V2Ch6: President’s regret. Taiga, beginning to understand who he is now.

Translator: Soafp

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After returning to the classroom with the three of us after lunch, I decided to go to the restroom before class. That’s when I was called out from behind in a desperate voice.

It was Student Council President Manaka Tachibana. She looked at me with clenched fists and a teary-eyed expression.

“I know you don’t want to talk to someone like me… But please, just let me speak for a moment… I can’t forgive myself if things continue like this.”

She had an unusual aura about her, quite different from her usual serious and reserved personality. Even though I had decided not to engage with my classmates anymore, she persistently tried to stop me, and I reluctantly agreed to hear her out for a little while.

Perhaps she was also a victim like me. Somehow, I had an intuition that I should listen to what she had to say.

She led me to a secluded place, turned towards me, and bent her knees at a right angle.

“…Yagami-kun! I’m truly sorry! If I had just checked more carefully, you wouldn’t have had to suffer every day… It’s all my fault for causing you, an innocent person, to go through such pain…”

I believe it was her sincere apology. Though I couldn’t see her face, tears were dripping onto the floor, and her body had been trembling since earlier.

She blamed herself, but honestly, I didn’t hold any resentment towards her. She was merely deceived and used by those two.

Sure, if she had examined the video more thoroughly… I had thought about that. But whether I should blame the Student Council President for it is a different story. I heard from Mio that she was blaming herself significantly during the moment of apprehending the culprits.

Those two who deceived her are the ones at fault, no doubt about it.

However, from her demeanor, I could tell that her remorse was genuine. If the serious-minded Student Council President continues like this, she might blame herself for the rest of her life. Now, what should I… What should I say? I have to choose my words carefully.

“First, please raise your head. Student Council President, you don’t have to feel that guilty. While you did make a mistake, it’s not like there was any ill intent on your part, right? Besides, you weren’t subjected to anything terrible.”

While there was no physical violence from my classmates, ignoring and insulting me were part of my everyday life. But whenever the Student Council President saw me, she would simply look awkward and never did anything to harm me. If I had approached her back then, we probably could have had a conversation.

From the start, it seemed that the intelligent Student Council President had suspected that I was innocent.

“But… I… While thinking that Yagami-kun, whom I see in class, couldn’t possibly do such a thing, I couldn’t do anything for the rest of the class… I just averted my gaze and told myself that it had nothing to do with me… I’m just as awful as everyone else! I might be an even worse person for using the cause of Yagami-kun’s situation… I… I truly can’t forgive myself…”

Indeed, she didn’t do anything to help. That much is undeniable.

But in the first place, if those two hadn’t framed me, neither I nor the Student Council President would have suffered so much.

Nevertheless… I didn’t expect her to push herself to this extent. As I struggled with my words, the Student Council President forced a stiff smile.

“H-Haha… I’m sorry. I should have just apologized… Why did I have to say all of this to Yagami-kun? I’m sure…”

She would break down like this if things continued. I was convinced of that as I saw the Student Council President speaking with tears streaming down her face. That’s why I decided to say the words she wanted to hear the most.

“You’ve done nothing wrong.”

In that moment, large tears welled up in the Student Council President’s eyes.

“Yagami-kun… Why… are you so…”

I couldn’t say anything more to the Student Council President, who covered her mouth with her hand. Still, with just that one phrase, she wiped away her tears with her hand as if she had made a decision, then looked at me with a serious expression.

“I’ve decided after experiencing your kindness, Yagami-kun. It’s wrong for Kirishima-kun and Saito-san… to get away with what they did without being expelled. And it’s as if the bullying from our classmates never happened… That’s just not right. Including myself, of course.”

I didn’t do anything with the intention of being kind. I simply said it because I genuinely believed I hadn’t done anything wrong.

Mistaking it for kindness, the serious-minded Student Council President, with strong determination in her eyes, continued.

“It might take time, but I’ll try to find various ways… Right now, all I can do is apologize… I’m truly sorry. And thank you for bringing me back to who I used to be.”

Without waiting for me to say anything, the Student Council President said only that and ran off somewhere. What was she planning to do? Honestly, I don’t want to get into any more trouble by getting involved.

Besides, I hope the Student Council President herself doesn’t dwell on things too much and harm her own well-being.

On the way back to the classroom, I realize that I’m slightly worried about the Student Council President. It feels strange to have such concern for someone.

Wasn’t I supposed to be indifferent to anyone other than Mio and my mother?

Indeed, until this morning, I believed that to be true. But today, talking to Todoroki and the Student Council President made me realize.

I can present myself as a normal person to others who don’t harbor animosity towards me to a certain extent. Of course, I don’t intend to become close to them, but… how should I put it, at the very least, it’s not unpleasant.

On the other hand, with people like Rinto, Reina Saito, other classmates, and even Shion and Tsumugi… those who cause harm to me or to the few important people in my life, I can be as cruel as possible. Even if they were lying before me on the verge of death, I could ignore them without any heartache.

In other words, I clearly distinguish between important people, normal people, and those who fall into neither category.

Perhaps this way of thinking could make life much easier.

When I thought that, I realized unintentionally that I had a disturbing smile on my face as I walked.

I had felt like a defective product with an essential part missing from my being. But when I actually examined it, I found that I am perfectly capable of selecting people. And today, I became aware of that.

What an arrogant way of thinking. Who do you think you are? I might be scolded by some saintly figure…

But is there a more comfortable way of living than this?

Feeling a little lighter in my heart, I returned to the classroom slowly.