Translator: RaidenTL
"Who did you fight this time?"
A question from the beautiful school nurse.
Through her gown, I could see her massive jugs. They were so big her shirt was stretched tight. Makes me want some paizuri.
"I fought a villain who was disturbing the peace."
"Not funny. Tell me straight before I have to talk to the professor."
"Ask Hanazawa."
"Hanazawa knows? Who you fought?"
"Yeah. She saw it herself."
"That's strange... If it were Hanazawa, she would have run to tell the professor the moment you even looked like you were about to hit someone. Why haven't I heard anything?"
"The fact that she just stood by is proof I was fighting a bad guy, isn't it? Look here. It's not like I beat up another student."
"Fine, we'll go with that."
I'm reminded of this every time, but my reputation here is total crap.
I just hope I don't get expelled over something like this.
That bastard, Matsuda Ken... You should've at least not messed with the faculty.
Though everyone hated me, the school nurse, driven by her sense of duty, treated my right hand with the utmost care.
I rotated my wrist, looking at the thickly wrapped bandage, then looked up at her next words.
"You know drinking or smoking will slow down the healing, right? Try to avoid it if you can."
"I don't do either."
"I mean outside the academy, too. I saw you the other day. You and your friends were drinking and smoking at a bar. The school rules don't apply off-campus, but..."
"So if I want it to heal fast, I should hold back. Is that it?"
"Exactly."
"Thanks."
"....? Did you just say thank you?"
The nurse's eyes widened in surprise.
I grinned, gave a silent wave with one hand, and left the nurse's office.
The situation was handled, for now... but there was still the aftermath to deal with.
When Tetsuya went through this event, there were no repercussions, inside or outside the academy. Not only did the pervert back down relatively easily, but Tetsuya also had a good reputation at the academy.
But it wouldn't be the same for me.
Because I beat his face to a bloody pulp.
The pervert will probably try to get back at me somehow...
As I walked down the hall, lost in thought, I heard Miyuki's urgent voice from behind me.
"Matsuda-kun!"
A smile crept onto my lips.
I turned around and asked, "What is it now?"
"The... The Head Teacher told me to bring you to the faculty office... That pervert... he's suing you...!"
I knew this would happen.
"Just let him," I said, my face a mask of pure annoyance.
"What...? Are you crazy? Do you have any idea how serious this is...? A-Anyway, let's just go, quickly."
Miyuki grunted, tugging at my clothes.
Too bad. It would've been nice if she'd grabbed my wrist.
I licked my lips in disappointment and, making my reluctance obvious, headed to the faculty office with Miyuki.
"He was a pervert... a shameless man who touched my thigh... Matsuda-kun was helping me... I already told you...!"
Miyuki was at my side, defending me with all her might.
Ah... This is why I didn't want to miss this event.
I was glad I'd gone to bed early yesterday.
A professor in his sixties with glasses perched on his nose listened to Miyuki in silence before smiling benevolently.
"Don't you worry too much. After we handed him over to the police, it turned out he has a long criminal record. He's been arrested for sexual assault multiple times. The lawsuit won't go anywhere."
Miyuki breathed a sigh of relief.
"R-Really...? That's a relief... But then why does Matsuda-kun have to be disciplined...?"
"It's because you beat him up too severely. You knocked out five of his teeth. An anonymous source described the situation... and you tried to stop Matsuda-kun too, didn't you? Didn't you think it was excessive violence?"
".... Well, I did think that, but..."
"If you, the victim of the assault, thought so, what do you think others felt? They probably thought he was going to kill the man. They said they're scared to have a student like that here at Yebonie."
"Th-That's ridiculous...! Are you saying you're punishing Matsuda-kun just to protect the school's image?"
Miyuki tried to argue further.
I cut her off with a bored expression and asked the professor, "So, what do I have to do?"
"Clean the first-year boys' bathroom for fifteen days. For someone like you who does nothing but cause trouble, you should be grateful for a cleaning punishment, right? It may not have been your intention, but you did catch a criminal the police were looking for and saved a fellow academy student, Miss Hanazawa. Consider this getting off easy."
But vacation starts in fifteen days.
I didn't want to be cleaning toilets while smelling shit until then... but I had no choice.
And like the professor said, this was a pretty light punishment.
I nodded and asked again, "Is the lawsuit matter handled for sure?"
"I guarantee it."
"Then we're good."
"But I'm warning you, if you skip your punishment or are absent even once during this period, you're out. No matter how good your intentions were... the violence was too excessive. You're on very thin ice right now. You know what your standing is at this academy, don't you?"
"More or less. I'm leaving now. Have fun."
I shrugged and walked out of the faculty office.
Miyuki immediately followed me out and called my name.
"Matsuda-kun! Wait up!"
"Can you stop yelling? My ears hurt when you shriek like that."
Incensed, Miyuki leaned forward. She looked like she was about to spit out a complaint, but she stopped herself and took a deep breath.
She was pretty quick at regaining her composure.
Having successfully calmed herself down, she said evenly, "Don't you know what 'out' means? It means you'll be expelled if you're absent even once."
"I know."
"Then why did you agree to it? Are you planning to make some other classmates do it?"
It would be pretty funny to make Tetsuya do it.
"Are you assuming I'm definitely going to skip?"
".... Yes. Because you always have."
"Hah... I'll let that slide since it's true. But..."
I let my words trail off, my sly, snake-like eyes scanning Miyuki up and down. She took half a step back.
"Wh-What? What's with that look? It's creepy..."
"You'd be thrilled if I got kicked out, wouldn't you? I'd hate to see you clapping like a seal with joy..."
".... Who said I'd be happy..."
"No? Weren't you dying to get me expelled?"
"I-I was never dying to... I'd appreciate it if you didn't just jump to conclusions..."
"So you're saying you did want me gone?"
".... W-Well, to be honest, I used to think that..."
Would it kill you to lie and say no? How disappointing...
"You used to?"
"But not anymore... This situation is just too unfair... So please, just come to school every day for the next fifteen days... Don't be late, either... If you do, the professors might start to see you in a better light... You want to graduate from the academy too, don't you?"
"Me? Do I look like I do?"
"Matsuda-kun, when someone is this worried about you, stop being a smartass and at least pretend to listen."
Miyuki's expression suddenly turned serious.
Time to back off a little.
I kept my mouth shut for a moment, then answered, pretending to be cowed by Miyuki's intensity.
"Fine."
Was she surprised that I was finally listening after being so defiant?
Miyuki's large eyes grew twice as wide.
"Really?"
"Yeah."
"You're not just saying that to get me off your back, are you?"
I never had any intention of skipping in the first place, you know.
"Nope. I'll be here every day. Happy now?"
".... The way you added that makes me suspicious... but still... I'll trust you."
Do you have any idea how encouraging that one sentence is?
It makes me even more determined to steal you from Tetsuya with everything I've got.
For fifteen days, I'll just diligently clean the shitter.
So that Miyuki will look at me and think, 'Maybe... maybe he can be rehabilitated...?'
The moment the last class ended, I kicked the classroom door open and left.
I didn't forget to shoot Miyuki a look, making it seem for all the world like I was about to make a run for it.
I went to the boys' bathroom at the very end of the hall and spoke in a low, heavy tone to the classmates who were shooting the shit in there.
"Get the hell out. I have to clean, so go hang out somewhere else."
"S-Sorry... We'll leave right... Huh...? Clean?"
They perked up their ears as if they'd misheard.
With a look of clear annoyance, I grabbed a hose from the cleaning closet.
"From now on, if I find a clogged toilet in here, I'll hunt you down and rip you in half."
"....."
"If you think I'm joking, just try me."
"Wh-What if it wasn't us...?"
"I'll still kill you. If you don't want that to happen, tell everyone to use it cleanly. You have to use the bathroom cleanly. That way the next person doesn't have to feel grossed out. Did you guys even wash your hands?"
".... Huh...? Yeah...? What...?"
"Just get lost, now."
"Ah, okay..."
After sending the confused boys on their way, I attached the hose to the faucet and started spraying down the urinals.
Then, as I was diligently mopping the bathroom floor, a voice came from behind me.
".... You're doing a good job."
It was Miyuki.
I knew you'd come, Miyuki. I was counting on it.
This was exactly why I'd acted that way before leaving the classroom.
Without even turning my head, I said, "You here to watch me?"
"Well... you looked like you were going to run away..."
"I keep my promises."
".... That's good, then... But Matsuda-kun, shouldn't mopping be the last step?"
"Is that how it works?"
"Usually, right?"
"So what... I should start with the toilets?"
"Yeah. I think that would work."
Taking Miyuki's advice, I brought over a plunger.
"You know this is the boys' bathroom, right?"
"I know. There's no one else here."
"Don't get in the way. Scram."
"For today, I'm just going to watch you. I have to see if you're doing a thorough job or not."
"Miura's probably waiting for you, isn't she? Don't you two usually go home together?"
"We usually do, but... as class president, I have to check... and you also did me a favor today..."
"Because you're grateful? Then you clean instead."
Miyuki answered by crossing her arms.
A clear refusal.
I let out a dry chuckle and headed for the stall in the far corner of the bathroom.
And there, in the middle of it, I saw a magnificent, dog-like pile of filth, and I screamed in a fit of rage.
"Ah, fuck!!"
That wasn't an act. It was from the heart.
Why the hell don't people flush? Fucking bastards...
I'm gonna find this bastard and actually kill him.
I managed to push the handle down and came out with a look of utter disgust on my face.
"Filthy bastards..."
Finding my reaction amusing, Miyuki covered her mouth and giggled quietly.
After a moment, still turned away, she asked, "Are you going to be able to finish today at this rate?"
"You take a look and see if you can still say that."
"No thanks. And you shouldn't call people ba... ahem... names like that. Don't you think that's too harsh?"
"The bastard who took a massive dump is the one who's harsh... Hah... fuck... this is disgusting."
"Cut down on the swearing. It makes you sound cheap."
Yeah, yeah. Remind me again later and I'll try to fix it.
I made a show of cleaning out my ears, then tore off some toilet paper to plug my nose before entering the next stall.
The toilet lid was firmly shut. A sense of dread washed over me.
To think I have to do this for fifteen days... The future already looks bleak.
Still, Miyuki is here today... I should stop complaining and work hard.
I have to build up a good image, if only to save Miyuki from Tetsuya.