The hallway in the afternoon was completely empty. Sunlight streamed through the windows, drawing long patches of light on the floor, and the footsteps of the three echoed rhythmically within it.
"So, do you need my help? Or you could just assign me something to do." Hashimoto Masayoshi once again offered his eager assistance.
"I can handle some things as well." Kito Hayato chimed in.
"Hashimoto-san, there's something I've been finding strange," Fuyuji Mikage voiced the question that had been on his mind these past few days. "Why is it that, compared to Katsuragi, you lean more towards my side, even though I've made it clear time and again that I don't want to lead the class?"
"Well, that's obviously because I want to graduate from Class A."
"Can't Katsuragi achieve that too?"
"But I think my chances are a bit higher if I choose you, Fuyuji-san."
"Just for a slightly higher chance of graduating from Class A, you switched over to me without any hesitation?"
"Haha, well, it's because I genuinely think that if you led Class A, our chances of graduating from Class A would be greater."
"You mean just your chances of graduating from Class A would be greater, right?"
"...Is there any difference?"
"If you can toss Katsuragi aside just to increase your odds of graduating from Class A by a little, it wouldn't be surprising at all if you betrayed us in the future, would it?"
Only the somewhat heavy footsteps of the three echoed in the empty hallway.
Beside him, Kito Hayato's expression changed instantly, and the look he directed at Hashimoto Masayoshi was no longer as friendly as before.
Hashimoto Masayoshi gave a strained laugh.
"Hey, hey, Fuyuji-san, isn't that a bit too harsh? I mean, I have worked hard for Class A, after all."
"Is that so?" Fuyuji Mikage remained unmoved.
"No matter what, I wouldn't betray the class, would I? What benefit would there be in doing that?"
"As for benefits, didn't I already explain that just now?"
The hallway fell into a long silence once more. Hashimoto Masayoshi let out a heavy sigh.
"As expected of Fuyuji-san. Can't hide anything from you."
"...Perhaps that possibility does exist. When the time comes, I might indeed look for a way out for myself. After all, graduating with the status of Class A is my ultimate goal in coming to this school."
Hashimoto Masayoshi's words about "looking for a way out" were like a stone thrown into a calm lake; the ripples it caused spread silently through the empty corridor.
"You—"
Kito Hayato was about to snap at Hashimoto Masayoshi, but Fuyuji Mikage pressed down on his hand. "Kito-san, stay calm. This is normal, isn't it? People always have to find an escape route for themselves. I don't like this method, but at most, he's just lacking in morals. Of course, he might end up pleasing neither side in the future. When battle breaks out, the first to be cut down are the fence-sitters."
"Hey, hey, do you have to trash-talk me that much?"
"But, Hashimoto-san, was it really wise to reveal your personal principles to me so easily? You don't seem like the type to lay all your cards on the table right from the start."
"I had no choice," Hashimoto Masayoshi said helplessly. "You're different from Katsuragi. Your guard is way too high. Without offering a pledge of allegiance, I couldn't get close at all."
"Over these past few days, I've been gradually checking out other capable students in the school. They all performed quite well, but I just felt they couldn't be compared to you."
"And there it is, the fence-sitter's signature skill—bootlicking!" Fuyuji Mikage said abruptly.
"Tch... I'm finding your personality to be a bit nasty, you know." Hashimoto Masayoshi's affected speech pattern slipped out.
Even Kito Hayato, who had remained silent all along, felt the corner of his mouth twitch slightly upward.
"What about you, Kito-san?" Fuyuji Mikage turned his head to look at Kito Hayato.
"I just think... you are the best choice." Kito Hayato's voice was hoarse, his speech a bit slow. "Compared to Katsuragi, I lean more towards you."
"Is that so..."
Fuyuji Mikage lowered his eyes and pondered for a moment.
"Alright then."
Fuyuji Mikage stopped walking and leaned against the hallway wall nearby. Hashimoto Masayoshi and Kito Hayato also stopped and watched him.
He took out his phone and smoothly slid his finger across it. In no time, Hashimoto Masayoshi's phone vibrated.
Hashimoto Masayoshi opened his phone with confusion and tapped play. His eyes widened. "This is... Pfft! Hahaha!"
"Is this that... haha... Ryuen? Hahaha!"
The muscles on his face stiffened from bewilderment at first, then, like a dam bursting, wild laughter erupted. He bent over, one hand clutching his stomach, the other slapping his knee, utterly breathless.
"Heh heh heh..." Kito Hayato, who had snatched the phone from Hashimoto Masayoshi's hand, also couldn't help but laugh out loud. His deep voice carried a suppressed atmosphere, and for some reason, the midday hallway gained a few degrees of chill.
After the two had calmed their laughter, Fuyuji Mikage spoke. "Hashimoto-san, here's your pledge of allegiance. Spread this around. The wider it circulates, the better. Make sure it can't be traced back to you. In return for this, feel free to play both sides as you wish. As long as the classmates don't find out, you're even free to betray me. But you'll only get one chance."
Once that video was released, Ryuen Kakeru would likely suffer complete social death. Entrusting this to Hashimoto Masayoshi meant that, by doing this, he would thoroughly make an enemy out of Ryuen Kakeru. If he refused or messed it up, it was either an attitude problem or an ability problem. Either way, his value in Fuyuji Mikage's eyes would plummet significantly.
Hashimoto Masayoshi stifled his laughter and retied his ponytail, which had become a bit disheveled from his earlier hysterics. "Understood."
"I'll help too. And also," Kito Hayato took a step forward, his eyes, like those of a vicious wolf, fixed on Hashimoto Masayoshi, "I will take responsibility for keeping a close watch on you."
"Yeah, yeah!" Hashimoto Masayoshi raised both hands in a gesture of surrender. "I did say that was only the most extreme scenario. At least for now, I can't think of any reason to betray."
"Fuyuji-san really got his hands on something lethal this time. With this, Ryuen Kakeru won't be able to unify Class C anytime soon." Looking at that video segment on the phone, Hashimoto Masayoshi couldn't help but laugh again.
"I'll leave it to you two."
Having said everything he needed to in one go, Fuyuji Mikage closed his eyes and leaned against the wall, unwilling to utter another word.
Using both Probe and Psychokinesis simultaneously was still too much. In just a short dozen or so seconds, Fuyuji Mikage's mental energy had been completely drained.
If it were just Probe alone, merely extending his spirit outward, he could now maintain it for over ten minutes as long as the range wasn't too large. But the consumption from psychokinesis was simply enormous—creating force from nothing.
However, this also indirectly proved that Fuyuji Mikage's constant training had been effective. At the very beginning, he could barely make a roadside flower petal move a little.
"Hey, hey, Fuyuji-san, are you really alright? I don't want the leader to kick the bucket right after I've just joined his camp." Seeing Fuyuji Mikage's face growing paler, his body weight gradually pressing more onto the two of them, Hashimoto Masayoshi said in alarm.
"Let's take him to the infirmary first."
Kito Hayato made a swift decision. He swung Fuyuji Mikage over his shoulder and started running with large strides down the hallway.
"Isn't this making a mountain out of a molehill? I'm just a bit exhausted."
Feeling himself lifted into the air, bobbing up and down continuously, Fuyuji Mikage opened his eyes helplessly.
Unfortunately, the two didn't listen to his protests at all, and he had no extra strength to struggle free. He could only watch helplessly as they carried him towards the infirmary.
In a matter of moments, the distance from the classroom to the infirmary had been covered by the two.
"Teacher! His complexion looks abnormal!" The voice arrived before the person did. Kito Hayato's deep voice reached into the infirmary.
The two people inside the infirmary turned their heads upon hearing the sound, and then saw a man with a demonic visage rushing towards them, carrying a pale-faced student over his shoulder like a corpse.
The two women's brains went into a crash state. Before they could even process the situation, the man had already stormed into the infirmary and laid the "corpse" down on a sickbed.
The "corpse" placed on the bed suddenly sat up in shock. Clutching his stomach, he coughed twice and murmured, "Kito... I didn't die from exhaustion, but I'm about to die from your rock-hard elbow..."
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