"…Forget it if you're not coming."
"Hehe, I never said I wasn't coming."
With a mischievous smile, Sakayanagi teased Hikigaya as she followed him to a secluded corner of the shopping center, ensuring their conversation wouldn't be overheard by unnecessary parties.
After all, what they were about to discuss wasn't something that could be carelessly leaked.
"First, about my account being banned. The truth is, the current acting chairman, Tsukishiro, was behind it."
"Tsukishiro, huh… That makes sense now."
Sakayanagi first acknowledged Hikigaya's point but then asked in confusion, "But I can't figure out why he would target you. Do you two have some kind of conflict?"
"That involves your father—Sakayanagi, the chairman." Hikigaya made up his mind to reveal the unpleasant truth. "I once privately accepted ten million personal points from him. Tsukishiro didn't explicitly say it, but if he used that as a pretext to ban and investigate my account, it wouldn't be entirely unjustified."
Of course, if he wanted to make a fuss about it, he could.
Hikigaya was just a student. Even if he had accepted the chairman's dirty money, the fundamental power imbalance meant the school had no reason to place the blame on him.
Tsukishiro could question Sakayanagi's father about it or request Hikigaya's cooperation in an investigation—but outright banning his account? That was just blatant bullying of a weaker party.
Not that Hikigaya particularly cared. He was already planning to leave this godforsaken school, so there was no point in making a big deal out of it.
Besides, that money wasn't something he had worked hard to earn. It wasn't the fruit of his labor, so if it was gone, it was gone.
"My father… gave you ten million privately?"
Hearing this, Sakayanagi was momentarily stunned. But once she regained her composure, she didn't press for details and simply waited in silence.
She knew Hikigaya would explain himself.
"As for the reason… You might not believe it, but at the time, I had evidence that could get Ayanokoji expelled."
"…Eh?" Sakayanagi's eyes widened.
Ignoring her reaction, Hikigaya continued, "I had already taken the evidence to Chabashira-sensei. When your father found out, he came to see me… You can probably guess what happened next."
"That ten million… was hush money?"
"I accepted it."
"…No, that's not right."
All of a sudden, Sakayanagi denied her assumption.
"I have a general understanding of what kind of person Ayanokoji-kun is. He's ruthless enough that it wouldn't be surprising if he did something out of line, so it's not impossible that you found something on him. At the very least, you've proven you can do so."
"Then what exactly are you saying is 'not right'?"
"I'm talking about the idea that you would be bought off." Sakayanagi's tone was firm. "From what I know about you, there's no way you'd be swayed by a mere ten million personal points. Not even by the chairman himself. Maybe everything you've said so far is true, but I'm certain you're hiding something crucial."
"Hey, hey… You're giving me too much credit." Hikigaya let out a wry smile.
"Of course I am."
For some reason, Sakayanagi proudly puffed out her chest.
"You're the man who completely defeated me and even abandoned two lucrative opportunities in the process. Someone like you could never be the kind of boring person who would yield to money."
"I told you to stop putting me on a pedestal…"
If someone offered him a hundred thousand yen just to bow, Hikigaya was confident he could make them go bankrupt from the sheer number of bows.
But since the conversation had reached this point, he had no choice but to be honest.
"Setting that aside, there's something you got wrong." Hikigaya's expression turned complicated. "I was indeed bought by your father. But it wasn't with personal points—it was with a story."
"A story?"
"A story about…"
Hikigaya took a deep breath and revealed everything at once.
"A story about the 'White Room's Masterpiece.'"
"…!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, Sakayanagi's pupils dilated sharply.
Then, as if something suddenly clicked in her mind, she muttered under her breath, "I see… I see now. That explains everything."
"You don't seem surprised at all that your father covered for Ayanokoji," Hikigaya commented.
"Ah… To me, my father isn't a bad person, but he isn't one to strictly follow the rules either. And if he were someone who always played by the book, Ayanokoji-kun wouldn't have been able to enroll in the first place."
Having calmed down, Sakayanagi returned to her usual demeanor.
That made sense. Her father was someone who had risen to the position of chairman—stepping into the gray areas was inevitable.
"Since you know about the White Room, that makes things easier. I won't have to be as cautious."
Sakayanagi seemed relieved, but then her expression turned serious.
"Hikigaya-kun, the fact that you were persuaded by that story means you sympathize with Ayanokoji-kun… No, not just him, but all the children trapped in the White Room, don't you?"
"…Maybe."
Hikigaya couldn't say for sure. He had never seen the White Room with his own eyes.
But even from the few details he had heard, it was obvious that place was anything but humane.
If its existence were exposed, it would undoubtedly cause a massive scandal in Japan.
"The reason I wanted to defeat Ayanokoji-kun was to prove that the White Room's ideology is flawed," Sakayanagi declared with sincerity. "It might sound ridiculous to you, but I truly want to prove that the so-called geniuses created by the White Room are meaningless. Only by doing so can those suffering children be freed… So, can I entrust this mission to you, Hikigaya-kun?"
"…Sakayanagi, I don't think your ideals are ridiculous." Hikigaya slowly shook his head.
No matter what, her compassion was undoubtedly real.
"If anything, I kind of admire you."
"Then—"
"But!"
Before Sakayanagi could celebrate, Hikigaya cut her off mercilessly.
"I find your approach laughable. How exactly does defeating Ayanokoji prove that the White Room's ideology is wrong? I don't see any connection between the two."
"The ideology of the White Room is to cultivate ordinary people into geniuses," Sakayanagi explained. "If Ayanokoji were to lose to someone who never received White Room education, it would prove that the whole thing was meaningless. A fake genius will never surpass the real thing."
"...No, I still don't get it."
Hikigaya sighed, rubbing his forehead. Sakayanagi was an undeniably intelligent person, so why did she sound so foolish when it came to this?
Childhood experiences really do shape people too much...
"Let me ask you something simple—if you defeat Ayanokoji, does that deny his abilities? Based on my estimate, he probably mastered university-level knowledge when he was still in middle school, maybe even younger. Isn't that the result of the White Room's education?"
"B-But! He's the only successful case!" Sakayanagi argued desperately, as if protecting something dear to her. "That's why he's called the greatest masterpiece. A single example proves nothing! And if it comes at the cost of sacrificing countless innocent children, I can never accept it!"
"The 'sacrifice' you're talking about... Never mind, let me give you an example. Do you know what Viagra is?"
"...Huh?"
Sakayanagi, being well-read, naturally knew about the drug. She was just too stunned by the sudden change in topic.
Ignoring her reaction, Hikigaya continued, "Viagra was originally developed to treat cardiovascular diseases. But during clinical trials, they found it wasn't effective for that. Instead, it worked for erectile dysfunction. Similarly, maybe the White Room was trying to cultivate people who could rival true geniuses. Even if Ayanokoji is the only true success, the rest of the White Room students probably aren't complete failures either, right?"
"But… the others are insignificant compared to him."
"Maybe in your eyes. But what if they were compared to other students their age?"
The difference between Ayanokoji and the other White Room students might be vast, but surely, they weren't completely incompetent or physically weak.
If anything, in an ordinary school, a typical White Room student would probably be far ahead of their peers.
Ethics aside, if this education system could be mass-produced, it would be a remarkable achievement.
And it's not like real-life examples of similar institutions don't exist.
Some cram schools are so intense that students practically study 24/7 to get into top schools.
Cases of students collapsing from exhaustion aren't unheard of.
Hikigaya had even heard of certain places where electric shocks and student confinement were openly practiced under the guise of "education."
Even when exposed to the news, they still operated just fine.
If the White Room were relocated to such a place, they wouldn't even have to worry about being discovered. Parents desperate for their children's success might even fight to send them there.
Huh, that sounds like a profitable business...
Seeing Sakayanagi fall into silence, Hikigaya delivered his conclusion. "You get it now, don't you? As long as White Room students can outperform their peers, its existence can't be denied. Besides, you're just an outsider. The students who survived there might not even want to reject what they've achieved."
"Hikigaya-kun... Do you support the White Room's ideology?"
There was a trace of anger in her voice—but even more than that, sadness.
Maybe she thought she had found a like-minded ally.
What a fool.
"Don't say stupid things."
"Ah!"
Hikigaya lightly flicked her forehead, making her yelp in surprise.
"Can you use that smart little brain of yours for once?" Hikigaya said irritably. "Who the hell would support some shady, ridiculous organization like that? I'm a perfectly normal person with common sense, alright?"
"...But your words didn't sound like that at all," Sakayanagi muttered, rubbing her forehead.
"I'm just saying your approach and thinking are childish."
If this were the old Hikigaya, he might have found Sakayanagi impressive—standing alone against a massive organization.
Like a certain someone who once declared they'd change the world.
But in the end, that was just childish delusion.
"Even if you defeat Ayanokoji, to the real decision-makers, it'll just look like a kid playing house and winning. At most, they'll just 'retrain' their so-called masterpiece. It won't bring you any closer to your goal."
"Of course... Of course, I know that..."
The realization hit her like a slap in the face, and Sakayanagi seemed on the verge of giving up.
"But what else can I do? Even my father can be removed at their whim. All I can do is focus on defeating Ayanokoji... And now, I can't even do that."
In the end, she even laughed bitterly at herself.
Ah… what a pain.
Why are the girls around me all so troublesome?
Changing the world, fighting against an organization… is this really what a high school student should be worrying about?
Just graduate from your damn chuunibyou phase already!
"Sakayanagi, I already told you—I don't think your ideology is ridiculous. You're just... too impatient. Before you destroy the White Room, there's something more important you should be doing."
"...What?"
"Become the Prime Minister."
Hikigaya answered with a completely straight face.
"Uh..."
"Uh..."
A heavy silence filled the air.
The two of them stared at each other, neither speaking a word.
Just when Hikigaya was about to crack under the awkwardness, Sakayanagi suddenly burst into laughter.
"Hehehe… Hikigaya-kun, you… haha, you're too weird."
"What's weird about that?" Hikigaya asked, slightly annoyed.
This damn white-haired girl was being ridiculously rude—she was laughing so hard she was tearing up.
"I lost to you, and now you're encouraging me to become the Prime Minister… No, wait, wasn't that just a complete daydream to begin with? I never thought I'd hear something this childish from you."
"Hmph. Same to you."
After all, "defeating the greatest masterpiece means denying the White Room's ideology" was already a fantasy.
Might as well dream big.
Every kid had this kind of moment, right?
When the teacher asked about their dreams, the answers were always the same—astronaut, scientist, things like that.
For the record, Hikigaya's childhood dream was to make 100 friends... [T/N: *Komi-san noises*]
Ah.
Dreams do run opposite to reality.
"Anyway, I've said everything I wanted to. The rest is up to you."
Hikigaya finished speaking and turned to leave.
There was nothing more for him to worry about. At this point, Sakayanagi should be fine, right?
If it were her, she could get into Todai even without attending this school. And if she ever went into politics, her family background would surely provide the support she needed.
Huh? Now that he thought about it… maybe this girl really could achieve her lifelong ambition.
"Please wait, Hikigaya-kun."
Just then, Sakayanagi suddenly called out to him from behind.
Though he didn't turn around, Hikigaya still stopped in his tracks, waiting for what she had to say.
"There's something I have to tell you… Hmm, how should I put it…"
Judging from her tone, she seemed a little hesitant.
…That was rare.
"Well, maybe you don't see this as a victory, but I still want to thank you for defeating me. I've come to realize that this loss was necessary for me… So, thank you, Hikigaya-kun."
"…Idiot."
Seriously, who needed gratitude for something like this?
Facing someone he had essentially forced into expulsion, Hikigaya wasn't thick-skinned enough to accept her thanks.
But if this experience helped Sakayanagi grow… then maybe it was worth it.
Hikigaya was genuinely grateful for that much.