As Ishizaki's body tensed with fear, without any warning, Ryuuen directly punched him hard in the stomach.
"Ugh!"
Ishizaki let out a muffled groan, his entire body hunched over like a shrimp, and cold sweat instantly broke out.
Ryuuen Kakeru looked down at him, his gaze icy cold.
"Did you secretly do something outside of the plan behind my back?"
"I... I'm sorry, Ryuuen-sama!" Under the intense pain, Ishizaki's psychological defenses completely crumbled. "The thing is... it's like this..."
...Meanwhile, in Class D's classroom.
The investigation team members, with Kushida Kikyo at the core, were gathered together.
"I suddenly remembered a crucial detail!"
Ike Kanji stood in the middle, his voice somewhat high-pitched with excitement. As he spoke, he secretly observed Kushida Kikyo's reaction out of the corner of his eye, wanting to make a good impression on her.
"On the afternoon of the twenty-eighth, when I went to the convenience store to buy a drink, I personally saw Ishizaki Daichi from Class C rushing in, buying a roll of bandages and several band-aids!"
Ike Kanji vividly described the scene, as if he were a famous detective who had discovered a key clue.
"At the time, I didn't pay much attention, but now that I think about it, isn't that very suspicious? If it was really an accident, and Sudo was the one who hit them first, why would they buy bandages beforehand?"
...In Class C's stronghold.
After listening to Ishizaki Daichi's somewhat incoherent description, which was due to fear, Ryuuen Kakeru's face showed no expression of surprise or anger.
He merely chuckled dismissively.
"Is that all?"
He walked back to his seat and continued to cross his legs.
"You just need to remember that from beginning to end, Sudo Ken was the one who initiated the provocation and made the first move. You were simply defending yourselves, were no match for Sudo, and were severely injured."
Ryuuen's gaze swept over the three of them. "As long as you stick to this script, even if Class D gets the convenience store receipt, it won't cause any trouble. In court, both human and material evidence are required. You are the human evidence, and the infirmary report is the material evidence. As for buying medical supplies, it's just an insignificant interlude, a precaution against injuries from basketball. Understand?"
"Y-yes! Understood!"
The three of them nodded repeatedly, as if granted a great pardon.
But under Ryuuen Kakeru's oppressive gaze, the pressure within them only grew stronger.
The three exchanged glances, all seeing the same thought in each other's eyes—wait, we must reconfirm our statements with each other and ensure every detail is flawless...Class D classroom.
Horikita Suzune listened to Ike Kanji's boastful description. Although she despised his attention-seeking personality from the bottom of her heart, she immediately realized the immense value of this clue.
She didn't participate in the discussion, but quietly stepped out of the circle and left the classroom.
Horikita Suzune went straight to the school convenience store.
She applied to the clerk to inquire about consumption records for a specific period, under the pretext of helping a classmate check recent bills. After paying a small amount of points as a handling fee, she smoothly received a printed record.
The record clearly showed in black and white that at noon on June 28th, there was indeed a consumption record for purchasing a roll of bandages, band-aids, and other medical supplies.
Looking at this record, a flicker of irrepressible light finally appeared in Horikita Suzune's cold eyes.
In her opinion, this was irrefutable evidence proving Class C's "premeditated harm"!
They bought bandaging supplies themselves first, and then were 'accidentally' beaten in the afternoon. This was completely illogical!
Horikita Suzune carefully folded this printed consumption record and put it into her pocket.
A strong sense of confidence began to rise within her.
This was the true trump card that could clinch the victory.
This time, she wouldn't need to rely on that man who always made her feel powerless and frustrated. She could solve the problem herself.
This long-lost feeling of controlling the situation with her own strength made her mood improve by several points.
...
Read more at Patreon.com/zeaser