The True Elites

Chapter 4-8: Karuizawa Kei

Sora's POV

Standing before me was an extremely angry boy by the name of Hirata Yōsuke. And the cause of said anger is, of course, me.

While I was ninety-nine percent sure that this fuming individual wouldn't raise his hand against me, it still didn't help to settle my jittery nerves. I'd gone all out on that performance, and a lot of explaining would have to be done to diffuse this situation.

"Sora-kun... I was under the impression that you were a good, civil person. That was the vibe you gave during that lunch we had together."

Hirata spoke in a tone edged with disappointment. The lunch which he was referring to was, of course, the one in which his classmates were talking about bullying their classmate whom they didn't like, Horikita.

Hirata seemed angry, but he didn't launch into an offensive attack toward me, be it physical or verbally. I suppose this was the kind of man he was. I decided not to respond directly to his statement, and seized control of the conversation immediately.

"Hmm... Hirata, do you realise that, at this rate, the problem with Karuizawa will never go away?" I said.

Hirata appeared bewildered by my blatant disregard for his words. His anger, however, was clearly more evident still.

"I don't appreciate you dodging my statement right now, Sora-kun."

Damn. He was serious about this. Looks like I can't just do whatever I want in this conversation, huh.

"To be blunt, I'm helping both you and Karuizawa. You just don't see it yet." I retorted.

"I don't believe that a verbal attack could constitute to helping this situation," he replied firmly.

Well, to him, me barging into his private one-on-one with Karuizawa was plainly disrespectful and unhelpful. Unfortunately, though, it was a necessary evil.

Actually, why was it necessary, again? I believed that Kiyotaka had a plan, but now that he has Karuizawa alone, what exactly is he planning to do?

In any case, it's best just to trust in him and do the job on my end here.

"I mean, it was the best way to achieve the objective," I said.

Hirata raised his eyebrow, wordlessly responding to me.

"I needed to separate you from Karuizawa. That was the easiest way," I elaborated.

"There were definitely more tactful ways for you to do that," Hirata said, his eyes hardened. "Regardless, that's not the point. Why do you need to separate the two of us after intruding on our private affairs?"

Hirata was rightfully wary. I'd heard everything, from Karuizawa's situation with Manabe to their relationship being fake. It would be a big problem if I revealed this to the rest of the students.

"In actuality, I already knew most of what you discussed," I said.

"Ah, that's right. Sora-kun was there when Karuizawa had her run-in with Manabe-san and her friends, right? That doesn't explain much, though."

"The truth is that I can relate to Karuizawa's situation," I said, before lowering my voice to speak the next part. "If I'm not mistaken, she's a bullying victim."

Hirata's eyes widened in surprise. Looks like I was right on the money.

"H-how did you..." he mumbled in shock.

"I told you, didn't I? I can relate to her situation. That's how, along with my reading abilities, I was able to deduce it from her behaviour." I explained.