There is something wrong with Hikigaya’s classroom of the Elite, as expected

Chapter 11: The Truth of Enrollment (Part 1)

Hikigaya harbored eight parts suspicion regarding Shizuka-sensei’s explanation, though he didn’t show it, silently keeping it in his mind.

“Such a touching teacher-student bond~~”

At this moment, Haruno, who had been ‘offline’ up until now, finally seemed to ‘log in.’

“So it turns out the ‘troublesome little virgin’ that little Shizuka often talks about is actually so capable. I never expected that the originator of that incident would be you, Hikigaya-kun. You’ve truly brought me so many surprises~~” Haruno said with a smiling expression.

Hikigaya looked at her, his face dark with annoyance. “Troublesome little virgin? You must have added that part yourself!”

“Okay, fine, I admit I added a little personal touch,” Haruno shrugged, acknowledging it without a hint of remorse, and at the same time, Shizuka-sensei was quietly laughing beside her.

Haruno, of course, was well aware of the scandal that had occurred among the second-year students at Sobu Middle School. On the surface, it appeared to be just a bullying incident, but in reality, it unexpectedly uncovered a lot of dirty secrets.

However, due to the huge impact of this incident, even her mother had been very concerned. Therefore, the school and certain people had restricted and kept some of the information confidential. Like most regular people, Haruno only knew a small part of the information that was leaked to the public.

“Tsk tsk, not only did they bring down a vice-principal, but they also forced the head of the department and several teachers to publicly apologize and self-criticize in front of all the staff and students, and then they all got kicked out. Truly… it was quite spectacular and thrilling!”

This was the extent of what Haruno had learned. As for the deeper secrets, she didn’t know, but she was aware that many people had been seriously affected by this incident behind the scenes.

Hikigaya: “…..”

Shizuka-sensei, who had been silent until now, suddenly displayed a rare serious expression. “Haruno, don’t bring up this matter again. Even your mother doesn’t want this issue to be spread all over!”

“Oook~”

At the mention of Haruno’s mother, Haruno’s expression noticeably changed, then she looked displeased. “What is it? Shizuka, now that you have a new lover, you’ve forgotten about your old love? You really are a bad woman!”

Shizuka-sensei’s face darkened as she flicked Haruno’s forehead and sternly warned, “Don’t talk nonsense! And Yukinoshita, be mindful of your words. In school, we are teacher and student.”

“Okay, Shizuka-sensei~” Haruno intentionally said in a sweet, high-pitched voice.

As for Hikigaya, he looked like he hadn’t heard anything.

Shizuka-sensei felt a headache coming on, facing these two students—one was mischievous and cunning, and the other was reclusive and liked to overthink, both not being easy students to deal with. Yet, ironically, they were also the closest to her.

“I still have some odds and ends to handle. Do you want to stay and help?” Shizuka-sensei asked Haruno.

“I still have something to do….” Hikigaya immediately started to speak.

“You stay, brat!”

Hikigaya’s sentence was cut off as Shizuka-sensei interrupted him. Before he could protest, she shot him a fierce look, causing him to wear an expression that was a mix of exasperation and resignation.

“Heh, then I’ll leave?” Haruno pretended to pout. “But didn’t little Shizuka promise we would have dinner together~~”

“Alright, alright, I’ll treat you to dinner tonight, is that good enough?” Shizuka-sensei said helplessly.

“Yay! But Shizuka, don’t go back on your word. And remember to stay safe~” After that, Haruno vanished in the blink of an eye, leaving not a trace.

“That kid is really something!”

Shizuka-sensei clearly understood the meaning behind her words, and barely resisted the urge to run out and scold her.

“Oh, wait, I almost forgot one more thing.”

Haruno’s head suddenly popped back out of the door and, smiling, she winked at Hikigaya. “Hikigaya-kun, you know about the club recruitment event in the gym this evening, right? I’ll be waiting for you there, remember to come~”

“Wait! Why…”

Hikigaya’s face stiffened, but before he could finish speaking, Haruno had already disappeared, not giving him a chance to refuse.

…

In the blink of an eye, only Hikigaya and Shizuka-sensei were left alone in the guidance room.

“Shizuka-sensei, I have a question about the truth of this school…”

As Hikigaya was about to speak, Shizuka-sensei seemed to have already guessed what he was going to ask, and spoke first. “I know what you’re going to ask, but I’m sorry, as a teacher, I must adhere to the rules and regulations, and I can’t disclose more information about this school.”

Though she said that, her answer was essentially an ‘answer.’

“Seems like this school has a big problem.”

In reality, Shizuka-sensei’s behavior in class earlier that day had indirectly confirmed a lot of Hikigaya’s suspicions. Faced with the terrible classroom discipline in class D, normally, Shizuka-sensei would never have ignored it, but she still turned a blind eye. There must be a special reason behind this.

Hikigaya’s expression was seen by Shizuka-sensei, and she couldn’t help but admire his perceptiveness. She didn’t expect him to figure out the truth of this school so quickly. Could it be that when God closes a door, they really do open a window for you?

Sigh… It’s just unfortunate this kid has a mental illness.

Hikigaya, hearing this, no longer pressed for more questions. Though he still had doubts about the school, he didn’t want to make things difficult for Shizuka-sensei.

Shizuka-sensei noticed Hikigaya suddenly become ‘silent,’ and a trace of guilt flashed across her face. Her gaze grew complicated, and she sighed before speaking. “Actually, there’s something I need to apologize to you for.”

“The reason you ended up at this school is all because I arranged it.”

“Hmm, I knew.”

Slightly stunned, Shizuka-sensei looked at Hikigaya, who was unusually calm, and couldn’t see any hint of surprise or anger.

“Eh? You’re not surprised, or angry?”

Shizuka-sensei had already prepared for the ‘worst-case scenario,’ which was why she had deliberately sent Haruno away. But she hadn’t expected this reaction.

“Well, how do I put it… I already knew,” Hikigaya hesitated before speaking.

After a few seconds of silence, Shizuka-sensei suddenly slapped her thigh.

“Eh, so I was worrying for nothing?”

The anxious expression on Shizuka-sensei’s face vanished as she exhaled in relief. She then skillfully pulled out a pack of SIXSTARS women’s cigarettes from her pocket and didn’t seem to care about Hikigaya being present. Sitting back in the chair, she crossed her legs and started smoking, transforming back into the same terrible teacher Hikigaya was most familiar with.

“Hey, we’re still in school, inside a room! Can’t you be more careful? If someone finds out, your salary will be deducted!” Hikigaya complained as he walked to the window and opened the other side to let some air in. He also handed over a nearby ashtray to Shizuka-sensei.

“Well, as long as no one finds out, right?” Shizuka-sensei muttered quietly.

“Heh, I wonder who triggered the smoke detectors twice in one day?” Hikigaya said with a blank expression.

“That was just an accident! Besides, this is the guidance room assigned to me by the school. It’s lunch time now, no one will notice, so don’t worry,” Shizuka-sensei confidently patted her chest.

Leaning against the desk with one hand propping up her chin, Shizuka-sensei casually held the cigarette in her other hand. She looked completely unconcerned with any ‘mature woman’ or ‘teacher’ image.

“Well, how did you know it was me who arranged this?”

“It was actually an accident. I have very little presence at home, and by chance, I overheard a conversation between my mom and a teacher. They were talking about this school, but at that time, I didn’t pay much attention or have any suspicions.”

Hikigaya recalled the situation, and it must have been the day after New Year’s. He hadn’t given it much thought at the time, and even then, he still thought he would enter Sobu’s high school. It wasn’t until later when he learned that he would be going to school in Tokyo that he started realizing something was off.

“Actually, I’ve been suspicious until yesterday. But after seeing my ‘classmates’ today, that suspicion was about 90% confirmed. Your appearance was just the final nail in the coffin,” Hikigaya said calmly.

“After I accidentally uncovered the truth of this school, I’ve had one big question,” Hikigaya paused, then sighed. “That is, how someone like me… ended up passing the ‘entrance exam’ and entering this school.”