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

Chapter 29: Are You Trying to Threaten Me?

Kamuro Masumi—about this girl, Hikigaya had noticed her on the second day he was at the library. At first, he didn’t pay much attention, but later realized that he was being “followed”!

This was actually the first time Hikigaya had been followed in his life, and it felt rather peculiar because… usually, he was the one who was seen as the creepy stalker.

So, Hikigaya pretended not to notice, partly because of his own vanity, and partly because he was afraid of misinterpreting the situation. After all, being seen as a creepy stalker is a serious accusation, especially when it’s coming from a girl.

It’s not that Hikigaya was exaggerating—perhaps in the end, he would turn out to be the stalker himself.

So, after seeing Kamuro in the activity room earlier, Hikigaya couldn’t help but glance at her a few more times. To his surprise, this small action made her suspicious. No wonder she was good at espionage and surveillance—she was sharp.

“Can I leave now?” Hikigaya asked tentatively.

Seeing that there was no response, Hikigaya turned to leave, but just as he took a step, he was called back by the girl behind him.

“Wait!”

Kamuro Masumi glared at Hikigaya. “So you’ve known all along, and have been pretending not to notice. Even in the activity room earlier, it was the same. Was it just to see me make a fool of myself?”

Hikigaya: “…….”

Good grief, can you stop overthinking?

“If I had recognized you in the activity room earlier, it would’ve been troublesome, right?” Hikigaya ignored the confused expression on the purple-haired girl’s face and continued helplessly, “I just didn’t want to make things difficult for myself or anyone else.”

“Hah? So, you mean I’d have been punished by Sakanagi?” Kamuro Masumi was very angry at Hikigaya’s assumption and quickly rebutted, “I-I’m not afraid of her!”

Hey, girl, don’t you think you sound unsure when you say that?

“Well, that’s good then,” Hikigaya replied with a face of “I get it,” “If there’s nothing else, I’ll be leaving now.”

Phew~ finally I can get away… But before Hikigaya could even relax, Kamuro Masumi’s voice sounded again.

“Hey, wait.”

Hikigaya wondered if it was just his imagination, but he felt like her voice was no longer as harsh and stiff as before.

“Did you lose on purpose to Sakanagi?”

Hikigaya looked at Kamuro in confusion, not really understanding her intentions.

“No, Sakanagi’s skill is indeed very strong, at least at the level of a professional beginner,” Hikigaya answered honestly.

“Really?” Kamuro Masumi frowned, seeming to doubt the truth of Hikigaya’s words.

Having followed Hikigaya for nearly a week, Kamuro Masumi was very clear about what he had been doing in the library during that time.

What she reported to Sakanagi was that “he was reading and memorizing a lot of chess-related books and game records in the library.”

Kamuro Masumi wasn’t sure if anyone else could grasp the significance behind that short sentence, but she had personally witnessed the entire process.

The boy named Hikigaya, from the afternoon when school ended until the library closed, spent almost 6 hours without wasting any time, fully immersed in books.

She had secretly looked at the library check-out machine he used, and the pages were filled with book numbers and chess game records, one after another. It was conservatively estimated that there were over a hundred books.

She had wondered and was curious—did this rushed reading really work?

She wasn’t sure if it was effective, but his diligence and persistence were enough to surpass most of the students in her class.

Kamuro Masumi hadn’t reported the process to Sakanagi, only the result.

Kamuro Masumi silently watched Hikigaya’s figure gradually disappear. So, the final result was, no matter how hard he tried, he still couldn’t beat a genius?

Wait!

That guy only admitted that Sakanagi was strong, right?

“Damn it!” Kamuro Masumi only realized it after the fact, but by then, where was Hikigaya’s figure? She could only stamp her foot in frustration.

…

“Do you think I’m an idiot? If someone traps me in a room, of course I have to feign weakness. That guy, Kito, obviously comes from a strong martial arts background. I’m just a small fry; there’s no way I can match up to him!”

After leaving the club activity building, Hikigaya kept mumbling to himself. Of course, the “feigning weakness” part was just Hikigaya trying to cover up. In terms of actual chess ability, he knew he wasn’t a match for that white-haired girl.

“But this Sakanagi… seems a little dangerous!”

From this Sakanagi Arisu, Hikigaya sensed a similar vibe to a certain powerful person.

Someone like that was best to stay away from. Moreover… Hikigaya had a faint feeling that she wasn’t really after him; it seemed like she was trying to find something through him?

Her true intention was likely related to a certain big shot!

“The relationship is so complicated!” Hikigaya sighed. The more he tried to avoid trouble, the more trouble seemed to find him in various ways.

“Looks like collecting personal points is too easily noticed by people with ulterior motives.”

“It’s been almost three weeks since school started, and the truth about this school is probably already discovered by other classes.”

As always, Hikigaya never thought of himself as the smartest or most special person, and other people weren’t idiots either. So, he had long been mentally prepared for this. From Sakanagi’s behavior, Hikigaya also had a strong sense that “she already knows.” This was probably the sensitivity of a lone wolf.

“Is this the difference between Class A and Class D?” Hikigaya smiled bitterly.

Other classes had already started exploring the truth about the school, while his own class was still happily unaware. Hikigaya could only feel a deep sense of helplessness.

Is there even any value in having this class around?

But this wasn’t something Hikigaya needed to think about. Even if the sky fell, there were tall people to hold it up. As someone at the bottom, he should just quietly be an invisible bug.

However, another event soon shattered this calm.

Hikigaya finally received his student council interview notice. It had been almost three weeks since he submitted his application. He had thought it had fallen into oblivion, discarded like a piece of waste paper, but unexpectedly, there was a glimmer of hope?

At the same time that he received the interview notice, a message from a certain big shot arrived!

“Hikigaya-kun, do your best~”

Could it be that his mobile phone had been secretly installed with monitoring software by the Demon King?