ALL NOVEL The Strongest Solo Gamer with Terrible Social Skills Reincarnates as a Hated NPC in a VRMMO Chapter 76
76: The Man of Controversy
――I overslept completely.
The time was 11 am.
I woke up in the tent in the Transfer Area, feeling hopeless.
It’s no use regretting it now; time won’t turn back. I thought to myself, taking my time to take a shower and adjusting my schedule to make it to the morning assembly.
I mustn’t forget about this cursed ring. Since I don’t know what might happen, I need to equip it and not lose it.
As I put the ring on my right ring finger, I was cursed once again. The next time I take this off will be during the 20th Floor Master battle. I want to get there as soon as possible.
After changing into my uniform, I walked through the Learning Zone and heard the sound of the school bell coming from the distant school building. It seems lunchtime has started. This area will be crowded with students soon. I’ll just put on a poker face, leave my bag, and join the afternoon classes.
“So, what’s going on?! Explain it to me!!”
In front of the 1-D classroom. As I tried to open the door, a loud shout from a male student echoed from inside the classroom.
I froze, taken aback.
The voice I heard belonged to Kojiro Isono, the notorious troublemaker of 1-D. Is he having a fight in there? If so, it might be better to put off entering the classroom.
…For now, I’ll just eavesdrop.
“What’s going on?! The class representative of 1-D is Shouta Ishizuru! That was decided yesterday! If you have any complaints, you should’ve participated in the free exploration yourself!”
“What the hell?!”
“That’s not an acceptable excuse, is it? We believed that Takeshi Mushanokouji and his friends would be elected as class representatives, so we didn’t participate. Now you’re complaining about it?”
“I’m sorry to those who agree with him, but I just can’t accept Shouta Ishizuru as our class representative! I’m sure everyone else feels the same way!”
“…But it’s already been decided.”
“Can’t we just redo the election? Maybe it was a mistake or something, and we can choose again?”
“Choose again…?”
“—That’s not going to happen! Everyone participated in the class representative election with integrity, so it’s unacceptable to invalidate the results just because you don’t like them!”
“—”
…The classroom fell silent after Yoshikawa’s stern rebuke.
Ugh, this is getting bad!!
Maybe I should just go home…
That’s what I thought, but then I heard another voice from the classroom.
“The deadline for electing a class representative is today! Stop whining and accept it! Shouta Ishizuru has already achieved the results! So, what’s the point of you people complaining about it?”
The voice belonged to Koume.
Is she defending me…?
…That’s rare.
I wonder what the weather will be like tomorrow. Maybe I should prepare my umbrella just in case.
“That result is suspicious, I’m telling you!! Did you guys even verify it?! That idiot Shouta Ishizuru, he cleared the 10th floor solo!?”
“That’s—”
“Look, no one verified it! I know he’s still at level 1. He’s still at the initial level, with the lowest overall strength, and yet he soloed the floor boss? That’s impossible!”
“…”
“You guys are all being deceived! Wake up and smell the coffee!!”
“The ones who didn’t even participate are talking big…!? We were actually there, and if Shouta Ishizuru did something sneaky, we would’ve noticed! You’re just being paranoid!!”
“So, he must have done something clever, huh?”
“That’s your delusion! Shouta Ishizuru didn’t cheat!! You’re mixing up your imagination with reality!!”
“Koume, you…!!”
Amidst the tense atmosphere, I found myself opening the classroom door.
This is getting out of hand…
I walked into the classroom, made my way to my seat, and put my bag beside my desk.
I ignored the gazes around me.
“T-Teme…!!”
I looked up at Isono’s voice, pretending to be surprised by the situation. If it’s “Shouta Ishizuru,” I’d expect him to be this cheeky.
“…Huh? What’s going on, everyone? Isn’t it lunchtime now? We’re going to miss our meal time!”
“Whose fault do you think it is…!?”
“Huh? What’s going on?! If you’ve got something to say, say it clearly, Sakakibara…!”
“Ugh… Humph!”
As I turned my gaze towards her, the top girl, Sakakibara Touko, who was making a ruckus, fell silent. Simple as that. If she shuts up, her friend, Shiina, who’s lost her comrades, won’t be able to say a word.
She’s a coward who can only express her intentions through agreement. Even among girls, Koume is way better.
“You, Ishiru…! You think you’re the class leader now?! I won’t acknowledge it! I won’t acknowledge it at all!!”
“Ah, did I say I became the class leader? Well, I’ll explain it nicely. But, you know, taking a lunch break is important, don’t you think? Isn’t it better to be in top condition, especially since Isino and the others are already behind in their ABYSS exploration?”
“Grr… This…!!”
“A guy with no achievements or experience is just complaining. I can understand why you’d oppose me becoming the class leader, but it’s different when you’re making excuses for your own lack of power.”
“!”
I looked around the classroom and addressed the D-class students.
“If you’re unhappy, show me your results. I don’t think being the class leader is set in stone. If there’s someone better than me, I’ll gladly step down.”
“Did you say that, you?! You’re not going to back down, are you?”
“I’m not backing down. …In fact, let’s make it clear – the next class competition. If someone does better than me, they can become the class leader.”
“!!”
“As the current class leader, I permit it. We’ve got about 10 days until the class competition. Do your best and good luck.”
“Hey, Shouma…!!”
“I’m going to eat. You guys can do whatever you want.”
I said, leaving the classroom behind.
It seemed like something else was happening behind me, but I didn’t care.
I’m not going to bother with them.
…Anyway, with this, I’ve got a legitimate reason to resign as class leader. Whoever becomes the leader next, it’s fine. They’ll probably all just nod along anyway. The sorrow of being a hated character? It’s just too much…