COTE: A Mute Guy

Vol. 4 Chp. 4: Provoking Others

'Italic': Notebook
'Underline': Phone's A.I.

In the afternoon, I once again went to the discussion room of the Rabbit group. I arrived in the room ten minutes before the start of the discussion, and Karuizawa arrived right after me.

When she saw me, her expression changed into disgust, and she immediately averted her eyes away from me. She then sat in a corner of the room and started fiddling with her phone.

I could understand the hate because I was on Manabe's side.

Ichinose and the others arrive.

Class A (B) quickly took its distance, and only three classes gathered to form a circle. Seeing that, Karuizawa stood up, joined Class A (B), and sat down next to Machida of Class A (B). That action was probably taken as a defensive measure against Manabe.

"It's okay; if anything happens, I'll save you," Machida promises.

"Thank you, Machida-kun," Karuizawa replied.

I don't care about this new love story. The real problem right now is the exam. Will they believe that I'm the target?

"Now, I've been thinking about it since last night. But, I think we should now discuss a way to find out who the "target" is," Ichinose says.

"It's Kagurazaka-kun. He admitted he's the VIP," Manabe said.

"He could be bluffing. He refuses to show his email," Machida argued.

"I don't think so; it's a matter of trust here. And that's why today, we will be playing cards with everyone. Of course, I won't make it compulsory, so only willing people should join," Ichinose continues, taking out a deck of cards with a smile.

"Hahahahaha, building trust with a card game? That's stupid," Class A (B) continues their mockery.

"I shall also participate. I'm free anyways," Sotomura adds.

"So it's the five of us then. For now, I'm thinking of playing Daifugo. Is there anyone who doesn't understand the rules here?" Ichinose asks us.

"I shall also participate. I'm free anyways," Sotomura adds.

"So it's the five of us then. For now, I'm thinking of playing Daifugo. Is there anyone who doesn't understand the rules here?" Ichinose asks us.

The players that were playing highlighted their personalities. Ichinose, for instance, is not fighting with her hand only but also carefully analyzing the other players and using their pace to her advantage. 

Hamaguchi is betting everything on the endgame. It seems their strategies each reflect their personalities.

"One more time!" Sotomura shouted. 

Sotomura, who is usually very knowledgeable about otaku-related topics, I had expected to exhibit a much calmer personality. But it seems he's the time to get angry when he starts losing. But he also seems to be the type to quickly cool off since he returned to normal once the game ended.

Ichinose was probably hoping that by observing the personalities and characteristics of the players, there would be some progress in the group's communication. However, this only helped a little, and the players still don't talk to each other. It's also possible that Sotomura and Ichinose were observing my behavior during this time.

Neither Class A nor Class C joined in, and by the end of it all, only the five of us had participated in the games from start to finish.

"That was fun; sometimes it is good to play it the old-fashioned way," Sotomura said, seemingly more happy from playing cards than sitting through an hour of discussion.