“Then that concludes homeroom. The first semester closing ceremony is only a few days away, so everyone look back on the semester and if there’s anything you should reflect on, make improvements during this break. That is all.”

A fair amount of time passed and the rumors surrounding Horikita disappeared faster than I expected.

The warning I fired at the entire Class D worked well and the fact I acknowledged Horikita as my prized maid spread quickly across the entire first year so the rumors wouldn’t spread much, if only because they were afraid of me.

With Class C staying quiet too, it seems that once the situation calmed down, Ryūen immediately ordered them to back off. It may have been light messing around but through this incident everyone in Class D would have learned. Just how vicious and terrifying a man named Ryūen Kakeru was and how terrifying a demon like me was as someone who could practically be the only one to oppose him.

Yeah... we’re back to a peaceful everyday life. A quiet routine no different from usual.

“Alright, see you, Horikita!”

“Yeah, Sudō, you too.”

If anything changed, it was Horikita’s behavior. In the past she wouldn’t have answered Sudō’s greeting that normally.

“Kgh! Sh-she answered me! Damn it, if only I’d made it into the top twenty this exam, I’d have had a real chance!”

“You still believe that? Obviously Ayanokoji was joking.”

“Shut up! A real man doesn’t give up before he even tries. So, can’t you run me through confession practice just one more time?”

“Like that’s gonna happen, man~”

“You idiot! I said practice. If you don’t practice, you won’t improve. Basketball’s the same. Shooting matters for both.”

For the record, Sudō avoided failing and escaped last place too. His conviction that he’d definitely confess to Horikita and end up dating her turned into motivation and became study fuel more than ten times stronger than other incompetent guys.

Even so, he wasn’t anywhere near top twenty, he was just third from last, barely beating Ike and Yamauchi.

If he learned the truth, the blowback would hit me properly but unless a miracle happens, Sudō will never place in the top twenty, so I’ll stay quiet.

While I was getting ready to head home, Kushida approached me with a bright smile.

“Oh, Ayanokoji, do you want to go shopping with us? I was thinking of going to a boutique with a few others.”

If someone else had seen her true nature, they might have thought they were dreaming with how much her attitude had flipped. This was the friendly Kushida everyone knew, not the Kushida only I had ever seen, the one exactly as she really was.

Comparing them, it’s honestly impressive. Most people could never pull that off.

Without getting dragged along by Kushida’s my-pace flow, I refused firmly.

“I’ll pass. I have plans.”

“Plans? Are you going to laze around and sleep in the dorm?”

“No. It’s bathhouse day.”

Kushida looked dumbfounded at the unexpected answer.

“B-bathhouse? This school had one?”

“It does. It’s in a spot away from the dorms most first years don’t know about. Anyway, I’m off.”

“Ah, but if you’re bathing, isn’t it fine to go at night? This early evening is kind of—”

“There’s something you don’t know. Anyway, I said I’m not going, right?”

Part of it is an excuse to avoid Kushida but it’s true, today is bathhouse day.

At this school the men’s and women’s sides switch every week and for some reason only one side has an open-air bath and when I went before, mine didn’t have it. I saw online that an open-air bath is an outdoor bath arranged so you can enjoy the natural scenery while soaking, meaning you can bathe while looking up at the blue sky with no roof.

Yeah, I personally want to try that open-air bath.

As I was about to leave the classroom with that anticipation, I heard the girls Kushida was going out with whispering.

“Bathhouse? That’s unexpected, Ayanokoji goes to public baths.”

“I thought she was more like a rich princess.”

“Wait, this school had a bathhouse?”

“I know where it is but it’s mostly second and third years who go.”

“Maybe she’s going on purpose to get information from upperclassmen?”

“That makes sense. No wonder she knows so much about the school.”

“She said she heard about cashing out points from some second-year upperclassman, right?”

“Sh-should we make time to go too? We might be able to overhear exam stuff ahead of time.”

“Yeah! We might learn rules we don’t know either.”

What dumb incompetents. Do they not even know there’s a rule that upperclassmen can’t casually disclose school rules or exam content to underclassmen?

Personally, I hope other first years don’t come. Since it’s mostly upperclassmen coming and going, it feels like a space only I know among the first years, so if someone barges in, it feels like an intrusion.

In other words, it’s the perfect place to feel a peaceful everyday life.

* * *

When I arrived at the bathhouse, unlike the first time I hesitated, I naturally put my clothes and bag in an empty locker and wrapped myself in a towel I’d brought. As expected, it was only second and third year upperclassmen around and among first years, it was just me.

‘Then should I go into the open-air bath?’

With anticipation, I opened the open-air bath door and the chill of cool evening air flowing in through the open ceiling washed over my whole body, making me shiver. Even though the bathhouse walls hid most of it, the sensation of standing naked outdoors gave me a strange, guilty thrill.

Like breaking a hidden taboo? More importantly, it’s too cold to keep standing, so I should get in quickly.

The bath, arranged with artificial stone to mimic natural scenery, looked like the hot-spring baths you often see in the media. When I sat down in the warm water, a pleasant drowsiness settled in.

Cool above and warm below... when you move in the water, the parts wet with bathwater touch the evening air and turn cool and when it feels too cold you sink deeper and turn warm again. It was on a different level from the half-body baths I used to take regularly in the White Room for cleanliness.

‘This is nice... I should come more often.’

Then I sensed someone approaching.

The woman who sat right beside me crossed her legs like she had that day in the sauna, leaned back with both arms and settled into a relaxed posture.

“What a coincidence, seeing each other twice in the bathhouse.”

“Maybe it’s not a coincidence, maybe it’s inevitable. Among first years, you’re the only one who comes to the bathhouse often.”

“Somehow it feels like we only ever meet when we’re naked.”

“Heh, maybe because there’s no reason for us to meet in any other space?”

Before, the steam and the generally dim mood and lighting kept me from seeing her properly but now it was clear that Kiryuin-senpai gave off a strong presence distinct from the other upperclassmen. Even as I soaked to relieve fatigue, I felt a strange surge of energy.

The sight of the two of us, both beautiful and radiating the aura of the capable as we sat together in the bath, was something no skilled painter could fully capture.

“I heard you had friction with Kiriyama the other day. If you don’t mind, could I hear what happened?”

“It was nothing. I went to the student council room because I had business with the student council president and he was inside with a few others, probably helper ants. He asked probing questions so I made a light joke and he blew up.”

It wasn’t that light of a joke. It was the kind that could make anyone listening go serious, like claiming the student council president sexually harassed me.

“Heh, Kiriyama really is a boring man who doesn’t understand jokes.”

“So I greeted him to apologize but he asked how I knew him so I said I heard about him from you. Then he said you were finished as a human, a contaminant and the like. It felt pretty bad hearing a senpai I’m acquainted with get insulted, so I scolded him politely with facts.”

Kiryuin-senpai didn’t look angry or displeased at my claim that she'd been insulted behind her back. She just laughed loudly, like she was having fun.

“So that’s why Kiriyama’s face was worth seeing! I was about to head home when he suddenly came up to me and started picking a fight, asking if it felt good to insult him through a junior. I had no idea what he was talking about so I asked again and he just got mad and left without explaining anything. Your name came up so I figured you were involved but I never expected that. Hahahaha!”

Seems Kiriyama-senpai tried to take out what I did to him on Kiryuin-senpai and failed. Pathetic. What did he even want to hear, going to her when she didn’t know anything?

“Anyway, I’m sorry I dragged you into something unpleasant.”

“It’s fine, you and I aren’t unrelated. Besides, even if Kiriyama is usually boring, his reactions can be funny sometimes. I don’t mind if you use my name as you like.”

If you say so, thanks. Having one senpai who can serve as backing will make school life more fun, so I appreciate it.

“I have something I’m curious about, may I ask?”

“If you’re asking me, it’s probably a question about the second years?”

“Before, you said I became a topic among the seniors. How am I being evaluated among the current second years?”

Nagumo, the current student council vice president and next president candidate the man effectively controlling the entire second year. There’s no way he doesn’t know about me. Depending on how second years evaluate me, he might decide whether to take interest.

Kiryuin-senpai looked like she was considering how to put it, then spoke.

“You’re still burning hot at the center of attention. I heard you were offered a secretary position by the student council president?”

“I didn’t plan to spread it but there’s someone I wanted to mess with, so I couldn’t help it.”

“On top of the fact the president acknowledged you, word spread that you recently took the president’s younger sister as someone close to you, so it’s moved past interest into a strange kind of tension. Especially Kiriyama, whenever your name comes up, he looks full of dissatisfaction.”

Has it spread that far? Among first years it’s already common knowledge but I didn’t realize it reached the second years. Did club kids tell their senpais?

If it’s spread this much, the chance they will approach me is high. I expected the timing to be around mid-second or third term but... whenever it happens, I just hope they don’t mess with my peaceful everyday life.

“Wow, I don’t know what to do with all this hot attention, it’s making me shy.”

“Weren’t you enjoying it? From the start you were loudly preaching meritocracy and moving in flashy ways, so I thought you enjoyed attention?”

It might look that way but I’m not some pitiable breed starved for attention. My life isn’t that pitiable to begin with.

I simply enjoy showing incompetent people who lack self-awareness or have low self-esteem my competence and superiority as a capable person. The endorphin rush from taking their gaze into my body is a pleasure so strong it doesn’t even compare to eating something tasty, showering after exercise or even masturbating.

Ah, that said, I’m not some sadistic pervert addicted to it who goes around causing incidents. I just want small, ordinary, peaceful days like this, where short events happen now and then that let me feel a light thrill.

Though with a head-on clash with Ryūen already foretold, that won’t be possible.

“Let’s just say I enjoy a capable person’s sense of superiority.”

“Superiority, huh. You really are interesting. To think I’d find this kind of fun over the next two years.”

“Same. What am I supposed to do when I’m a third year and get depressed?”

“Yeah. If only this school had a skip-a-grade system.”

Skipping a grade… I haven’t never thought about it. The upside would be reuniting with my brother a year earlier. But I learned through student council info that this school has no such system, so I gave up early. It’s a shame but it’s fine. No, thinking again, it’s better not to.

Because I want to keep connections with capable people longer, connections I couldn’t have in the White Room. At this school I have a close classmate, Hiyori and a close senpai, Kiryuin-senpai and maybe when I become a second year I’ll even get a close junior.

Speaking of juniors… it reminds me of ‘that guy,’ the only person besides my brother I was close with in the White Room. What is he doing now?

Maybe it was the comfort of the warm water or the cheerful talk with Kiryuin-senpai but I thought this. If everyday life with people you’re close to is like this, staying at this school isn’t bad.

Of course that doesn’t include the incompetents in our class at all.