The crowd was caught completely off guard by the sudden appearance of the youth. The entire auditorium became so silent that one could hear a pin drop.
Judging by that police academy uniform, he was clearly a peer of the freshmen present, but... under normal circumstances, would anyone actually choose to swagger through the main entrance after being nearly half an hour late?
If it were anyone else, who would dare to be so bold? They would surely sneak in through a small back door, trying their best not to attract attention, and then apologize to the Superintendent after the ceremony to let the matter slide.
Seriously, where did this "airhead" come from!
"You are..."
The elderly Superintendent froze for a second upon seeing the newcomer. An ID photo—one that stood out as exceptionally striking even among thousands of files—instantly flashed in his mind.
"Student Hisano Nozomi?"
The instructors nearby reacted quickly as well.
In particular, Onizuka Hachizo reflexively raised his fist in a defensive stance before quickly lowering it.
Hmm? So this is the top student who tied for first place with Furuya Rei?
Due to the earlier absence of a certain freshman representative, many students had been speculating. They weren't surprised by the familiar name, but they couldn't help but steal several extra glances at him.
After a brief moment of surprise, the Superintendent's expression returned to normal.
"Student Hisano, you are indeed quite late."
Faced with the curious or scrutinizing gazes of at least several hundred people, the youth spoke with total nonchalance: "Well then, my sincere apologies."
Despite the apology, it was hard to feel any actual guilt from him. It was as if being late to the important opening ceremony was merely a trivial matter.
He blinked, putting on an utterly innocent expression: "I ran into a bit of trouble on the way. I finally managed to resolve it before rushing over... You won't blame me, will you, Grandpa Superintendent?"
Recalling the "eighteen years old" written in black and white on the profile, and seeing that baby face that looked no different from a high schooler's, even the Superintendent—who usually demanded strict discipline—swallowed his criticism and softened his tone.
"...Fine. Don't let it happen again."
Seeing the Superintendent let him off so easily, Matsuda Jinpei, sitting in the crowd, was baffled.
"If I'm not mistaken, the dessert bag that guy is holding is from a shop only found in Ginza, right? Clearly—"
Clearly, he's late because he went all the way there to buy snacks!
"Can't be helped, top students are the treasures of teachers," Hagiwara Kenji smiled. "Besides, elders always seem to be more lenient toward younger kids."
"Kid? Are you referring to the physical monster who got a perfect score on the comprehensive test?"
"Jin-chan, you shouldn't speak ill of others."
"Please, that was a compliment!"
The Superintendent stroked his beard and said, "It just so happens to be your turn for the freshman representative speech. You arrived just in time. Since that's the case, please come up to the stage and give a speech to everyone, Student Hisano."
The instructors, upon hearing this, simultaneously recalled this person's performance during the interview and felt a sudden wave of anxiety.
Can he really give a proper speech? They didn't expect a textbook-level performance like Furuya Rei's; they just hoped he wouldn't cause a scene. Surely, in such a serious setting, Hisano Nozomi wouldn't act like he did before... right?
"Hmm, actually, I'm not very good at speaking in public. But since I'm already here..."
The late freshman representative placed his shopping bag by the door. With his hands in his pockets and a lazy gait, he walked up to the podium, finally revealing his full appearance to the crowd.
Setting aside his flawless features, just the low ponytail casually tied at the nape of his neck with a red ribbon was enough to catch everyone's eye. His rare red eyes should have been sharp enough to make people look away, yet his thick, long eyelashes cast butterfly-wing shadows on his porcelain cheeks. This caused many of the female students to recall their high school crushes, instantly feeling a sense of affection and a surge of "favorability points" for him.
However, in stark contrast to the girls, some of the men exchanged silent glances, feeling bitter in their hearts.
Dammit—never mind that dark-skinned handsome guy Furuya, how did another dazzling 'ikemen' pop up!
Wuwuwu, is there any hope of escaping singlehood in this academy now?
It's one thing to have good grades, but being this handsome too? So annoying!
Oh right, there's also that Matsuda and Hagiwara. Their looks are quite threatening too. Can you leave some room for us ordinary people?
Che, don't steal all the girls' attention, you bastard!!
I actually think he's quite cute... am I allowed to say that?
Furuya Rei, meanwhile, couldn't help but complain internally: Is no one going to comment on Student Hisano's way of walking? It feels... unprofessional...
As he thought this, his shoulder suddenly felt a slight chill, as if an invisible gaze had pierced through the air and landed on him.
On stage, Student Hisano seemed to be sizing him up, intentionally or otherwise.
Furuya Rei looked up, meeting those cherry-like eyes without backing down.
Unexpectedly, the other party didn't avoid his gaze. Instead, his lips curled into a sly smirk, his smile carrying a hint of provocation, as if saying: That's right, I'm looking at you.
Despite it being their first meeting, the person gave off a sense of déjà vu.
"Right, so it was him..."
That casual yet flamboyant aura merged with the ghostly figure he had seen not long ago, perched on a roof eating a lollipop. It made sense; with such "cheating" physical test scores, it wouldn't be strange if it were Hisano.
[Ding! Impression points from plot character Furuya Rei +200...]
Hearing the expected system notification, the arc of Satoru Gojo's mouth widened by a fraction of a millimeter.
Earlier, to eliminate the rejection reaction of the new "vest" (alias), he had traveled halfway across the globe before finally returning accurately to the police academy.
As for taking time out to buy snacks in Ginza...
He never intended to arrive early like everyone else and sit in the hall following the rules. If you want to leave the deepest impression on everyone on the first day, being an unconventional "troublemaker" is the simplest and most effective way.
For example, "I'm going to dye this thing green"... just kidding.
"So, what would Student Hisano like to say?"
The Superintendent, seeing that he didn't seem prepared, thoughtfully took the lead: "Why not share your study tips for the exams with everyone?"
"Wow, that's a really tough question~"
Satoru Gojo gripped the microphone and propped up his chin. His intentionally "cute" posture struck the hearts of the girls in the audience.
However, in the next second, everyone's hearts shattered into pieces.
"Do exams even need 'tips'?" His tone was perfectly casual. "If you ask me... you just need a pair of hands."
"Eh...?!"
As soon as those words came out, a commotion erupted.
"What do you mean 'just a pair of hands'! That's so mean!"
This guy isn't taking the "mentoring" seriously at all!
"Haha, what the... he really is an extraordinary fellow."
Matsuda Jinpei burst out laughing, contributing 200 impression points to Gojo.
Furuya Rei, meanwhile, recalled his previous deduction about Hisano Nozomi. He had to admit—it was completely wrong.
Someone who dares to say such things in front of everyone so nonchalantly doesn't look like he has "social anxiety" at all.
If anything, he was a "social terrorist"...
"Ahem... it seems Student Hisano is indeed very intelligent," the Superintendent quickly changed the subject. "I am very curious—why did you want to become a police officer and come to this academy?"
Hagiwara Kenji: Instead of a speech, this has turned into a street interview.
At the mention of this topic, the youth seemed to become enthusiastic.
"Because it's interesting."
Four short words, yet they were quite difficult for the crowd to comprehend.
"What... what? Just for a reason like that?!"
"Because it's interesting" was even more absurd to the crowd than the "just a pair of hands" comment.
Most of the people present, even if they didn't have a profound sense of duty, at least had a desire to protect their country and its people. They never expected someone to label the sacred profession of a police officer with such a simple motive.
"Yes. Compared to other professions, a police officer is definitely the most interesting, right?"
A thin smile played on Satoru Gojo's lips, his expression meaningful.
"Always accompanied by crisis, haunted by the risk of death, tearing at the insects in the darkness until the final victory is won..."
"If I didn't become a cop, life would be far too boring, wouldn't it?"
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