COTE : There is Something Wrong With Hikigaya

"Change it to 'boys peeping and secretly recording the boys' changing room'?" 

As soon as Haruno said this, the entire meeting room fell silent. Everyone had the same strange expression on their face, even Horikita Manabu adjusted his glasses. 

Even Hikigaya couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth. It was just so typical of Haruno—only she could come up with such an "unusual" way to solve the problem. But he had already figured out what she was getting at. 

"At the end of the day, the school wants to punish the culprits, but they also don't want the situation to blow up too much and cause serious consequences. So, the best way is to shift the focus a little." 

Haruno didn't seem to care about the weird looks from everyone else and continued explaining. "When people hear about boys secretly recording the girls' changing room, they get angry. This isn't just a legal issue—it's also a huge moral and social issue. 

If high school boys spy on and secretly film the girls' changing room, it wouldn't just be a school matter. It would be big enough to make national news and trend online. That's exactly what the school is worried about. 

But if we say it was the boys' changing room instead, the legal consequences would be the same, but the public reaction would be much smaller." 

Haruno wasn't wrong. Even though modern society promotes gender equality, people still instinctively see women as the more vulnerable side. Many things are naturally skewed toward protecting them. 

Take train harassment, for example—what if the victim wasn't a woman, but a man? 

Or this peeping case—when people hear about someone spying on the girls' changing room, they see it as a serious issue because women need protection. It's a natural social instinct. But if it were the boys' changing room instead, people wouldn't see it as such a big deal. 

Many were shocked by Haruno's "wild idea," but when analyzed carefully, it was actually a common political tactic. While others were focused on how to punish the culprits, Haruno was looking at the deeper conflict behind the situation. 

To come up with a "suitable" solution for the school, the key was to resolve that conflict. Haruno's method was simple—just shift the focus. 

Of course, not everyone agreed. Some were hesitant. 

"Can we really do this?" 

Tachibana Akane frowned. She wasn't exactly against Haruno's suggestion, but she felt uneasy about it. Wouldn't this be distorting the truth? 

Haruno understood Tachibana's concerns, as well as those of others, so she explained further. "The student council isn't just here to solve problems. We also have to maintain stability. Sure, revealing the truth about the girls' changing room incident would mean being honest with the students, but it would also cause unrest. 

Some might say we're lying or twisting the facts, but we need to be clear—the student council doesn't exist just to punish people or just to announce things for the sake of it. Every action we take affects the school and the students, both positively and negatively. 

So I believe the first priority is to eliminate any instability. That is also a way of being 'responsible' to the students. 

As for the truth, only a limited number of people need to know. The rest of the students don't need to be overly involved. 

And after this, the school will strengthen its supervision on these kinds of issues. Isn't that a good outcome?" 

After Haruno finished speaking, the room fell silent. 

*Clap!* 

Suddenly, someone started clapping. Surprisingly, it was Nagumo. 

Nagumo took the lead in applauding and openly expressed his approval and appreciation for Haruno's plan. Haruno smiled in response, which only made Nagumo's grin even wider. 

Hikigaya watched this scene unfold. He didn't feel much about it, but he did feel a bit sorry for Nagumo. 

That smile—Hikigaya was all too familiar with it. It was way too deceptive. 

It was like watching a fish take the bait. 

At the same time, even though Hikigaya had his doubts about Haruno's approach, he had to admit that her words had made sense. Or rather, her perspective had been different from everyone else's from the start. 

It was a way of thinking with a bigger picture in mind—more strategic, more calculated. It made Hikigaya sigh to himself, *As expected of the eldest daughter of the Yukinoshita family.* Her insight was sharp, and her methods were just as ruthless. 

Because, in reality, Haruno's plan of "changing the target to the boys' changing room" was even more brutal. 

It looked like she was reducing the negative impact, but if you thought about it carefully… 

Why would a group of boys spy on and secretly record the boys' changing room? 

Did they have a certain… unusual preference? 

The moment such rumors started, it would be just as serious as spying on the girls' changing room. The difference was that in the first case, the focus was on the victims and would cause public outrage. But in the second case, all the attention would be on the culprits. 

So in a way, Haruno's plan not only addressed the school's concerns and kept the situation under control but also didn't go easy on the culprits at all. 

It looked like she was letting them off the hook, but in reality, she was tightening the noose around their necks. 

And with just a little pull… they'd be better off dead.

Horikita Manabu didn't give an immediate response to Haruno's proposal. Instead, he said he needed more time to consider it. On the surface, it seemed like he was rejecting the idea, but in reality, his words already signaled approval. It was just that certain formalities still needed to be followed. 

Later, the student council would hold an even bigger hearing regarding the culprits—Ike, Yamauchi, and the others. This time, it wouldn't just involve the student council. The four first-year homeroom teachers and school officials would also participate. Hikigaya, however, wouldn't be involved. 

Besides avoiding conflicts of interest, this was also to protect Hikigaya. After all, he was the one who reported the case, and the culprits were his own classmates. Hikigaya didn't mind staying out of it. He hadn't expected it, but he ended up getting a few days off because of it. 

… 

In a separate, empty room, Ike sat anxiously, his face full of panic. Not long ago, he and the other students involved in the Delta Plan had been forcibly brought here by school staff. Before him, Yamauchi, Sudou, and Ayanokouji had already been taken away. Now, he was the only one left. 

It was obvious—the whole thing had been exposed! 

Ike was soon taken into the meeting room. Moments later, his shocked voice echoed through the space. 

"That's impossible! You said as long as—" 

"Your accomplice has already identified you. First-year Class D student, Ike Kanji. You are the mastermind behind the secret filming incident. The purchase records and videos confirm it was you. We also have an audio recording…" 

"What recording?!" 

Ike listened to the recording in shock, his face turning pale. Then, he suddenly remembered what Ayanokouji had whispered to him not long ago: 

"I heard Yamauchi confessed to Kushida last week, but she turned him down. She said she already liked someone else." 

"Yamauchi!!! You betrayed me!!!" 

Ike shouted in fury, but before he could say anything else, school staff dragged him away. 

--- 

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