Warau

Chapter C: Radao joins the party

I woke up early today and arrived pretty early in school too. The building was pretty empty, hinting that the majority of the students arrive at the school 5-10 minutes before the reporting time. I arrived 30 mins before it(8am), exactly 5 minutes after the school gate opened.

"Good Morning Oreki-senpai." Radao greeted me from behind. "Good morning Radao" I greeted him back. "Do you always come this early to school?" Radao asked me. "No, I barely reach school on time everyday, I just happened to wake up really early today." I answered him. "I see, can I come to your class and have a chat with you until it's time for the school to start?" He asked me for company."Hm,sure, I think Chitanda and the rest will take a while to arrive here." I agreed to give him company.

We both arrived at the front of the class door. I opened the door and found the class to be empty, except for one guy who was bending down to... I suppose tying his laces? I pulled out the seat of my bench and sat on it. Radao sat on the bench in front of me. He turned his chair towards me and started his talk.

"Have you always been this apathetic?" Radao asks me with concern. "Join me and you will get to experience heaven." I replied. Sitting in my classroom with barely any students inside, I never saw it in my entire lifespan. This emptiness surely feels weird. I yawned once during Radao's presence as the boredom was getting to me. He remained speechless though he initially came here to have some chat with me. He was rather busy looking around the classroom than having any talks, he didn't have any questions after taking the entire class view too.

"I am heading to my class then, thanks for accompanying me for some time." Radao finally decides to take his leave. I said him adieu and walked through the time with books. Not long after his leave, students started entering the class including Chitanda who came in 5 mins before the school reporting time. Then that was it, lonesomeness in the class was over and the periods started right after the teacher's entrance.

Classes passed by and it was time for lunch. I was about to leave the class to have my tiffin somewhere peaceful until Chitanda came to me with some school news."Oreki-san, there have been some rumors about some ghost in our class." Chitanda says with agitation. "Huh?" I acted confused. Ghost...really? I then decided to hear her out. "I heard from my friends that there has been some type of theft in our class. Denki-san from our class left behind his pen in class yesterday. He came pretty early this morning to check for his pen but he didn't find it anywhere in the class." Chitanda explains the case.
"Maybe someone stole it.." - Me(Hotaro)
"Well no, he says he came first to class." - Chitanda
"I see, so that guy is Denki-san.." - Me(Hotaro)
"Huh?" - Chitanda
"I arrived at school early too today, upon entering the classroom I saw one guy who was changing his bench again and again. It did seem like he was searching for something." - Me
"He didn't talk with you about his issue?" - Chitanda
"No, he probably already knew that I was hopeless" - Me
"Don't say it. Maybe he felt nervous to ask you, he is quite the introvert." - Chitanda
"I am too ig...anyways, perhaps someone stole it after he left." - Me
"Sedly, that's not the case. He left the class at last yesterday, after leaving he locked the door as instructed by the class president." - Chitanda
"What a lousy class president." - Me
"Not his fault, the president had a guest arrival at his home so he had to leave early." - Chitanda
"Maybe some cleaning staff-" - Me
"They don't do cleaning on the first day of school." - Chitanda
"Well...that leaves no one then." - Me
"That will mean that there is indeed a ghost involved in this theft." - Chitanda
"I suppose ghosts are real afterall-" - Me
"I DON'T BELIEVE IN GHOSTS! I definitely feel that someone from the students is involved in the theft, we just don't know about it clearly." - Chitanda
"Eh?" - Me

Normally, it still could have been some staff but, this would be a great coincidence for them to only come to 3-A. This is still a possibility but it's really improbable. I am really not in the mood to solve her case, I can't pass on it either though.