There is something wrong with Hikigaya’s classroom of the Elite, as expected

Chapter 112: Ryuen’s Conspiracy?

“Of course, I understand that this isn’t a court of law. In the end, this is just a student dispute, so there’s no need to apply the full legal process here,” Hikigaya said, letting out a sigh. “Ultimately, this is still the result of Sudo’s accumulated bad actions.”

From Hikigaya’s perspective, Sudo didn’t have to be in such a passive position. As the defendant, and given that there were no surveillance cameras at the scene, nor any third-party witnesses, the testimony of the three students from Class C alone was not enough to ‘convict’ Sudo. The injuries on the students from Class C, combined with Sudo’s usual reputation and his poor behavior in the meeting, handed all the initiative to the other side. It was a complete example of poor judgment.

No wonder -sensei had such a grim expression earlier.

However, it must be said that the scheme from Class C, while ineffective against others, seemed to be “a willing fight and a willing beating” when it came to Sudo. He had practically walked right into it.

Thus, the most significant variable in resolving this dispute depended on which side Student Council President Horikita would trust more—the testimonies or the evidence.

The fact that Horikita had given Sudo a week of leeway actually indicated that, despite the clear injuries on the students from Class C, Horikita still had doubts about their testimony. But due to Sudo’s own issues and his reckless behavior, he had completely forfeited his advantage.

In Hikigaya’s view, although there was a week’s time for Sudo to find evidence to ‘prove his innocence,’ it was extremely difficult to find such evidence. Moreover, even if such evidence were found, matters like fighting were hard to definitively judge as right or wrong, so the likely outcome would still result in punishment. The question was just how severe it would be.

“Nice thinking,” Horikita said, seemingly pleased with Hikigaya’s analysis. But then, he changed his tone. “However, Hikigaya, there’s one thing you’ve misunderstood. Our focus is not on determining who is right and who is wrong. The Student Council’s final goal is to mediate and resolve disputes between students, so… do you understand now?”

Hikigaya was stunned at first, then immediately grasped what Horikita meant. The Student Council wasn’t concerned with judging right or wrong; their goal was to resolve the issue itself.

“So, President, you also saw the underlying motives behind this dispute, which is why you gave Sudo a week of leeway?” Hikigaya asked, realization dawning on him.

In a school centered around competition like this, many things hid ulterior motives or were driven by personal interests. Clearly, Horikita believed that the dispute between Class C and Class D was not an ‘accidental incident.’ The reason for the one-week buffer was to allow the two classes to negotiate behind the scenes.

So, it was essentially an out-of-sight resolution?

But some things were better left unsaid, and Horikita didn’t directly respond to Hikigaya’s question. Instead, he said, “That said, we still need to issue some proper warnings.”

Hikigaya understood that Horikita was referring to Sudo’s ‘additional punishment,’ and this was also the second part of Hikigaya’s confusion.

The worst-case scenario for Sudo was a three-week suspension. However, the additional punishment meant that those three weeks would be extended until before the summer break. While Sudo, Ishizaki, and Komiya might not have fully grasped the difference, people like Chabashira-sensei, Sakagami-sensei, and Hikigaya immediately recognized what it meant.

Moreover, just moments earlier, Hikigaya had explained the consequences of a ‘suspension.’ Not only would he be unable to participate in club activities, but he would also be barred from taking the final exams. This meant that without the final exams, Sudo would likely face expulsion!

Horikita’s words had essentially sealed Sudo’s fate, and no one could fault his decision regarding his additional punishment. Even Chabashira-sensei had no intention of interceding on Sudo’s behalf, as she understood that this was entirely the consequence of Sudo’s own actions.

Whether it was the fight or the additional punishment, everything stemmed from Sudo’s own flaws. There was no opportunity for him to make excuses.

“Sure enough… no growth at all,” Hikigaya thought to himself. He didn’t feel pity or disappointment; he just thought that humans were creatures who repeated their mistakes over and over. Maybe the un-evolved apes could still understand that principle.

Not long after returning to the dormitory, Hikigaya’s phone suddenly received a message from someone.

【Midsummer Night’s Dream: Hurry up and open the door!】

【Energy Saver: ?】

Then, the doorbell rang. Hikigaya sighed and went to open the door, and Kushida immediately walked in, removed his shoes, and walked into Hikigaya’s room, performing all the actions smoothly, even turning back and shouting at Hikigaya, “What’s up, hurry up!”

Hey, this is my domain!

And how come you’re so familiar with this?

Hikigaya initially thought that Kushida had come to complain again, but this time he was wrong. Kushida said he had come to ‘remind’ him.

“Remind? Me?”

“Hikigaya, you’re a member of the Student Council, so you must know about that dispute where Sudo fought with students from Class C…”

It turned out that after leaving the Student Council office, Sudo immediately sought out Horikita and Ayanokouji to ‘ask for help,’ discussing how to find evidence that could ‘prove his innocence!’

And in order not to let this matter affect the basketball club’s selection for the summer tournament, the whole thing had to be handled privately. As for why he didn’t turn to Ike and Yamauchi for help, Sudo explained that those two were unreliable idiots who would inevitably leak the matter.

“But what does this have to do with me?”

“You don’t understand?”

Hikigaya was confused as to why Kushida would bring him into this. Although he was a member of the Student Council, he had no decision-making power in this dispute.

Kushida noticed that Hikigaya wasn’t lying and suddenly wore a meaningful smile. “Heh, seems like this is getting interesting.”

It was clear that Kushida was trying to ‘make a deal’ with Hikigaya.

However, Hikigaya shook his head and subtly ‘asked’ Kushida to leave.

Seeing that Hikigaya wasn’t yielding, Kushida stamped his foot in frustration. “Fine, I’ll let you off this time, but remember, you owe me one!”

Then, as if fearing Hikigaya might reject him, Kushida quickly added, “Not long ago, Sudo ran into Ishizaki and the others downstairs in the dormitory. Ishizaki and the others left behind a remark—’If you’re going to blame anyone, blame Hikigaya’—and then they left.”

Seeing that Hikigaya frowned and seemed skeptical, Kushida continued, “It’s true. So Sudo and Ayanokouji are planning to look for clues from you!”

Hikigaya narrowed his eyes. If what Kushida said was true, he had underestimated Ryuen. He originally thought this was a move Ryuen made against Sudo, but now it seemed like the true intention was something else. The real target was himself.

Was this a case of using someone else as a tool to eliminate him?

Was Ryuen trying to use the students from Class D to cause trouble for him?

And the method was very clever, neatly sidestepping the constraints of the contract.

It seemed like ever since the midterm exams, Ryuen had become a lot smarter.

Hikigaya looked up at the smiling girl across from him. “So, Kushida, what do you expect to gain from telling me this?”