Chapter 7: Lenient Bashing【P2】

Anza

He shrugs. “The Chronicle League.”

“Like… as in, studying ancient dynasties?”

“No, nothing that romantic. We just catalog the history of the school itself,”He nods slowly as a small smile emerges.

“Huh?”

He twirls his fork in the air. “We archive things like past election cycles, major campus events, and how the rules have changed over time. You could say we’re kind of just the campus fanboys.”

“Wow, an entire club just for campus history? Is there that much to file away?”

“Pffft—” He chokes on the bread, speaking through a mouthful. “You should see the stacked shelves I’ve been working on for the last few days!”

He swallows before I can think about whether this island actually has a graveyard. “Though, this club is far more relaxed than the sports groups. Just attend some weekly meetings, follow the rules. Nothing crazy.”

“Wait, in books, you said? Why—”

Bzzz.

My phone vibrates against the wood of the table. The screen lights up with a text notification sitting on top of a missed call from Asuka.

[Come down ASAP! Toma wants to check out the school building today and I need my majority vote back here to stop him, right now! Meet at the Sparrow Park fountain, NOW!]

The day has barely started and she is already operating at maximum drama. Impressive.

“Well.” I take a last bite of toast before standing up. “My not-so-relaxed friend is already bugging me to come.”

I grab my plate and scoop up the backpack from the foot of the bed behind me. Luckily, I packed it last night.

“That bad, huh?”

“I think she just skipped breakfast, that’s all.”

Stepping into the bathroom alcove, I quickly splash some water on my face at the sink and run a hand through my hair to tame most of the morning bedhead.

“Well, if you guys end up by the lake later, make sure to introduce me,” he calls out. “Preferably after she’s had something to eat.”

“No promises!”

I hurry toward the front door while flinging my backpack on. “I’m sorry to leave so soon, but I guess I woke up late. Actually... thanks for helping me wake up. Even if it was with a cooking utensil.”

He lets out a soft laugh, pointing his fork in my direction. “Hey, anytime. Just keeping my roommate among the living. Have fun.”

For a guy who treats a rice paddle like a defibrillator, he seems to know quite a lot about this place.

I give him a quick wave and step out, pulling the door shut behind. The bright morning sun instantly forces my sleepy eyes to narrow even further.

Hopefully, the rest of my day features fewer wooden objects hovering over my face.

Shun

Unwrapping a fully loaded baguette is an underappreciated art. One wrong pull of the wrapper could send an avalanche of ingredients spilling out.

The brown paper peels back like a lotus as I fold it flat, leaving the sandwich resting perfectly in the middle with the best view of the room. Grabbing the canned ice coffee from my side, I set it on top of the railing next to the mountain of delight, completing the picture.

I place my hand on the bread, giving a slow nod at its residual warmth.

Final check complete. The crew is ready to roll.

Only three other people sit scattered in the gallery today. First-row seats and unlimited legroom are all mine.

School court appeals rarely disappoint as free entertainment. I ensured it is a light case—petty theft. Nobody wants to feel sad while eating, and this should last me just through breakfast.

Down on the floor, the stage is set.

On the left, the defense attorney stands before a table mapped out with paperwork like a war game strategy board, polishing his glasses with intense focus. Beside him, his two clients keep shifting and darting their eyes around the room, unable to settle on anything.

Across the aisle, the prosecutor sits alone behind his table, leaning back to rock his chair while staring intently at a lone piece of paper.

Tick. Tick. TICK. Tick… Tick… Tick… Tick. TICK. Tick.

He taps the tip of his fountain pen against the wood of the table in an inconsistent rhythm. Every few beats, he strikes the surface harder, provoking a twitch from the pair across. Classic.

The back door creaks open like a wooden shed in a horror movie. Whatever little sound the room had left vanishes... except for the ticking.

The student judge steps inside, her oversized black robes trailing behind her. Ignoring the room, she ascends to the bench and drops into a high-backed seat.

She opens her ledger, shuffling through papers. Everyone tracks her every move, waiting for the opening statement.

The silence dances in the air, spinning another round as we wait for—

“Most honorable Judge,” the defense attorney ventures into the quiet, molding his hands as if shaping an onigiri. “Before we formally commence, an administrative error requires our immediate attention.”

The rustling stops. She rubs her temples as her sigh reaches all the way over here. “Can it wait until after my opening remarks?”

“Of course it can, Your Transcendence!” the prosecutor interjects. “The defense is merely spinning words into a blanket of excuses to delay the inevitable. Such underhanded tactics have no place in your schedule. In my schedule!”

I take a big bite of my baguette, letting the lettuce crack like a starting shot.

The show is on.

The judge drops her hands flat on the bench, staring forward into nothing. “Fine. Keep it short. What is it?”

The defense attorney opens his leather planner like a surgeon getting ready to operate. “Thank you, your esteemed judiciousness. We are gathered here to appeal a minor case of petty theft.”

He snatches a document and lifts it high—as if anyone could read the print from that distance.

“Yet, the prosecution has attached a separate incident of roughhousing!” He waves the paper around. “A different event, at a different time. It might as well have taken place in another dimension! We cannot try a case based on a surprise filing!”

She moves a page to the top of her stack. “Right. The prosecution was indeed on the late side submitting the matter, but it was technically still within the—”

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Discover what happens next in: Chapter 7: Lenient Bashing【P3】

Written by Limited_Infinity. Extras, official publishing platforms and updates are publicly available only on the Patreon page “_Limited_Infinity_”

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