"Who is Kushida eating with?"
'As expected, others have noticed.'
Saiki Kusuo thought to himself, already aware that the attention around him was growing.
"That person... seems to be from our Class D, what's his name again? Kuni-something?"
'Hey, even though I'm practically invisible in class, is the name you're throwing around even close to mine?'
"So envious! He's already eating with one of the prettiest girls in our class, and they look so close!"
'If you could hear her thoughts, you probably wouldn't be so envious.'
Saiki Kusuo sighed inwardly. As expected, Kushida Kikyo was someone he had absolutely no compatibility with, and he didn't like it one bit.
He had just gotten the dessert he'd been craving from her, and there was no need for further interaction.
"Kushida, Saiki! You're here!"
At that moment, a light and energetic voice came from the other side. It was Ichinose Honami, the first person Saiki Kusuo had met outside his class.
Her personality was extremely outgoing. Although she had only recently met Saiki Kusuo and Kushida Kikyo, she had already considered them friends.
The moment Saiki Kusuo saw Ichinose Honami, the voices in his mind grew louder.
"Damn, another beauty! Who's that?"
"Is she from Class B? I think her name's Ichinose or something?"
"Damn it, Kuni-something! How unfair!"
'Seriously, who is this "Kuni-something" you keep talking about?'
Saiki Kusuo felt helpless. Ichinose Honami's arrival had drawn even more attention to him. He hadn't expected to be targeted by such extroverted people on his first day at school. He hadn't encountered such outgoing personalities before.
He glanced at the source of the voices with his peripheral vision. They were also members of Class D:
Sudō Ken, Yamauchi Haruki, and Ike Kanji.
'Absolutely avoid getting involved with these three.'
Saiki Kusuo mentally grouped them with primates.
"You two seem so close! Don't tell me you're already—"
Ichinose Honami's face lit up with a mischievous smile as she asked,
"Together?"
"N-No way!"
Kushida Kikyo's face turned red, looking like a shy girl.
But this innocent act was entirely fake; there was no way she'd consider Saiki Kusuo romantically.
"Earlier, I asked Saiki-kun to help me communicate with Horikita-san, to see if we could ease the tension between us... but it didn't go well."
"Oh, is that so?"
Ichinose Honami raised an eyebrow, looking puzzled.
"Did you two know each other before? Why is Horikita-san acting like that?"
At the question, "Did you two know each other before?" Kushida Kikyo's expression changed instantly, though only for a brief moment. Saiki Kusuo still noticed.
Kushida Kikyo pretended to want to get closer to Horikita Suzune but was actually plotting to get her expelled.
"I don't know. Maybe Horikita-san isn't good with people."
Kushida Kikyo shrugged, skipping over Ichinose Honami's first question, as if she and Horikita Suzune had only met after school started.
"I still want to unite the class as much as possible."
"If that's the case, I might have some advice for you!"
Ichinose Honami immediately shared her experiences from Class B, hoping it would help.
In just one day, Ichinose Honami had become close with everyone in her class. Unlike Kushida Kikyo's deceit, Ichinose Honami was genuinely sincere and kind.
But Saiki Kusuo didn't care about any of this. He just looked helplessly at the two girls chatting away. Leaving the table now was impossible.
...
By the time Ichinose Honami and Kushida Kikyo finished talking, ten minutes had passed. For Saiki Kusuo, it was the longest ten minutes of his life. He could have done so much in that time, but since he'd eaten Kushida Kikyo's treat, leaving directly felt rude.
"Saiki-kun, want to head back to the dorm together?"
Kushida Kikyo asked, her gaze fixed on him. Saiki Kusuo immediately shook his head in refusal.
Kushida Kikyo and Ichinose Honami were both beautiful, and walking with them would definitely attract attention. If Saiki Kusuo joined them, he'd likely draw even more unwanted stares—maybe even hatred.
Plus, he had other plans. He intended to explore other parts of the school.
Like the library, which was said to have every kind of book. Reading mystery novels was one of Saiki Kusuo's few hobbies.
"See you tomorrow, Saiki-kun!"
Kushida Kikyo waved at him with a smile, then left with Ichinose Honami, looking incredibly close.
Before Saiki Kusuo could stand up, Sudō Ken, Yamauchi Haruki, and Ike Kanji surrounded him.
"Hey, are you dating Kushida?!"
Ike Kanji asked seriously, his eyes locked on Saiki Kusuo.
"Is Kuni-something really dating Kushida?! Unacceptable!!!"
'Seriously, you're asking this without even knowing my name? We've only spoken once since school started, and you've known Kushida for less than two days, yet you're already calling her "Kushida-chan." It's terrifying.'
Saiki Kusuo's gaze turned colder, but to avoid trouble, he explained.
"Haha, I knew it! You two moved fast!"
Ike Kanji and the others laughed, holding their heads.
"Sorry, we didn't mean anything by it. We're just curious!"
'Just curious? You were clearly thinking, "How could Kushida be with such an ordinary guy? Why not me?!"
Saiki Kusuo deadpanned inwardly.
Now he was even more convinced these three were no different from idiots.