Part 1.

Later on, after the classes were over.

Dorm.

Shizuku was in my room and I was adjoined with my back against the wall; seating on all fours with my forearms covering my knees. Furthermore, I was hiding my face from Shizuku who was worried in regards to my current attitude.

"Shizuku...! WE NEED to do something about this and fast!"

Although I was panicking and trembling all over the place, my voice was far more hollow than loud.

Plus, the curtains were barely open and we weren't basking on the upper lamp's light either; thus there was a slight hint of illumination all over the room.

Then, Shizuku sat on the edge of my bed and massaged my right leg.

"I understand your worries and I'm really scared either but... What can we do about it...? Percy has decided that the culprit will be expelled...!"

"But that's the problem, Shizuku! We are both screwed if we don't do something. He said that he knew who the culprit was and we are on his blacklist! There has to be a way!"

I trembled even further and further.

Shizuku's left hand whilst holding my right ankle began to show a fragile resistance yet she kept on comforting me. In addition to that, she climbed onto my bed and adjoined her back against the wall just like me.

"I don't really know what to do against Percy, but... Isn't there someone who knows...?"

"...Who though...?"

"Mhm... Maybe we could get more information out of Anea by bribing her like the last time?"

What Shizuku just said could very well be true; plus it's only 6 pm. We have two hours to make this work then...

"Alright. Can you get into contact with her? Also, could you tell her not to bring Carol alongside her? That will only make things worse..."

"I'll see what I can do. Let me give her a quick call..."

"Thanks, Shizuku. You're the best."

3 minutes later.

"Alright, thank you! We'll be there as fast as we possibly can!"

Quickly, Shizuku turned down the call and shook me.

"Great news!! She's willing to meet up with us because I told her that we needed to know a few things about Percy. She's willing to help!"

"Why...?"

It's so strange, but I don't see why Anea would help us out here.

Unless...

"Wait, we shouldn't go! It's bait! Maybe she's working with Percy!"

"What?! That's... Damn, what the hell! She wouldn't, right?!"

If this bitch is working with Percy then maybe she has exposed all of our schemes and we are done for anyways! But wait, if that's the case, then wouldn't she have done so earlier? Why else would she allow the events to escalate this far otherwise?

Maybe she...

"Wait, hold on. That didn't make a lot of sense."

"Eh, why not, Yukishi?"

"If this was bait then Anea wouldn't have given us information; accurate one, about Percy earlier. Her information was true, so she would've lied to us earlier if she was really setting us up, however, she didn't. We need countermeasures should she really be setting up the bait too."

"I recorded the previous conversation too. So we'll just do the same this time around."

"We need something more, Shizuku. We are playing a dangerous gamble here."

I erupted my posture and got out of my bed. Then, I proceed to put on my shoes and looked ready to leave as Shizuku was doing the exact same.

Ultimately, we started to descend down the stairs, and whilst doing so, I spoke my suggestion.

"If what Anea said about Percy is right, then he should have no qualms about expelling her too, correct?"

"Yes. I was thinking that we could ultimately expose her and get Carol alongside her too expelled; should worse come to worse."

"Ugh, it's just..."

We rapidly kept on descending downstairs until we met Sana who was on the second floor.

Our eyes crossed simultaneously and she had repressive eyes towards me... Unlike her usually sad expression and long eyebags, she looked resentful of me.

"...."

She simply kept her silence as we lost our eye-trails of one another...

"Yukishi?"

"...As I was saying... that should be enough. We need as much information about Percy as we can."

"Yup, so let's get going! Hurry up or you're gonna fall behind!"

"Go a little slower for me, will you?!"

Part 2.

15 minutes later.

As it was already afternoon; the dusk was breaching. Orange sky accompanied us as we took a seat at an outside table instead of the usual cafeteria.

We were near block D but we simply took a small walk towards here; although it took a bit of time to get here.

Anea, on the other hand, was all alone just like she told she would be to Shizuku on the phone.

Nonetheless, as we got closer to her, she had the expression of a bull and was extremely mad at us.

Not knowing why she was like that, we took our seats without saying anything.

"What have you two done?"

"..." x2.

We kept our silence; though we were about to get scolded by Anea who had just crushed her empty plastic cup of coffee with nothing in it.

"I should have been far more elaborative when I said that I wanted you two to not attract Percy's attention because you two just earned his attention..."

"How the hell would we have known?! He's not normal, Anea! And what's with him?! He's an expulsion-addicted tyrant! It's like expulsion is his crack or some shit!"

On my behalf, Shizuku snapped and I contributed more to that with a few words.

"You could've told us more about him. This is your fault."

To this, Anea strongly gripped her already crushed cup and gritted her teeth.

"That's it! I'm out of here, you two can fuck yourselves! Stupid self-centered whores, damn it!"

We took this way too far, so I went the extra mile to apologize by bowing down while apologizing before she could get up from her seat.

"Alright, maybe it wasn't your fault at all! We're really sorry, right, Shizuku?!"

I looked to my right where Shizuku was starting to get up so she could apologize alongside me.

"Y-Yes! It was just an impulsive reaction!"

Midst this, the students passing by were starting to get attracted to this sort of crowd, which was essentially bad news.

Upon realizing that, Anea took a more soft approach.

"Keep yourselves from screaming... Admit it one more time. This is all your fault. If you hadn't committed to this stupid idea then you would've been fine. I've warned you about Percy and now it's too late. You two are most likely getting exp--"

"No way! There has to be a way to stop his onslaught!"

"That's, right, Anea! You know Percy the best, right?!"

There was no overall guarantee that Anea truly knew Percy the best but we were out of options.

If she were to say no to this, then we would use our resources and try to excavate as much information out of Anea as possible.

However, it turned out to be surprisingly positive. Her answer, that is.

"You need to seek out the other student council members. Not all of them approve of Percy's actions, but..."

But...?

"It's hard to say that they will go against him. After all, your class has that infamous status to it. I don't think there is a way to convince Percy to back off. However, there is a way around this, I think."

"Such as...?"

I asked, feeling tremendous greed suddenly.

"You've noticed that in his left arm, he has a number band, yes?"

Shizuku did not hesitate to answer this question whatsoever as it concerned Percy's detailed appearance.

"Yeah! What does that mean? Plus, the cape! And the double blazer?! Is that a student council thing?"

"I'll answer that in the same order that you've spoken."

"Mhm, thanks."

Before doing so, Anea freed the empty smashed cup from her hand and placed it on top of the table. By the way, our positions were mirrored to one another; as that was already obvious.

"His number band resembles his ranking in the student council. It is also a recognition symbol. Fabrication of it will lead you to expulsion, so don't get any funny ideas."

Anea is not really aware of our circumstances and she believes that we can be expelled normally.

However, it makes zero difference because Percy already found a damn way out of this short-lived transient immunity!

"His cape and double blazer is something made on his own. Student council members can wear whatever they feel like as long as it doesn't break the rules. It's an upgraded uniform. I would say he wears a golden cape and a double blazer because he feels some sort of heroism in what he does."

Although Anea said those words, the corners of her lips started to gradually increase as they emitted a strong admiration.

"Does this clear your doubts?"

"Yeah, it's helpful because now it's easy to identify them."

"They've always been easy to identify because they are public figures of this school. It's inexcusable to not be a figure of power for them."

Thus far, we already know two student council members. Liyuga and Percy.

Knowing this, I asked something to Anea.

"How many are there? The members in total."

Unfortunately, her reply was nowhere near positive as it was ambiguously vague.

"No one actually knows... There have been rumors for years that you can be a student council member despite not belonging to block A. It's weird, but there is no certification of how many are there; but they all have that band, that's for sure."

"One little question, Anea. Do they have to mandatorily wear that band or are they free to hide it and pretend to be normal students?"

This question of mine was pretty damn crucial because... should they NOT have to wear it based on mandatoriness then they can very well infiltrate the school quite deeply.

"Again, I am not sure. I am not a member myself."

"I see..."

"All of this aside, what are you going to do?"

"Isn't that what you were going to tell us, Anea?"

Shizuku stated the obvious just now.

All this time, we were waiting around for a conclusive solution but we got side-tracked.

"I thought that you had a plan of your own..."

"...."

We do, but it revolves around blackmailing you...

No way I can tell you that though.

"It seems not. The solution I have is simple but it might as well be very hard to pull it off. I've explained to you two the ranking on his armband, but as you probably already harbored a guess, it's a power ranking; meaning that Percy is not in the absolute power."

"As you've said, we've guessed it that much. Now, where are the other two---- Wait, I just realized something, Yukishi!"

"I think I did too..."

It was something that we were completely overlooking.

To the point where we started to really wonder about something. Though, Anea looked as if she had read our minds and fluently spoke; correctly.

"Is this about why Liyuga doesn't have an armband, like Percy?"

We nodded.

Yes, I should've noticed this sooner, but Liyuga didn't have an armband like Percy neither did he have a flashy appearance in uniform terms.

Something is odd here.

"He's too much of a novice. He's only been admitted to the student council three months ago."

That's almost the time when we started the program.

With that in mind, I asked something else.

"How about Percy for how--"

"Two years."

".....Wow."

No wonder they act so differently. Percy acts with a lot of confidence and has a straightforward attitude; though imperial and most surely radical. On the other hand, Liyuga is far more soft and compassionate.

"If you are thinking that you can abuse Liyuga for this, then stop. I won't let you do that. This is about Percy, right? Forget about Liyuga."

"Whatever, we weren't really suggesting anything anyways, right?"

"Yup."

Seeing our mutual agreement, Anea continued.

"I honestly don't advise you to seek them out though. I know who they are; as there are only three ranks below Percy."

Anea said something mathematically wrong, so I couldn't help myself but correct her.

"Two ranks."

"No, three."

"Are you stupid? If Percy is rank three, then there's only rank two and one to fall."

I thought that I was speaking common sense, but apparently, it was me who got it all wrong.

"There's a rank below the first one. Rank zero. It belongs to the president."

"You could've just told us that..."

"Regardless, my point stands. I am giving you my honest advice here. If you are going to reach out to either the rank two or one, you two should not approach them. Percy will find you suspicious."

She has a point, I must say.

Were Shizuku and I to reach out for one of them and should Percy know, we will go up on his blacklist. He already reasoned that the culprit is already among the past-previously present eight members.

Nonetheless, that just means I'll have to get someone else outside of the eight members to do the dirty job for me.

I can already feel like Shizuku is on a completely similar train of thought here.

"I don't really like your stupid grins, but it sounds like you now have a plan of action?"

"Ah, yes. Indeed, we have. Isn't that right, Shizuku?"

"Most surely. Anything else you'd like to advise us to follow, Anea...?"

This time around, Shizuku was serious while saying that, so I looked at Anea with the same degree of expression as Shizuku's.

And most certainly, Anea gave more of a threat than advice.

"Don't mention that---"

"Hm?"

Midst the gusts of wind that were passing through and fluctuating our hairs like a summer breeze, we wondered why Anea suddenly stopped saying what she had to say.

She was looking at us but more precisely speaking, something or someone who was in the same direction as we are.

Her eyes were extremely wide-open; almost in awe, but not wearing a terrified expression but instead a surprising one.

As for us, we did not need to look around as the individual himself wrapped his two arms around us and infiltrated our eyesight very openly without a care in the world.

"Anea! You're friends with short bangs and blondie number two here!? I hadn't thought of this in years! What a day of madness!"

With a permanent confident smile on his face and his teeth fangs showing side by side, he looked at Shizuku and me who were wearing pale expressions.

"They are acquaintances!"

"Is that so? Hey, wanna come with me tomorrow to their block and be with me for an hour?! You see, I've made a deal with this girl in their class and she is holding all their fates at hand, isn't that right, girls? Ah, you don't gotta worry about skipping classes, I'll justify it for you, what do you say?"

What the hell is this development...?!

And, anyway, is he going to stay glued to us like that forever?! Hurry up and answer, Anea! Stop being such a slug!

Actually, wait. Isn't this a good opportunity? Won't Percy behave more properly if Anea is there? There is a wide chance that he just might and if so, then...

"You should totally come, Anea! We would love to have you there!"

Not me, but Shizuku started this.

And so, I helped her out by putting a fake happy expression alongside a cheery smile.

"Our class is a bit of a mess right now, so I think you could help us out!"

"You heard them, Anea. Unless you don't wanna come. Is that it? Does my offer resemble weakness to you?"

Percy's expression darkened but Anea didn't feel pressured in spite of that; instead, she happily gave her answer with a bright smile.

"I will go with you! Um, when though? Exactly, the time, so I can know ahead of time..."

Well, well, isn't she quite the maiden? She wants to prepare herself ahead of time almost like she's going on a date or something.

The real reason why I want Anea there tomorrow is that I am hoping to see if I can find any weaknesses in Percy without him noticing. Having Anea around could hopefully provide me that.

"I don't know for certain. I'll drop by your classroom and then we'll go together, alright?"

"W-What...?! My classroom...?"

Just say yes, Anea, this is hurting my soul.

And seriously, for how long is this guy gonna keep his arms on our shoulders like this?!

"Yup! It's just one hour. We'll be together like old times! The nostalgia will blow your mind, so stay tuned!"

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

At long last, Percy let go of our shoulders and freed us from his body weight, which was not heavy at all but nonetheless not comfortable to be under.

Lastly, he turned his back on us and kept going towards block A.

In addition to that, he was waving goodbye from behind to Anea, who was also waving goodbye though Percy could not see it.

"Um... I really like romance novel---"

"No."

Shizuku was most likely attempting to get Anea to tell her what was going on between her and Percy but a simple denial was the indefinite nail in the coffin.

Part 3.

April 16th. 10 am. Classroom.

Excluding Arkalee and Ikkiri, everyone was here present. Arkalee was in the hospital but Shizuku and I couldn't be bothered to visit her. We probably should though, otherwise Arkalee's gonna plot revenge against us or something but I don't think she's conscious right now.

Plus, Yuka-sensei will give us the news should she recover. It's been confirmed that she will live, which is, well, good.

Ikkiri, on the other hand, can't actually leave the room because there are students ready to mob her! It's hilarious!

Nevertheless, the main point of the day was when our door was slammed right into the left as Percy walked in the classroom like some sort of king.

"Heavens me, why the hell is there STILL a girl boycotting class?! Are your classes that dull, teach?"

He freaked out and facepalmed with a high degree of exasperation all over his movements. Anea was there, but just slightly behind him.

"She can't leave the dorm because there are students ready to mob her and it's all your fault! Do something about it!"

Fearless, Akimiyashika, who was present today; along with Hinagiku, expressed her take on the matter.

"Calma, sister! It's being taken care of."

"It better be."

He ignored Akimiyashika's retort and moved to one of the empty desks. However, instead of seating on the desk's chair, he extended his courtesy to Anea and allowed her to seat on the place that he was going to seat on.

As always, it was near the front.

Yuka-sensei couldn't really help but question Anea's presence so she went ahead and did that.

"She is not a student of this class, Percy. You can't just bring students here."

"Sure I can though? That's what I just did. She's a friend and I demand every single one of you to treat her with respect! Otherwise, you get a warning."

"What..."

We all whispered that as Anea took a seat, quietly.

Then Percy did exactly the same thing as yesterday: he grabbed an empty desk and chair and dragged it all the way to the podium. Afterward, he took a seat with his legs extended like he was the king of the court.

"We will be playing a short game! But it's a really good effective one! I'm sure you are all familiar with the game!"

He got our curiosity instantly, but before he could speak about the "game" any further, he directed his words to Anea, who was just a table in front of him.

"Hey, Anea! Wanna partake in this game? I know that I said that "we" would be playing a game and by "we" I meant the rest of the girls only, but if you want to join in, then go for it."

There's something about this "game" of his that's creeping me out.

Knowing Percy, he is up to no good. Unconsciously, I placed my right palm onto the bottom of my left elbow as my breathing continuously grew heavier second by second. Shizuku was tapping her pen onto her notebook's surface far too much.

"If you say so..."

"Niceeeeee!!! That's it! Teach, wanna join in too?!"

"No, and I would like if you refrain from wasting too much time around here, Percy."

"So rude, woman! You're gonna die single."

I am extremely surprised Percy only got Yuka-sensei's death glare in return for that one.

Either way, Percy was ready to begin; which didn't spell terror to us at first, but as soon as he announced what the game revolved around, our faces dropped.

"We are going to play the blame game."

"Percy...!"

Yuka-sensei looked furious towards Percy who still had yet to explain what exactly was going to happen, but if it's what I think it is, then this could be catastrophic.

"Ladies, it's simple. I like simplicity at its best but people love to make simple things too explicit. I am not a fan of that. With that said! It's time for the blame game and we will be revolving around who the culprit of the stabbing was. But first, some ground rules!"

Shizuku looked at me preoccupied as I attempted to keep my cool but with each movement that Percy made, I was slowly losing my composure.

After all, he was writing on the board with a piece of chalk the rules for this game while spelling them out loud.

"Rule number ONE! You shall give an answer that corresponds to the matter at hand and if you do not, you get a warning!"

This already sealed out the possibility of saying no. Furthermore, we can't keep our silences; otherwise, Percy is just going to issue us a warning.

"Rule number TWO! You shall answer with utmost honesty and not base your answer on partial factors! Truth above all else! If I smell a lie, then I will rat you out!"

So it's all up to his personal judgment again?!

"Yukishi...!!"

"Stay calm, stay cal--"

I attempted to say some words of comfort to Shizuku who is trembling beyond her control.

However, my words were quickly shattered by Percy's stronger words.

"Rule number THREE! You shall not blame those that are not present in this classroom ERGO, you must blame someone in this classroom. That is all! Three basic rules! Let's get the ball rolling, sisters!"

FUCK.

I CAN'T BLAME IKKIRI?! NOR ARKALEE?! WHAT IS THIS?!?!?!

My whole plan was to blame Ikkiri for this as that was the whole purpose of making her take the blame thus far.

And of course, he's just smiling like he's God on the tip of his chair without a damn care in the world!

"Oh, I forgot, before we get started, the one with the most accumulated votes will be the culprit until the true one comes out of the closet."

"Hold on just a second, that's just---"

"SHUT UP! HOW MANY TIMES MUST I REPEAT MYSELF?!"

Christ.

Percy's shout towards Tateyana this time around felt so terrifying. It's already common knowledge that arguing against Percy won't work so we just have to go with the flow.

That was when he proceeded to justify himself...

"Don't interrupt me when I'm in the middle of explaining how things will go. I know for a fact that someone here would like to blame that girl Ikkiri for what happened but it's crystal clear that she's nothing more than a scapegoat. ALRIGHT! Let's start the game! Any volunteers to go first? I'll wait thirty seconds."

Unlike his usual clownish gestures, Percy took a normal seat on his chair and proceed to look at every single one of us while the rest of us slowly but surely started to show different expressions towards this new development.

Akimiyashika and Hinagiku looked absolutely ready as they already knew who they were going to blame...

Although Sana resembled their stance; she looked far more skeptical and less secure than the other two. And then there's Tateyana who also looks ready to make her take.

Lus is always confident but unlike Hinagiku and Akimiyashika, I don't know who she is going to blame...! Kanawari will most likely go with what Lus is gonna go with and vice-versa....

Gale has no idea who to decide because she believes that Ikkiri was truly the one that did it.

And that only leaves Shizuku and me.

Knowing this, I spoke to Shizuku who is by my side.

"Blame Akimiyashika."

"Ok..."

We did not look at each other in order to avoid getting swatted by Percy's radar. In addition to that, we only spoke when he was not looking at us.

"Fifteen seconds, ladies. Anea, wanna give it a shot? They all look ready to kill but none of them will speak up. Do me a favor and start this, will you?"

I don't have to worry about Anea because she wouldn't want her conversations getting exposed; especially to Percy, would she now?

There's just a slight fucking problem here... And every time that I cross eyes with them, I can already tell what they are aiming for...!

"You say that, but who am I supposed to blame, exactly? I'm in a tough position."

"I will agree with that! Anyone will do. Or, do they all look too much the same?"

"Mhm, well, I don't think so. Let's see... How about this...? I pick what you pick."

"Buuuuu! That's a tough one. No way, though. I'm the judge here. They are the executioners and so are you. And time is up! I'll start selecting you people at random and the chosen one will either answer or get a warning. Oh, and you have five seconds to answer."

Ending the climax, Percy started off, but he started off with the one I expected the least.

"Blondie number two! Get the ball rolling, will you?!"

He started with me!

No problem though, I'll just deliver my reply.

"One, tw-"

"Akimiyashika is my pick!"

Naturally, she was outraged at this and so was Hinagiku. Thus, they began their small banter towards my direction; starting with Akimiyashika.

"You are so bad at lying!"

But I simply remained silent while Akimiyashika bombarded me with her spiteful glare. Suddenly, I was the center of attention and after Percy was done writing down on the board the name of Akimiyashika alongside a single vote to the right side of the name, he proceeded to turn around to speak.

"Name?"

"Kyoko Yukishiro."

"Too long. Yuki it is."

!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"Please call me by my full name...!"

"No way, Yuki."

I got up from my desk and spoke full of rage.

"It's not hard, come on! Just say Yukishiro instead of saying "Yuki"! You are just doing this to spite me!"

"I like yer attitude. I'll call you by your full name if you take two warnings right here. A fair reminder that ten warnings are the limit before expulsion. So, what will it be, Yuki?"

"Give me five warnings, Phoenix."

"Deal, Yukishiro."

I sat down whilst breathing extremely heavily. All eyes were on me but I was just mad at the moment.

That was when Shizuku placed her right hand on my wrist which called me down for a bit.

"Shhh, I'm here for you..."

"Thank you..."

The moment I started to genuinely feel at peace was when this asshole began to exploit my mood like nothing; therefore he began to barrage my emotions with questions.

"So, Yukishiro, why Shika? Is Shika fine? I think Shika is better than Aki, no offense. Also, the name is so long! What the hell! Anea, seriously, tell me a longer name than "Akimiyashika"!"

"I really can't think of one, wow..."

Both Akimiyashika and I are started to feel massively offended, though the thought of being lumped with Akimiyashika is utterly disgusting, so I went straight to the point of the question.

"Arkalee has bullied Ikkiri in the past. She naturally took Arkalee out in order to protect Ikkiri. This is the absolute logical choice! There is no other choice that will make more sense than this one, people!"

I started to speak to everyone here in the hope they could think about what I had just said and I really meant what I just said, alright?!

How, IN THEORY, is Akimiyashika not a very valid suspect here?! She is overprotective of Ikkiri and we all know for a fact that she has written those names--- Wait, no they don't! Then, I'll just have to expose Arkalee here, right here and now.

"Remember back when all those mean names were written on Ikkiri's table?! Arkalee did it! Isn't that right, Shizuku?!"

Beautifully followed, without a trail of hesitation nor paranoia, Shizuku followed me up brilliantly.

"That's right! It just makes sense that it's Akimiyashika! Haven't you always been way too overprotective over Ikkiri anyway? What the hell, so creepy!"

The sight of Akimiyashika being blinded by her rage was something worth admiring but Hinagiku this time around, instead of adding fuel to her rage, dropped some words of wisdom.

"Aki, it's alright. The odds are against her, trust me."

"...I know..."

..............

We looked at each other and then Shizuku made a conclusive speech alongside her own opinion on this matter.

"I will vote for Akimiyashika too, just like Yukishiro did! Everyone who has the same opinion, please express your own take too! Don't get scared by the difference!"

Shizuku stood up and rightfully enforced her own opinion and while it took a few seconds, someone decided to follow along.

It was Gale.

"...I will vote against her too if that's alright..."

Akimiyashika was literally fuming at this but nonetheless kept her cool.

I am well aware of her strategy by now. I am her target and she will blame me alongside Hinagiku; that's why it's better to get this out of the way right now, otherwise I'll get the blame.

It's a good strategy to win votes against her soon.

And I already have three votes against Akimiyashika, so I am off to a good start.

Amidst this thought process of mine, I failed to notice that Percy was actually holding back his laughter; until it utterly exploded and he laughed it out like no tomorrow.

"HAHAHA!! I love this! This is so wild! See, isn't this way too fun?! Without scapegoats, you girls can't lie! You are powerless! Very good! Next! Mean-eyes!"

Was it part of his plan to delay the situation of Ikkiri just so she couldn't be used as a scapegoat? He said earlier that it was being taken care of but is it really?

Nevertheless, Tateyana was next and she went with the obvious mark...

"Yukishiro, I'm sorry, but it's really obvious it's you."

Tsk...

"What?! How could I have stabbed Arkalee?! She's a member of my group and a dear friend of mine?! How can you suggest that, Tateyana?!"

"........."

To this, she kept her... mouth... shut...!

This bitch is such a damn coward! She has the gall to blame me but doesn't present any logical reasoning whatsoever behind the choice! God!

"Ohh!! That's it, that's it! That's a good expression, Yukish---"

"Is this funny to you...?"

Genuinely, from the bottom of my heart, I asked this, to Percy.

"It is."

As such; he genuinely gave his answer, to which I kept my silence.

"Who is up next?! Let's keep it going!"

No one was really afraid to speak up anymore, so Sana went next...

I was admittedly very curious about her choice. I am under the impression that I will be her target.

The real question is, will she commit...?

And the answer to that question is...

"...If I don't answer, I get a warning, right?"

"Bingo!"

"That's about it, right?"

"Indeed. I'm not Satan, so I won't just give you warnings over and over."

"I see... I will, no give an answer then."

"Brave and stupid. Name?"

"Nasha Sana..."

"You just got yourself a warning, Sana! Congrats!"

"......."

What the hell...

Sigh, talk about disappointing... In order to further express my disappointment, I sank down my desk and hit my face on the desk's surface. Ultimately, I sighed out loud. Subsequently, I elevated my posture once again the moment I heard Lus take her guess despite the fact that Percy had no said anything.

"Percy, you said that we can only blame those who are in here, correct? And that we have to blame someone according to what we think is the truth."

"That is exactly. No room for lies."

"Hm. Well, in that case, I'll go with Sana's guess which is nothing."

....What...?

Lus is not taking a guess? What the hell is going on?! She's so confident and now she's chickening out?

This isn't like her, but I suppose I should be glad since she might blame me.

"I'm the same as Lus. We both get a warning, Lus."

"Seems so. Can't be helped. Sorry about that."

"No probs!"

And now Kanawari and Lus are in mutual agreement...

Now, I am aware that we are all baffled by their behavior, but Percy is going mad right now.

To the point where he slammed his right fist into the desk's surface; bringing everyone's shock to attention.

"What the hell was that?! Yesterday you gave me a godlike confidence speech but not you are pussying out?! Explain yourself!"

Though Percy's attitude was undoubtedly aggressive, Lus had the spotlight on her because we were all curious as to why she was taking the same path of action as Sana.

By contrast to our expectations, she wasn't being a coward and was only being hyper-logical.

"The culprit isn't here. That's why there's no point in blaming someone here."

Kanawari added something else to Lus's speech.

"We already know who the culprit is, also. There's just a catch."

Alternating speech turns, Lus took the lead once again.

"It's just a puzzle, but Kanawari spoke my mind. There you have it, Percy."

Abhorrent at this, Percy tilted his neck down left all the way to the northwest and ultimately sank into his desk with his face down. Shortly after; he looked at us the same way he did yesterday when he was pretending to play peek-a-boo.

"Boring... You both get a warning. Also, there are only two more to go. Shika and China, you're up!"

"My name is Hinagiku! Not China!"

Hinagiku's complaint aside, this has become rather predictable.

Honestly speaking, the outcome of this stupid blame game could've been devasting for me should Lus and Kanawari's votes been against me, but as it stands, there's only Akimiyashika and Hinagiku left. And they wasted no time in delivering their answer.

"Yukishiro!" x2.

I laughed out loud.

"Hahaha! Predictable."

".......Bitch..."

"......Whore."

They both seriously just cursed at me while looking away?!

"Hey, teach! They just cursed at me!"

"Curse them back, sweetie."

"Really?"

"No."

Why is Yuka-sensei so cold these days...?

Part 4.

"Anea, it comes down to you."

"It seems so, Percy. Why don't you vote for Yukishiro and I vote for Akimiyashika? This way, things will be even and there won't be a culprit based on a blame game."

Anea proposed Percy the peaceful approach to which he just laughed it off, but in a kind manner; before completely shutting her offer down.

"Haha! No. There's gotta be a winner and a loser. It's no fun otherwise. Boring stall games are as dull as the day is long. The decision is on you, Anea. If anyone dares to judge her decision, they get three warnings!"

I swear to God, this guy literally has no idea of the weight that those warnings even have! Who the hell allowed this guy to be in the student council anyway?!

Still, I am far too relaxed and that's because I already know the outcome here.

Quite the simple one, really.

Should Anea choose me, then I will expose all of our conversations and she will get expelled by Percy.

And since I can't be chosen, it doesn't matter who else gets chosen; Akimiyashika will be the culprit.

"Hold it! I demand to speak to your superior, Percy."

"Why would you say such monstrosity of words, Shika?"

"Because it's obvious I am going to be blamed. There's no use in hiding it."

"What makes you think that Anea won't blame Yukishiro?"

"Intuition. And so, I would like to act on it."

What is this bitch playing at exactly...

"You may appeal to the principal after this is concluded."

"No! I want my appeal now! Yuka-sensei! Isn't there something that can be done here?!"

"...I'm afraid not... If only I were the homeroom teacher..."

Dejected, Yuka-sensei looked absolutely defeated.

"You heard her."

"This is just ridiculous. I would like to offer you a suggestion if that's alright."

"Let's hear it! After yesterday, I am keen on this class's suggestions."

First Lus and now Akimiyashika...

I'm starting to not like this damn pattern and the fact that Percy does NOTHING against it!

Also, the damn fact that Akimiyashika is suddenly not mad anymore and is instead; bright and confident with a zealous smirk on that fucking face of hers!

"Can I bring Ikkiri here and make her vote instead of Anea?"

"What?!"

"Hm? What's wrong, Yukishiro? You wouldn't be too afraid of an impartial vote, would you?"

This bitch seriously plans on dragging Ikkiri here just so she can have an impartial vote to herself?! Fuck you, that's my tactic, you harlot!

"So you suggest an impartial vote. It's true. Anea is not related to this class so her vote will feel very hollow. Unlike Ikkiri's. I see your point. Anea, what do you think?"

"Eh? It's fair, I suppose...? I don't really know what to say here. I feel like my vote would just make someone mad in the end."

"Anea, that's a poor analogy. There's always going to be someone salty by the end of this type of event."

"Haha! True, true. I think her suggestion is fair as long as Ikkiri is the only one who votes afterward since she will be the decisive factor."

No fucking way! Anea, you dumbfuck, you just screwed me up!

I swear, I swear, I swear, I swear, I SWEAR, if Ikkiri votes against me, I will lose my fucking mind.

"As I've said, she is the decisive factor and there has to be a winner and a loser here. Both Shika and Yukishiro are tied, so we must end this correctly. Alright, everyone! Let's take a quick tour to the dorm and drag your friend out of there!"

10 minutes later.

After successfully managing to clear the parameter from the students who were boycotting class, we brought Ikkiri inside the classroom.

I must say, I have never seen someone this terrified before. She cannot even look up, her eyes are glued to the ground. Although Ikkiri doesn't cry like Arkalee, you can see the dreadful fear all over her. If fear had a smell, it would be Ikkiri. Plus, her tiny height is extremely funny for some reason. It feels like I could just grab her head and squash it.

Recently, I've been gaining the thought of bullying Ikkiri physically. And in the past ten minutes, it has become more than a thought.

"Alright, ladies! We have the decisive factor here! All eyes on her, please!"

Instead of being seated in our seats, we are all circling Ikkiri.

If I were to count everyone in this circle currently surrounding Ikkiri, who is seating facedown on her desk right now then we would be thirteen.

Thirteen whole people surrounding one single person; mercilessly.

Of course, Akimiyashika and Hinagiku weren't fine with this and they were trying to communicate with Ikkiri, who was having a really hard time communicating in general.

Hell, she barely fucking talks.

Is she mute? What if she is?

"Ikkiri, did you get the gist of it?"

Yuka-sensei, who was on her knees, communicating with Ikkiri, who refused to face any of us.

Is she broken or something? I don't actually know why she acts the way she acts, honestly.

All I know is that she's bullying material but outside of that, I know absolutely nothing.

"..............Yes...."

A very shallow almost silent positive answer came from Ikkiri. The only reason as to why we could even hear that was because no one was making a single movement and noise. At a point, our inhaling sounds started to sound gigantically loud in the perpetual silence.

And even though she replied positively, she did not speak any further.

We were constantly switching glances with each other and even Percy felt like even if he were to intervene it wouldn't make a difference.

However, to our surprise, she did speak again, but not towards the main subject.

"..........Is Arkalee alright....?"

She....

No way, is she seriously worried about Arkalee?

Crap, I need to laugh my ass off so badly.

"Yes! She's recovering right now! But Ikkiri, we need your vote right now. Between Yukishiro and me, who do you think did it?"

I don't like how Akimiyashika is essentially limiting the options for voting to the two of us but Percy wouldn't approve otherwise.

And once again, we stood in the silence waiting for the queen of silence herself to feel appropriately comfortable and THEN give us her FUCKING answer!

".........None of you...."

"Blue hair, I hate to burst your bubble but you have to choose between them. Just make the decision."

"Please be a little mindful..."

"Chika, I already am being very mindful. And..."

What Percy was about to say was something that would make me want to laugh for centuries to come.

To top it off, he didn't even bother to say it silently as he made sure Ikkiri also listened to it.

"Is she mentally ill?"

Our eyes widened in surprise, for very different reasons.

But Percy couldn't really process what he was currently breaching, so he continued.

"Just an honest question. Am I dealing with a mute person? Autistic?"

Naturally, someone couldn't take this lack of remorse from him, so she started to elevate her right hand alongside her right arm as if she were about to slap Percy so hard that he would flip.

"Hm? Wait, what are y---"

"DIE!!"

It took Hinagiku, Lus, Kanawari, Yuka-sensei, Tateyana, and Sana to stop Akimiyashika from going on a rampage against Percy, but they successfully managed to contain her.

"I DON'T CARE IF I GET A MILLION OF WARNINGS, I WILL BEND HIS SPINE IN HALF!!"

In response to this, Percy quickly backed off as he realized the danger of the situation.

"Alright, alright! My bad, I wasn't joking though! I mean, look at her! Isn't it rational to assume that she has down syndrome?!"

"THE ONLY DOWN WILL BE YOUR BODY ONCE IT'S BURIED ON THE GROUND SIX FEET DEEP! DAMN IT, LET GO OF ME ALREADY!"

"We really can't..."

"Please calm down, Akimiyashika..."

At this point, there was a ten-meter distance between Percy and Akimiyashika. Amikiyashika; despite being held back by so many people is attempting to coldly murder Percy right here and now.

"Look, blue hair... I don't intend to pressure you, but if you don't talk, then I will have to nullify Shika's suggestion and so, Anea will get to vote instead of her. As such, I will be issuing a time limit. Fifteen seconds it is. You have fifteen seconds to vote. Just say the name. That's all."

On his knees, Percy faced Ikkiri face to face, only the flat desk separating them.

"One... Two... .......Three..."

Her movements were null. There was no movement whatsoever. I am seriously starting to think that she has a medical condition.

If not, then... Why the hell is she acting like this...? Did all the pressure break her?

Or maybe she was just so fragile that even the frailest thing was enough to shatter her.

"Four... Five... Si---"

"hir....."

...............

She spoke.........

But rather silent and..... And......... I swear....

Don't make me have to stare at you with these cold ungrateful eyes, Ikkiri...

"Six.... Seven.... Eight... Ni--"

"...Please wait... You're going too fast..."

Alas, she erupted her posture slightly. Her eyesight was matching with Percy's. Her radiant dark purple eyes finally basked under some light.

"I'll keep it going until you give me the name. Nine... Ten.... Eleve---"

"Wait....! Just wait...! I..."

"Eleven... Twelve...."

"I just wanted to say something to the person first...! Let me do that please..."

"To the person you are voting against, blue-hair?"

"Yes..."

"Permission granted."

I didn't want it to happen and I refused to believe for a split second that Ikkiri was turning around in my direction.

That Ikkiri, was going to not her best friend, Akimiyashika, who is being held by several people which would mean that the other ones could be potential voting subjects, but for me.

My right and left hand started to twitch uncontrollably as my breathing got out of control alongside my eye vision widening beyond my capacity of manipulation.

Lastly, as Ikkiri came close to me; she abandoned her poor pathetic lethargic stance and summoned all of her useless energy to say the last words I wanted to hear out of her limp mouth. Furthermore, her puppy eyes invoked a meltdown in my stomach that made me want to straight-up throw up on her pale face.

"...Yukishiro.... I am sorry.... I... can't hurt Aki and I don't want to certainly hurt you too, but..... I am not good at making decisions..... At all. It seems though that I don't have a choice so I want to tell you that it's not personal.... It's just the circumstance....!"

"Ikkiri.... What the hell are you implying...?"

"I........ vote against you, Yukishiro...! I'm sorry!"

Those words brought out all the fury I had in me for a split second to which I completely depleted to the inside once again.

That unique moment when Ikkiri bowed down and apologized, I think that I want to make her swallow and choke on her own hair whilst squeezing her eyeballs out.

However, I put my fake face on and smiled, because these cowards are enjoying this. They want to know what my reaction is.

But I won't give you my genuine one.

No.

Not yet.

"I see! What a shame! I was hoping that Akimiyashika would be the temporary culprit!"

"...You're not mad at me...?"

"Mad at you?! What nonsense are you even speaking?! Percy said that the culprit of this game will be the overall culprit until the real one reveals itself! Doesn't that mean that I just have to work hard and unravel the real culprit thus clearing my name?!"

".......I.... suppose.... I forgot about that..."

SHE FORGOT ABOUT THAT.

"See? Everyone, the culprit has been found! It was me all along! There you have it, Percy. Happy now?"

Oh. My. God. Why is everyone keeping their silences? It's like they all got a dick on their mouths, seriously.

Even Percy is having trouble speaking. Nevertheless, the one who spoke was Shizuku, who seems to have a talent when it comes to reading my mood.

"Are you feeling alright?"

"Yukishiro, you are dismissed for today."

Huh? Why did Percy just say that to me?

"I'll agree with Percy here. You can head back to the dorm earlier than the rest."

"Um...... Well... Okay then...? I'll get my stuff and head back then!"

It was then, as I broke out of the circle and got past Akimiyashika that their silences started to resemble more genuine cowardice rather than respecting my emotions.

"Can I go---"

Shizuku attempted to speak up, but Percy said no to her in a silent manner.

Having packed all my stuff into the bag, I looked ready to leave so I waved at everyone who waved back at me.

"See you tomorrow then!"

"........." x13.

But nobody spoke in return. It's frankly weird.

Nevertheless, I admired the scenery outside through the windows. The bright morning sun is radiant and mighty.

It's such a shame that... while I stand here, admiring this beautiful view... that the sunlight is burning the tears that are running through my cheeks as I smile fakely.

".........I fucking hate all of you so much......If only you people knew........"

I said goodbye to the view and started to walk through the hallway.

In addition to that, I put my earplugs on and played a favorite of mine: "Twisted Nerve".

Now, I don't like to brag but I am quite the good whistler so whenever this song comes on, I make sure to whistle it as loud as I can.

"Fuu... Fuuu... Fufufuuu.... Fuuufuuuu.... Fuufuuu~~~"

Descending the stairs never felt so good! What's with the way your body just inclines towards the center of gravity; as if you were always attracted to something that makes you fall and not something that makes you stand up?

Three whole floors and I am out of the block. I can see that they are staring at me through the window because the human eyesight captures the angle of 90 degrees, so I don't have to directly look at them to know that. All I have to do is to look in a direction that captures the right edge of that degree.

Still, it's important that I keep this smile up.... For a while...

"Oh, it stopped..."

Mhm... No song... And I don't feel like repeating it.

I quickly ran into the dorm.

At the entrance, I met Olivia and she asked what I was doing here. I said that I was dismissed from class and as such, I went to the dorm. Naturally, she disagreed and I said that she could check with the teacher. This went on for a while but I eventually was able to get to my room.

I threw my bag into the middle of nowhere. Then, I went into my lamp's desk upper drawer and took out a knife.

Subsequently, I went into my bathroom and undressed.

I objectively analyzed my naked body as I travel around it with the edge of my knife. Sometimes it would cause small strokes of blood to appear, but no less.

"She doesn't have a condition, right?"

I talked to myself in the mirror.

"It would be one thing if she did what she did if she had a condition. It would be pretty understandable... But no, it was all in her fucking character..."

Still, I really wonder, which part of the body is a good practice target.

I must plan this cautiously...

"Still, still, still....!!!!"

I started to cling to the lavatory in front of me and in addition to doing that, my laughter began.

"Hahahaha!!!"

Through each knife stab towards the soggy mirror, the pieces started to crumble as fast as lave scourges through a volcano.

"You can't hurt that BITCH but it's fucking FINE to hurt me instead?! IS THAT IT?! YOU'VE GIVEN ME CONSENT TO DO THE EXACT SAME SHIT TO YOU, BASICALLY!"

No longer being attached to the knife itself, the blade of the knife was sent flying to the ground as I mercilessly stabbed the mirror over and over; feeling the exaggerated pain in my wrist from thrusting so much.

"Fine then."

I stopped the stabbing and kneeled down to get the blade in which I saw my reflection through the bar of illumination reflected by the highlighted spectrum.

My eye veins; mostly red, were running rampant.

"Fine, fine, fine..."

I'll have to think long and hard, but I'll make it work.

"IKKIRI, I'LL GIVE YOU A FUCKING CONDITION THAT YOU'LL LIVE WITH FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE!"