Chapter 80: Contents of the Rumor

“…Ishud. Is it really okay to just drop by the Student Council room where the officers are working?”

“It’ll be fine. Besides, working too hard isn’t good for you.”

Even as he said this, Ishud had no sweets or tea leaves on hand.

“Ishud, I objected to this, you know.”

“Yeah yeah, I’ve heard you say it multiple times. Anyway, you’re secretly happy to see Christille, aren’t you~~”

“Q-quiet!!”

By the way, Gulf’s opinion leaned towards Michela’s, while Philip’s opinion sided more with Ishud’s.

“Alright, we’re here. Knocking on the door~ It’s Ishud~~”

As he knocked on the door, announcing his name, Michela sighed, clearly not adopting the demeanor of a student with business in the Student Council room.

“Heeey, looong time no see~”

“Hey there.”

“Could it be you’re here to see the president?”

“Yeah, something like that.”

“Alrighty then. Come on in~”

The female student secretary allowed Ishud and the others into the Student Council room, and she started preparing tea since guests had arrived.

“Oh my, if it isn’t Ishudo-kun and company.”

“Gah!!! …What the heck are you guys here for?”

“Don’t tell me you’re here to see the president?”

“Yeah, something like that~ So you don’t need to be so surprised, Mr. Smarty Glasses.”

“Ugh… Can’t you come up with a better nickname?”

He wanted to insist on being called by his name like normal, but having witnessed Ishud’s performance in the fierce battle festival, especially in the special match, he couldn’t assert himself too strongly.

“…You must be the exchange student everyone’s been talking about.”

“I am Ibuki Akatsuki, at your service, Student Council President.”

Ibuki bowed deeply to Christille, showing respect to the student leader.

Though it was their first meeting, seeing Ibuki’s respectful demeanor towards Christille, the other officers thought, “Yeah, that’s how it should be,” while briefly glancing at Ishud, who wasn’t quite normal.

“Pleased to meet you, Ibuki-san. I’m Christille Alvaresia. If you ever encounter any difficulties during your time here at school, feel free to come to me for advice or assistance.”

“I appreciate your concern. Thank you.”

After the greetings with the exchange student were concluded, Christille turned her gaze towards Ishud.

“By the way, Ishud-kun. I heard that you… had a confrontation with Shidou sensei, who served as a substitute teacher this morning. He’s Ibuki-san’s older brother, correct?”

“Yeah, word travels fast, huh? Well, I must say… I was completely defeated. It was like, I got cleanly sliced in half, you know~”

“““……!!!”””

All four of them remembered every detail of the rumors that had been circulating.

Ishud suddenly challenging Shidou to a duel, using swords… and dying once.

The description of being “cleanly sliced in half” hinted that the information about dying once wasn’t a lie.

“H-hey, wait. Does that mean you really got… cut in half?”

“Well, not exactly in half, but more like, I got cut clean through from here.”

Ishud performed a gesture as if he were slicing from his right shoulder down.

Hahaha!!! The reason why Ishud was laughing wasn’t quite understood by the four of them.

“Then, was it true that you had an Elixir with you?”

“Of course it was. If I didn’t have the Elixir, I wouldn’t be alive, and if I didn’t have it, I wouldn’t have made such a reckless challenge to Shidou sensei in the first place.”

Michela and the others were somewhat surprised to realize that Ishud was aware of how reckless his offer had been.

“You… you were fully aware of that, weren’t you?”

“Of course I was. What do you take me for?”

“A mad warrior without an ounce of delicacy, that’s what.”

“Hahaha!!! Looks like you’ve got quite the mouth on you now, you damn big-boobed jerk!”

Despite feeling frustrated at Ishud’s refusal to correct the name despite repeated requests, Michela didn’t try to shout and correct him this time. Instead, she simply tightened her fist with the determination to someday definitely correct him.

“So, Ishud-kun’s defeat means that you lost?”

“Yeah, I lost. Seriously, it felt like his blade could reach me no matter what~ Probably, Shidou sensei’s level is over sixty or something.”

For Ishud, who actually clashed swords with him, it didn’t make sense that Shidou, despite being a samurai, hadn’t surpassed level sixty with the solid sword techniques, reads, and evasion movements he displayed.

“But hey, Ishud, you didn’t use Berserker’s Soul during that fight?”

“Yeah, but since katana are delicate weapons, Berserker’s Soul, which generally enhances excitement, doesn’t really mesh well with them.”

Ishud’s katana was designed to withstand a rapid increase in physical abilities, allowing it to tolerate a certain degree of roughness in his technique. However, during his duel with Shidou, Ishud, as a samurai, wanted to genuinely test the limits of his swordsmanship against a true samurai. 

Because of this desire, he didn’t consider using Berserker’s Soul during that fight.

“But hey, wouldn’t the outcome have been different if you had used it?”

“Well, who knows~ Shidou-sensei mentioned that he was able to handle my disruptions and breaks because he believed in my strength, but he still seemed to be holding back a bit~ So even if I had used my original weapon, I can’t say for sure.”

“To think Ishud would say something like that… He must be incredibly strong.”

“For me, seeing Ishud get cut was hard on the heart.”

“That’s why~ I said it was bad~ Cheer up, Gulf~”

After hearing Ibuki’s introduction and the story of Ishud’s duel with the rumored Shidou, the conversation came to an end.

However, Christille suspected that there might be something else Ishud wanted to convey to her.

(While I’m glad I could hear the details of the rumor, it seems like there’s something else he wants to tell me…!)

Upon realizing what Ishud might want to convey, Christille tried to suppress any visible reaction.

However, Ishud didn’t miss the subtle change and responded with a mischievous grin, acknowledging her realization.

(So that’s it, huh… Well, I suppose it can’t be helped.)

Ishud, the man at the center of the issue, had introduced Ibuki, the exchange student. 

This meant that Ibuki had become part of Ishud’s group.

(Indeed, Ibuki-san is quite the unusual beauty… It seems like hoping for no trouble is an impossible wish.)

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