As Manabu and Saiki spoke, Nagumo Miyabi arrived "right on cue."
"As expected of senior Horikita! You beat me again!"
Nagumo joined them, smiling.
"I told you, there's no competition between us. It's just a regular PE class exercise. First or second place doesn't matter."
Manabu replied calmly.
"Oh?"
Nagumo's smile didn't falter. He knew Manabu had given it his all in the first hundred meters.
What caught his attention, though, were the two first-year students.
Saiki and Ayanokōji had sprinted at an astonishing speed from the start, but Nagumo was surprised that neither he nor Manabu could catch up.
Despite Manabu's excellent disguise, Nagumo sensed his interest in Saiki.
*That first-year's speed is impressive, but only in the first half. Everything else is unremarkable. Why does Manabu seem so interested? Is there really no talented freshman in the first year?*
Nagumo thought, then turned to Saiki.
"I must say, you first-years are incredibly capable! To run that fast!"
Kiriyama Ikuto stood on the other side, leaning against the wall and observing Saiki and the others from a distance.
"We only ran fast at the start. Our stamina dropped later."
Saiki repeated his earlier statement.
"Still, finishing the race is impressive. Keep up the good work!"
Nagumo said warmly, waved, and left. Manabu headed in the opposite direction.
"Saiki, you were holding back, weren't you?"
Once everyone was gone, Ayanokōji turned and asked.
*You're one to talk.*
Saiki thought but said,
"Ayanokōji, you were holding back too. You sped up at the end."
"I wanted to see if you were holding back. Turns out you could speed up too."
Ayanokōji replied slowly.
"I just had enough energy left to push at the end."
"Same here, then."
"Is that so?"
In a way, they were similar. Their conversation was pointless.
...
After PE, they had a meditation class, which felt excruciating after the grueling run.
*So painful... I'm going to collapse...*
*Just end already... I can't take it...*
*Blame those guys at the start... They set the pace too fast...*
*Oops...*
Saiki closed his eyes, pretending not to hear the complaints.
Finally, after what felt like hours, the meditation ended. Yukimura Teruhiko nearly collapsed, needing help to stand before heading to the cafeteria.
In the cafeteria, Saiki met up with Karuizawa Kei and Sakura Airi, sharing their day's events—though Saiki omitted the PE details.
"Hey, Saiki! What a coincidence!"
As they ate, a cheerful female voice called out—Ichinose Honami.
"Long time no see, Ichinose."
Saiki turned and replied.
Ichinose's greeting drew attention to Saiki. Her popularity wasn't limited to first-years; her bright personality and cute appearance made her popular across grades.
Anyone she called out by name naturally drew attention.
"I wanted to hang out during winter break, but you said you were busy!"
Ichinose sat next to Saiki.
"Yeah, I was busy..."
Saiki replied.
*Actually, I was mostly in my room reading manga or watching shows. Going out wasn't really my thing.*
"Were you that busy during break, Saiki?"
Ichinose's gaze swept over Karuizawa and Sakura, then landed on Saiki's towering food pile.
"Is Saiki always such a big eater?"
"I... had a tiring PE class today, so I'm eating more."
Saiki improvised.
"I see. You must be exhausted."
Ichinose sighed.
"Things aren't great on our end either... Saiki, how's your group doing?"
"It's okay... We're getting along... I guess."
Saiki paused before answering.
*If not for what happened earlier... Ishizaki might've argued with someone. Though that might've raised Hashimoto's suspicions. Our group hasn't had any disputes...*
Saiki thought, feeling no joy.
"That's good. We've had issues..."
Ichinose slumped on the table, looking exhausted.
"I wanted to avoid conflicts, but they still happened... The teacher didn't schedule classes on the first day, probably expecting this..."
"That's tough."
"Maybe it was tough before forming the current group. Girls can be so harsh. Some openly say they dislike others. Guys tend to be more vague about personal feelings."
Saiki recalled Ryūen Kakeru, who was openly disliked by others.
His telepathy had picked up on Ryūen's group dynamics—nothing extreme, but Saiki didn't mention it.
"Saiki, what would you do if your group had conflicts?"
Ichinose turned slightly.
*I'd probably ignore it unless it involved me or got too messy. Then I'd use my powers to resolve it.*
Saiki thought but said,
"I'd try to mediate."
"In the end, that's all we can do, huh?"
Ichinose sighed again, looking dejected—unlike her usual self.
Her group must be in trouble for her to act this way.
Ichinose was one of the few normal people Saiki knew at school.
Meanwhile, Saiki felt more eyes on Ichinose.
*She's a first-year, right? So cute!*
*Who's that guy next to her? And those girls with him are cute too!*
*I'm so jealous.*
Such thoughts were common, which was why Saiki preferred eating alone.
Now, he'd be under the whole school's gaze.
But then, Saiki's expression turned serious, his brow furrowing slightly.
He sensed a familiar yet unsettling thought.
*Ichinose Honami... If she were mine, it'd be amazing...*
Saiki narrowed his eyes, pinpointing the source.
Nagumo Miyabi.
Despite the crowd, they weren't far apart, and Saiki could hear Nagumo's thoughts.
He knew Nagumo wasn't just fantasizing.
"What's wrong, Saiki? You look upset."
Sakura Airi noticed Saiki's subtle change.
"Nothing."
Saiki replied.
...
After lunch, Saiki headed back to his room.
Meanwhile, Ayanokōji heard a commotion in the hallway—a dispute, with people gathered around.
*What's going on now? Hopefully, nothing serious.*
Though Saiki thought this, he moved closer, using his X-ray vision to observe.
"Sorry, are you okay?"
Yamauchi Haruki apologized, reaching out to a girl on the ground.
Saiki noticed it was Sakayanagi Arisu from Class A, who didn't take Haruki's hand, trying to stand on her own.
She struggled, using her fallen cane to lean against the wall and slowly rise.
The fall and recovery took less than a minute, but under everyone's gaze, it felt much longer for Arisu.
---
Yamauchi Haruki awkwardly withdrew his hand and said, "Well, uh, I'll be going now!"
*'Wait, just because they said they didn't mind, does that mean you can just leave like this?'* Kusuo thought.
"Yeah, don't worry about it," Sakayanagi Arisu replied with a friendly smile, shifting her gaze away from Haruki.
The people around them began to disperse; it wasn't a big deal.
"Aww, Arisu is so cute, but she's really clumsy, huh?" Haruki commented without considering his own fault, perfectly fitting his character.
He left without giving the incident with Arisu another thought.
*'Arisu is so adorable~ Oh, I should've paid more attention earlier. A collision between a boy and a girl leading to love at first sight—isn't that a classic anime or drama scene?'*
*'Seriously? Even now, you're stuck in your delusions? You're hopeless.'* Kusuo sighed inwardly, preparing to leave.
But just then, Kusuo heard Arisu's clear inner thoughts.
*'Yamauchi Haruki, a student from Class B, rudely bumped into me and said something so flippant. He should be expelled.'*
*'Yare yare, Arisu is trouble, and she seems to know quite a bit about Ayanokōji too—oh, right, her father is Chairman Sakayanagi.'*
*'After this special exam, it's time to target Class C. Ryūen has already been defeated by someone, and Class D isn't even worth the effort. Next, it's Class C's turn to be crushed.'*
*'Ichinose is Class C's leader. Let's crush her without mercy. I wonder how it'll feel when she's abandoned and doubted by everyone.'*
*'But I'm not targeting Ichinose specifically. This will make Ayanokōji focus on me, and maybe the one pulling the strings in Class B will reveal themselves. Whether that person is Ayanokōji or not, we'll find out soon. I'm really looking forward to what happens when we return to school.'*
Arisu smiled, but her eyes held no warmth.
Kusuo glanced at her before turning away and heading back to his dorm.
*'Looks like there'll be plenty of trouble after this exam.'*
*'Oh well, let's just get through this exam first.'*
---