"Alright, everyone, that's enough!"
An unexpected figure stepped in—Ichinose Honami. Her presence alone was enough to break up the tense standoff.
She hadn't even done anything, yet both Ishizaki and Yamashita from Class C, as well as Totsuka from Class A, all backed down without a fight.
This outcome caught many people by surprise.
"Who the hell are you? Stay out of my business and get lost!"
Sudou clearly had no idea who Ichinose was. He didn't even notice the change in Ishizaki, Totsuka, and the others' expressions. As always, he acted like a rabid dog, ready to bite anyone he saw. In a way, he was similar to a certain "tyrant"—the difference being one had no brains, and the other did.
At that moment, Kushida quickly stepped forward and tugged at Sudou's sleeve, trying to stop him from making a bigger scene. Whether she was genuinely trying to calm him down or just afraid of Ichinose, no one could say for sure.
"Who I am isn't important. I'm just a student using the library. It's normal for classmates to have conflicts, but if they start disturbing others, I can't just stand by and do nothing."
Even when facing Sudou's aggressive tone, Ichinose remained calm and composed. But beneath that cool exterior, she wasn't weak.
"Red-haired guy, if you insist on using violence, I'd appreciate it if you took it outside. Or we can just end this here."
"Ichinose is right, those D-Class guys…"
Ishizaki and Yamashita were about to add their own insults when Ichinose suddenly turned around.
The sharp look on her face shut them up instantly.
It seemed they had dealt with her before—probably lost a few times, too—so they knew better than to push their luck.
Ichinose then glanced toward Katsuragi's direction.
Noticing her gaze, Totsuka, who had been hiding behind Katsuragi, shrank back even further.
Ichinose and Katsuragi locked eyes for a moment.
Neither spoke.
But as Ichinose turned away, Katsuragi frowned deeply, while Totsuka looked like a guilty child who didn't dare to say a word.
After Ichinose gave Ishizaki and Yamashita a few words of warning, the two exchanged helpless glances before reluctantly leaving. Katsuragi also took Totsuka with him and exited the library.
As for Sudou, who had just lost his target, he didn't keep pushing either. Instead, he shot a glare at Horikita before walking out with a dark expression. Seeing this, Ike, Yamauchi, and the others quickly followed, as if afraid trouble might come their way.
A dispute that started with D-Class and C-Class, with A-Class jumping in, was now perfectly settled by Ichinose from B-Class.
The way things played out was beyond anyone's expectations.
After this incident, both Katsuragi Kohei and Ichinose Honami's names would spread throughout the school.
But in terms of attention, Ichinose clearly stood out more.
Seeing everything finally calm down, Ichinose let out a quiet sigh of relief.
She had appeared calm the whole time, but in truth, she was a little nervous.
If she had made even one mistake, the situation could've spiraled further out of control, making things worse instead of better.
Luckily, it all ended well.
Still, she hadn't needed to step in.
Logically speaking, staying out of it would've been the smarter move—less pressure, no risk of failure.
But looking at it from another angle, resolving this crisis before it escalated into physical conflict had earned her more influence. Her name would spread, and in a way, that was a kind of power.
Not that Ichinose thought that far ahead.
She simply acted on instinct, out of kindness and a sense of justice.
She walked over to Horikita and the others.
"Hello, I'm Ichinose from B-Class. I know it might not be my place to interfere in another class's matters, but I believe that since we're all students here, we should help and support each other. If you think I was meddling too much, I truly apologize."
She spoke with genuine sincerity.
Ayanokouji, Kushida, and the others remained silent.
Horikita did too.
She always kept her distance from people, cold and unapproachable, but that didn't mean she couldn't feel the honesty in Ichinose's words.
And yet, for some reason, that sincerity only made her feel an indescribable sense of helplessness.
For the first time, she started questioning her own approach.
Horikita had always been logical and detached, focusing on the issue rather than the people involved.
That kind of thinking made her seem distant, hard to connect with—just like Hikigaya.
Not far away, Hikigaya watched Horikita, lost in thought.
It reminded him of himself.
He had made similar choices before.
And the results had been just as predictable.
After Ichinose left, Kushida and Horikita seemed to have a brief conversation.
Then, Kushida lowered her head as if she had been bullied, pouted, and hurried out of the library.
Even though the whole commotion had ended, Hikigaya still kept his eyes on Horikita and Kushida.
Kamuro, watching him, felt a sudden irritation.
"Hey, have you stared enough? It's over! Are those girls really that fun to look at? You're practically drooling…"
"I'm not drooling. Also, Kamuro, why are you still here?"
"Huh? What's that supposed to mean, Hikigaya…?"
Kamuro's eyes widened, practically burning with anger.
"I mean, Katsuragi already left. Are you sure it's fine for you to stay here?"
Hikigaya quickly clarified.
Kamuro paused for a moment before realizing what he meant.
"You…"
She wanted to ask how he knew about her tracking Katsuragi.
But Hikigaya had already caught on to her too many times.
Asking now would just be embarrassing.
"Honestly… I wasn't even sure at first."
Hikigaya carefully glanced at the purple-haired girl, who now looked like she was about to murder him.
Who would've thought a little bluff would expose everything right away? Hikigaya could only keep that thought to himself.
"..."
Kamuro suddenly wanted to find a hole and crawl into it.
"After the school revealed the truth about the S-system, Katsuragi should have the upper hand in Class A, right? With that little troublemaker's personality, he wouldn't just give in, would he?"
Even though Hikigaya wasn't a Class A student, he seemed to understand their situation better than anyone.
"I didn't think much of it at first, but after Katsuragi showed up, you appeared right after. And now, you're standing in a spot where you can keep an eye on him without being noticed. That's a bit too much of a coincidence. Then you started testing me…"
He stopped there, leaving Kamuro some dignity.
After a moment of silence, Kamuro gave him a strange look.
"Hikigaya… are you some kind of creep?"
"*Cough, cough, cough!*"
Hikigaya almost choked and shot back, "You're the creep!"
Could she not phrase things so terribly? Sure, he was observant, but that didn't make him a weirdo!
"Whatever! I'm leaving now."
As soon as she finished speaking, Kamuro turned and walked away without hesitation.
"You two sure get along well~"
Hiyori, who had been silent the whole time, suddenly spoke. There was a hint of admiration in her voice, along with a barely noticeable trace of jealousy.
"I've only met Kamuro like… three times."
Hikigaya gave a helpless smile. "But Shiina, you seem to know her?"
"Yeah, I know who she is, but I doubt she knows me."
Hiyori answered honestly.
"?"
"When school started, I saw her in the library a lot. You were there too, Hikigaya-kun! Now that I think about it, every time I saw you, she was always nearby."
Hiyori frowned as she tried to remember, then gave an embarrassed smile.
"But back then, I was too shy to say hi."
"..."
"Shiina, promise me—don't ever tell Kamuro about this."
Hikigaya's face turned serious.
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