Ill be studying here just like all of you starting today. I look forward to working with you.

The holidays were over and school had started as usual, but todays morning started a little differently than usual. Just as the morning assembly was about to begin, the homeroom teacher brought an unknown man into the classroom.

Apparently he was a teacher in training called Shinjo, and he seemed to be very popular with the girls.

Excuse me! Shinjo-sensei, are you married?

No, Im not. Ive always been lonely and single.

What kind of girl is your type?

The kind ones, I guess

What do you think about me?

Ill have to respectfully decline, because otherwise Id lose my job.

Thats true. The whole classroom, including the homeroom teacher, was filled with laughter.

If one went with the assumption that this world was originally the world ofthosetypes of mangas, handsome trainee teachers who appeared in schools like this were often the evil villainsbut even from Ryuichis eyes, he seemed to be the serious, hard-working type.

Thats true. The whole classroom, including the homeroom teacher, was filled with laughter. If one went with the assumption that this world was originally the world of

those

types of mangas, handsome trainee teachers who appeared in schools like this were often the evil villainsbut even from Ryuichis eyes, he seemed to be the serious, hard-working type.

He seems like the type who gets pushed around by students but is still well-liked.

Apparently, Shinjo wouldnt be involved with Ryuichis class all the time; he would only be teaching as an intern during world history. After that, he told the class hed meet them again when he had time and left the classroom.

After the morning assembly ended, the usual faces gathered by Ryuichis side in the short amount of time they had before the first period started.

Pretty unusual to be getting a trainee teacher at this time of the year, isnt it?

Yeah. Pretty suspicious, huh?

I dont think its suspicious at all.

Shizuna inserted a retort at Kanames words. While it certainly did seem odd considering the time of year, Ryuichis gut feeling about Shinjo told him there wasnt anything too suspicious about it.

Well, I dont think theres anything to worry about. Somehow, I get the feeling that hes less troublesome than Hamasaki.

Ah, well thats a relief.

Thats definitely relieving.

A relief, indeed.

Hamasaki detested Ryuichi, but apparently he wasnt very well-liked by Makoto, Kaname, or Shizuna either.

Well, as far as Shizuna was concerned, Hamasakis reputation was at an all-time low because of the incident between him and Ryuichi, and it didnt help that his actions were based on own self-imposed sense of justice, either.

But he was pretty handsome, huh? What did you think of him, Rindo?

When Kaname asked Shizuna this question, she opened her mouth blankly.

What did I think of him? Hmm?

She seemed to have no interest in Shinjo at all. It wasnt a surprising reaction since she had a boyfriend, namely Ryuichi, but in Shizunas case, it seemed that she wasnt even interested in him as a person before she was interested in him as a member of the opposite sex.

Man, when it comes to men other than Ryuichiit really feels like she thinks of them like mere pebbles on the side of the road.

I get you. Well, she does talk to you and me Oh, and Sohei too.

Did you call?

Sohei, who happened to be nearby, joined the conversation. He, whom Kaname now referred to by his given name, had been talking to Makoto, Kaname, and the others more and more since their meeting at the nightclub.

When Ryuichi answered him, Shinjos eyes widened in amazement before he shook his shoulders in laughter.

Haha, I see now. Youre just as Hamasaki-sensei told me.

Ah~.

With that, Ryuichi could more or less understand the meaning of what he had just said.

So hes been talking about me this much, huh.

Recently, he had tried to approach Shizuna and Sakie but his attempts ended in failure every time. Ryuichi thought Hamasaki had given up on him as well, but it seemed that he was still saying things about him behind his back.

Well, Ryuichi had blended in quite well in class though, so Hamasaki now seemed to be disliked by the students who had a general understanding of the situation

Ive heard a lot about you. The impressions Hamasaki-sensei and Someya-sensei have of you is quite different, but, well, Im not very well liked by Hamasaki-sensei, either.

Hrm?

There was still plenty of time left for lunch break, so Ryuichi decided to talk with Shinjo.

Hamasaki-sensei told me a lot about you, but I dont intend to say anything about that because Im basically a delinquent myself. In fact, I used to be unruly and violent back in my high school days too, to the point where I even wonder why I decided to become a teacher in the first place.

Seriously?

He mentioned how he had been an unruly kid in high school, despite the fact that his appearance would lead one to believe that he had been an honor student in school.

When I tell people this story, they usually say Im lying, but Im not really sure if that should make me happy or not. Well, because of that, when I heard your story, I thought you were just like me when I was young.

I see.

Was it that Shinjo held no prejudice against Ryuichi because Ryuichi resembled his former self? In any case, if he was going to be spending time as a teacher in training from now on, there would probably be more chances for Ryuichi to meet him like this.

He wasnt sure what hed do if he had to deal with another person nitpicking on his every fault like Hamasaki did every time, so it was good to know that Shinjo had accepted him like this.

Youre pretty considerate, or should I say, you really care about your students, huh?

Well, yeah. If Im going to become a teacher here, I wouldnt want to do something that would make my students hate me, would I?

True.

And if not that, I think its always good to have a friendly relationship with your students.

Apparently, he seemed like a very reasonable, down-to-earth man. Then, after a little more talking, they exchanged words of encouragement for each other and parted ways.

Hmm?

This time, his eyes met Hamasakis, who was currently walking down the hallway to his next class. Hamasaki no longer got involved with Ryuichihe only glared at him, but it still made him uncomfortable.

Ah, if it isnt Shishido-kun?

Hey.

By chance, he also happened upon Someya who was walking down the hallway with her teaching materials in hand. Someya also noticed Hamasaki and let out a troubled sigh.

I wonder why hes so reluctant to trust his student.

Well, I guess thats normal, considering what I used to be.

But thats what youusedto be, right? I think its important for him to look at your present self

But thats what you

used

to be, right? I think its important for him to look at your present self

Ryuichi realized once again that he was really starting to be viewed differently, not only by the students but also by the teachers.

HamletJr's notes:

It's pretty weird having this 3-1 schedule haha.