Classroom of the Elite: Standing Firm in Class A — Chapter 105

Chapter 105: The Girl Beside the Vending Machine

“If I take on the role of class leader, the problems on both sides can be resolved.”

Kaedehara Tetsu made the suggestion with a casual ease that completely belied the weight of his words.

Katsuragi Kohei froze. He turned his heavy frame around, fixing his gaze on Tetsu. Surprise and deep confusion warred in his eyes.

“The class harmony you desire and the ruthless meritocracy Sakayanagi Arisu demands are not completely contradictory goals,” Tetsu continued. His tone remained perfectly level, carrying an absolute, convincing calm. “The key lies entirely in how to balance and integrate them.”

Katsuragi took a slow, measured breath. “If that is truly possible… I would certainly be willing to support such an arrangement.” He paused, his brow furrowing. “But the problem remains. Can you persuade Sakayanagi? Given her personality and her absolute belief in her own philosophy, getting her to voluntarily relinquish leadership will not be an easy task.”

“As for that… there shouldn’t be a problem.”

The corners of Tetsu’s lips curled upward into a faint, knowing smile.

“After all, I can manage to rely on the somewhat special relationship I share with her.”

Hearing this, Katsuragi’s mind immediately seized upon the rumors circulating through the academy. Kaedehara Tetsu and Sakayanagi Arisu. There was indeed an unusual dynamic between them. While they rarely displayed overt intimacy in public, any observant student in Class A could sense the invisible tether connecting the two. More, rumors of a genuine romantic relationship had already taken root.

If Tetsu were to negotiate with her in the capacity of her boyfriend… the political landscape of the class would shift entirely.

Katsuragi fell into a heavy silence. The proposal sounded absurd at first glance, yet the more he analyzed it, the more viable it became. The sheer competence Tetsu had displayed during the recent special exam was more than enough to justify placing him at the helm of Class A. If he could simultaneously secure the loyalty of the Katsuragi faction and the absolute backing of the Sakayanagi faction, the internal bleeding of their class would be cured at the root.

“If it could truly succeed…” Katsuragi spoke slowly, the gravelly weight of determination bleeding into his voice. “I am willing to fully cooperate and support your ascent.”

He adjusted his stance. “However, this matter requires careful planning. Although Sakayanagi might entertain your proposal due to your personal ties, she remains an extremely rational creature. She will need to see concrete benefits and absolute feasibility.”

“I understand that.”

Tetsu was just about to expand on his strategy when a shadow leaned in from the side.

“What are you two chatting about over here? Looking so serious.” Hashimoto Masayoshi slid into their peripheral vision, his eyes gleaming with casual curiosity.

Noticing the gathering, Totsuka Yahiko wandered over as well. “Are you guys discussing something important?”

Tetsu and Katsuragi exchanged a brief, silent glance. The unspoken agreement was instantaneous: bury the topic.

“It is nothing. Just chatting about some study-related issues,” Katsuragi answered, his stoic face betraying nothing.

“Hey, this is a celebration. Drop the studying talk. It is rare enough for everyone to gather together and actually relax,” Hashimoto laughed, waving a hand dismissively.

“Exactly!” Yahiko chimed in.

“It is not easy to get a gathering like this going. Stop dragging down the mood with boring things.” Hashimoto patted Tetsu on the shoulder with practiced familiarity. “See? I told you this kind of occasion is interesting. You have to let loose once in a while.”

In the time that followed, the tension in the room dissolved into a genuinely cheerful rhythm. Time slipped away quietly amidst the clinking of glasses and overlapping conversations. Outside the cruise ship windows, the night sea grew darker, its vast surface occasionally shimmering with scattered starlight.

An hour drifted by, and the initial heat of the celebration began to cool. The exhaustion of the day’s events caught up with the students, prompting a few to stifle yawns.

Checking his watch, Tetsu noted the late hour. He quietly pushed himself up from his seat, preparing to slip away.

“Leaving already?”

Kamuro Masumi caught his movement from across the table, her gaze sharp.

“Yeah, I am a bit tired. You guys keep having fun.”

Tetsu pushed open the heavy door to the lounge area and stepped out of the stifling party. The loud cheers and laughter immediately muffled behind the thick door panel, reduced to a dull, rhythmic thumping of conversation and clinking glass.

He stretched his arms upward, working the stiff knots out of his shoulders and neck after maintaining the same sitting posture for so long. The cool, sterile air of the corridor was a welcome relief.

He was just about to head toward the guest cabins when a subtle shape in his peripheral vision made him pause.

Just beside the entrance to the lounge, tucked away in the shadow of a glowing vending machine, someone was standing completely still.

Tetsu stopped his advance and narrowed his eyes.

It was a petite girl. She stood with her back facing the main hallway, her attention entirely focused on the illuminated glass of the machine. In the vast, empty corridor, her small silhouette looked deeply isolated.

Closing the distance with silent footsteps, Tetsu easily recognized her.

Yamamura Miki.

She remained motionless, her head tilted slightly as if listening to something with intense concentration. The vending machine emitted a low, continuous hum—the mechanical vibration of its cooling compressor. In the quiet isolation of the hallway, the sound was exceptionally clear.

“What are you doing out here?”

Yamamura jolted. Her small shoulders flinched violently at the sudden voice, and she slowly, hesitantly turned around.

When her eyes registered Tetsu standing there, pure surprise washed over her features. Her eyes widened, and her lips parted slightly, but no sound came out.

‘To think I was discovered…’

A sudden wave of panic constricted her chest. Since childhood, Yamamura had been conditioned to exist as an invisible entity. She was used to slipping through crowds unnoticed, a ghost living in the margins of everyone else’s lives. Almost no one ever actively sought her out, let alone found her in a corner she considered perfectly hidden.

“Ah… sorry. I thought…”

Her fingers nervously sought the cuffs of her school uniform, twisting the fabric. Her gaze darted downward, entirely unfocused, lacking the courage to meet Tetsu’s eyes.

“Thought what? Thought you were actually invisible?” Tetsu asked. His tone was perfectly flat, carrying neither pity nor judgment. “Rather than standing out here, why aren’t you inside? Everyone else is having a good time.”

Yamamura bit down on her lower lip, the nervous habit making her look even smaller. Her eyes drifted toward the lounge. Through the thick glass door, the blurred, happy figures of their classmates moved about. The muffled laughter filtering through the barrier felt incredibly warm, yet impossibly distant.

“Forget it…”

Her voice was a fragile whisper, laced with a deep, ingrained instinct to withdraw. “I am not really used to scenes like that.”

The moment the words left her mouth, a faint heat crept into her cheeks. She rarely spoke her mind to anyone. Even a simple confession like this felt dangerously exposed. Anxiety chewed at her nerves. What if he misunderstood? What if he just thought she was completely strange?

“Habits can be cultivated,” Tetsu replied smoothly. “And I think the people in our class are actually quite easy to get along with.”

“For me… it is not that simple.” Yamamura kept her head bowed. “Someone like Kaedehara-san… I am a bit envious. To be able to… to be able to make everyone notice you so easily.”

Realizing what she had just confessed, she immediately tucked her chin closer to her chest, looking as though she wanted the floor to swallow her whole.

Tetsu silently observed the shrinking girl before him. Yamamura Miki was indeed the exact archetype of someone easily forgotten. It was not just her petite stature; it was the active, desperate effort she put into erasing her own presence. She simply existed in the quiet corners of the world, never making a sound, hoping the world would just pass her by.