Classroom of the Elite: Checkmate

Chapter 12.5 - Man is the cruelest animal

My phone rang.

I knew that it was Kiyotaka even before looking at the notification. 

He was the only person in my contacts that was allowed to ring and vibrate, after all. The others were banished by the silent setting and could be happy if I answered them when I felt like it.

After checking the contents of his message, I made sure that no one was around before exiting his room. I walked past the elevator, which was about to open up, and vanished into the staircase.

Kushida Kikyou.

Where could she have gone?

The first time I took note of her was when Kiyotaka and a few of his classmates were hanging out together. There were quite a few curious people in his group, not because they could entertain me, but because he took an interest in them.

For starters, there was the fake couple, the rabbit and the two-faced girl.

These individuals stood out from the rubble that followed them around. At first, I hadn't known about any of them, but that had changed since Kiyotaka was inquisitive about my opinion concerning these people.

Number one, the fake couple.

I already forgot their names, but his assumption that these two weren't dating was spot on. It baffled me that none of the other students in his class had seen through their charade since Kiyotaka did, even though he seemed alien to everything that could be considered 'normal'.

Number two, the rabbit.

Kiyotaka mentioned that she was smart and observant, which I could confirm. I slipped up a few times while trailing them on their first get-together, which left the girl questioning my intentions for following them. She was cute and attentive, like a rabbit and had proven to be an outstanding student in Class D. At least compared to the usual trash in his class.

Number three, the two-faced girl.

He said that she was behaving weird and seemed to hide something, but that he could never find out what was wrong with her. When I had observed her on that day, I couldn't find anything wrong either, but my gut told me that something was strange about her. Thus, I began to shadow her sometimes and gleamed at inconsistencies in her behavior as well.

According to the message I had just received from him, he made some progress on number three, which is why I wanted to help him in any way possible.

If he trusted and confided in me, he might eventually open up and share more about himself.

After spending so much time with him, my interest piqued more and more, which was the total opposite to Manabu and Nagumo, who soon became boring and predictable.

Even though Kiyotaka never told or showed me anything that he didn't want me to see, I couldn't help but think about him even more. The days I spent with him were fun, interesting, and colorful.

I hoped that we could keep it this way for a while longer.

Other students glanced at me with surprised and confused expressions after I brushed past them and vanished from their sight as abrupt as I had arrived. I never cared what other people thought about me, and I did so even less now.

After reviewing the information he had supplied me with, I believed that we would reach the same conclusion: she needed some place away from people where she could be alone.

Kiyotaka must have already ruled out the possibility that she was going to the dorms, or he would have told me to check if she came by, meaning the only places that were desolate or private would be viable locations.