Psycho Pass: What's truly important

What's truly important

"How do we know that the rest of the world is at war?" Yashiro's voice resonated from the back of the classroom, interrupting Touma Kouzaburou's flow of teaching. The constant murmur of the students momentarily fell silent.

Touma glanced over the focused faces in front of him, deliberately ignoring Yashiro's question. He chose to proceed with his explanation about the history of the Sibyl System. However, Yashiro's persistence became evident when, right after another student asked a question, she intervened again, rising from her seat.

"Professor," Yashiro began, raising her hand. Touma's eyes met hers as she lowered her arm.

"Wait a moment, there are more questions," scolded Touma, trying to maintain his composure.

"But I asked first," Yashiro argued, seeking an answer that Touma seemed reluctant to give.

"And I didn't respond because your question crossed the boundaries of this subject," replied Touma, with a firm yet controlled tone.

"That's not true. My question was about the Sibyl System. If we can't move freely outside of Japan, how can we confirm that the rest of humanity is in constant war?" Yashiro asked, with a mix of frustration and curiosity in her voice.

"So what?" interjected a girl from several seats ahead. "That's precisely what he just explained."

"The books claim that they have fallen into war completely, but they should present objective information," Yashiro continued. "What they should say is that it's believed the rest of humanity is at war."

A wave of murmurs spread among the students, some nodding in agreement with Yashiro, while others simply observed with curiosity.

"But it's the same," another girl interjected, leaning her arm on the backrest of her seat. "What difference does it make how they say it?"

"It's important how they say it!" Yashiro exclaimed, raising her voice without realizing it, her gaze hardened, drawing the attention of the whole class. "Don't you see it's deliberately phrased this way?"

"And what's the problem with that?" the girl asked, defiantly.

"What's the problem? It's serious!" Yashiro responded, with growing frustration.

"Maybe it's like that to protect us, but why would you care, since you don't have social awareness?" the other girl replied as she waved her hand in front of her.

"If you had a bit of social consciousness, you would at least wonder whether this truly protects us or conditions us to believe that there is no future beyond these islands, manipulating the books to instill that idea," added Yashiro.

"That sounds like a pointless argument. What are you trying to prove?" the other girl raised her voice, standing up from her seat with a look of disbelief on her face.

"Cut it out and sit down," Touma's voice cut through the air with severity, his eyes scanning the room as the other girl complied quickly, but Yashiro remained standing. "Takahashi-san, don't make me repeat myself."

"But you still haven't answered me."

"You'll receive your answer after we speak with the principal. I'm sure he'll be interested to hear why you choose to attend a class for which you're not enrolled instead of being on your own. Is there anything else you'd like to add or explain, Takahashi-san?" he asked, noticing Yashiro's stubborn expression as she pursed her lips, but she eventually relented and took a seat, though her brow remained furrowed and she averted her gaze from him.

After Touma returned to the blackboard and resumed the class calmly, the rest of the lesson proceeded without major incidents. Minutes slipped by, marked by the teacher's voice explaining concepts and answering questions, while Yashiro remained in her seat, though her mind wasn't entirely focused on the material.