I Reincarnated As Yamauchi in COTE

To our surprise, the ones standing before us were a few first year students, and the number of second year students excluding us, was zero.

There were a few first years, quite famous ones to be precise.

They must be their class leaders, considering the content of the event.

Even so, the fact that no one from second year other than us was present, was the undeniably strange part.

If anyone from second year had come, we would have at least seen them at the corridor or at the entrance to the special building.

This confirms that none of the second years intended to attend this auction in the first place.

That makes us the only bidder.

But, that's the strange part, I don't understand.

Participating in the auction and attending it are two different things.

I had primarily thought that, one or two students at least from each second year class would be present here, even if just to gather more information.

If that's not the case, then is it a prank or something?

On the other hand, the few first year students noticed us and all of them greeted politely.

I noticed the big guy Hosen standing, lent on a wall, with his hands crossed.

A girl was accompanying him.

Her name was probably Nanase Or something.

He didn't even flinch at our entrance.

There was one guy named Yagami, who took the initiative to greet all of us.

Then there were some key figures from class A and C too.

As I am a bit terrible at remembering names and faces, I couldn't recognize everyone on the spot.

But, I have to say, thanks to this OAA application, things like interacting with new students have become extremely easy.

There was another strange thing I noticed.

A girl sat in a corner of the stage, with her eyes focussed on us, and her legs going to and fro.

She seemed to be indifferent to our status of seniors too.

I think I have seen her face, but can't seem to remember her name.

All of a sudden, her gaze fell onto mine and an apparent face of disgust was all I could notice on her face.

Like what the fuck?

Am I that ugly?

Or is it something else?

I kept that matter aside, as Horikita asked the most obvious question.

"So, Yagami-kun, what's going on here? I thought there was an auction scheduled for today, wasn't it?"

"I am really sorry about that Horikita senpai. Actually the thing is----", Yagami was interrupted by a thud sound made by that strange girl as she got off the stage.

The sharp thud of her shoes hitting the floor echoed through the silent hall.

The girl who had been lounging on the stage now stood before us, arms still casually crossed, her gaze a mix of amusement and something sharper—calculated.

Yagami, who had started explaining, fell silent the moment she moved, his posture shifting from confident to cautious.

It was subtle, but I noticed.

So did Horikita.

The girl let her eyes drift over each of us, slowly, deliberately, before stopping on Horikita.

"Hoshizaki Sayu," she said, her voice smooth but firm. "Class 1-C."

Horikita didn't flinch. "Horikita Suzune. Class 2-C."

A small smirk tugged at the corner of Hoshizaki's lips. "I know who you are."

Her words hung in the air, drawing everyone's attention.

"In fact," she continued, "I've heard quite a bit about you."

Horikita remained silent, but I could tell she was analyzing every word—every movement.

She didn't trust this girl. Neither did I.

Hoshizaki took a slow step forward, her voice carrying a faint trace of admiration—whether it was genuine or not was another matter.

"Your rise from Class D to Class B last year was nothing short of remarkable," she said. "Taking down Ryuen senpai—one of the most dangerous minds among the second-years—and outmaneuvering Sakayanagi senpai… Not many could pull that off."

For a moment, I thought I saw the faintest flicker of surprise in Horikita's eyes, but it vanished as quickly as it came.

"Though," Hoshizaki added with a sly smile, "the most interesting part was how you managed to bring Kikyo Kushida over to your side."

All eyes shifted to Kushida.

Kushida, ever the actress, maintained her bright, innocent smile—the one carefully designed to hide the chaos beneath.

But for those of us who knew her, the slight stiffening of her shoulders didn't go unnoticed.

It was a direct jab—not just at Horikita, but at Kushida too.

A reminder of their fragile alliance.

She was utterly blatant. But whatever she told was the truth.

But, how in the world, does she know all about it?

How much does she know and who else knows about Kushida, were the questions sprouting inside my head.

Kushida's face was stiff as one would expect.

"And of course," Hoshizaki continued, turning her gaze to Hirata, "we can't forget about Hirata Yosuke—the perfect class representative. The one who kept Class D from falling apart during its weakest moments."

Hirata gave a small nod, his voice calm. "I just did what I could to support my classmates."

Hoshizaki's smile deepened. "Humble too. I like that."

Then, finally, her gaze slid over the last three standing beside us—Sudo, Ike, and Yamauchi.

The room, already tense, seemed to grow even quieter.

Her smirk softened into something almost… pitying.

"And these three… Well," she said lightly, "I suppose not everyone can be a shining star, can they?"

Sudo bristled instantly. "Oi—what the hell's that supposed to mean?"

Ike's face flushed with anger, while Yamauchi shifted uncomfortably but said nothing.

The insult wasn't loud or direct—but it was calculated. A subtle way to provoke an emotional response. To plant a seed of doubt.

Hoshizaki didn't need to attack their abilities outright—she only had to remind them of their place.

And just like that, she'd drawn the first line in the sand.

Horikita's voice broke the silence, steady and cold.

"You understand that we are not here to waste our time, don't you?"

Hoshizaki's smirk remainedremained, as she answered.

"Oh, I apologize for wasting your precious time like this, but should it really be considered that way?"

"What do you mean? ", Horikita questioned, confused by her wording.

" What I meant to say is, Horikita senpai, did you really come here participating in the auction? Wasn't your goal something else?"

"That's some serious statement you are passing, Hoshizaki san. I would like to hear you reasoning behind that.", Horikita seemed really pissed off.

" It's really simple. Your class is at a point where private points are really necessary for long term if you want to promote to class A. You know that too. It would simply imply that you are not here for spending any private point. But why would someone attend an auction, if they are not going to spend any money? To mess with the bidding process? To measure the ability of us first years? Or to simply observe? The answers might be any or all of them. So, I would like to hear the reason from you, Horikita sempai~"

"That's a ridiculous accusation. "

"Is it though? I mean, you even brought your little pets along to sabotage the real reason for your attendance.", she ridiculed the three of us.

Usually, you wouldn't want to use such language in front of your seniors you just met.

It seemed like cheap provocation to me, but why would she even do this?

Judging from her way of talking, it was Hoshizaki who published that notice, and arranged this auction.

Hosen let out smirk too, but didn't do anything in particular, while Yagami spoke up.

"Hey, that was really rude Hoshizaki San."

The other first years were tensed, but he remained calm and told her to stop.

However, Hoshizaki didn't seem to back off just yet.

"Yagami Takuya, I simply asked a question to Horikita senpai. As for the others, I don't think my statement was wrong, so what's so rude about it?"

As Yagami was going to retort, someone came from the back stage, with a thud sound of their shoes.

The sound of polished shoes striking the floor reverberated through the hall.

All eyes shifted toward the source of the voice.

A figure emerged from the backstage shadows, his posture upright, exuding an aura of quiet authority.

His gaze, sharp yet composed, swept over the room before settling on Hoshizaki.

"That's enough," he said, his voice carrying neither anger nor irritation—just finality.

Hoshizaki's smirk vanished instantly. Her confidence wavered as her eyes darted toward him, searching for any sign of leniency. But there was none.

"Ishigami…" she muttered, almost instinctively.

Ishigami Kyo.

I remember him being in class 1A, as he had remarkable OAA scores, perhaps making him the leader of class 1A.

The moment he spoke, the entire atmosphere changed.

Even Hosen, who had been idly observing, raised an eyebrow in mild interest.

Ishigami walked forward at an unhurried pace, stopping just in front of us.

His sharp gaze swept over each of us before he spoke again.

"I would like to offer my sincere apologies for this unnecessary incident," he said, bowing his head slightly.

"The act of announcing such an auction without proper authorization was completely out of line. It was an error on the part of the first-years, and I take responsibility for it."

Horikita's expression remained neutral, but I could tell she was analyzing his every word.

He then turned his head slightly toward Hoshizaki.

"Hoshizaki," he said, his voice devoid of emotion, "apologize."

Hoshizaki's body visibly tensed.

For a split second, it looked like she wanted to resist. Her fingers curled into fists, her lips pressed into a thin line—but under Ishigami's gaze, she had no choice.

She exhaled sharply before lowering her head.

"…I apologize, Horikita-senpai. And to the rest of you as well," she said, her tone clipped but respectful.

It was a stark contrast from the confident, almost mocking attitude she had displayed earlier.

Horikita took a moment before responding, her voice steady.

"I accept your apology. But I hope this won't be a recurring issue."

"It won't," Ishigami assured her, lifting his gaze. "The other class leaders have already received formal apologies. You were the last to arrive, so we remained here to ensure you were properly informed about the cancellation."

A pause.

"With that, this so-called auction is officially canceled."

Silence filled the room.

There was nothing left to argue about—no tricks, no hidden agendas.

Just a finality that came with Ishigami's absolute control over the situation.

Hosen let out an amused chuckle but didn't interfere.

Yagami sighed, as if he had expected this from the beginning.

Horikita studied Ishigami for a long moment before finally nodding.

"…I see," she said simply.

Ishigami gave a small nod in return before turning to leave.

Hoshizaki lingered a moment longer, her gaze flickering between us and Ishigami, before she followed suit.

The hall remained still.

The supposed auction we had come for had amounted to nothing.

But somehow, it didn't feel like a waste of time.

As every first year had left, Horikita stepped forward and called out to the last pair of first years leaving.

"Hosen kun and Nanase san, I would like to speak with you two for some time."

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Next chapter - The Unknown Reunion

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