You Will Regret This Ichinose! [168]

In the distant sky, thick layers of gray leaden clouds loomed, hanging oppressively low, as if they might press down onto the earth at any moment.

For some reason, a dull weight settled in Ichinose Honami’s chest.

But the feeling quickly faded as she lifted her head, a bright smile spreading across her face. Just the thought of spending a wonderful day with the person she liked filled her with eager anticipation. With renewed excitement, she stepped toward the classroom.

“Honami, you’re here!”

Mako Amikura greeted her, though her expression was unusually grim.

Inside the classroom, the usual lively atmosphere had vanished, replaced by a suffocating sense of tension.

A group of students had gathered around Kanzaki Ryuji’s desk, their expressions varied—some frowning, some crossing their arms, others clenching their fists. They were all staring at something.

As soon as Ichinose Honami arrived, the crowd instinctively parted, making way for her.

“…What is this?”

The moment her eyes fell on the object lying on the desk, her once-sweet smile froze, her expression darkening instantly. She turned to Kanzaki Ryuji.

“Kanzaki, who did this? This kind of disgusting prank needs to be stopped immediately.”

A single sheet of paper lay on the desk, printed with a simple yet chilling message:

[Uesugi Gen is a murderer!]

Kanzaki Ryuji sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Sumida found it in the mailbox. But it’s not just him—everyone checked theirs, and every single mailbox had one of these notes. Most likely, the entire first-year cohort received them. By tonight, every first-year student will have seen this.”

BANG!

Shibata Sō slammed his fist onto the desk, gritting his teeth.

“This isn’t funny! This is way out of line!”

“Well, if there’s any silver lining, it’s that no one in their right mind would actually believe something this extreme. If the accusation had been a little more subtle, then we’d have a real problem on our hands.”

Kanzaki Ryuji rubbed his temples as he shared his thoughts.

Off to the side, Hamaguchi Tetsuya scoffed.

“Knowing that bastard Uesugi, he won’t even care about something like this. This is nothing but a ridiculous farce.”

That was true.

The tension in the classroom began to ease. The students gradually dispersed, returning to their usual routines.

But Ichinose Honami couldn’t shake off the ominous feeling gnawing at her. The unease in her heart only grew stronger.

What if… this incident was aimed at me instead? What would happen then?

Before long, a new wave of unease spread through the class—this time among everyone.

The seat by the window in the back row remained empty. Even as class time approached, its owner had yet to appear.

The first lesson of the day was mathematics with Hoshinomiya-sensei. Without hesitation, Shibata Sō raised his hand and asked in front of the entire class:

“Sensei, why isn’t Uesugi here?”

“Hm?”

Hoshinomiya’s expression shifted slightly, a hint of surprise flashing across her face.

“Gen-chan didn’t tell you? He took the day off because he has a fever.”

A heavy silence fell over the room—not because Uesugi Gen was absent, nor because he was sick.

It wasn’t unusual for him to stay holed up in his dorm for an entire day.

What was unusual—what had never happened before—was that he hadn’t told anyone.

Ding—

At the exact moment the break began, every student in the class simultaneously received a text message from Uesugi Gen.

Uesugi Gen: [I’m feeling unwell and will be resting for three days. Please do not disturb me.]

Not even allowing visitors?

A growing sense of unease settled over everyone.

Shibata Sō turned to Kanzaki Ryuji and asked, “What do we do? Are we still going to check on him as planned?”

Kanzaki Ryuji closed his eyes in thought for a moment before finally responding.

“If he doesn’t want us to disturb him, we should respect that. After all, he’s led our class forward without fail until now, hasn’t he? We should trust him—to believe that he’ll handle this matter perfectly.”

As he finished speaking, Kanzaki Ryuji cast a discreet glance at Ichinose Honami, who had been silent the entire time.

Something about this situation felt… off.

From Uesugi’s reaction alone, it was obvious that he knew what was going on. And yet, given his personality, it was completely out of character for him to remain passive in the face of such an attack.

And it wasn’t just Uesugi Gen—Ichinose Honami was acting strangely as well. From the moment she saw that note, she hadn’t reacted at all.

Why?

Wasn’t she the kind of person who would immediately rush to comfort him?

Why was she just sitting there, not saying a word?

—

Noon.

One by one, students across the first year began discovering identical notes stuffed into their mailboxes. The rumor started spreading like wildfire.

Some students passing by Class B’s classroom stole glances at Uesugi Gen’s empty seat before their eyes widened in shock. Then, as if realizing something, they quickly rushed back to their own classrooms.

Gradually, more and more students began lingering near Class B’s door.

SLAM!

Shibata Sō slammed both hands onto his desk and got up, storming toward the door.

Before he could leave, Kanzaki Ryuji reached out and firmly grabbed his shoulder, his expression grave.

“Shibata, what do you think you’re doing?”

Without turning back, Shibata Sō replied, “I’m going to ask Hoshinomiya-sensei for help. Or kick out that crowd gathering outside. Or better yet, find the bastard who stuffed those notes into our mailboxes. Something—anything.”

“The main person involved in this is Uesugi. If he doesn’t take action, reporting it to Hoshinomiya-sensei won’t do any good. As for the students outside, we don’t have any reason to drive them away for simply passing by. And the culprit? Now that the notes have already been distributed, the chances of catching them are close to zero.”

“So what? We’re just supposed to sit here and do nothing?”

“Heh~ I just happened to stumble upon something interesting.”

A cocky voice drifted in from the classroom entrance.

Leaning lazily against the doorframe, his usual air of amused detachment plastered on his face, was none other than Kōenji Rokusuke—Kōdo Ikusei’s self-proclaimed freest spirit.

“What do you want?” Kanzaki Ryuji immediately issued a blunt dismissal. “Sorry, but our class isn’t accepting visitors right now. Please leave.”

“I simply overheard a fascinating rumor,” Kōenji replied, flicking his wild golden hair back with a theatrical flourish. His gaze flickered toward Uesugi Gen’s empty seat, his lips curling in intrigue.

“And from the looks of things… it seems that rumor just might be true.”

“What the hell are you babbling about!?”

Shibata Sō, already on edge, grabbed Kōenji by the tie, his fury barely restrained.

This sudden outburst only drew more attention—several students who had been about to leave instead stopped in their tracks, their curiosity piqued.

But Kōenji remained unfazed. With a slow, deliberate smirk, he continued,

“I take it you all have no idea what the name Uesugi actually means, do you?”

“What are you implying?”

Kanzaki Ryuji’s eyes narrowed sharply, his voice turning cold.

“…The Yakuza.”

Kōenji Rokusuke uttered the words with deliberate slowness.

“That is the other face of the Uesugi Financial Group—the side the public doesn’t see. Even my Kōenji family doesn’t know all the details. What is known, however, is that their lineage traces back as far as the Sengoku period—perhaps even earlier. Before the Meiji Restoration, they thrived as samurai, moving unseen through the annals of history. And when the samurai faded from the stage of history, they evolved… transforming into Tokyo’s—no, Japan’s—most powerful underground syndicate.”

A pause. Then, with an almost theatrical air, Kōenji flashed an exaggerated smile.

“And the one set to inherit all of it… is none other than your dear classmate—Uesugi Gen.”

—

This is a fan translation of 人在实教，一之濑你会后悔的 by 作者：白良. All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!