'What's this guy up to?'
Saiki Kusuo's attention was entirely on the student, his mind filled with curiosity, though he could guess the other's intentions weren't good.
With Sudo Ken's volatile personality, there was a chance things could escalate into a conflict.
'Yare yare, if it does escalate, it'll be troublesome. Better intervene a little.'
Saiki thought to himself and immediately activated his abilities—
At that moment, the boy from Class D was rushing toward Sudo Ken.
[Just crash into him... it'll probably hurt... but this is Ryuuen's order. I have to provoke Sudo somehow, make him angry.]
'Figured he was here to cause trouble.'
Saiki casually waved his hand, and the boy's shoelace suddenly untied itself, tangling into a knot mid-air. He lost his balance and stumbled, falling right in front of everyone, landing on his knees.
"....."
Sudo and the others were caught off guard.
[Ouch, ouch, ouch! What the—were my shoelaces untied?! I definitely tied them!]
The boy scrambled to his feet, covered in dust, and glanced down at his shoelaces—they were simply undone.
In the instant he fell, Saiki had untied the knot.
[Damn it, damn it, damn it! How did this happen? If I go back like this, I'll get beaten up for sure!]
He tried to get up, forcing himself to collide with Sudo—but at that moment, a slender figure suddenly appeared in front of him.
"Are you okay, classmate?"
Kushida Kikyo's voice was filled with genuine concern as she stepped forward, placing a hand on his shoulder.
[Wow, she's so cute! Wait, is she Kushida Kikyo?]
'Seriously? One moment he's all righteous, and the next, he forgets his mission the moment he sees a pretty girl?'
Saiki felt a mix of exasperation and amusement.
"Are you a first-year student too?"
Kushida smiled warmly, her tone gentle and friendly.
"Uh, yeah... I'm from... uh, Class D. Just call me Yamawaki!"
The boy, now calling himself Yamawaki, replied with a nervous laugh.
Saiki glanced at Yamawaki, his X-ray vision piercing through his skin to his heart. Inside, Yamawaki's pulse was racing.
"Well, I'll be going then!"
His face slightly flushed, Yamawaki quickly turned and dashed away.
"Weird guy."
Sudo and the others didn't think much of it. Sudo headed to the basketball gym for practice, while Ike and Yamauchi returned to the dorms.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka glanced in the direction Yamawaki had run.
[That guy was involved in monitoring us earlier. His actions just now seemed deliberate, like he was trying to provoke Sudo...]
[Was he trying to anger Sudo on purpose? What's the point? With Sudo's temper, even a small provocation could lead to a fight. I recall the school rules—fighting on campus means expulsion. Is that his goal? If so, the risk is too high.]
[But what happened when he fell? From his reaction, it seemed like an accident...]
Aside from Saiki, Ayanokoji was the only one who noticed something was off about Yamawaki.
[Whatever. Let's wait and see. If Class D is planning something, they'll make a move eventually. Best to observe for now.]
With that thought, Ayanokoji returned to the dorm with the others, as did Saiki.
Back in his room, Saiki immediately activated his clairvoyance, searching for Yamawaki. He quickly located him near the school gym, lurking in a corner, eyes fixed on Sudo entering the basketball court.
"Yare yare, he's definitely up to something shady. Theoretically, it's none of my business, but if it's targeting our entire Class C, I can't ignore it."
Saiki vanished from sight, teleporting behind Yamawaki in an instant.
[Is Sudo practicing already? I failed earlier, so I need to provoke him somehow... or Ryuuen won't let me off...]
'Still not giving up, huh?'
Saiki narrowed his eyes, standing just meters behind Yamawaki, invisible to the boy.
Meanwhile, Sudo was warming up on the court, and Yamawaki began creeping closer, planning to collide with him again—
But as soon as he took a step, he tripped and fell once more.
Saiki had untied his shoelaces again, this time tangling them even tighter.
Thud!
Yamawaki landed on his knees, the loud noise drawing everyone's attention.
"You again?!"
Sudo's gaze locked onto Yamawaki.
"Weren't you the one from earlier? Are you following me?"
"I-I..."
Yamawaki froze, realizing not just Sudo but everyone in the gym was staring at him.
[This is bad... everyone's looking at me... what do I do? The plan's ruined now.]
"I... I just wanted to learn basketball, so I came here."
Yamawaki blurted out the first excuse that came to mind.
"Is that so?"
Sudo's eyebrows furrowed briefly before relaxing, a smile spreading across his face.
"Perfect. The basketball coach and team are here. Let's give you a quick fitness test!"
Before Yamawaki could protest, the basketball team members swarmed him, dragging him away.
"Wait, wait!"