The saying goes, a person who desires nothing is unshakable. Precisely because Hikigaya didn't care about expulsion, he had no reason to be threatened by Tsukishiro.
For an ordinary student, even if the other party was just the acting chairman, they would never dare to confront him head-on.
After all, some people wouldn't even dare to resist when being strangled—
"Hikigaya."
"What?"
"Although I think you already know, I'll say it anyway," Ayanokoji spoke as if he could see through Hikigaya's thoughts. "Even if Acting Chairman Tsukishiro claims that the surveillance footage has been replaced with fabricated images, if that's a lie, then making a reckless move would be checkmate for me. The other party could easily edit the footage to only show me using violence."
Hikigaya rolled his eyes. "And you're telling me this because…? It's not like I was mocking you for being cautious."
"But your expression says otherwise."
"...Was it that obvious?"
Hearing this, Hikigaya instinctively touched his own face and glanced at Sakayanagi with a questioning look.
She responded with a smile. "I think Ayanokoji-kun is just teasing you."
"No, it's just that I've been screwed over by Hikigaya a few times already, so I've pretty much figured out how he thinks." Ayanokoji answered calmly.
"Are you serious…? That's disgusting."
Hikigaya shuddered involuntarily. Being understood by another guy—yeah, no thanks.
That being said, this also implied that Ayanokoji wasn't particularly on guard against him at the moment.
He was even subtly probing Hikigaya's stance on the matter.
Specifically, his stance on Tsukishiro forcing a student to drop out.
Honestly… this was a real pain in the ass.
On one hand, Hikigaya had no intention of helping Ayanokoji, but on the other, he couldn't stand Tsukishiro's actions either.
Especially this time—no matter how messed up this school was, it had never resorted to such an unreasonable exam before.
But thanks to Tsukishiro's interference, innocent students had been dragged into the mess as well.
Yamauchi, Yahiko, and Tokito had all been expelled! (Shocking!)
So in a way, Ayanokoji was really a troublemaker.
If you had any sense of shame, you'd voluntarily drop out too!
Unfortunately, Hikigaya knew that kind of accusation was just moral coercion. At the very least, Ayanokoji was a victim in this situation as well.
So all he could do was grumble internally.
"Ayanokoji, I advise you not to overthink things. I've already told you before—your affairs have nothing to do with me."
The underlying message was that no matter how outrageous Tsukishiro got, Hikigaya intended to stay uninvolved.
"Rather than that, you should enjoy what little school life you have left," Hikigaya said with a touch of sarcasm. "After all, your enemy is the acting chairman. Frankly, even if you put a dog in that position, expelling you would be ridiculously easy."
That is, if Tsukishiro was willing to go all out.
"Maybe so."
Ayanokoji neither confirmed nor denied it, but he probably felt some level of crisis.
This time, his opponent wasn't someone he could just punch his way through.
"By the way, there's something I'm quite curious about."
At that moment, Sakayanagi suddenly spoke up and turned her gaze toward him.
"Hikigaya-kun, was everything you said earlier true? Did you really start a recording?"
"What do you think?" Hikigaya asked in return.
"I wouldn't know." Sakayanagi answered straightforwardly. "Besides, if I could tell, I wouldn't have fallen for your tricks before… What do you think, Ayanokoji-kun?"
"Unfortunately, I can't tell either."
These two were tag-teaming against him like he was some kind of con artist.
Feeling exasperated, Hikigaya reminded them, "If you're planning to use this against Tsukishiro, I'd suggest you drop it. It won't have much actual effect—at most, it might make him a little more cautious… More importantly, I don't want to be targeted because of it."
"So, that means the recording does exist?"
After all that back-and-forth, it felt like Sakayanagi was more interested in whether the recording was real than in dealing with Tsukishiro.
Well, she had suffered a loss in a similar situation before… Truly, she wasn't the type to admit defeat.
As for the truth—she could go ahead and figure it out herself.
"Whether it exists or not, I'm not giving it to you," Hikigaya replied ambiguously.
"That's quite an evasive answer… Oh well." Sakayanagi sighed and shook her head.
"Since Hikigaya-kun won't tell me the truth, then as a replacement, answer me one more thing."
"Where do you even get so many questions from?"
"Hehe, it's because Hikigaya-kun is full of mysteries."
Sakayanagi smiled faintly, her eyes gleaming with curiosity.
"From our conversation earlier, I noticed something interesting—Hikigaya-kun's attitude toward Acting Chairman Tsukishiro is quite intriguing."
"…Intriguing?"
Hearing that choice of words, Hikigaya was momentarily stunned.
He hadn't expected Sakayanagi to bring this up.
"I was simply using common sense to remind Tsukishiro how absurd his actions are."
"No, no, I'm just talking about a simple attitude problem." Sakayanagi didn't let it go. "The moment Acting Director Tsukishiro made his move, you didn't seem surprised at all. You accepted the situation far too easily."
"Huh? What are you talking about? I was totally caught off guard."
"I'm referring to the fact that you weren't shocked by the idea of a teacher using violence against a student. You acted like it was something you were already used to."
"Uh..." That left Hikigaya completely speechless.
If she said he was used to it... well, she wasn't wrong.
In modern civilized society, teachers resorting to physical violence against students was practically unheard of. At most, they might lash out verbally.
No matter how rebellious a student was, the usual course of action was to notify their parents—corporal punishment wasn't an option for teachers.
So, Tsukishiro's actions were undoubtedly excessive. He actually resorted to hitting someone over a disagreement.
However, Hikigaya had also encountered violent teachers back in middle school.
Sure, they had gotten along decently, but violence was still violence... That first punch had hurt like hell.
...No, wait!
Hikigaya immediately denied that thought.
Hiratsuka-sensei's methods were a form of tough love. But this shameless bastard, Tsukishiro... He did seem like he was warning Ayanokoji, didn't he?
If that were the case, then the only difference between them was that one was a beautiful, unmarried older woman, and the other was a shady, squinting middle-aged man.
What the hell kind of logic was that...?
For a moment, Hikigaya found himself tangled in a mental knot.
If he justified Hiratsuka-sensei's actions, then he had no right to criticize Tsukishiro. But emotionally, he couldn't accept that.
...Yeah, some things were better left unexamined.
In the end, he could only settle on this form of escapism.
"Heh, Hikigaya-kun looks quite troubled."
For some reason, Sakayanagi narrowed her eyes in amusement... What the hell was so funny about this?!
Did she really enjoy watching other people suffer that much?
"Could it be that something similar happened in the past? If you don't mind, you can always talk to me about it."
"No, thanks." Hikigaya replied irritably. "And I don't even know what you're talking about… Besides, you and Ayanokoji didn't react much either, so why am I the only one expected to make a fuss about it?"
"Oh? So you think our reactions were normal?"
Sakayanagi covered her mouth in exaggerated surprise.
"Honestly, Hikigaya-kun, when did you become so out of touch with common sense?"
"Who the hell is lacking common sense here...?"
Hikigaya was at a loss for words.
Any ordinary student witnessing a teacher hit a student would either be too scared to speak or bold enough to call them out.
But none of the three present had reacted like that. Hikigaya even had the mental space to analyze the pros and cons of Tsukishiro's actions... Wait, no!
No matter what, I am not the same as these two weirdos!
But seriously, what was Sakayanagi up to?
Shouldn't they be discussing the fact that Ayanokoji was just put in a chokehold?
Hikigaya had a sneaking suspicion that this annoying white-haired girl was using this as an opportunity to dig into his past... Could she really be some kind of stalker?
"Ahem, let's talk about something more important."
He had zero interest in Ayanokoji's affairs, but if it meant stopping Sakayanagi's interrogation, he had no choice but to change the subject.
"Tsukishiro specifically targeted me and Sakayanagi, which means he can't personally force Ayanokoji to drop out. That would be too blatant. In other words, he'll likely continue using indirect methods—he'll just change the person he tries to bribe."
Technically speaking, Hikigaya hadn't been bribed.
Sakayanagi had at least gotten ten million points, while he had been recruited for free.
Seriously, that old man Tsukishiro had zero sense of fairness.
"Then, Hikigaya-kun, who do you think will be the next target?"
As she asked this, Sakayanagi gave him a meaningful glance.
Every time something related to his past came up, he dodged it like this... But there was no rush.
"First-year students are basically out of the question." Hikigaya responded without hesitation. "Ichinose would never agree. Ryuuen wants to take down Ayanokoji, but his pride wouldn't allow him to accept Tsukishiro's help. As for the others... not even worth mentioning."
Simply put, none of them were valuable enough for Tsukishiro to bribe.
Sakayanagi nodded in satisfaction. "That means there's only one real option, right?"
"Yeah, it's got to be Nagumo. He's the student council president and already has conflicts with Ayanokoji. If I were Tsukishiro, I'd go for him."
In reality, Hikigaya had rejected Tsukishiro's offer without a second thought.
Most students wouldn't have the guts to do that.
And frankly, he doubted Nagumo had the integrity to refuse.
"So, what do you think? Should we find a way to get rid of President Nagumo first?"
Hikigaya turned to Ayanokoji.
"Tsukishiro said he won't officially take over until April, right? If we get Nagumo ousted before then, things will be much easier for you."
"It's certainly a tempting proposal," Ayanokoji said calmly. "Unfortunately, it's impossible. There aren't many opportunities for first-years and second-years to directly compete. Next month is the last special exam of the year—I doubt they'll mix the grades again so soon."
After all, the mixed training camp had just ended. A proper inter-grade clash would probably have to wait until the next school year.
Pausing for a moment, Ayanokoji added, "That said, you're right—this is a good chance to weaken Nagumo's influence."
"…Are you asking me for ideas?"
"Do you have any?"
"Of course not." Hikigaya rolled his eyes. "Framing people is your specialty, isn't it? Can't you put that talent to use? You are the one being targeted here… Come on, show some initiative already."
"Don't ask for the impossible. Besides, I doubt you'd lose to me in that area." [T/N: Spitting facts!]
Getting praised by Ayanokoji's monotone voice... wasn't flattering.
And this wasn't even something to be proud of in the first place.
"Ugh, well, whatever. I can't think of a way to take down Nagumo..."
As Hikigaya spoke, his voice trailed off.
Then, suddenly, a flash of inspiration hit him.
No—he'd had a method in mind for a while now.
He just hadn't considered it seriously because of his thoughts about leaving school.
But now... he might have to use it.
Sakayanagi, watching him closely, immediately asked, "What's wrong, Hikigaya-kun? Did you think of something?"
"…It's not exactly a good idea."
Hikigaya hesitated.
It wasn't that he had any moral qualms about bringing Nagumo down.
Rather, the plan he had in mind could end up hurting—
...Well, maybe that wasn't a bad thing.
"Getting rid of Nagumo is impossible." Hikigaya took a deep breath and said, "The best we can do is tarnish his reputation and weaken his authority."
"Oh? And how bad are we talking?" Sakayanagi asked, intrigued.
"Bad enough that by the end of it, his reputation will be worse than both yours and Ayanokoji's combined."
"…Heh. As expected of you."
Sakayanagi chuckled in amusement.
Ayanokoji remained expressionless, listening quietly.
Damn, these two were way too thick-skinned...
As Hikigaya was inwardly complaining, Sakayanagi suddenly spoke in a calm tone.
"If I'm not mistaken, Hikigaya-kun, you're planning to use Ichinose's situation to your advantage, aren't you?"
"Uh..." Hikigaya paused for a moment but wasn't particularly surprised that Sakayanagi had figured it out.
Besides, even if she hadn't guessed it, sooner or later, she—or rather, the entire school—would know about it.
"Yeah." Hikigaya's tone was indifferent. "This is a good opportunity. It's about time Ichinose understood who the good guys are and who the bad guys really are."
"Heh, while I do think Ichinose-san is a bit... naive, I doubt she'd be foolish enough to see Nagumo as a good person," Sakayanagi chuckled softly, covering her mouth.
"No, I wasn't talking about Nagumo."
"...Huh?"
Sakayanagi looked slightly surprised, but Hikigaya ignored her and turned to Ayanokoji.
Then, without the slightest hesitation, he bluntly asked for help.
"I'm dealing with Nagumo for my own reasons, but the outcome benefits you greatly. So, you should lend a hand too."
"As long as it's not too troublesome."
Ayanokoji didn't hesitate much and agreed right away.
From his perspective, Hikigaya was one of the few students bold enough to openly oppose Tsukishiro. That alone made him valuable to pull into his camp, and in the future, he might prove to be a useful ally.
Most importantly, there was no need to worry about betrayal.
As for Hikigaya, his thoughts were far more complex.
Dealing with Nagumo was secondary—what mattered was that he didn't want Ichinose to misunderstand him even more.
Of course, he might have been just overthinking things.
Maybe Ichinose didn't have any particular opinion about him in the first place.
This could be just another case of self-awareness spiraling into a misunderstanding—just like before.
And yet… he couldn't completely dismiss the possibility that this time, things were different.
That was precisely why he wanted to clear things up before anything unpleasant happened between them.
Besides, this wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing for Ichinose either. At the very least, it would make those in Class A realize just how much she had done for them.
The only problem was… she might end up hating him for it.
No, that wasn't really a problem.
Even if she did, it wouldn't matter. Hikigaya had always been a loner anyway.
Ever since coming to this school, he'd occasionally forgotten that fact…