A Monster's Influence: Route C

Chapter 14

Ayanokouji's POV

I hung out with the Kousetsu Fam for a bit longer before I parted ways with them, paying the clerk the required amount due before departing from the pool hall. Yoshimoto and his group decided to stay behind and hang out a little longer, saying that they had other things to talk about. I guess they were still wary of me, but I couldn't imagine why. I am kind of a pushover, after all. That's why Manabe had been able to drag me around with her from store to store. I bet if that Hirata guy and I switched places, I would probably die from overexertion, even with a lot of stamina.

I was surprised to encounter many upperclassmen mingling with each other this late at night. They frequented the many establishments in the district, such as the ramen shop, karaoke and dance clubs, arcades, and many more. I was also dumbfounded that the upperclassmen were also socializing with even the adults on campus, especially the professors off-shift. I even saw Hoshinomiya-sensei messing around with some of the second and third years like that handsome blond guy from back in Pallet Cafe in the school complex, acting as if she wasn't past her prime. Oddly enough, that guy gave me a side-eye out of curiosity before looking back towards his entourage. Sakagami-sensei was relaxing at the bar with Chabashira-sensei and Mashima-sensei, chatting with them about their classes. I even overheard Sakagami-sensei laughing hysterically about the excuse Ryuuen gave as to why the majority of the boys in the class were extremely battered — apparently, he said that all fifteen of them fell down the same set of stairs. With no substantial evidence as to what actually happened, he could only reduce... something for general misbehavior. It was probably the evaluation that the school would give us in the future, which would somehow lead to the reduction of private points. I guess this school really does intend to prepare us for the outside world.

With nothing else to do, I retraced my steps to find the alley I could take to return to my dorm. I put up my hood to stave off the night wind's chill. If only I had some headphones... Tch. I left behind my walkman with old man Matsuo. Well, not that it would matter; the phones distributed to us didn't have an audio jack. I had to deal with the noisy ambiance from the district until I returned to the dorms.

"Gahaha*cough*hahaha! Those scrubs are such pushovers—"

I paused momentarily and hid behind a wall after I heard the cacophonous laughter from ahead of me. It seems that a couple of upperclassmen were screwing around, talking about some of the things they had been up to. In this case, messing with uh, their underclassmen.

"Isn't that Class C supposed to be full of bad boys? That's totally cap. That four-eyes didn't even try to protect the bitch that was with him. Taking their shit was too easy."

Just run-of-the-mill thugs, then. I'm surprised that these types of people were accepted into this school. It probably would be best for me to mind my own business. It is unfortunate that I'd have to find a new exit, though, because they were blocking the way back and didn't look like they were leaving any time soon. Tch. At least I'd get to explore a little more of this alleyway system. I left my spot, walking past that part of the alley in search of another one.

"Oi, goofy bitch over there!"

Ah, I forgot. I still needed to give Ryuuen the camera locations I had gathered earlier. Maybe I should download a map of the campus and mark down the camera locations? I think it would be more comprehensible in comparison to just writing down the general areas the cameras are in and giving them to him. I pulled out my phone and dialed Manabe.

"Didn't you hear me, you fuck?!"

The phone rang once before it was picked up.

{Kiyotaka? What's up?}