4. Hikigaya Discovers the Truth About Hyakkaou Academy
"Quiet down, we have a new student today."
A pretty, ordinary-looking female teacher walked up to the podium and shook the lesson plan in her hand. The noisy classroom instantly quieted down, and everyone's gaze naturally focused on Hikigaya Hachiman, who was standing beside the teacher.
First day at a new school, and he already wanted to run away.
Even though he had received professional training, Hikigaya couldn't help but feel nervous.
His mouth was full of self-introductions, but his mind was full of prime numbers.
He recited the self-introduction he'd prepared long ago, aiming to be as average and unremarkable as possible. Fortunately, the homeroom teacher didn't make things difficult for him and casually pointed to a seat by the window in the corner.
"You can sit over there."
"Suzui Ryota, if I remember correctly, you're on the student committee, right? Show the new student around the school after class."
"Yes."
Suzui Ryota didn't look particularly enthusiastic... Hikigaya instinctively zeroed in on this unremarkable guy with a dog tag around his neck, and noticed that Suzui was casting a somewhat fearful and evasive glance at a blonde twin-tailed girl next to him.
Oh? That's the main character?
Hikigaya's interest was piqued, and he followed Suzui's gaze to the girl with the golden twin-tails—only to lock eyes with her striking brown eyes that were boldly sizing him up.
Her pleated skirt, full of gyaru style, revealed snow-white thighs up to the base, suggesting that just a little more lift would expose the "absolute territory." Her face wore light makeup, and the black ribbons tied around her twin ponytails sparked a sort of desire to tug at them. Each fingernail was coated in light pink polish, the same shade as her lip gloss. Was this... a contrast?
From her, Hikigaya Hachiman vaguely saw the shadow of his middle school classmate, Yuigahama Yui. But unlike her, Yuigahama only pretended to be a gyaru—deep down, she was as pure as a white lotus. The girl in front of him though... she was probably the real deal: a delinquent and a gyaru.
The way she looked at him—as if eyeing prey, full of aggression—made Hikigaya extremely uncomfortable.
Especially when she even licked the corner of her mouth, like she had him all figured out.
'Not sure what's going on, but it looks like I've been targeted by a gyaru.'
'Seriously, to run into this kind of trouble on my first day at school.'
With his usual dead-fish eyes and an expressionless face, Hikigaya quietly made his way to the so-called throne of the King and sat down.
Then class began. The classroom atmosphere was good, and the teacher was competent—truly living up to the reputation of Japan's top private high school. In terms of academic quality, Hikigaya Hachiman approved. However, the gyaru from earlier kept resting her chin on her hand and frequently glancing in his direction.
As soon as the bell rang to signal the end of class—
The teacher immediately stopped mid-sentence without dragging things out at all, packed up the lesson plan, turned around, and left the room.
With that, Hikigaya felt a sense of tension rise in his chest.
In the short ten-minute break, there was much to be done—collect information, assess individuals, analyze threats, establish a small group...
On the road to becoming a winner in life, he had to go all out.
"Hikigaya-kun, my name is Saotome Mary~ I'm also a special admit just like you~"
The blonde twin-tailed gyaru from earlier skipped her way over to Hikigaya Hachiman, hands behind her back. She leaned forward as if hoping to catch a flustered expression on his face.
'Getting close to me right off the bat? What's she planning?' Hikigaya narrowed his eyes and stayed unmoved. "Oh. Hello."
The girl seated in front of Hikigaya shot a fearful glance at Saotome and obediently lowered her head, quietly standing and leaving her seat.
With that, Saotome Mary shamelessly sat down. Her legs straddled the chair back, her left hand rested on Hikigaya's desk, and her right elbow propped on her left forearm, supporting her tilted chin.
'You might as well write delinquent right on your forehead.'
Still unmoved, Hikigaya began running through possible strategies the girl might try next.
'Is she going to extort me for protection money? Or maybe she's taken a liking to me and wants to make me her boyfriend? No, no… with this face of mine, that's definitely a stretch. Not enough info yet. I should observe a while longer.'
"Hey, hey, Hikigaya-kun, ever since you entered the classroom, your eyes have been darting all over the place. What were you looking for?"
"I just wanted to get to know all my classmates quickly and blend into the class." Hikigaya gave a textbook answer.
Saotome Mary neither denied nor mocked him. Her fingers tapped rhythmically on the desk.
"You really are interesting, Hikigaya-kun." Saotome licked her lips, her brown eyes filled with an indescribable twisted desire.
She waved her hand, calling over Suzui Ryota—the boy the teacher had assigned as Hikigaya's guide earlier.
With just one look from her, thud—Suzui Ryota dropped to his knees in front of her, turning his not-so-broad back to face her.
And without hesitation, Saotome Mary lifted her leg and placed it on his back—treating him literally like a stool.
This time, she finally saw something in Hikigaya's eyes—surprise.
"Saotome-san, are you in the Human Observation Club, or maybe the S&M Club or something?" he asked.
"Huh? The hell is that?" she replied, casually stretching and revealing her slender figure in full. She nudged Suzui Ryota under her foot. "Hey, dumb dog, explain the situation."
Suzui bowed his head deeply, palms pressed to the floor, not daring to resist. In a dejected tone, he said, "I lost to Lady Saotome and was unable to pay back my debt… now I'm her dumb dog."
'...Huh?'
Hikigaya was stunned. Of all the possibilities he considered, this was not one of them. He blurted out, "Lost what?"
Saotome smiled, pinched Hikigaya's chin with her manicured fingers, and turned his face toward her. In a teasing tone, she said, "Why, gambling, of course~"
Silence fell.
But just as quickly, Saotome seemed to switch personalities. She clasped her hands together in front of her chest and looked at Hikigaya with pleading eyes.
"So, Hikigaya-kun, will you play a game with me? If you win, you can do this kind of thing to me too~"
As she spoke, she stepped on Suzui Ryota again.
"…"
Hikigaya took a deep breath. His lazy gaze gradually sharpened: "Gambling? Boring."
Only then did he truly understand the source of the discomfort he'd been feeling about Hyakkaou Academy.
Yukinoshita Haruno's subtle smirk, Jabami Yumeko's cash-stuffed purse, the sealed classroom, the humiliating dog tags... All these clues began to connect, forming a complete picture that now unfolded before Hikigaya Hachiman.
The corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl into a smirk.
'As expected, Yukinoshita Haruno really understands me. Judging by this, the school system is practically tailor-made for me.'
He would rise to the top of Hyakkaou Academy with his own will—but not by accepting Saotome's challenge so easily right now.
"Hah?"
Saotome Mary hadn't expected to be rejected so cleanly. Her refined expression twisted at once.
That was the rage of someone denied what they desired.