"This is... Karuizawa?"
Kushida's eyebrows furrowed tightly. She hadn't expected the other party to pull out a video related to Kei Karuizawa.
"I mentioned earlier, didn't I? There's a traitor in our class—Manabe. She tried to bully your class's Karuizawa before. It's because of this video that Manabe had to obey X—Yamauchi's orders."
Ryūen explained slowly.
"What does that have to do with Karuizawa?"
"Have you ever wondered why Saiki went out to save Karuizawa back then, stopping Manabe's actions? If they were really using this to threaten Manabe, wouldn't it be more effective to wait until Manabe used more extreme bullying methods?"
Ryūen narrowed his eyes slightly.
"True... Then why did he...?"
"I can sense that Yamauchi's way of thinking is similar to mine. If I'm not mistaken, his plan was to use Kei Karuizawa as a tool. Saving her would make her trust him, allowing him to use her for his own purposes."
*'Yare yare, no wonder Ayanokōji said the two of you have a lot in common. Your thoughts are surprisingly aligned...'*
Saiki thought to himself.
"You mean... Yamauchi planned to turn Karuizawa into his tool."
"Exactly. But since he needed to stay hidden within the class, he chose Saiki as his proxy."
"Saiki? No wonder... No wonder the day Horikita Suzune challenged me to a bet, Saiki was there..."
Kushida seemed to realize something.
"Last time, I tried to pry information about Yamauchi from Saiki, but ended up blocked by a recording. Using a drone with a hidden camera—even I didn't think of that."
Ryūen's lips curled slightly upward.
*'Actually, he just wanted to spy on the girls' changing room.'*
Saiki responded in his mind.
Even if Yamauchi appeared before them now and revealed his true intentions, they probably wouldn't believe him.
"What are you planning to do now?"
Kushida leaned forward slightly, her gaze fixed on Ryūen.
"Using Karuizawa might lure Yamauchi out of hiding. Then, we can make him truly despair."
"When do you plan to act?"
"The sooner, the better. We already know their true identities; we just couldn't act against them yet. I'm not interested in playing Yamauchi's games anymore. Let's force him out and show him what real despair is."
*'Yare yare, my invisibility is about to run out.'*
Saiki's invisibility lasts only ten minutes. Following Kushida here took up some of that time, so he couldn't stay around any longer.
But he now knew Ryūen's true intentions.
Though Saiki hates trouble, he's also aware that if he doesn't act, these guys will keep causing problems for him.
...
Time passed quickly, and the sky grew dark. It was now evening.
Kei Karuizawa, resting in her room, suddenly received a message from Manabe Shiho.
*Manabe Shiho: Come to the special classroom building's rooftop.*
*Manabe Shiho: I need to talk to you about the bullying incident.*
*Manabe Shiho: If you don't come, I'll spread rumors about your past at school.*
Reading Manabe's message, Karuizawa clenched her fists tightly, her nails digging into her palms. Painful memories flooded her mind, and she could only bite her teeth hard.
If this got out, the image she'd worked so hard to build over the past six months would be destroyed.
A sense of helplessness and pain overwhelmed her. Not knowing what to do, she took out her phone and messaged Saiki.
*Karuizawa Kei: Saiki... Manabe just messaged me, asking me to meet her...*
*Saiki Kusuo: Don't go. I'll handle it.*
Karuizawa had barely sent her message when Saiki's reply arrived instantly.
*Karuizawa Kei: But...*
*Saiki Kusuo: It's probably just a misunderstanding. I'll talk to her. No big deal.*
*Karuizawa Kei: Okay... Be careful.*
Looking at the message on her screen, Karuizawa felt an ominous premonition for some reason.
.....
Meanwhile, on the rooftop of the special classroom building—a place no one usually visits—the open-air area had no surveillance cameras.
Ryūen stood there with Albert, Ishizaki Daichi, and Ibuki Mio, waiting.
"Ryūen, are you sure they'll take the bait?"
Ibuki frowned.
"They will."
Ryūen leaned against the railing, a slight smirk on his lips.
"Kei Karuizawa wouldn't want her past exposed. She'll come, no matter what. She won't let her carefully crafted image be destroyed."
"But what if Yamauchi doesn't show up?"
Ishizaki asked, confused.
"If Yamauchi doesn't come, we can still get important information from Karuizawa. How long can she hold out? Even if she says nothing, we can break her completely."
Ryūen smiled.
He wasn't just doing this to destroy Class B.
Ryūen enjoyed it. He wanted to crush everyone else completely.
Albert bit his lip, knowing just how terrifying Ryūen could be.
But then, footsteps suddenly echoed from the other side.
"Here they come?"
Ryūen's smirk widened, his gaze shifting toward the sound.
"Faster than expected... Wait—"
Standing before Ryūen was Saiki Kusuo.
"Didn't expect it to be you,"
Ryūen's eyebrows twitched slightly, surprised by Saiki's appearance.
"Looks like Yamauchi is too scared to show up himself, using you as a pawn."
*'Yamauchi not showing up is a smart move, but sending Saiki here means he's disposable. Is Saiki willingly playing the pawn, or does he think he can handle this?'*
Ryūen's mind raced.
*'Yare yare, I hate trouble, but your actions lately have been bothering me. Especially what you planned to do—I can't let that happen. Time to teach you a lesson.'*
Saiki stared expressionlessly at Ryūen.
*'After all, Karuizawa treated me to so much pudding and cake. Time to repay her by ending this.'*
"If you kneel and lick my shoes, I'll let you leave unharmed."
Ryūen taunted, oblivious to the seriousness of the situation.
"Yare yare, I didn't want to complicate things, but someone like you needs a lesson. And I've been stressed lately."
Saiki said slowly,
"As for Yamauchi, he has nothing to do with this."
"What are you talking about?"
Ryūen scoffed,
'Yamauchi sent you here to say this? If I release the video of Karuizawa, her lies will be exposed."
"I already deleted the video."
"Deleted? It's still..."
Ryūen realized something and quickly checked his phone. He'd had Manabe send him the video earlier.
But now, the video was gone from his gallery.
"How... How is this possible?!"
Ryūen was stunned, having no idea how it happened.
*'How? How could he delete my video remotely? No one touched my phone... Unless... He used a system exploit or malware?!'*
Ryūen, usually so composed, was more shaken than during the sports festival.
*'It's my psychic powers.'*
Saiki thought, but played along,
"I just used a virus. Remote access to your phone is easy. Same with the recording."
"Impossible... You're lying! I investigated—Yamauchi used a hidden camera and drone..."
"He just wanted to spy on the girls' changing room."
"Bullshit!"
"Aigh."
Saiki sighed. Even telling the truth, Ryūen refused to believe him.
But Ryūen was clearly shaken.
*'Impossible! My initial guess can't be wrong! Yamauchi is the mastermind, and Saiki's just his pawn! It can't be wrong!'*
Ryūen forced himself to calm down and gestured for Ishizaki to attack Saiki.
"Go!"
Ishizaki clenched his fists and charged at Saiki—
Once a bully in middle school, his fighting skills were terrifying. Only Ryūen had brought him under control in this school.
But even so, no ordinary student could match Ishizaki.
His punch aimed at Saiki's chest, but it felt like hitting a rock.
Even without using his powers, Saiki's physical strength far surpasses that of ordinary people.
*'How?! He looks so weak, but he's this strong?!'*
Ishizaki's face showed terror.
*'Yare yare, I don't want attention, but if I don't act, trouble will find me.'*
Saiki thought, then gently tapped Ishizaki's body.
"%￥＃"
Ishizaki instantly lost consciousness, collapsing to the ground.
"What?!"
Ibuki was stunned, never expecting Ishizaki to be taken down so easily.
*'What was that move? It looked so simple! Wait, attacking certain pressure points can knock someone out, even with a light touch... Is Saiki a master of this? Was he telling the truth? Is he Class B's true mastermind? No wonder I failed the island exam... It was all Saiki's doing!'*
Anger flared in Ibuki, and she lunged forward with a side flip, kicking at Saiki's head—
Saiki raised his hand, blocking her attack, then gently pushed her away. She flew backward, hitting the ground and losing consciousness.
Albert followed, but met the same fate as Ishizaki and Ibuki.
*'How... How is this possible?'*
Ryūen was stunned, never expecting his three strongest allies to fall so easily.
He couldn't even see Saiki's movements clearly.
To Ryūen, Saiki's simple actions effortlessly defeated them all.
*'What technique is this?! Damn...'*
Everything had gone off the rails. Ryūen had never suspected Saiki, yet here they were.
Surprise turned to excitement. Though unexpected, Ryūen's desire to defeat Saiki intensified.
"Impressive! Didn't expect you to be so ruthless. Can't wait to see the fear on your face!"
Ryūen lunged at Saiki like a wolf—
The next moment, he flew backward like a bottle rocket, crashing to the ground.