漂亮妈妈韩国

Volume 6, Chapter 5: "The Formation of Ayanokōji Group" Part 7

While I was heading back to the dormitory after the end of the chaotic strategy meeting, I came across a large man standing next to the water fountain.

Katsuragi didn't seem to have any appointments with anyone else, so I attempted to call out to him.

“What are you doing?”

“Ayanokōji. No, I was thinking a little bit about things. It’s about the final exam next week.”

“About the final exam? In a place like this?”

“I just want to spend my time thinking alone in peace.”

This didn’t seem like the way of thinking that one would expect from a first-year high school student.

That being said, the final exam? I don't think it's an exam that the academically advanced Class A has to agonize over.

“Do you feel like this final exam is going to go over well?”

Since he asked that way, I decided to respond straightforwardly.

“Who knows, but everyone appears to be studying earnestly.”

“Is that so? It would be nice for there to be no dropouts.”

I didn't feel any enthusiasm in his worry for others.

“Did something happen?”

After I asked, Katsuragi began to speak in a way that seemed a little heavy.

“……When you were in middle school, did you ever hold the position of class representative or join the student council?”

“No, not at all. I was never interested.”

“I’ve always been a class representative or a member of the student council ever since I was in elementary school. I even served as student council president in both elementary and middle school. But, after coming to this school, I’ve had to make some large adjustments.”

“This reminds me that you haven’t entered the student council.”

“I wanted to join, but I was unable to get student council president Horikita’s recognition.”

This topic was entirely unrelated to the topic of the final exams.

“Student council and classroom representatives seem to have no authority at first glance. Most students think that it’s not worth it. They only think that it takes a lot of time and effort, so only a few people want to do it.”

It's the same feeling that I have about it. Basically, I don't want to be in a management position or anything like that.

“However, these positions are given ‘privilege’. In other words, there is a difference that can’t be covered between those in these positions and those who aren’t. And I have lost that privilege.”

“Your evaluation within Class A should be above a certain level.”

“If that was the case, I would have never chosen to target Class B for the final exam.”

I think so too. Someone like Katsuragi would choose target Class C or Class D.

He would choose the right tactic to both ensure defense and victory.

“Is it alright? To tell me about the internal conditions of Class A.”

“You’ll understand it even after a minimal amount of analysis.”

“You don't need to take on too much responsibility, you know? It appears to me that you’re leading Class A, but that’s not the whole picture. Anyway, as it is now, Class A is like a fortress. The important thing is for you guys to maintain your current position.”

“……That's right. Aah, to be so told by Class D who should be the ones chasing after us.”

“Maybe there are things that can only be seen objectively since I’m looking at things from too far away to catch up.”

When the two of us returned to the dormitory, there was a crowd of people in the lobby.

“It’s really noisy. Did something happen?”

“Uh… Want to ask around?”

Nearby there was a face I knew, The Professor, so I called out to him.

“What happened?”

“It’s Ayanokōji, His Highness. It seems that everyone in the first year has received the same letter in their mailboxes.”

“The same letter?”

I walked through the crowd and turned the dial key on my mailbox. The mailboxes aren’t typically used, but they have occasional use for online shopping, school notifications, and student to student transactions.

The other students seemed interested as well, peering from behind me at my open mailbox.

I unlocked the door after dialing the right combination.

I then took out the four-way folded paper that was inside and returned to Sotomura.

“Is this it?”

“It is, it is.”

Katsuragi came back a moment later with the same paper.

Katsuragi opened the letter at the same time I opened the folded paper.

The words printed inside read:

[First-year student Ichinose Honami of Class B might be collecting points illegally. - Ryūen Kakeru.]

Sotomura opened up his own paper to show us that he had gotten the same thing as well.

Katsuragi finished reading the paper and mumbled:

“What does he mean by neatly writing down his own name? If this is unfounded, there’s a chance that he’ll face responsibility.”

“Does that mean he’s doing it because it’s more or less true?”

“If that’s not the case, then it’s a foolish plan. But it’s a method I wouldn’t put past him. Regardless of whether it’s true or not, he should be taking the offensive if there’s material that people might think is illegal. Properly speaking, it could be illegal defamation, but that guy wouldn’t even care about that at all.”

If it’s a lie, Ryūen’s image is at risk of being badly tarnished, but since Ryūen’s reputation is already poor, and from his point of view it wouldn’t matter at all.

“Oi, Ryūen’s back!”

One of the students discovers Ryūen returning back from school.

Ryūen entered the lobby. I wonder if he knows what had caused the commotion.

“Oi, Ryūen. What are you trying to do!?”

As soon as he entered the lobby, the boys in Class B questioned him while going up and grabbing him.

“Ah, what the hell are you talking about?”

“It’s about this letter! You’re distributing this crap!”

He said so and thrust the letter in front of him. When Ryūen saw the letter, he simply shrugged and smiled.

“Oh, that? Isn’t it interesting?”

“What’s funny about it!? There are some things you can do, and there are something that cross the line!”

“Then prove it. That Ichinose hasn’t been illegally collecting points.”

“That’s-”

“How about it, Ichinose?”

Facing Ichinose, who had come after hearing the commotion, Ryūen asked, holding the letter.

“No matter what I say here now, Ryūen-kun probably won’t believe it, right?”

“Indeed. That’s because it's up to the school to decide whether there was fraud or not."

ILLUSTRATION: https://imgur.com/a/Q828ydZ

“Right. I’m sorry everyone. I seem to be under a strange suspicion. But rest assured, tomorrow I will report it to the teacher and prove that this is Ryūen-kun’s misunderstanding.”

Ichinose stands up for herself with a dignified appearance.

“How do you intend to prove it to me, Ichinose?”

“I’ll explain the details to the school. I’ll state how many points I have and how I got them. You’ll be satisfied with that, won’t you?”

“Report it to the school? Before that, can’t you explain it here?”

“So now you’re willing to believe me just by saying it here, Ryūen-kun?”

“I won’t believe it. It’d be as easy as breathing for you to lie about it.”

“Therefore, if the school mediates this, there’s no room for injustice.”

“Kuku, I see. You have a point as well.”

‘Are you convinced!?’ The nearby Class B students yelled.

“However, humans are dirty, lying creatures. Isn’t it possible that you’re now thinking of some countermeasures and covering up the evidence?”

Even until the end, Ryūen aggressively lashes out against Ichinose.

“What’s this man thinking? Even if Ichinose has a lot of points, she’s far from the kind of person who would get them illegally. He has no chance of winning by obstinately accusing her here.”

Katsuragi seemed to find it hard to understand, and his expression became more serious.

“Then what do I have to do to make you believe me?”

“Let’s start by disclosing how many points you hold here first, and then explain how you got them. Then I’ll report the same thing to the school tomorrow. With this, the students who are increasingly distrustful of you here will be convinced.”

It’s indeed true that it would drastically reduce her chances of later making excuses or lying.

However, I don’t think Ichinose will agree easily.

“That’s an impossible proposition, Ryūen-kun.”

“That is to say, you admit to breaking the rules?”

“It's not like that. Just because I didn't get my points illegally, doesn’t mean that I can reveal my hand. How many personal points someone has will greatly influence their strategies in the future.”

That is, even if she’s temporarily suspected, she has to hide her hand.

“As long as I explain it to the school tomorrow, it should be investigated. Plus if I broke a rule, regardless of whether I try to hide it or not, everything will be made public, right?”

“There’s no proof that you’ll be reporting to the school tomorrow.”

“Then, you can tell them yourself, Ryūen-kun. As it says in this letter.”

“Really? Kuku, you seem quite confident.”

If Ichinose illegally collected points, she should be feeling quite uneasy about it.

However, she didn’t waver at all. She remained dignified as always.

“Then I look forward to tomorrow.”

Ichinose watched Ryūen, who got into the elevator and left with a fearless smile.

“Once suspected, the doubt will remain until it’s completely dispelled. A like Ichinose is no exception. The greater the doubt, the greater the trust that is instantly lost.”

Katsuragi analyzed the situation and gave a correct conjecture. That also applies to the politicians who represent our country. No matter how much support they currently have, one damaging 'lie' can make them lose that support.

Of course, if they know it’s just nonsense, their support may be raised higher than before, but for the most part, it’s impossible to completely eliminate suspicion.

The next day, what Ichinose said became reality. The school issued a notice that said she hadn’t broken any rules. She took the school as a guarantor and safely dispelled all doubts.

By chance, I happened to see before that Ichinose easily had more than a million personal points. She should’ve accumulated even more by now than she had before.