Truthfully, the only one who kept on causing us trouble was the idiot cuck who still thinks that the world revolves around him. But with what I revealed, he finally got reduced to nothing more than an empty husk of his former self.

Nami and the others couldn’t even look at him with pity. Because from the past few weeks, his standing in their eyes went downhill quickly. He couldn’t be reasoned out and he kept on believing with only his misconception.

His state today wasn’t just because I stole Nami from him. If he had just come to grip reality right away, he wouldn’t look this pathetic.

Anyway, Kikuchi didn’t follow up with another question. I already fulfilled her request so there’s not much for her to ask anymore. Even if she’s still in the process of digesting everything I said, it’s not my problem anymore.

Tadano was the same. But like earlier, he looked like he still wanted to talk to me. Whatever he’s going to ask or say, it’s definitely related to this club or their circle.

Good timing because I also want to finally put an end to this useless confrontation with them.

No. At this point, it’s just really Ogawa who’s using any issue that could be linked to me to try and take me down a peg. I doubt he even cared a lot that Taku got kicked out. He’s just using it as a springboard to get back at me. Which, obviously, is not going to work.

The other guy had long accepted the fact that I managed to sweep all those girls in my arms. His only issue this time is because he saw the pitiful state of Taku at the infirmary.

Now that it’s cleared up and kicking the silent guy out of their club was proven to be the most sensible choice compared to giving the guy a more severe punishment, there’s nothing to argue anymore.

Though kicking Ogawa out would also be the easiest solution there, it should be their decision and not mine. That guy didn’t even know that the only reason he could stay there is because they were all feeling sorry for him.

He’s too disillusioned to see the kindness exercised by them.

That’s why now that I broke another flimsy tower that he’s trying to build, I should make use of his weakened mental state.

And so, after telling Nami and the others about my plan, I decided to execute it right away.

I stood up and signaled for Tadano to follow me out of the room. And even without me telling him, he dragged Ogawa with him.

Once we reached an open space, a fair distance from their clubroom, I stopped in my steps and faced the two.

With my thoughts already arranged, I started the conversation.

“Let’s see. Tadano, I’m certain you’re aware, right? In light of everything that has recently happened, it’s about damn time to stop trying to antagonize me every time I show up in your club room. It’s not helping you and it’s troubling not only the girls but also the essence of your club.”

“Yeah. I’m aware of that. Today is just...”

Understandably, Tadano took a few seconds to reply with a nod before trying to reason out. He failed to finish it though. Because he knew that it was nothing more than an excuse for how they behaved.

In any case, I helped him finish that sentence and more.

“What? Because I dealt with Taku in that way? Do you know that he even dared to follow Saki inside the women’s restroom? If it’s Nami or Mei-chan in her stead, can you say that you’ll just stand still and let him get away with it?”

“Huh? Is that true?”

“See. You don’t even know that detail yet you stood up there acting all righteous. You both should’ve brought a torch to burn me at the stake like you’re doing a witch hunt. That’s how prejudiced you all appeared not just in my eyes but also to the girls who are aware of what exactly happened.” I shook my head disappointedly. Ogawa was definitely listening to us but until now, he couldn’t even look at me straight.

Either he’s still refusing to acknowledge me or he’s just biding his time to wait for a moment I will stumble with my words. What a nasty idiot.

“I... I’m sorry.” Tadano apologized. A bitter look appeared on his face.

“I don’t need your apology. Apologize to Saki, if you will. That guy ruined this day for her. It’s her birthday yet it’s now eclipsed by that incident.”

“Y-yeah. I will when I return to the club.”

Yeah. If it’s Tadano, it’s easier to get through to him. It’s truly the other idiot who’s making things this difficult.

Even after I let a few seconds pass, the guy remained silent. He’s turning into the second coming of the silent guy. If earlier, he was too over his head to stand for him, now, he’s like a deflated balloon that already lost the ability to float or an empty magazine attached to a gun. Both useless.

“Anyway, you looked like you wanted to talk so here. Let’s talk and settle our differences once and for all.” I paused for a moment to address the idiot. If I also continued ignoring him, there would be no point in this. “The same goes for you, Ogawa. Stop running away from reality. If their words aren’t getting through to you, I’ll take that role and set your mind straight.”

He remained silent for the first five to ten seconds. But soon after that, he gnashed his teeth and seemingly found his voice back. He lifted his head and matched my gaze.

“I’m not running away... I’m just denying you.”

“Denying me? What for? Do you think they will leave me if you succeed?”

“Even so... I have to.”

“Dude. This is what’s wrong with you. Stop making everything about yourself. If you still can’t accept that after this, it won’t be long before they stop being patient and kind to you. If it’s only up to me, I would’ve long kicked you out of that club. You’re just making it difficult for everyone. Ask Tadano.”

Why am I going to this length for this idiot? Do I feel sorry for him? Of course, I don’t. But let’s just say there’s more merit to stopping this guy from antagonizing me and keeping him at length than letting him get out of my influence.

I’m certainly not doing this because I also want to use him to steal Kazuha-nee in the future.

Right?

Anyway, even if I didn’t prompt him, Tadano stepped up and supported my words. He finally decided to do something about him too, huh?

“He’s right, Kazuo. You can keep blaming him for stealing Nami from you and disrupting our club by getting close to everyone. However, it won’t erase the truth that we messed up when dealing with the changes in them...”

This guy. So, he’s going to shoulder it with him? I guess he’s a real friend for doing that. If he’s not, abandoning him should be easy.

I only heard of their past from the girls’ accounts but considering they’re pretty much a famous, tight-knit group during middle school, the idiot probably truly showed them good leadership and the kindness he always flaunted before.

Only after I meddled with their relationship did the guy really veer away from his usual behavior. But hey, he’s just hiding his selfish motive behind his kind smile anyway. He’s not that much different. I only turned out to be more decisive than him. Hence, I stole everyone vying for his attention.

“Alright. Let me add this. Your circle is no more, you best remember that. You can say I broke it and I’m the most contributing factor but you and your behavior are half of the reason. You can try and deny it but that’s a fact. It’s mostly kindness and gratitude left as to why they’re staying in that club. Or maybe, it’s also because they still want to help the other students through it.”

Yeah. That had to be said. Otherwise, with how he’s dumbing down his comprehension nowadays, it would take a long time for him to realize it.

Anyway, I stopped speaking after that.

Tadano helplessly sighed but he couldn’t refute any of my words. Ogawa was also the same. He’s finally accepting the fact that his denial of reality isn’t doing shit for him.

As for when he will truly change. I guess we just have to observe it after this day.

Five minutes later, when things pretty much calmed down, I suggested that we return to their clubroom.

They did agree.

However, when we were about to walk away, three girls showed up from the direction of the staircase. And they’re not just anyone.

They’re not students from our school. Their uniform is the one I often see from Sumire.

While they first looked like they had no idea where to go, their eyes immediately brightened up as soon as they saw Ogawa and Tadano.

“Ogawa-senpai, Tadano-senpai. We came to visit!” Two of the three girls cheerfully chanted before they started making their way to our location.