Classroom of the Elite 2nd Year - Volume 4.5 Chapter 2 Part 3

“Hmm … I was about to break into a weird nervousness.”

No, it can be said that I already broke into panic.

Less than 30 seconds after Himeno left the room, I also escaped from the devil’s room that is 5034. It may be heaven for some people, but for me, it was a painful place to be.

It’s hard to say that I’m good at closing the distance between people.

It would be a different story if I had completely played that character from the beginning, but since I had decided to play a low-profile high school student, it was not easy to change that.

However, I think I was able to get closer to Ichinose’s class in a certain way because I had hardly ever been associated with them before.

I’ve been able to get a vague idea of what kind of kids are around with Ichinose at the center.

What is lacking and what is missing? At this point, I know the strengths and weaknesses of Ichinose’s class.

The presence of students who can speak up is essential no matter who the leader is in the future.

At the moment, the only person that comes to mind who can do that is the boy, Kanzaki.

But in a class that revolves around Ichinose, the girls seem to have as much power to speak out as the boys.

Kanzaki is the type who can speak up for Ichinose as an individual, but whether he can appeal to the class as a whole, and whether he can control the girls, is another matter entirely.

“Hmm?”

Himeno complained of a headache and said she was going back to her room, but she walked in a different direction from the guest room.

She went around the corner in an instant, but she has a distinctive hair color, so it shouldn’t be a mistake.

Himeno, who had caught my attention in the girls’ meeting earlier.

She seemed to be a little uncomfortable, so I decided to follow her. I arrived at the stern deck at night, where there was no sign of anyone.

I looked at her from a distance and remembered Yuki Himeno’s profile again.

Year 2, Class B Yuki Himeno

Academic ability B (63)

Physical ability C (51)

Resourcefulness C+ (58)

Ability to contribute to society C+ (58)

Overall ability C+ (57)

Other than a high level of academic ability, they are normal for better or worse, and do not possess any outstanding abilities at first glance.

However, this is only the ability as seen from the school side.

Invisible strengths and weaknesses can be hidden in any student.

I would like to find out more about them. The shortcut here would be to contact them directly.

“What are you doing?”

“Hu— What?”

She looked slightly uncomfortable and looked away.

Considering she left the meeting saying that she that a headache, it was weird for her to be in a place like this.

“Is your headache okay?”

“—nnoying”

The words she muttered were almost completely drowned out by the wind, but it sounded like she was saying that she was annoyed.

There are some violent words used by both boys and girls, but in the case of Himeno, it was more of a vigilant way of speaking and talking to keep people at bay.

However, perhaps concerned about the external world, she coughed and cleared her throat once and turned her gaze to me.

“I just thought I’d stop by to get some fresh air.”

“Do you get headaches often? You mentioned something like that earlier.

I was going to ask her for more details, but she kept silent, as if she didn’t want to prolong the conversation.

She hadn’t said anything at all at the girls’ party earlier, except when she was leaving. In addition to that, the other girls basically didn’t talk to Himeno.

She didn’t say anything at the girls-only gathering, except when she returned.

In addition to that, other girls basically didn’t talk to Himeno.

I don’t believe she’s a misfit, Ichinose wouldn’t tolerate that, and if their relationship was bad, she wouldn’t show it in front of someone from another class like me.

If that’s the case───

I think they forcibly invited Himeno to the party.

If we think of it as a classmate’s desire to have as much fun as possible, we can see the connection.

“It’s because I have a migraine.”

She replied shortly and rudely.

“If it’s a migraine, then cooling down is the right thing to do.

A migraine is caused by the dilation of cerebral blood vessels due to changes in female hormones, fatigue or lack of sleep.

Blood vessels dilate less when cooled and expand when warmed, so exposure to the cold wind is not a bad idea.

But only if it’s really a migraine.

“So dull…”

“Isn’t a headache just an excuse to get out of an unpleasant space?

“Ha? Are you saying that I’m lying?”

Himeno had been relatively calm up to this point, but as soon as it was pointed out to her that she was lying, her color changed.

It’s a rare type for Ichinose’s class, which doesn’t have many mild-mannered classmates.

My instincts were right.

“I’m sure you’re fine.”

“I’m not. What’s the matter with you? My head is starting to hurt again… I’m going back to my room.

“I’m sorry if I upset you, but can you just listen to me for a minute?”

With her forehead pressed down, Himeno looked back in disgust.

“I’ve got a headache, and it’s getting worse.”

“Sorry.”

“Sorry? Am I supposed to hear you out…?”

“It seems you don’t want to.”

“I don’t want to.”

I played around with our conversation to see if I could figure it out.

This seems to be her true self.

“Well, I guess I’ll just have to do it then.”

Do you understand me? I shrugged my shoulders in exasperation.

“I’ll just have to go back to the girls’ meeting and tell them that you might be faking it.”

“Ha? Ha—a? You don’t have the right to treat me as if I’m pretending. You liar.”

“Lie? I’m just saying that you “might” be pretending. At least, since I feel that way, I have the right to say that. You can prove whether it’s true or false in front of everyone later.”

“There’s no way to prove a headache.”

“Maybe.”

“What’s up with you? Everyone was complimenting you before but you seem to have a disgusting personality.”

“Well, they didn’t say I had a good personality either, did they?”

I don’t mean to speak for myself, but they just thanked me for helping Shiranami.

“Whatever.”

“In any case, you’re pretty unusual, Himeno. You’re not like the rest of the class.”

“Unusual? If you ask me, the people in my class are too good-natured. Our class often gathers together in large numbers to do things. I don’t mind that in itself, but the problem is that each meeting is too long, and they never know when to leave.”

If there were repeated meetings that I didn’t like, I would be fed up with it.

But Ichinose’s classmates enjoy these gatherings. I guess that’s why no one wants to leave at each gathering.

“If you don’t like it, you don’t have to attend.”

“Do you think I can do that? Even if I think it’s annoying, I need to keep up with the others to blend in.”

“Well, yeah that’s true.”

The whole class is united, especially the girls, and there is a strong sense of unity. Even if they were unhappy inside, it would take courage to throw a stone and cause a ripple.

Himeno. Maybe the encounter between me and her will be the one that changes the direction of things.

Normally, I wouldn’t get deeply involved with Himeno, a person of the opposite sex, unless there was a special situation.

However, it would not be a bad idea to take a step forward here. Of course, if it ends up being a nuisance to Himeno, then so be it.

“If you want to relieve stress, shouting is the best way to do it, you know?”

“Shouting…? If I were to do that, people would get alerted and start to gather.”

“Not many students come to the stern deck, and given the noise of the ship, shouting won’t make a difference to the surroundings. It’ll just be drowned out and gone in no time.”

“But…”

She looked confused, as if he had never shouted that loud before.

“Well, why don’t you try shouting first?”

“…me?”

The unexpected reply made me wince.

“I don’t know about you. You have a rather quiet image, and you don’t seem like the… screaming type. If you show me how to do it, I’ll do it too.”

I’m in trouble.

Since I don’t remember ever feeling any strong stress myself, I don’t have enough experience to say that I ever shouted, if you ask me if I actually remember shouting out.”

“If you can’t, then get the hell out of here.”

If I backed down here, this would probably be the end of my relationship with Himeno.

“Okay I got it.”

While Himeno was watching, I strengthened by resolve and turning towards the sea, the raised my voice.

“Aaa─────. Alright. Now it’s your turn.”

“… Are you kidding me?

“Not at all?”

“You didn’t have a shred of volume in your voice. You really are messing with me.”

“Then show me your example.”

“There’s no example or shit right?”

I caught Himeno’s back as she tried to run away in disgust with her words.

“If I shouted, you said you would too.”

“No, I got more annoyed than I got motivated by your shout.”

“I might’ve shouted in a low volume. However, if Himeno’s voice volume was also low here, you wouldn’t be qualified to make a joke about me.”

In order to avoid her from shouting in a similarly low voice, I go ahead and seal it off.

“—nnoying. Got it, got it. Once is enough right? Then you leave me”

Taking a breath, Himeno brings both her hands up to her mouth having no other choice.

“WAAAA──────────────────ah”

The sound of the ship’s engine and the wind drowned out the noise, so no one but me could hear it. However, a loud voice echoed in the back of my ears, twice as loud as I had imagined.

I felt the ship shake. But that was just a feeling. There’s no way it could actually rock the boat.

Her way of speaking and attitude felt so down, the tension was low and the voice volume was modest, but that shout showed a tremendous amount of voice.

“Ahhh… That felt refreshing.”

Himeno nodded satisfactorily without noticing my surprise.

“Told you. I think I’m also feeling the effects of my shout.”

“No no, you don’t call that shouting.”

She gives me a stern look.

“Well, if I’d been stressed out too, I would’ve done a better one.”

“Really? It didn’t look like that to me.”

“It sure turned out great for you. You’ve been under a lot of stress, haven’t you?”

“HA? I’m going to kill you.”

She turns quite a sharp eye towards me.

Even when she became angry, she never showed her hands or feet before her mouth.

“I was out of line.” She apologized honestly, but she didn’t seem to be offended.

Maybe this Himeno has a side of fearlessness.

“I’m going back to my room.”

“Yeah, I’m sorry for holding you up.”

“It’s better if you realize it.”

With that said, Himeno returned to the main hall of the ship.

“Guess I’ll go back to my room as well”

I guess the party was a way to celebrate all the hard work, but I became unusually tired in contrast.

I think I’m going to have a deep sleep today.