← The Studious Boy and the Secret Account Girl
Volume 1
Chapter 05: The Old People Were Right – Part 1
Chapter 5: The Old People Were Right – Part 1
“Hold on a moment, please.”
At the voice Tsutomu let out, Matsurika and the discipline teacher — who had looked about to come to blows at any moment — turned around.
On Matsurika’s well-formed face floated an expression of distrust that read, ‘What’s this guy?’
The teacher’s face… was twisted in an ugly way.
—Is that really a face to show in front of students?
It was truly regrettable, but… he could understand the feeling.
This teacher hated Tsutomu. He hated him like a poisonous snake.
Tsutomu hated this teacher in turn. Their enmity was mutual.
Given that Tsutomu was the one who’d called out, the teacher was surely picking up on an ominous presence.
Tsutomu wasn’t a delinquent. Under normal circumstances, there was no reason for him to be singled out by student discipline.
But this old man always found something to nitpick about, no matter what.
It might be proper for a teacher to treat a class topper and national mock-exam regular the same as anyone, but… what made him angry made him angry.
Digression aside.
“What, Kariya… Are you going to protect this girl?”
“Watch your wording.”
The words slipped out in his natural voice before he could stop them.
Since Matsurika was in the same class as Tsutomu, this man wasn’t his homeroom teacher.
But even if he wasn’t, the relationship between teacher and student still held.
As a way for a teacher to refer to a student, or for an adult to refer to a child, ‘this girl’ hardly seemed appropriate.
It was exactly the kind of arrogance that seeped out through such details that served as one reason for the students’ aversion.
“Did you say something?”
Every time Tsutomu came face to face with this teacher, he felt a terrible exhaustion. He just couldn’t understand him.
They used the same language and seemed able to communicate, but… honestly, he couldn’t believe they were lumped in as fellow Japanese.
Judging from his usual words and actions, the man seemed to take it as his mission to flatten students into a single mold.
He was, in any case, a man far removed from words like ‘freedom,’ ‘autonomy,’ or ‘spontaneity.’
Tsutomu couldn’t help but be startled that such a ‘self-proclaimed teacher’ existed in Japan in the twenty-first century.
Though they’d crossed the Heisei era into Reiwa, perhaps this man’s mind had stopped in Showa.
An antique of a relic in which no concept like ‘updating’ had been introduced. A household appliance at least could be replaced.
Just thinking of such junk weighing down on the students who were about to take flight into the future made the educational front feel dizzying.
…Well, since Tsutomu’s assessment of teachers tended to be harsh, he wouldn’t go on about it.
“No, nothing. More importantly… I just got worried because your voices sounded terribly rough.”
“Rough? How is it rough? This girl came to school wearing makeup. That’s a school-rule violation. If you don’t believe me, check the student handbook.”
“Of course I’ve read the student handbook. I understand that makeup of some kind is against the school rules.”
“Is that so? So you said it knowing that. As a teacher, I’m simply instructing her to wipe off makeup that violates school rules. What’s unsatisfying about that?”
—Is the school code really so dear to him?
Watching a teacher repeat ‘school-rule violation’ at every other word made his head throb.
According to the student handbook, a good amount of time had already passed since the school’s rules were established.
Some of them were out of step with the present, and some were broken with no one even paying attention.
To begin with, Tsutomu didn’t care much about school rules. He didn’t even know if Matsurika’s makeup was worth raising a fuss over.
It was just… he disliked the way she alone was summoned to the staff room, the teachers’ field of play, to be forced through threats.
Simply put, he just didn’t like teachers.
He quietly straightened his glasses with his middle finger. In his head, he flipped the switch to begin the fight.
“Matsurika-san may indeed be violating the school rules, but… I personally believe that’s something that can’t be helped.”
“…What are you talking about?”
“What’s this, you?”
—Hahaha, this girl!
He was met with a wary look not only from the discipline teacher, but even from Matsurika herself, the very one who’d been the target of the stick.
He was fully aware that this was meddling. He wasn’t hoping for gratitude, either.
Even so… he’d rather not have been given a look like that.
—Still, she’s pretty impressive.
From what he’d heard so far, Matsurika had been avoiding the argument of ‘there are other students besides me who come to school with makeup on, so why not crack down on them first.’
The logic of ‘if we all cross together, the red light isn’t scary’ didn’t seem to be her style. Refreshingly sharp, and pleasing to hear.
It was evident that Matsurika didn’t receive support from so many people merely on the strength of her looks.
“You might find this strange, but I believe there is a reason she comes to school dressed like this.”
“A reason?”
He used a knowingly suggestive tone that he normally didn’t, cutting off his line midway.
From here on, he needed to be heard not only by Matsurika and the discipline teacher, but by the other people in this staff room as well.
He had to deliberately create a pause and draw attention. Being conspicuous wasn’t his hobby, but if it was necessary to accomplish the mission, he had no choice.
As expected, the inhabitants of the staff room, who’d been watching Matsurika and the rest from a distance, turned their attention toward the words thrown out by the intruder, Tsutomu. He could feel the shift in the air.
“Yes. A reason.”
“Hah, absurd. There’s no way there is something like that.”
“There is. I believe you’ll be convinced if you hear me out.”
“Oh? If you’re so confident, then by all means. Make your explanation quick.”
His tone had been needlessly theatrical — it didn’t suit him at all. Tsutomu had no room to point that out, either.
This teacher didn’t bother to hide his overt disdain for Tsutomu.
If Tsutomu said something stupid, the man would latch onto it like he’d caught the head of a demon and start raking him over the coals.
…He didn’t seem to have any idea that he was about to be driven into a corner himself.
—The moment you’re confident of victory is when you need to watch for carelessness.
Tsutomu smiled to himself inside.
When he briefly glanced away, he met Matsurika’s black eyes.
She was keeping a close eye on his every move, ready for whatever this sudden intruder might say next.
—I won’t let you down. Though… I can’t promise it’ll go the way you hope.
About the person named ‘Tachibana Matsurika,’ he knew only the conventional facts, most of them about her appearance and her history since entering high school.
In short, Tsutomu had no idea at all about Matsurika’s personality or character.
So he couldn’t judge whether his plan would please her.
—Well, I don’t mind if she hates me.
He was a loner by nature. A single, carefree soul of one.
Whether the class’s sweetheart liked or disliked him was nothing to him.
Separate from her, Tsutomu had simply found the discipline teacher, who’d been making a fuss in the staff room, unspeakable.
Because he found him unspeakable, he’d decided to use Matsurika as a tool to give him a taste of his own medicine. That was all.
Listening closely, he found that the din of the staff room had died down without him noticing.
The opportune moment had ripened. And… Tsutomu opened his mouth.
“There is a reason Matsurika-san puts so much effort into her makeup. That is because… the teachers who should be role models for the students come to work every single day, most diligently wear makeup.”
Tsutomu’s voice rang out.
In that instant, the air of the staff room froze.