The Next Day – Sōbu High, Faculty Office
"So, you're the only mber of your club?"
Hiratsuka Shizuka sat slightly sideways in her chair, one hand resting against her forehead.
The other rhythmically tapping a finger on the club application form lying on her desk.
Her gaze, filled with a mix of irritation and confusion, rested on the girl standing in front of her.
"Yes, for now, that's correct."
The girl submitting the application is Yukinoshita Yukino—stood ramrod straight.
Her slender legs, clad in black over-the-knee socks, were so close together that there wasn't even a sliver of space between them.
Her flawless face betrayed no emotion, and while her voice was crisp and pleasant, it sohow made Hiratsuka's headache worse.
"So you're saying more mbers might join later? Then why not list them on the form? You do know the minimum requirent to start a club, right?"
"I'm not denying the possibility of recruiting mbers in the future. But as of this mont, I am the only one." Yukinoshita's voice was as cold and composed as ever.
"You do realize I can't approve this kind of application, don't you?"
"Yes. I thoroughly reviewed the student handbook before entering school."
"Then?"
"Just as I'm certain of my own resolve, I also refuse to abandon a plan before at least attempting it."
"…You know, I've seen a lot of bizarre clubs in other schools—high schools, even universities."
"There was the 'Demolition Club' that tried to move the entire school building downtown for easier access to entertainnt."
"Or the Film Club whose mission was to create the world's most boring movie. Then there's the 'Collapse Club,' dedicated to driving away all its own mbers..."
Hiratsuka paused and sighed.
"Well, that last one sohow still has several tis more mbers than the minimum requirent."
She picked up Yukinoshita's application form and held it up to eye level, eyebrows twitching.
Club Na: Preliminary Experintal Division for the Creation of a World of Absolute Justice
Applicant: Yukinoshita Yukino / First Year, Class J
Club Goal: To uphold absolute justice and reform an unfair world
Club Activities: Constantly refining the human mind to master its techniques
Club Advisor: None
If the na weren't on it, she'd have thought so chūnibyō had submitted it.
"Absolute justice"? "Changing the world"? And what the hell is mastering the human mind? So kind of hypnosis?
Yet standing in front of her was a girl so composed and elegant that "perfect" almost didn't do her justice.
Her appearance alone spoke volus—glossy, flowing hair that not even a wig could replicate, a doll-like face, and a slender, balanced figure.
Academically, there was nothing to discuss—before she had dragged that Hojou Kyousuke kid into Sōbu High, Yukinoshita had held the top rank in her year by a landslide.
Her family ran a real estate company.
Her father was a city councilor in Shinagawa.
Her mother chaired the school's parent committee. And her older sister… well, she was a handful too.
So why on earth would a girl like this want to start such a strange club?
If she were serious, wouldn't it be easier to just leverage her family's influence and ask the principal directly? Or was there sothing deeper going on?
Hiratsuka pondered this.
She'd known about Yukinoshita long before she enrolled—not because of her family's status, but because her older sister had also been her student.
Suddenly, a terrifying thought crossed her mind—sothing that only happened in small-town schools.
A teacher educates a student, then years later teaches their child... then their grandchild.
In those rare cases, the entire family would usually offer heartfelt gratitude, and the local education board would present a banner embroidered with "Nurturer of Generations."
Hiratsuka rembered how, during the holidays, Haruno had asked her to "take good care" of her little sister.
A vivid image popped into her mind—years down the line, Haruno and Yukino showing up at her office, each with a child in tow, handing them over to her, who would still be single and childless.
"You've dedicated your whole life to education, never married or had kids of your own…"
"You're truly admirable, Hiratsuka-sensei. Please take care of our kids too~~~"
Her chest tightened.
The body she'd been holding upright now teetered dangerously.
As she stared at the composed girl before her, Hiratsuka could almost see Yukinoshita's future daughter standing in her place.
'No—snap out of it, Shizuka! It's not over yet! There's still hope! The next mixer is going to be a fresh start!'
"…I've heard of clubs like the ones you ntioned earlier," Yukinoshita began.
"Ah, right! Isn't Haruno in so weird club herself? What was it called again? Can't quite rember… Maybe I should ask her to introduce to soone."
"Their family is still looking for a son-in-law, right? They must have all sorts of intel…"
Yukinoshita's words were cut off.
Her hands, which had been relaxed at her sides, clenched slightly.
Her expression, however, remained unchanged. She took a slow, deep breath and continued calmly:
"I won't presu to say that the other clubs are aningless or a waste of ti, especially since I've never experienced them firsthand. But my club has a clear purpose, and I intend to proceed step by step toward that goal."
"Listen, Yukinoshita. The club recruitnt season for this school year is just about to start."
"How about finding a couple of students willing to join you and then re-submitting your application?"
"With your abilities, I'm sure you could convince a few—err, I an recruit a few like-minded students, right?"
'I an, seriously, who wouldn't want to join a mysterious club run by a stunning girl like her? That's like the perfect setup for a high school rom-com!'
"Thank you, but I must decline. If this application is denied, I'll simply proceed as an independent interest group."
Yukinoshita's refusal was absolute.
It was a feasible alternative.
She could gather temporary mbers under contract just to et the requirents, and let them fade into ghost-mber status later.
But that would go against her principles.
From the start, it would be a hollow club—just for show. It would hold no aning.
A registered club is an official student organization, recognized by the school, with a faculty advisor and budget support.
In contrast, an interest group operates independently, usually due to various restrictions.
"Then why go to the trouble?" Hiratsuka asked. "Why waste the effort if you're just going to do it on your own anyway?"
"If sothing is worth doing—"
"Yes, yes, I know. I get that part already. What I want to know is—why are you so fixated on it being an official club?"
Even with her strong ideals, what's the point in insisting on this formal status?
"…"
Yukinoshita, who had kept her chin high this entire ti, lowered her gaze slightly.
"This has nothing to do with the application. I'm afraid I can't tell you."
"Oh?" Hiratsuka's face lit up with curiosity as she picked the application back up.
The phrase "absolute justice" stood out again. Sothing clicked in her mind, but she didn't say it aloud.
Not yet.
Her instinct to ddle—or rather, to genuinely care about her students—kicked in.
"All right, then. If you tell the real reason, I'll see what I can do about approving your club. I assu you're not keen on bypassing and appealing to the principal using your family na, right?"
Yukinoshita raised her chin again, and her icy blue eyes flashed with a sharp glint.
"Hiratsuka-sensei… Did you hear sothing from my sister?"
"Huh?" Hiratsuka Shizuka blinked in surprise, staring at the girl who'd suddenly turned into a bristling kitten.
She had no idea what just happened.
Wasn't that the case?
"Sorry. I said sothing weird," the girl replied, thinking perhaps her sister had said sothing to this teacher.
Knowing her sister's personality, nothing was off the table.
"Justice—I want to start by establishing an official club to practice it."
"I see. That's just what I thought," Shizuka said. "Refusing to ask the school for special favors is probably for the sa reason, huh?"
"You can form the club, but you'll need to change the na and activities." Hiratsuka placed a fresh application form on the desk.
"Hm?" The girl's thin eyebrows furrowed slightly.
If it had to be changed, what was the point of everything she'd done so far?
"You said you want to uphold absolute justice and change an unfair world. So, how exactly do you plan to achieve that?"
"By mastering the human heart through constant refinent."
"…You don't strike as soone who likes talking nonsense."
"That's true. But that is the thod. After all, the world—or society—is made up of people."
"It's because of human weakness and the ugliness within that unfairness is born from things like jealousy. I understand no one is perfect. But isn't it strange that the more outstanding a person is, the more they suffer?"
"That's why I want to understand the human heart, change people, and in doing so, change the world. That's what I'm doing now—and what I will continue to do."
Her words rang with unshakable conviction.
Anyone listening could almost see the incredible future reflected in her pale blue eyes.
"Impressive…" a quiet voice praised her from nearby.
Yukinoshita turned her head and imdiately recognized the voice as belonging to Yukino Yukari.
The teacher who would later teach her classical literature once the arts and sciences tracks were separated.
But for now, they were complete strangers who hadn't even exchanged nas.
She gave a polite bow, and Yukino nodded in return with a sowhat apologetic expression, as if embarrassed to have overheard their conversation.
But Yukinoshita didn't mind.
If she had spoken, then being heard was only natural. Getting upset about that would be unreasonable.
"How about becoming the advisor for Yukinoshita's club?" Hiratsuka quickly passed the buck. "If I rember right, Yukari-sensei, you've turned down several offers before, haven't you?"
"Eh? No, no, I wouldn't be good at it," Yukari waved her hands frantically, head down as she returned to writing her lesson plan.
But then, worried that her refusal might hurt the girl's feelings, she quickly added,
"Yukinoshita-san, I think your club sounds wonderful!"
Leaving those words behind, she clutched her lesson plan to her chest and fled the room.
"Jeez, being that shy isn't fair. You're not a high school student anymore," Hiratsuka muttered enviously as she watched her go.
Why couldn't she pull that off? Shy types like that were always the most popular at mixers.
"Hiratsuka-sensei?" Yukinoshita called softly.
"Oh, oh, I'm listening." Hiratsuka snapped out of her wistful daze and into a different kind of headache.
Chuunibyou.
So it wasn't just airheaded boys who got it—top-performing, perfect girls like Yukinoshita could fall victim too.
No wonder it's called "chuunibyou" and not "middle school boys' syndro."
"First of all, I look forward to seeing this absolutely just world you're envisioning—"
"Sorry to interrupt, but I'm not trying to create an absolutely just world. That kind of world doesn't exist. What I want to create is—"
"Yes, yes, I get it. Anyway, I'm looking forward to seeing the beautiful world you'll create one day, Yukinoshita."
Good grief.
A chuunibyou with brains is downright terrifying.
Thank goodness her goal wasn't to destroy the corrupt world or sothing.
Choosing not to teach at a middle school had definitely been the right decision. If all the students were like this, she'd never get married.
The overly dismissive tone made Yukinoshita frown even more.
"You wrote 'mastering the human heart' under club activities, but how exactly are you planning to do that?"
"Observation."
"...Huh?"
Taking a slow breath, Yukinoshita elaborated:
"Every action a person takes is driven by their inner thoughts. By observing people's behavior and analyzing it, we can identify patterns in how the human heart operates."
Patterns of operation? What is she, trying to build a chart? Predict future behavior like so sci-fi AI?
Headache intensifies.
"Hey, Yukinoshita, you do know people aren't machines, right?"
"Are you referring to chanistic theories of the human body? Personally, I believe—"
"Nope!" Hiratsuka quickly shook her head.
This girl's serious deanor made her feel like she was back in a university lecture hall.
Her headache throbbed harder.
"Humans will always act unpredictably at tis. You can't master that."
"Strictly speaking, that would be a variable. If we account for—"
"Okay, okay, stop. This isn't an academic debate. Like you said, the world is unfair. There are brilliant people like you—and ordinary ones, too."
"That's true."
"And yes, sotis gifted people suffer because of jealousy. But those sa people also have easier access to society's resources, right?"
"I won't deny that. But that doesn't justify jealousy—or worse, cruelty. That's unjust and wrong."
Their gazes clashed without yielding.
Hiratsuka could clearly catch the slight flicker of pain on the girl's face. Just a flash, but her raised voice confird it.
Yikes. This was getting complicated.
She had assud it was just ordinary chuunibyou, but now it looked more like a deeply rooted response to the pain of being an "exceptional person" in an unfair world.
If it were just standard chuunibyou, it'd be easy.
But one with beliefs and reasoning? That was serious.
After a mont's thought, she pressed on.
"Then, how do you propose achieving this so-called 'absolute justice'? How do you eliminate the jealousy of the ordinary and the suffering of the gifted?"
'How?'
Yukinoshita Yukino's previously fiery spirit began to cool slightly.
'How?'
If she knew that, she wouldn't still be suffering. But Hiratsuka was seriously engaging with her, so she chose not to hide behind silence.
"I don't know yet. That's why I'm researching how to master the human heart."
Whoa. She just completed a full logic loop.
Hiratsuka took a sharp breath.
A chuunibyou with intelligence, ideals, and airtight logic—this girl was practically a walking ideological ti bomb.
For a second, she was tempted to just sign the damn form and send her on her way.
Dealing with a student like this would definitely give her wrinkles—and push marriage even further out of reach.
But her ddleso—no, her genuinely caring nature as a teacher—kept her from doing that.
"The entrance ceremony," HIratsuka said, choosing her words carefully.
"Hm?"
"You heard it, didn't you? The thunderous applause when Hojou Kyousuke took the stage."
"Yeah. He probably felt pretty awkward about it."
"Ahem, that was a mark of honor! It's exactly because you can't see that, your so-called 'Mastery of the Human Heart' still needs work!"
After a few encounters, Hiratsuka Shizuka had gotten to know Hojou Kyousuke at least a little.
"So what you're saying, Hiratsuka-sensei, is that Hojou-san is skilled at mastering people's hearts, which is why his friends—or rather, his followers—are so devoted to him?"
"No, no! That's not it at all!" How could she be so dense?!
"Exceptional people have a responsibility to help the ordinary. That's how you create a sense of fairness between them."
"Exceptional people have a responsibility to help the ordinary... Responsibility?" Yukinoshita raised her right hand, rubbing her chin with her thumb and forefinger as she thought it over.
"Hojou Kyousuke's friends—those kids transferred schools just to be with him at Soubu High. That's because he selflessly supported them, whether it was in club activities or academics."
"Whenever he had the capacity—and he often did, since he was above average—he helped them without hesitation," Hiratsuka explained.
Reviews
All reviews (0)