COTE: Bag And Love System

"I see. Take him to the conference room."

　　 Nagumo skillfully instructed them and then explained to Hashima Hikaru and Ibuki standing next to them.

　　 "Indeed, when such accusations occur, the presence of the teachers of both parties is normally required. However, since both protagonists are students of Class C, there is no need to trouble Mr. Sakagami. We can let our student council handle it."

　　 "Come with me."

　　 "Sure."

　　 Hashima Hikaru and Ibuki followed Nagumo and the three of them walked together towards the student union meeting room.

　　 "President, shall we go together?" Akane Tachibana was still a little worried.

　　 "No need. Nagumo's ability is obvious to everyone. I don't think I'll make a biased judgment." Horikita Manabu looked at Hashima Hikaru's back, a hint of expectation in her tone. "Also, this is obviously a good opportunity."

　　 "Opportunity?"

　　 "Look at how Hashima-kun performs when facing Nagumo." Horikita Manabu recalled the conversation when they first met, and a bright light flashed in her eyes.

　　 "I see." The purple-haired secretary nodded, but when she looked at Hashima's back, her eyes suddenly seemed a little strange.

　　 ---

　　When Hashima Hikaru and Ibuki followed Nagumo into the student union meeting room, they saw a long, very spacious table with plenty of seats on both sides.

　　 "You two just sit there, and… Ryuen-san will sit in front of you."

　　 Nagumo looked at Ryuen who came in and raised his eyebrows. He really didn't like the appearance of this first-year student. Not only did he have long hair, but he also looked like a bad guy. It was no wonder he was framed.

　　 However, he didn't care and instead ordered, "Then, both sides, please begin the debate. I will summarize all the testimonies you have given and finally make the correct judgment according to the school rules."

　　 "Let's begin!"

　　 After the announcement was made, the first person to speak was the accused, Ryuen.

　　 "So it's you, Ibuki."

　　 After Ryuen sat down in his seat carelessly, he looked at Ibuki in front of him with cold eyes and his tone was full of threats.

　　 "I thought you had finally learned your lesson and agreed to join my camp, but I didn't expect you to have such a trick up your sleeve. That's great."

　　 "You want to get me suspended from school, do you have proof?"

　　 "Of course you do. Not only is there proof, but there are also witnesses." Ibuki crossed her arms over her chest. She wasn't at all affected by Ryuuen's piercing gaze. Instead, she pointed at Hashima Hikaru standing beside her and began to introduce him.

　　 "Didn't you just meet? This is Hashima-san from class 1-B. He's my witness."

　　 "Oh, it's you. Can you show me some proof?"

　　Although Ryuen had just met Hashima Hikaru, he didn't take it seriously because he would have to deal with it later anyway.

　　 "Good afternoon, Ryuen-san. I'm Hikaru Hashima."

　　 Hikaru Hashima looked at the other party's fierce eyes, and after introducing himself, he said in a gentle tone, "Just now, when I was getting something in the science classroom, I witnessed your violence against Ibuki, so I took a photo."

　　 "Here's the video evidence, do you want to see it?"

　　 Hearing what Hashima Hikaru said, Nagumo immediately signaled the student council member standing next to him to project the video from his mobile phone onto the large screen at the back of the lecture hall.

　　 The next moment, seeing the violent scene unfolding on the screen, Ryuen's face darkened. He didn't expect the shooting angle to be so complicated and not show the part where Ibuki was resisting with her leg skills.

"Do you have anything else to say, Ryuen-san?"

　　 Nagumo knew full well that this was a setup, but everyone in the student union had their eyes on her. If she couldn't make a judgment that satisfied everyone, her prestige would most likely drop.

　　 "It's a false accusation. I was fighting with that guy. It wasn't a one-sided beating."

　　 Ryuen pointed his finger at Ibuki, who was in front of him, and shouted, "They're definitely colluding to frame me!"

　　 "Oh, really? Do you have any evidence you can provide?"

　　 Nagumo became interested and suggested, "For example, witness testimony is all acceptable."

　　 "I asked my comrades to come. Everyone knows I'm fighting this guy," Ryuen reminded Ishizaki and Komiya, whom he had ambushed earlier, and shouted loudly, "Whenever they come, the truth will be revealed."

　　 "Yes, this is your right."

　　 Nagumo nodded, then said, "Contact them directly and ask them to come quickly."

　　 "I see."

　　 Ryuuen glared fiercely at Hashima Hikaru and Ibuki, then began texting them on his phone.

　　 "Hashima-san, what should we do now?"

　　 Ibuki, who was standing on the other side, reached out and pulled Hashima Hikaru's sleeve. He was worried that if the two of them actually listened to his challenge to Ryuen, the outcome of the argument might be different.

　　 "Don't worry, this is what I want," Hashima Hikaru smirked and whispered to Ibuki, "After Ryuen makes this move, he will definitely lose."

　　 "Why?"

　　 "Let's wait and see, Ibuki-san."

　　 About five or six minutes later, the two boys arrived panting at the student union classroom. When they were brought into the union meeting room, there was still sweat on their faces; it was evident that they had run.

　　 "Ryuen-san, what's wrong?" Ishizaki Daichi was very worried about Ryuen and was afraid that he had been suspended from school.

　　 "Don't worry, the student council has to follow the rules," Ryuen looked at Nagumo Miyabi, who was sitting at the end of the long table, and said loudly, "These two are my witnesses. They can prove that it was Ibuki who provoked me first and then invited me to a duel."

　　 "Yes?"

　　 Nagumo's gaze fell on the two Class C students and asked coldly, "Can you prove that what she said is true?"

　　 "We can!"

　　 The two of them answered Nagumo's question in unison, and after Ishizaki Dai finished speaking, he pointed at Ibuki's nose and cursed.

　　 "Traitor, why did you frame Ryuen-san? Are you still a member of Class C?"

　　 "I'm not the same as you, but I'm not a traitor to Class C either."

　　 Ibuki ignored their gazes and turned to look at Hashima Hikaru beside her.

　　 Although the girl felt that the other party was a liar who told a lot of lies, she developed an inexplicable sense of trust in him, and she herself didn't know why.

　　 "Haha, you guys came just in time. I still have a piece of evidence that I haven't presented yet, so I thought I'd wait for you guys to come and tell Major Nagumo about it at the same time."

　　 Hashima Hikaru looked at Nagumo Miyabi, who was sitting upright, and said with a laugh, "Major Nagumo, please listen to this recording."

　　 "drop."

　　 The cell phone recording starts playing.

　　 "I don't know what you want to do, but since I'm here today, I must defeat you completely!"

　　 "Don't blame us, Ibuki-san. It was you who didn't listen to Ryuen-san."

　　 "Yes, I didn't want to be harsh with you."

　　 "Indeed, our accusation just now wasn't complete. We only said the first part." Hashima Hikaru put his hands on Ibuki's shoulders and softly explained to Nagumo, "Not only was Ibuki violently attacked by Ryuen in the front, but he also asked for help later, trying to force Ibuki to vote together."

　　 "This is the complete recorded sound. Senior Nagumo should be able to tell that it's his voice. Isn't there a comparison already made?"

　　 "..."

　　After Nagumo listened to the recording, his expression suddenly changed. He wasn't stupid. If he still wanted to let it go at this point, he would really be laughed at.

　　"You three stay here! I'll tell you what kind of punishment you'll receive for using violence in this school!" the blonde vice president of the student union shouted at the three people with a murderous light in his eyes.

　　"Thank you for your impartiality, Senior Nagumo. Can we listen to the verdict together?"

　　After hearing what Hashima Hikaru said, Nagumo looked at the boy holding the cell phone and suddenly a new idea came to his mind.

He showed a gentle smile on his face and said to Hashima, "Of course, Hashima-san and Ibuki-san can stay and listen together. After all, you are the parties involved, so you are naturally qualified to know the outcome."

　　 "Thank you, Nagumo-senpai."

　　 "Ryuen, from the first-year C class, on the afternoon of April 4th, in the school's special teaching building, because his wishes were not fulfilled, committed acts of violence against his classmate Ibuki. Although no serious consequences occurred, since such behavior was extremely bad, I, on behalf of the Student Council, make the following judgment."

　　 Nagumo's face was expressionless. After Hashima Hikaru took out the recording, he had already made up his mind. After all, Horikita Manabu was still watching from the outside, so he had to show his attitude.

　　"Ryuen Kakeru, you will be suspended from classes for one month starting today. You will not be allowed to return to classes until May 5th. You are not allowed to enter the teaching building during this period!"

　　 He looked at Ryuen, whose face was gloomy, and read his statement out loud.

　　 In fact, if it was an act of violence without serious consequences, it would be enough to suspend him from school for a week or half a month. However, considering that Ryuen not only committed violent acts this time, but also had quite obvious evidence on record, he also instigated two classmates to commit acts of violence against the girl together.

　　 This behavior is extremely heinous and must be severely punished at the highest level.

　　 "If you're found to be refusing to accept punishment or sneaking into the teaching building to attend classes," Nagumo sneered, looking at Ryuen and said, "You'll be expelled immediately!"

　　 "Do you understand?"

　　 "...I knew."

　　 Ryuen looked at Ibuki, who was standing next to him. After listening to the recording in Hashima Hikaru's hand, he immediately realized that he was doomed today, so he felt a little at ease.

　　 "Even if I lose this time, Ibuki, I'll win again next time, and the position of Class C leader will definitely be mine!"

He then looked at Hashima Hikaru, who still had a smile on his face, and slowly said, "Your name is Hashima Hikaru, right? I'll remember you."

　　 "Hey, am I that famous now?" The boy was not intimidated by Ryuen's threatening gaze. He shrugged and said naturally, "It's good that Ryuen-san remembers me."

　　 "We'll meet again often in the future. Come play again next time."

　　 "Snort!"

　　 At that moment, Nagumo, who was standing in front, looked at the other two boys from Class C and continued, "And the results of your punishments, listen together."

　　 "On the evening of April 4th, Komiya Yego and Ishizaki Daichi of Class 1C were instigated by Ryuen to ambush the Special Teaching Building with the intention of using violence against Ibuki. Although they were unsuccessful, their intention to use violence was obvious."

　　 "Then, starting today, the two of you will be suspended from school for a week and will not be able to return to classes until April 12th. Do you remember that? This sentence will be sent to Mr. Sakagami shortly and he will know everything about the three of you."

　　 "...Yes."

　　 In front of the strong older students, although Ishizaki and Komiya were rebellious teenagers in the past, they did not dare to continue arguing at this time as they did not want to be expelled from school.

　　 After the three boys from Class C left, Nagumo looked at Hashima Hikaru and Ibuki who were standing next to him, wanting to know their attitudes.

　　 "Well, this is the end of the accusation started by Ibuki-san. I wonder if the two parties are satisfied with my judgment."

　　 "Of course I am satisfied. Senior Nagumo is worthy of being the vice president of the student union. Not only is his judgment fair, but his aura is so strong that they don't dare to argue at all. It's really amazing!"

　　 Hashima Hikaru continued to show his shameless and invincible spirit and flattered Nagumo, which made the golden-haired man very happy and the smile on his face became more and more intense.

　　 "Then, can we go now?"

　　 Ibuki didn't want to stay there anymore. Now that she understood what was happening, it was time to leave.

"Indeed. Thank you, Major Nagumo, for today. We will take our leave now."

　　 Just as Hashima Hikaru and Ibuki turned around and prepared to leave the meeting room, Nagumo behind them suddenly spoke up.

　　 "Umm, Hashima-san, can you stay for a moment? I have something to tell you."

　　 "?"

　　 Ibuki, who was about to take a step, quickly glanced at the young man beside her after hearing Nagumo's words. Seeing the young man's smile that seemed to indicate that he had succeeded in his conspiracy, she immediately realized what was happening.

　　 Hmm, this guy is about to start over again.

　　 No wonder he had always shown great respect for the vice president of the student union. He was probably waiting for this moment.

　　"Actually."

　　 After muttering something under her breath, the girl didn't stay any longer, but quickened her pace and left the meeting room. She didn't want to stay with Hashima Hikaru at all, as she never realized that he would plot against her again at any moment.

　　"Oh, what's wrong, Nagumo-senpai?"

　　 Hashima Hikaru turned around, his expression still respectful. From what he had just seen, although this second-year student council student was the vice president of the student council, the relationship between him and Horikita Manabu was very subtle.

　　 The two of them were nominally the highest-ranking cadres in the Student Union, but there was obviously a certain level of competition between them, and the purple-haired third-year student seemed to dislike him greatly.

　　 This discovery must be put to good use, otherwise it would be wasted.

　　 Just as Hashima Hikaru was thinking to himself, Nagumo on the opposite side started to speak.

　　 "Hashima-san is from Class B, right? What an extraordinary talent."

　　 "I don't deserve it. I'm just an ordinary person in front of Senior Nagumo. Thank you for your praise."

　　 "No, no, no, don't be so modest," Nagumo said to the boy with a sincere expression on his face, "I was also in Class B when I was in first grade, but then I successfully established myself in Class A. I think Hashima-san can do the same as me."