Saiki possessed the ability to read minds. If he wanted to, he could easily uncover the secrets of any first-year student.
However, the person Saiki had in mind wasn't himself, but someone else.
Kushida Kikyo.
Kushida Kikyo was the true social butterfly of the first year, having close relationships with members of every class and even upperclassmen. Her personality made it easy for others to confide in her, treating her as a close friend.
At this point, Kushida Kikyo could be said to hold the secrets of most of the first-year students.
In the past, Kushida Kikyo had used this method to completely disrupt the order of her middle school class.
Due to the effects of mental control, Kushida Kikyo no longer saw Saiki as an enemy. Even without using his mind-reading abilities, Saiki could likely obtain relevant information from her. By providing it to Shiina Hiyori, he could help complete the plan.
However...
Saiki had no intention of doing so.
He wasn't interested in other people's privacy, nor did he want to leak it.
Moreover, introducing Kushida Kikyo to Shiina Hiyori wasn't a good idea.
After all, not many people in the school knew Kushida Kikyo's true nature. If others found out, it could have a severe impact on the entire grade.
"Well, there's really no way around it."
Saiki nodded.
"I need to come up with a better plan... Saiki, do you have any ideas?"
Shiina Hiyori looked up, her gaze fixed on Saiki's face.
[If it's Saiki, he might be able to find a way.]
"I haven't thought of anything yet."
Saiki shook his head.
'Yare yare, while Shiina's method could indeed pull Ichinose out of her predicament, it might cause even more chaos in the grade. It's not a good idea.'
"I see. I guess I'll have to think of something else..."
After a brief exchange with Shiina Hiyori, Saiki returned to his dorm to rest.
But just then, Saiki detected a familiar presence behind him.
[Saiki... he seems so ordinary... even now, he still feels so ordinary...]
'Yare yare, it's this person again?'
Saiki sighed, as the person tailing him was none other than Kamishiro Masumi.
Although Saiki had never formally met Kamishiro Masumi, he already knew her name. She had been tailing him for some time now.
'I'll just keep pretending I don't notice her.'
Saiki thought to himself, preparing to walk right past Kamishiro Masumi.
But at that moment, Kamishiro Masumi suddenly spoke up:
"You've actually noticed, haven't you? I've been following you for the past few days."
'What's this person doing? Is she talking to me? But there's no one else around... Is she just revealing herself like this? I was planning to pretend I hadn't noticed her at all.'
Saiki had no idea what was going on, so he chose to—
Ignore her.
Saiki pretended not to hear anything and walked right past Kamishiro Masumi.
[??? What's this guy doing???]
Kamishiro Masumi was completely caught off guard by Saiki's blatant disregard and raised her voice:
"Hey, are you ignoring me on purpose?"
Saiki's footsteps didn't stop.
"Saiki!"
'Damn it, she's calling my name now. I can't just ignore her anymore...'
Saiki sighed, stopping in his tracks and turning to look at Kamishiro Masumi:
"Are you talking to me?"
"Duh, is there anyone else named Saiki here?"
"Sorry, we don't know each other, so I thought you were talking to someone else."
Saiki replied without changing his expression.
[This guy... he seems like such a bookworm. Is he really someone worth paying attention to, as Sakayanagi said? But since it's Sakayanagi's orders, I'll keep going. First, I'll get close to Saiki, then test him.]
'Yare yare, as expected.'
"I'm Kamishiro Masumi. I was ordered by Sakayanagi to tail you, though I'm not really interested in the task."
Kamishiro Masumi spoke slowly.
"Tail me? Sakayanagi?"
Saiki pretended to be confused.
[Is this guy still playing dumb?]
"That's right. We already know some things about you. Both the former and current student council presidents are very interested in you. You should know that, right?"
"I have no idea. Sorry, but I think there might be some misunderstanding here?"
Saiki continued to deny it.
"You..."
Kamishiro Masumi was starting to get annoyed, but since it was Sakayanagi Arisu's orders, she had to continue with the plan:
"Whatever. Just know that Sakayanagi has been having me tail you. But I don't really want to work for Sakayanagi. You know how ruthless she is. If you cross her, you won't end up well. So, how about we work together?"
Saiki knew she was lying, but it seemed she was determined to pester him today.
"I really don't understand what's going on."
"...You... Just remember, if you don't cooperate with me, Sakayanagi will come after you, and she might even get you expelled... Let's go somewhere private to talk. It's too cold here, and I hate the cold."
"You could just go back to your dorm..."
"Let's go to your room."
Kamishiro Masumi didn't give Saiki any chance to refuse, following him closely.
'Yare yare, here comes a troublesome person. I'll just have to deal with her for now.'
Saiki thought to himself, reluctantly agreeing and leading her into the elevator and back to his room.
"Your room is so plain."
Kamishiro Masumi's words didn't match her thoughts.
"I don't have many hobbies."
Saiki replied, but Kamishiro Masumi walked straight over and sat on his bed.
"Get me something to drink. This might take a while."
"I don't have anything."
Saiki answered, while secretly using his psychic powers to hide the drinks and milk tea he usually kept in his room.
"Really? How is that possible?"
Kamishiro Masumi said in disbelief, quickly walking over to the fridge and opening it.
It was completely empty.
"There's really nothing... Do you even live here?"
"I don't usually eat snacks."
Saiki replied.
But a bead of sweat formed on his forehead.
Just a second before Kamishiro Masumi opened the fridge, it had contained the cake he planned to eat tonight. Knowing Kamishiro Masumi's personality, she would've likely eaten it without a second thought.
Fortunately, Saiki reacted quickly, teleporting the cake away the moment she opened the fridge.
'That was a close call.'
Saiki thought to himself, then spoke up.
"So, what did you want to talk about? If you're cold, we could go to the dorm lobby. It's warm there."
"But here, no one will disturb us. It's the best place to talk."
"What do you want to talk about? We just met, and you're saying all these strange things to me."
"You're not like Yamauchi from your class."
Kamishiro Masumi said.
[That Yamauchi guy... does he have no self-awareness? Does he really think he's good enough for Sakayanagi? How laughable.]
'Yare yare, while it's a bit pitiful, she's not wrong.'
Saiki agreed in his heart.
"Are you curious about Yamauchi?"
"Not at all."
"Fine, I won't bring it up then. It doesn't matter anyway."
Not seeing any drinks or snacks, Kamishiro Masumi's face was filled with disappointment as she sat back on the bed and continued.
"What do you think about that letter regarding Ichinose?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, do you believe she's a criminal?"
"I don't know."
Saiki replied.
[This guy... he's so annoying... so boring.]
Kamishiro Masumi's eyebrow twitched as she continued.
"Even if you're not interested, you should at least think about it. Think about whether Ichinose is a good person or a bad person."
"Even if she's a criminal, it doesn't mean she's a bad person. And not being a criminal doesn't mean she's a good person."
Saiki continued to spout meaningless words.
'Just leave already.'
"..."
[This is going nowhere...]
Kamishiro Masumi thought for a moment, then forcibly changed the topic.
"There are rumors that someone is spreading these rumors, right?"
"Yeah."
"In my opinion, I think those rumors contain at least some truth, or something close to the truth. That's why Ichinose isn't fighting back against the rumors or the letters. If she did, the truth she's trying to hide might come out. But if she does nothing, people will definitely start to suspect her, right?"
Kamishiro Masumi paused deliberately, as if trying to emphasize the seriousness of the situation.
"And that won't solve the problem. If the people who know the truth she's trying to hide keep spreading rumors, even if she doesn't admit it, sooner or later, more specific details will come out. When that happens, she won't be able to hide it anymore."
"Oh."
"...Also, I'll just tell you straight. The one spreading these rumors is Sakayanagi. You know that, right?"
"I have no idea."
"...Just so you know, Sakayanagi doesn't know I'm here talking to you. If she found out, she'd be furious. She's planning to deal with you after she's done with Ichinose."
'Yare yare, if she's saying this, it'd be strange for me to keep pretending I don't care. This is such a hassle.'
Saiki felt a bit helpless but decided to play along.
"So, you're saying you're betraying Sakayanagi?"
"Exactly."
"Sorry, that's hard to believe."
"I figured. That's why I'll tell you the truth Ichinose is hiding—because by tomorrow or the day after, the other students will probably find out anyway. But before that, I need to explain why Sakayanagi has been ordering me around."
"I don't..."
"I know you're not interested, but just listen."
Without giving Saiki a chance to refuse, Kamishiro Masumi began to tell her story about Sakayanagi Arisu.
Although it took a while, the story wasn't complicated. Kamishiro Masumi had been caught stealing at school by Sakayanagi Arisu, who then blackmailed her into becoming her subordinate.
Using his telepathy, Saiki knew she wasn't lying. It was a true story.
However, Saiki also knew that Kamishiro Masumi wasn't working for Sakayanagi Arisu solely because of the blackmail. It was also her own choice.
"That's it. I'm exhausted, and my throat is dry... You don't even have anything to drink here..."
Kamishiro Masumi complained.
[I'm sure Saiki will doubt the authenticity of my story, especially the part about me stealing. But Sakayanagi has already prepared for this. She's arranged for some beer. Even if I borrowed someone else's student ID, it'd be impossible to get beer, since regular students can't buy age-restricted items. Using a teacher or a staff member would be impractical. Saiki will definitely think the item was stolen, and that'll make him drop his guard.]
'Yare yare, so that's the plan.'
Saiki thought to himself but didn't say anything.
"I've said so much, and you haven't reacted at all? Do you doubt me?"
Kamishiro Masumi, seeing that Saiki hadn't spoken for a while, pretended to be a bit angry.
"No, I don't doubt you. I trust you completely. Tell me what you plan to do about Sakayanagi, and I'll help you."
At that moment, Saiki finally spoke.
'I'll just play along and get her to leave.'
However, his response completely threw off Kamishiro Masumi's plan.
"You don't doubt me?"
"Not at all."
"I'll go steal some beer from the store..."
"No need. I completely trust you."