The four of us returned to E Class, where things had finally calmed down. The crowd had been dispersed and the only people left in the room were Yukina and Ayano, who were standing at the doorway.

"Yuu! You're back!"

Yukina was initially cheerful when she saw us return, but as we drew closer, her face grimaced.

"It didn't go well, I presume...?"

Taiga shook her head no. Sakigamiya crossed her arms and sighed.

"Jeez, I wonder what gave that away."

"Alice-chan... your face! What happened?!"

Yukina gasped in shock at Sakigamiya's bloodied cheek.

"That idiot Machida slapped me, that's what! I can't believe he had the audacity to hit me!"

"Not only did he hit Alice-chan, but he also hit Nora-chan too." Taiga said.

"Then that disgusting pervert Ritaka grabbed me and threatened to grope me! I hate him so much...!"

Sakigamiya continued to vent her frustrations to Yukina, with Taiga adding context where necessary. Meanwhile, me and Mikitaka approached Ayano, who acknowledged us with a nod.

"Where did everyone go?" I asked.

"The crowd got dispersed when I brought Chabashira-sensei here to sort out the situation."

That's probably how Mikitaka got her attention. She was already close by when he called her name out into the corridor.

"She said that we'd have to temporarily move to a classroom in the special wing and that she'd handle following up on this later. However, for this homeroom session, all the 1st Years are going to the hall for an assembly. You can head there now if you want."

"Do any of you know where Isogai-san is? I need to talk to him."

Turning to us, Sakigamiya rudely cut in in the middle of Ayano's explanation.

"I don't know where Matsushita-san is, sorry."

"If you don't know, then don't answer. What are you even doing here still? I can handle things from here."

"Chabashira-sensei asked me and Kazuraba-san to stay here and explain to anyone coming to class the situation. That's all."

"Right, well, you can go now."

Ayano raised an eyebrow.

"But you don't know what she asked us to tell everyone?"

"Yukina-san can fill me in on the details later. You can... I don't know, go and run along with Mikitaka-san and Takanori-san now, okay?"

"Yeah, let's go to the hall, Ayano-san, Takanori-san."

Mikitaka, recognising the rising tension between Sakigamiya and Ayano, tried to diffuse the situation by taking Ayano out of the heat.

"Sure thing."

I also wanted to avoid a conflict, so I agreed with Mikitaka to force Ayano to come with us.

"Kazuraba-san, you make sure to properly tell Sakigamiya-san everything."

"Don't talk down to either of us like that, please? I'm sure she will."

I chalked Sakigamiya's current rudeness to her being upset from what happened in B Class, but I wasn't sure why she was so passive aggressive towards Ayano outside of him not participating in class much.

"Don't worry about it Ayano-san. Thanks for your help!"

"You're welcome."

Ayano smiled at Yukina. I think this was the first time I've seen him express himself.

Me, Mikitaka, and Ayano went to the hall. As we did, Mikitaka made small talk with Ayano, while I listened in from the back.

"Jeez, what did you do to Sakigamiya-san? She really doesn't like you."

"I'm not sure. She's probably just being moody."

"Doesn't it annoy you, though?"

"Not really. If I let childish comments like hers get to me, then there's no way I'd ever be able to protect anyone."

"Won't lie, that's kind of weird to hear from you. You usually keep to yourself in class."

"There are people I want to protect."

"Such as?"

"If I told you, that wouldn't be protecting them or their identity."

If I had to guess who it was, I'd say Kita.

"Ya ha ha! You're just like a knight in shining armour."

"You're not the first person to compare me to that."

"For sure, you even look like one too."

Indeed, Ayano's good looks landed him as the second most attractive male in our class after Matsushita, according to a list the girls made together.

As we made our way to the hall, Mikitaka bumped into someone by accident, knocking out the earphones in their ears.

It was Kouji, from our class. He was by himself, walking in the opposite direction to us.

"Sorry man."

Mikitaka swiftly apologised for what happened, but Kouji ignored him in favour of picking up his dangling earphones before making our way past us.

"Kouji-san."

Ayano called out to him as Kouji walked away.

"Hm?"

"Don't bother going to E Class. The room's been trashed by B Class students. We have an assembly in the hall instead."

Under the assumption Kouji was heading to class, due to the direction he was walking in, Ayano tried to save him the effort of walking to class unnecessarily.

"I know, I'm skipping."

However, Kouji's can't be bothered attitude revealed the actual reason why he was walking in the opposite direction to us. He was going to bunk assembly.

Though, this strange encounter was one of the rare times I heard Kouji speak. His dry and monotone voice made him sound like he had given up on life.

"I wouldn't skip assembly if I were you. This is the first time the school is holding an assembly for us in the hall. It sounds like something important is about to happen."

Ayano raised a valid point. The last time the school gathered all the 1st Years in one spot was back in April, during the entrance ceremony. They wouldn't go through the effort of putting together an assembly unless a huge announcement of some sort was going to occur.

"So?"

"If you skip this assembly, it may negatively affect E Class's bottom line next month."

I couldn't help but feel some hypocrisy coming from Ayano's statement. He was talking about absences making us lose class points, yet he was friends with the person who's absent the most, Kita.

"Oh..."

Even though Ayano brought up the threat of the system docking us class points for truancy, Kouji didn't care at all. He merely shrugged before walking away.

Ayano looked unsatisfied with the outcome, but he shook it off and continued walking to the hall with me and Mikitaka.

"What's up with that guy?"

Mikitaka asked, unimpressed by Kouji's flagrant attitude.

"Kouji-san's always been like this. It's like he's trying to get expelled on purpose."

Ayano shared a common perception of Kouji among our class. Lots of people were fed up with him because he never contributed to class and his lazy attitude was a detriment to us.

"If he wanted to leave the school, he could drop out voluntarily."

"He could, but the fact he hasn't means he sees worth in staying here, for whatever reason. I won't judge."

Even though Ayano spoke a bit harshly about Kouji, he seemed sympathetic to his situation somehow. It made me wonder if Kita's personality was similar to Kouji's, since Ayano's only friend at school was her.

We arrived at the hall and were greeted by Mikazuchi-sensei, who was standing at the entrance ushering in students.

Last week, Mikazuchi-sensei defeated me with a deck I had never seen before: Brandt Gate. Not only that, he also used a never before seen trigger on me as well: the Over Trigger.

The experience was eye opening, but the end of our meeting made me dread how he was going to greet me this morning.

"Welcome, Ayano-san, Takenaka-san, and Takanori-san! E Class is sitting at the back there."

Just as I tried to sneak past him, Mikazuchi-sensei pulled me to the side while letting Ayano and Mikitaka through.

"So, how's finding a girlfriend coming along?"

And this was the question I was hoping he wouldn't ask. Before I left, Mikazuchi-sensei left me with a ridiculous side task: to get a girlfriend. I ignored him, thinking it was a bad joke of his, but he was completely serious about it.

"I thought you told me to focus on making Kaido-senpai my rival."

"I did, but I also told you to get a girlfriend. Seeing you came to assembly with two guys... it doesn't inspire confidence."

"Spare me. I didn't know you were serious about it. Why even make it a side task? I don't get it."

"Because you need some romance in your life, Takanori-san."

"No I don't."

"Yes, you do! Let's see here... ah, look, in the distance!"

Mikazuchi-sensei pointed at a group of girls from A Class that was headed our way.

"Your new task is to talk to that group of girls and enter the hall with them. Go!"

"Hang on, I—"

Before I could reject his idea, Mikazuchi-sensei pushed me in the back and sent me stumbling in front of the group of A Class girls made up of Ishima Tamaki, Yamamoto Yumi, and Megami Mizuki.

Unfortunately, from these three, I had only ever met Megami before, but my interaction with her was unpleasant, since she spent the entire time roasting me.

"Uh..."

I stared at the three of them like a deer in headlights.

"Is everything okay, Takanori-san?"

The first to approach me was Ishima, albeit with caution.

"He looks like a zombie." Megami said.

"Yeah, it's kind of scaring me..." Yamamoto said.

I scratched my cheek, trying to brighten up my appearance slightly. I couldn't help but seem dreadful, since I was thrown into this situation headfirst.

"Yeah... yeah, everything's fine... more or less..."

I started muttering through my words as the presence of three beautiful A Class girls started to pressure me. The gap in our status was so large, I felt like a cockroach beneath their feet.

"That's good!"

Ishima, who sympathised with us E Class students due to her adopted brother Akihiro being one formerly, gave me a light pat on the back.

"Excuse us, we'd like to go to the hall."

Megami bluntly told me to get out of the way since I was blocking their path.

"Oh... right... uh..."

I shuffled to the side to give the girls some space to pass me.

"Thank you."

Ishima thanked me as she went by, while Megami ignored me entirely. Yamamoto looked at me with a weird face as she passed me.

"He was so weird... Tamaki-chan, how did you deal with that?"

Thinking she was earshot out of me, Yamamoto casually whispered that to Ishima and Megami. Unfortunately, I had heard what she said.

"What do you mean, deal with that?"

I think Mikazuchi-sensei would be satisfied if I went to the hall with them, so if I just stick close to them, it would look like we were in a group together.

"You know... talking to him. He was giving us a weird look..."

"He was probably perving on us." Megami whispered back.

"Ahh, that's so creepy! He's so creepy!"

I began to quietly follow the three girls from behind.

"Yumi-chan, you're better than this."

Ishima huffed, gently nudging her.

"I know, but I can't help it... it's not my fault those Drachma dropouts act so weird."

"Come to think of it, didn't your brother meet him before?"

Megami was referring to Yamamoto Yami, Yamamoto's twin brother. We had met on a few occasions, but never really talked to each other that much.

"I think he did, back when Yami saved Hoshimi-chan from that weirdo in 3-E."

"I'm starting to think all the weirdos end up in E Class."

Yamamoto and Ishima laughed slightly at Megami's deadpan humour.

"They're not all that bad. Do you think Aki is a weirdo, Mizuki-chan?"

"He plays Nubatama, so yes."

"Harsh... hmm, how about Matsushita-kun then?"

"I pity him, only because he's the class representative. I can't imagine being bound to such a dysfunctional class for three years."

"Yeah... it's unfortunate, but I have to give him props for taking on such an undesirable role."

"Either he has confidence that he can somehow raise the class up, or he's an idiot."

"I don't think he's an idiot. He's much smarter than the rest of them, don't you think?"

"From what I remember, the smartest boy in that class is Nora-san, followed by Ayano-san. Matsushita-san is just underneath the two of them, but even Sakigamiya-san has better grades than him."

Megami knew the academic situation in E Class very well. While Nora being the smartest was obvious, Ayano had surprised us all with his academics due to his outstanding science grades.

"It's such a shame Matsushita-san's in Drachma Red..." Yamamoto sighed.

"Why's that?" Ishima asked.

"He's so cool looking! Such good looks wasted on such a scummy class. Never in a million years am I going out with a Drachma dropout."

Yamamoto's prejudice against us was surprisingly strong.

"What, do you have a crush on him?" Megami asked.

"Of course not. Although, I might've fell for him a little if he wasn't in E Class."

"So, you do have a crush on him."

"You can admire a person's beauty without having a crush on them."

"I don't think you want to admire a Drachma dropout."

"Very true..."

Ishima laughed awkwardly as Megami deflated Yamamoto's energy instantly.

"If you do want to go out with him, there's no harm in asking him out, is there?" Ishima asked.

"Tamaki-chan, you're missing the point. I'm a Stark White student, he's not. If people saw us going out together, I'd be done for!"

Yamamoto was right. If she went out with a Drachma Red student, like Matsushita, she'd probably get harassed and bullied for it.

"Jeez, you shouldn't let something silly like that stop you."

"Would you go out with a Drachma dropout?"

"If I was in love with one, yes."

"Ah, I wish I could be like you, Tamaki-chan... you don't care whatsoever about things like that."

"You say that like it's a bad thing..."

"It's not! But maybe you should care just a little... you know?"

Yamamoto did have a point. While Ishima was a kind person who didn't seem to care about the hierarchy, she could put herself at serious risk by inadvertently going against it due to her open mindedness.

"I suppose... but at the same time, if I did care, then I'd just be perpetuating the system like everyone else. Did you already forget what Ryouta-kun told us?"

"Umm... what did he say?"

"You're such an airhead, Yumi-san." Megami said.

"He said that he'd rather us treat E Class students the same as we'd treat A Class. And I agree with him."

"It's a nice sentiment, but that's being too ideal. Whether we like it or not, someone's always going to be at the bottom."

"We don't have to make the person at the bottom's life miserable though."

"I'm not saying we should. I'm just saying that person exists, so treating everyone as equals is nearly impossible."

"And that's excuse enough to treat all of them like crap?"

For a moment, I heard anger in Ishima's voice. I guess she was getting frustrated at Yamamoto's argument.

"Okay you two, let's end it there."

Megami, recognising the rising tension between her two friends, cut in before it could become worse.

"Sorry, Yumi-chan... I lost my cool for a moment there."

Immediately, Ishima apologised. Yamamoto shook her head and hugged her.

"Noooo! Don't be, I know how strongly you feel about this kind of stuff. I'm also sorry for saying those things too."

"Yumi-chan..."

Ishima hugged Yamamoto tightly back. So this is female friendship, huh? It was a lot more wholesome than male friendship, that's for sure.

Just as they were about to enter the hall, Megami abruptly stopped.

"Tamaki-san, Yumi-san, you two go ahead. I need to grab something from the class real quick."

"You forgot something?" Ishima asked.

"My phone."

Megami sighed. Yamamoto laughed slightly.

"Want us to come with you?"

"Nah. I'll only be two minutes."

"We'll save a seat for you, then!"

Once Ishima and Yamamoto were both inside the hall, Megami turned around and suddenly grabbed me by the wrist. Mikazuchi-sensei, who was standing by the entrance when this happened, perked his head up with excitement.

"So, Takanori-san."

Megami apprehended me, cornering me into the wall.

"...y-yes?"

I was terrified as this girl had somehow trapped me without me realising it.

"You have five seconds to explain yourself."

"Uh..."

I tried to come up with an excuse for my actions or a way to delay Megami's wrath, but I was unable to think of anything.

"Your five seconds are up. Pick one, A or B."

"Uh... A?"

"Your balls are saved for today."

So that's what the B stood for... wait, was she going to kick me in the nuts?

"May I ask... what is A?"

"Watch."

Megami turned to Mikazuchi-sensei.

"Mikazuchi-sensei! Takanori-san was stalking me, Tamaki-san, and Yumi-san! He was staring at us intensely with a weird gaze!"

Hang on, hang on, what the hell was this girl doing?!

Mikazuchi-sensei tried to hold in his laughter as he approached the two of us.

"Takanori-san... ha ha..."

A small laugh escaped his lips as Megami handed me over to Mikazuchi-sensei.

"Wait, Megami-san, this is a misunderstanding..."

"Sensei, I think he's trying to get away with molesting me with his eyes."

"I didn't do that... sensei, please hear me out."

Mikazuchi-sensei, who was desperately trying to contain his laughter, nodded at me.

"Go on... ha ha... explain... ha ha..."

I'm so getting revenge on him later in class.

"I was just heading to the hall to attend assembly, like those three... I never had any other intentions besides that, I swear."

"Sounds like a convenient excuse to pervert on us. Mikazuchi-sensei, you're a sex ed teacher right? Teach Takanori-san how to keep it in his pants so he'll never do the same thing again."

At this point, Mikazuchi-sensei was about to lose it.

"Yep... ha ha... will do."

Megami stuck her tongue out at me before entering the hall. This cheeky girl...

Once she was gone, Mikazuchi-sensei didn't hold back any longer and burst out into laughter.

"Ha ha ha ha ha! Oh my god! Ha ha ha ha ha! You're an idiot! Ha ha ha ha ha! A complete and utter idiot! What was that?! Ha ha ha ha ha! I said to talk to them, not stalk them! They're two different verbs, you know! Ha ha ha ha ha!"

"Y-you threw me in the deep end without any preparation... besides, they were from A Class, I didn't stand a chance."

"You say that, but a girl touched your wrist and pinned you against the wall. I'd say that's progress!"

"No it isn't, that's just embarrassing..."

"Just accept your submissive tendencies, Young Takanori-san. If you do that, getting pinned against the wall becomes hot, not embarrassing."

The more I hear Mikazuchi-sensei say ridiculous things, the more I regret keeping him as my mentor.

"Don't ever call me that again. I'm going into the hall."

"Young Takanori-san!"

I sighed quietly to myself. Upon entering, I had to make my way to the back of the hall where E Class was located. However, this meant walking past the three A Class girls I tried to talk to earlier.

As I tried to sneak past Ishima, Yamamoto, and Megami, the three of them were whispering to each other while giving disgusted looks at me.

"Okay Yumi-chan, maybe you are right... there are some weirdos in E Class."

"See, I told you! That one's also got a reputation for hitting girls!"

Unfortunately, I could hear their negative whisperings about me quite clearly. Maybe I should tell Akihiro about this, so he can set the situation straight to his sister for me.

I looked around for a vacant seat. Mikitaka and Ayano took some seats near the front, but I preferred sitting at the back, so I focused my search there.

Unfortunately for me, nearly all the back row seats were taken. There was one spot that was free, but it was between Fujimura and Hono.

I wasn't sure whether or not I wanted to sit down. On one hand, I knew Hono was a reasonable person and was unlikely to turn me away, but on the other, I knew Fujimura didn't like me and would probably ask me to leave.

At the same time though, I didn't want to sit near the front. I decided to just hedge my bets and went over to take the seat as mine.

Just as I was about to sit down on it, Fujimura looked up from her phone.

"That seat's been saved."

"...is that so?"

Well, I guess I should've expected that.

"Mhm. I'm waiting for Takayuki-chan. You seen him by any chance?"

"Actually... I don't think he's coming."

"Huh? Why?"

"Machida-san beat him up earlier this morning."

"What?!"

Fujimura's eyes widened when I said that. Even Hono looked surprised when I said that.

"You're joking! There's no way..."

"I'm not. Chabashira-sensei took him to the teacher's lounge to treat his wounds."

"My god... I hope he's okay..."

Fujimura sighed, suddenly becoming restless once she heard Nora had been hurt. These two had gotten surprisingly close over the past month, so it's only natural she was worried about him.

"So... about that seat."

"There's a bunch of other seats available, why don't you take one of those?"

"I could, but they're all at the front. I'd like to sit at one in the back."

Fujimura looked around and noticed that this was the only free back seat.

"Are you sure Takayuki-chan isn't coming?"

"Yes... for the most part."

"I guess you can have it then."

Fujimura huffed slightly as she conceded the seat she saved for Nora to me.

"Thank you."

I sat down, waiting for the assembly to begin.