ReruoIzayoi
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Chapter 63: The Summer Vacation Trip Begins!
🕑 Added 2025-04-23 08:09:01 +0000 UTCAfter the last class ended, most of the students in the class had left.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka packed up his things and headed to Chabashira Sae's office—
Meanwhile, Saiki Kusuo, using his invisibility, quietly followed behind him.
He knew that Chabashira Sae summoning Ayanokoji Kiyotaka couldn't mean anything good. To prevent any unexpected situations, it was better to follow him.
'I wonder what the teacher wants with Ayanokoji... A strange teacher paired with a strange student—what a perfect match.'
Just as Saiki Kusuo was mentally complaining, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, who had just reached the corner, suddenly stopped and turned around—his gaze seemed to land directly on Saiki Kusuo, even though they were less than two meters apart.
"Strange, I feel like someone's following me. Am I overthinking it?"
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka muttered to himself. After carefully observing his surroundings, he continued toward the office.
'This guy... Is his perception as sharp as a wild animal's? I'm already using invisibility.'
Saiki Kusuo felt a flicker of panic but quickly calmed down, further concealing his presence as he followed Ayanokoji Kiyotaka to the office.
Chabashira Sae was leaning against the door, seemingly waiting for Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.
"Come in."
"I don't understand why you called me here."
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka replied expressionlessly.
"Let's talk inside."
Chabashira Sae led Ayanokoji Kiyotaka into the office, with the invisible Saiki Kusuo trailing behind.
"Although hearing 'counseling room' might give an unpleasant impression, this place is surprisingly nice. The reason is that there's no surveillance here. The school considers that teachers and students often need to discuss personal matters, so there are no cameras."
Chabashira Sae said with a smile.
'Hmph, if the school were really that considerate, they wouldn't have come up with this ridiculous S-system.'
Saiki Kusuo complained in his mind.
"So, what did you want to talk about? I'm quite busy planning my summer vacation."
"That's a funny thing to say. You don't have any friends, do you? What summer plans do you need to make?"
"No, no, that's going a bit too far. I do have a few friends, though I can count them on one hand. But the number isn't what matters."
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka said.
[From a high schooler's perspective, who can be considered a friend? I'm not sure if Horikita counts, but Sudo, Ike, and Yamauchi probably do. Kushida might count too... I'm not sure about Saiki.]
'Saying something like that with a straight face... It's so jarring...'
Saiki Kusuo was already considering leaving.
"I called you here today to share a bit of my life story."
[Oh?]
'Oh?'
Saiki Kusuo and Ayanokoji Kiyotaka both thought the same thing.
"This is something I've never told anyone since becoming a teacher. Just treat it as nonsense. How do you, as a Class C student, view me as your homeroom teacher?"
'She doesn't do a single thing a teacher should do.'
Without a moment's hesitation, Saiki Kusuo answered in his mind.
"That's another strange question. I think you're a beautiful woman—can I answer like that?"
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka said without changing his expression.
'Impressive.'
Saiki Kusuo gave Ayanokoji Kiyotaka a 'high evaluation' in his mind. He was probably the only person in the world who could talk to a teacher like that. At the same time, he could already sense the murderous aura emanating from Chabashira Sae.
[This guy... No, I need to control my emotions. Ayanokoji is an important piece in my plan to climb higher...]
'As a teacher, having thoughts like this is a complete failure.'
[It's like the story of Icarus' wings. In short, long ago in Greece, there was a great inventor named Daedalus. He was commissioned by King Minos to build a labyrinth to imprison the monster Minotaur. However, he was later abandoned by King Minos...]
'Hey, hey, aren't your thoughts wandering a bit too far? Are you telling a story in your inner monologue? Like a novelist padding their word count?'
[Looking at Ayanokoji in front of me, I can't help but think of Icarus' wings... Because, considering the situation, it feels the most fitting... I'm backed into a corner, so I have no choice but to do this. I need to climb higher...]
'No, if you're also thinking about moving up to Class A, then maybe you should actually do your job as a teacher? If you don't do anything, there's no way you'll ever reach Class A.'
Saiki Kusuo was almost too tired to complain about Chabashira Sae, but he was also curious about what she was trying to do.
"If you don't mind me comparing you to other teachers, I think you seem indifferent to our class's future. You're a cold teacher who has no interest in students. That's about it, right?"
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka replied.
'You really just said that outright?'
"You're not wrong, but that's not the whole truth... I was also a Class D student at this school..."
'So you were in Class D too?'
"But back then, the gap wasn't as big as it is now. In the last semester of our third year, we were less than 100 points behind Class A..."
Chabashira Sae began recounting her past, and Saiki Kusuo somehow found himself holding a box of popcorn.
[I want to use my story to move Ayanokoji, to make him understand that reaching Class A requires tremendous effort.]
"...That's my story."
Chabashira Sae said, carefully observing Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, expecting a reaction.
"I can't relate to any of this. What does your life story have to do with me?"
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka replied without hesitation, showing no reaction to Chabashira Sae's words.
[Chabashira-sensei is telling me this to try and resonate with me, right? But that's impossible.]
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka had already figured out Chabashira Sae's intentions.
"I believe you are essential for our class to reach Class A."
Chabashira Sae immediately said, her gaze turning serious.
[Damn it... This guy is completely unyielding. I'll have to use that move—]
"A few days ago, a man contacted the school, saying he wanted Ayanokoji Kiyotaka expelled."
Chabashira Sae said immediately.
[I heard a lot about Ayanokoji Kiyotaka from Chairman Sakayanagi. It seems Ayanokoji's father, who apparently knew Chairman Sakayanagi in the past, wants Ayanokoji expelled! I can use this to make Ayanokoji help me reach Class A!]
'Yare yare, using such underhanded tactics as a homeroom teacher.'
Chabashira Sae then threatened Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, claiming that if he didn't cooperate, she would use various methods to get him expelled.
[For now, I can't be sure if her words are true or not, but if it's that man, it does sound like something he'd do. I can't afford to lose my time at this school right now.]
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka thought to himself, then spoke:
"Sensei, you might regret trying to use me."
"Don't worry, my life is already full of regrets."
Chabashira Sae smiled self-deprecatingly.
'So that's what this was about? Good thing it has nothing to do with me.'
Feeling that their conversation was about to end, Saiki Kusuo prepared to leave.
But just then, Chabashira Sae spoke again:
"About the recording incident with Class D not long ago—that was you, wasn't it?"
"It wasn't me."
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka immediately denied it.
"I already know about you, so there's no need—"
"It wasn't me."
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka repeated his denial, and Chabashira Sae's expression finally showed a slight change.
"Not you? Then who did it?"
'Seriously, why is the conversation suddenly shifting to this?'
Saiki Kusuo, who had been about to leave, decided to stay.
"I don't know about that either."
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka shook his head.
"There are no clues, and I can't get any useful information. For now, it's more likely that it was internal strife within Class D."
"Internal strife in Class D?"
Chabashira Sae's eyebrow twitched slightly. She wasn't entirely convinced by Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's words, but there was no reason for him to lie at this point.
After thinking for a moment, Chabashira Sae seemed to remember something and continued:
"Also, have you noticed anything about Saiki?"
"No."
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka replied.
"He seems pretty ordinary, nothing special."
Although he said this, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's thoughts were completely different.
[If that man is using the teacher to try and expel me, then it means there are no other White Room agents in the school. This makes it even clearer that Saiki has no connection to the White Room.]
[For now, Saiki seems completely ordinary in every way, and he seems to be trying to keep a low profile in class. This is similar to me. I can sense a resemblance, but I can't get any more useful information from him. The more ordinary he seems, the more suspicious he becomes. If he were truly ordinary in every way, there's no way he could have gotten into this school.]
[Is it possible that there's an organization similar to the White Room in this world? And perhaps Saiki entered this school for the same reasons I did? It might sound absurd, but it's not impossible. If that's the case, maybe I can use Saiki to test whether Chabashira-sensei's words are lies.]
'You're overthinking this way too much. I'm just an ordinary psychic.'
Saiki Kusuo replied in his mind, but there was no doubt that he felt he was about to face even bigger trouble.
Originally, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka had suspected Saiki Kusuo of being an assassin from the White Room, so he had been wary of him. Just when Saiki had finally managed to ease Ayanokoji's suspicions, Chabashira Sae had to bring this up, shifting Ayanokoji's attention back to Saiki Kusuo.
'Doesn't this mean all my efforts this semester have been for nothing?!'
Saiki Kusuo felt a bit helpless.
"Is that so?"
Chabashira Sae pursed her lips.
[If Ayanokoji says so, then it seems Saiki isn't anything special. He's probably just an ordinary student who got in through connections. But since Chairman Sakayanagi specifically approved his admission, his background must be quite impressive. Still, for now, Saiki probably won't be of any use.]
'Why does that sound so annoying? But at least the teacher's attention has shifted away from me. Ayanokoji, you've finally done something decent.'
Saiki Kusuo thought to himself.
The conversation between Ayanokoji Kiyotaka and Chabashira Sae was finally coming to an end, and so was Saiki Kusuo's invisibility. He then used teleportation to leave the office.
'Yare yare, it seems the peaceful month I finally had is coming to an end.'
Saiki Kusuo shook his head slightly.
'A summer vacation trip... I really don't want to go...'
......
Two days later, August 1st.
The boundary between the blue sea and sky gradually blurred. Under the bright sunlight, a massive and luxurious cruise ship slowly moved forward, marking the official start of the students' summer vacation.
On the cruise ship, the students were indulging in revelry, with almost 99% of them immersed in the joy of their first luxury cruise vacation.
"This is amazing!"
"My first time on a cruise! This is awesome!"
"Sudo, good thing you weren't expelled! Otherwise, you wouldn't have been able to experience this!"
The idiot trio was completely absorbed in the festivities.
While everyone else was enjoying the breathtaking view of the sea and sky outside, Saiki Kusuo was alone in the ship's interior restaurant, enjoying a large fruit-flavored shaved ice.
'This shaved ice is made with top-quality imported syrup. You can't find this just anywhere.'
'But unlike at school, everything on this cruise ship is free!'
'This trip might not be so bad after all.'
