Ayanokoji in Sobu High School

Chapter - 1

Freedom

Known as "liberté" in French.

It is the ability to act freely without being bound or constrained by anything and to do as one wishes while having the power and resources to do so.

There are many types of freedom, such as academic freedom, artistic freedom, intellectual freedom, scientific freedom, and economic freedom, to name a few. However, here I am referring to freedom in the context of a teenager still in high school or basically "youth", where I can do as I wish without the restrictions set by a parent in a facility that feels more like a prison, or in a large government-funded high school that just seems like a bigger prison.

Well, at least being a student in it was fun, and it did give me a lot of experience in interacting with people my age and humans in general.

Presently, I am making my way to the cashier, having picked up several types of sanitary products and ingredients for cooking meals at a grocery store in Chiba. This is the type of freedom I desired – to do what I want, whenever I want, and how I want.

You may be wondering why and how I am in Chiba. It all happened a few days ago when Chairman Sakayanagi summoned me to his office...

..........................

Flashback:

Currently, it is the second class of the day - Chemistry. Hoshinomiya-Sensei is teaching the students about The Laws of Thermodynamics. Despite attempting to remain engaged, I found myself feeling bored and averted my gaze from Hoshinomiya-Sensei to observe my classmates.

I hoped to find something interesting, but most students appeared focused and were diligently taking notes on the school-given tablets, such as my seatmate Matsushita, as well as honor students like Hirata, Keisei, Mii-Chan, Kushida, and several others. To my surprise, Sudo was also taking notes, which contrasted starkly with his behavior a year ago. Back then, he would have been sleeping soundly at his desk, drool spilling from the corners of his mouth. It seems that the invisible leash that Horikita had set on him was working wonders.

'Love can really change you huh.'

Meanwhile, Koenji remained indifferent to the lecture, nonchalantly filing his nails with his legs propped up on the table.

As I observed my classmates, I returned my attention to the front of the classroom, where Hoshinomiya-Sensei continued to lecture. Although nothing out of the ordinary was happening, I attempted to remain engaged, quietly diving into my thoughts.

It has been two weeks since the last special exam, and it was quite hectic. Due to my perfect score of 100 in math, my name has seemingly become infamous not only among the second-year students, but throughout the entire school. It's understandable, as the second-highest scorer, Sakayanagi, who is widely believed to be the most intelligent student among the second years, scored 91 points.

The fact that I, someone considered mediocre and unremarkable by most students, scored higher than Sakayanagi is a surprise to all.

Speaking of special exams, I wonder what Tsukishiro is up to now. Either way, I must be prepared for the worst. Even though I am the best product of the White Room and am confident in my abilities to fend off attacks from Tsukishiro, the White Room enforcers, and even first-year bounty hunters, one can never be too sure of what the future holds.

"Ayanokoji Kiyotaka from Class 2-D please come to Chairman's office immediately, I repeat Ayanokoji Kiyotaka Fr- "

My thoughts were interrupted by a voice from the speaker. Suddenly, I felt the gazes of all the students on me, and even the usually nonchalant Koenji seemed interested. Some of them had worried expressions. It was to be expected, as one is not called to the Chairman without a serious issue.