-Monty's POV-
It was 05:30. I had just finished lapping the distance around all three dorms and worked up quite a bit of sweat in the process.
Exiting the elevator, I entered my room and swiftly doffed my sweaty clothes before heading to the bath and taking a much needed shower.
It's only been just over a day since my admittance to this institution. They provided us with a wealth of benefits ranging from unending gas, water, electricity and even free items.
If I didn't know better, I'd have labeled them utter fools.
Exiting the shower, I dried my neck-length turquoise hair before tying it into a low ponytail and donning my school uniform. I ensured it was fitted properly as I looked on through my green rimmed glasses.
Satisfied, I turned to the door and made my way out, closing it with my key card as I walked towards the elevator situated at the other end of the corridor.
Classes began at 07:00, however, I decided it'd be best to arrive half an hour before then. It would minimize the prospect of me engaging in unwanted conversations while also allowing me to enjoy the peaceful silence of the classroom for a while longer.
Reaching the elevator, I pressed the button for the ground floor and waited patiently for the door to close.
However, just as it was about to, someone outstretched their hand which caused the elevator door to slide open. They entered and stood next to me wordlessly as the elevator door closed with us.
He was about an inch shorter than me with short, unruly taupe-brown hair, his bangs reaching just below his lazy emerald-green eyes.
At a glance, I could immediately tell that this person was not a member of my class. I remembered all of their faces.
From his slightly slumped posture, he seemed like the lazy type. Always searching for some way to conserve energy.
Fiddling with a strand of his hair with a bored gaze, he let out a lengthy yawn as the door dinged open.
We both stepped out of the elevator with him walking a few steps ahead of me.
As I strode by the classes, I realized the boy had stopped by Class B's door. Upon opening it, he was greeted by a girl with strawberry blonde hair who happened to be surrounded by a group of other girls.
My gaze shifted back to my own classroom door as I approached it. That girl...she reminds me of Hirata, in a way.
Similar to him, she had already become well liked after only a day. There's no doubt that she'll be popular among both boys and girls alike due to her exceptional looks and seemingly likeable personality.
I wouldn't be surprised if even the upperclassmen showed interest in her.
Sliding open my classroom door, I carefully observed the room.
It was empty. No student, except the one by the window, was present. This brought a small smize to my face.
From what I saw of him yesterday, he didn't seem all that talkative nor was he particularly outgoing either. He only spoke to one person because of circumstances I assume we're unavoidable. So, the prospect of him striking up a conversation with me of his own accord was quite low.
I honed in on the apathetic browns of the boy by the window seat for a moment before breaking away as soon as he registered my gaze. I casually approached the desk situated infront of him and placed my bag next to me while lowering into my seat.
Resting my chin within the nook of my palm, I turned my attention to the window, sliding it open slightly.
A constant stream of cool breeze flowed in and enveloped me in a comfortable embrace as it permeated the silent room. I closed my eyes. It was a pleasant feeling, the calm silence.
The sound of clacking feet alerted me of another's arrival.
"Good morning, you two." I didn't need to open my eyes to tell it was Hirata.
"Ah, yeah. Morning." The one behind me answered.
I felt a light tap on my shoulder. I opened my eyes and looked up lazily, "Did you not get enough sleep yesterday, Oum-kun?" His gaze flitted from my desk to meet mine as he donned a smile so dazzling I was tempted to snuff it out.
"My given name is Monty." I corrected.
"Right, I forgot. I forgot your name wasn't written in rōmaji." He sheepishly admitted to his honest oversight.
"It's fine."
Peering out the window, I answered his question "Also my sleep schedule shouldn't concern you, Should it?"
"Well, you're not wrong about that," He said, "But it's only been a day since school began and yet you're already sleeping. It's bound to garner some level of interest, aren't I right, Ayanokoji-kun?"
Hirata shifted his attention to the quiet figure seated behind me, dragging him into our trivial discussion. Was he trying to give the class loners a friend perhaps?
"I guess." Contrary to Hirata's expectations, Ayanokoji sounded completely disinterested in our conversation which was on account of his naturally monotonous voice and not because he actually didn't want to join in. However, Hirata was unaware of this fact.
"See?" The blonde turned back to me with his ever amicable smile still present.
He assumed I was sleeping clearly because I hadn't answered his greeting, neither were my eyes open when he approached.
I finally decided to address the misunderstanding.
With an underwhelming answer, he'll either assume I was embarrassed about him pointing it out or that I didn't want to talk about the actual reason. Either way he'll end up heading back to his seat since the original topic of discussion would no longer be of use.
"I wasn't sleeping, the sun was in my eyes so I closed them." I stated simply, turning away from him slightly and adjusting my glasses.
"Oh, is that it?" He smiled with his eyes, "Are your eyes light sensitive?"
"You could say that." I muttered.
"I see..." Nodding, Hirata regarded me with a smirk, "Well, try not to stare at the sun too much."
Wordlessly, I watched as the blonde boy strolled back to his seat. He really was destined to be popular.
Closing my eyes again, I was about to bask in the calm silence once more, but was immediately interrupted as the classroom door swung open and our noisy classmates poured in.
How unfortunate.
-.-
Today was no different from the one before. We ran through the course objectives for each subject. Our subject teachers came off in a rather positive light, though, some students seemed a bit disappointed at their leniency; as shown when they refrained from addressing the sleeping red head, Sudo, as well as his two disruptive cohorts, Ike and Yamauchi, whenever they interrupted several lessons.
People like Karuizawa Kei and Koenji Rokusuke, while not a prominent disturbance, were indirect influences of such behaviors seeing as they were never doing anything academic related.
Some followed in their footsteps; utilizing their phones and chatting. By the end of the third session more than half of the class had began to ignore whatever was being taught.
While their behavior was less than favorable, I also saw no need to reprimand them much like our teachers. They were old enough to choose whether they wanted to pay attention to classes or not.
There were a few students situated about the class that actually did pay attention like Hirata Yosuke, Kushida Kikyo, Horikita Suzune, Yukimura Teruhiko and Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.
Even though I was levels above what was being taught, I also jotted down notes, albeit a summarized version of the ones given in class.
If what I'd theorized was correct, then, we were being evaluated by everything we did. Behind me, in the top left corner was a small camera that blended right in with the classroom walls. Unlike a regular school, the camera's here were located in hard to find places.
From that, I can infer that it was less for security purposes and more so for observing our actions to determine our "value" as Miss Chabashira would say. There's no doubt our value will dictate the amount of private points we receive at the start of next month, meaning, I'll have to remain studious.
As ridiculous as that sounds.
As the bell rang, signalling the beginning of lunch time, I sighed. And just as I thought, the rowdy bunch erupted into another bout of ceaseless chatter with a few taking their leave earlier than most.
Seeing their behavior made me question how I ended up in a class like this. They were the complete opposite of the individuals I took the bus with. While I could understand their excitement, I'd much rather a more contained reaction.
"Well, I was thinking of heading to the cafeteria, anyone else want to come?" The blonde, Hirata, proposed, scanning the classroom with a smile that had the girls acting like wild animals.
"I'll go!"
"Me too! Me too!"
One after the other, the girls hands shot up, indicating their want to tag along. If I said I was surprised by this particular development, I'd be lying.
Hirata Yosuke had all the traits a highschool girl would be attracted to. To name a few, he was kind, good-looking and apparently athletic. The complete opposite of Yamauchi Haruki.
After a while, I got up and prepared to head for lunch when I was met with an unexpected greeting.
"Would you like to come too, Monty-kun?" Hirata asked me, shooting me a pleading gaze. He must feel overwhelmed with him being the only boy in a crowd of that many girls.
I pitied him, truly.
"No. I prefer to eat alone." I shot him down like that.
"O-oh, I see." He smiled awkwardly. My reply earned me quite a number of glares from the girls around him, but it didn't bother me as much as it would had I actually accepted the offer.
It would have been more troublesome to deal with them personally, especially with their intentions of coddling up to Hirata being clear as day, than it would be to deny the offer to lunch.
These girls were not angry that I didn't want to have lunch with them, they're simply irritated at my rejection of Hirata. Conversely, had I accepted his offer they'd have still been angry that I actually went along but they'd hide how they actually felt to gain favor in Hirata's sight.
To put it bluntly, they're hypocrites.
"How about you Ayanokoji—"
A gyaru-type girl swiftly lached onto Hirata's arm before he could finish, "Come on Hirata-kun, let's go!" She eagerly dragged the boy out of the classroom along with the involved females.
Slinging my bag over my shoulder, I also made my way out of the classroom.
I didn't go to the cafeteria, it was too crowded and boisterous for my liking, so, I instead made my way towards the convenience store.
There, I bought bread, an orange juice and a bottle of water before leaving. On my way back, I caught sight of a baldheaded youth meticulously inspecting a frozen delight that had just been bought and handed to him by a girl.
He didn't seem particularly displeased by the gesture and yet he chose to turn it down in favor of accepting a male's; that was the exact same flavor as the previously proposed.
He was quite odd.
I strolled down the corridor to my classroom and reached for the door, but quickly decided against entering. If even from out here I could hear their noisy antics, imagine if I was inside.
Sighing I turned away and continued down the corridor. A while after, I happened upon a flight of stairs.
According to what I'd read in the handbook, the roof was only accessible for students during lunch. Looking around at the students littering the hall, I saw no one heading this way.
That was to be expected. People don't normally read through a pamphlet unless they're forced to or are genuinely interested in its contents.
Striding forward with my meal in hand, I climbed the steps at my leisure, going up the two flights and stepping up onto the next floor.
-.-
-Ayanokoji's POV-
I looked around the classroom, taking in the relaxed atmosphere. Everyone was eating their lunches and getting along with each other quite well despite being nothing more than strangers just yesterday.
Unfortunately for me, I had still been unable to befriend a single one of my new classmates.
On the first day of school, I had messed up my introduction, effectively smothering any chances I had at forming any bonds. Of course, it didn't help that I wasn't well versed in social interactions so the prospect of me gaining a friend was close to 0.
It was quite pathetic really.
"How pathetic."
Only one person had known how I felt, and she met my internal pain with a derisive snort.
What was she, a psychic?
"What? what's pathetic?" I asked, feigning ignorance.
"'I want someone to invite me along.' 'I want to eat with someone.' Your thoughts are like an open book." Horikita said.
"But you're alone too aren't you? Haven't you thought the same thing? Or do you intend to spend three years here without making a single friend?"
"That's right. I prefer to be alone," She replied quickly and without hesitation. It sounded like she was being honest. "Why don't you stop worrying about me and instead think about yourself? At this rate, you'll forever be friendless."
"I suppose you have a point."
Just then, the classroom door slid open and a tall red haired boy with sharp pale eyes confidently strutted in as if he owned the place.
I hadn't seen him before. He was clearly not from Class D.
The boy didn't bother to introduce himself. Instead, he looked around the room as if he were inspecting an exhibit. His eyes landed on me before flitting elsewhere.
"Hey, is this Class D?" He finally asked.
"Yeah," Sudo curled a brow, "What about it?"
"Well, I heard this is where the 'defective' students are sent. Thought I'd come to see them myself." For some reason he sounded amused as he said that.
"This crap again?" He grumbled aloud from his seat across the room.
This was the second time in two days someone had labeled us as defective. The first instance was yesterday afternoon, just outside the convenience store, when Sudo got into an argument with a few upperclassmen over a bench.
They mentioned that, since we were defective, they would let us off the hook. Also, they said we would be in 'hell' soon enough. I was at a lost as to what he meant though.
"Who are you, and what do you want?" Horikita demanded. Her tone sharp and direct.
Shrugging, "Oh, nothing. I'm just a curious student from another class." He stepped infront of the teacher's desk, "I overheard a pretty heated argument involving one of your classmates yesterday. Something about a class full of defects. So, like I said, I came see for myself."
The class broke out into a string of confused mutterings as they all looked at each other. I, however, simply stared at him.
He must've come here to provoke us, to see if the label fit or not.
At first, I'd dismissed the senior's remark as merely shallow provocation, but now, I'm curious. Why specifically refer to Class D as 'defective'?
The term 'defective' suggests inadequacy or deficiency in some capacity. If that's the case, doesn't it imply that every human, with their inherent flaws-whether mental, physical, or emotional-could be labeled as such? Why, then, is Class D singled out?
The seniors deduced that Sudo belonged to Class D based solely on his volatile nature. Yet, Sudo's temper doesn't encapsulate the entirety of Class D. So, the label 'defective' must signify something broader, something that the school or those seniors perceive as a common or reccuring flaw among us.
If 'defective' refers to behavioral faults, then the school must be categorizing us based on perceived social or psychological inadequacies. But why? And to what end?
"Get outta here! We don't need some outsider judging us!" Ike shouted, his face twisting into a frown.
Said outsider responded with a dismissive snort, "Judging? No, no, no. I'm just seeing if you all really live up to the rumors."
So I was right.
Sudo stood abruptly, cracking his knuckles, his gaze fixed menacingly on the intruder. "You'd better shut up and leave. I can't promise you won't get hurt if you stick around."
The boy merely chuckled, unfazed by the threat. "Tough guy, huh...What's your name?"
"Sudo," He growled, his voice dripping with anger. "Now get out before I make you."
"Nice to meet you, Sudo." The boy replied, a smirk playing on his lips. "So, I've got a question. Do you always solve your problems with your fists? Or is that just a Class D thing?"
His tone was light, but the question was loaded. He was purposefully goading Sudo into giving him the reaction he wanted. And me might actually succeed at this rate.
"Why are you doing this? What do you gain by provoking us?" Kushida intervened with a dejected frown.
He shrugged, as if the answer were self evident. "Like I said, I'm just satisfying my curiosity. And maybe, I don't know, seeing if there's anyone here who can actually stand up for themselves without resorting to fists like mister tough guy over there." He nodded towards Sudo's general direction with a lingering smirk.
Sudo snapped. He slammed his hand on the desk, eyes blazing with fury. "You—say that shit again!"
Before the situation could escalate further, Hirata stepped in, attempting to defuse the tension. "Look, we don't want any trouble. If you have an issue with us, we can talk about it calmly."
The boy turned his attention to Hirata now, the intruder sauntered over. "Hirata Yosuke...The peacemaker. Huh." He peered at the table with a growing smirk, "I guess there's one of you in every class."
Lifting his eyes, he pocketed his hands and walked back to the podium, "Anyway, I'm not here to talk."
Horikita demanded, "Why are you really here if not to talk?" From her expression, I could see that her patience was wearing thin.
"What're you, brain dead?" The boy laughed, shaking his head with mock exasperation, "I've said why I'm here thee times now and you still don't get it...Ha, guess you really are just a bunch of defects. Go figure."
The atmosphere thickened with tension and faint hostility. I noticed Horikita's fists clenching just like Sudo's did across the room. Unlike them and a few others, the more reserved students seemed more disheartened than irritated. The only people who seemed unaffected by his provocations were myself and Koenji Rokusuke who was grinning while admiring his reflection in his hand mirror.
Sudo, unable to restrain himself any longer, marched forward. "THAT'S IT! I'm gonna beat the shit outta you."
"Woah, woah. No need to get physical. We don't want you ending up more defective than you already are." The boy snickered, his voice laced with an infuriatingly casual tone as he slipped a hand into his pocket.
Fed up with the boy's antics, Sudo stepped in close and grabbed him by the collar. He glared into his mercury eyes as he ground his teeth.
"You little shit!" Shouting that, Sudo reeled back his fist. The foreign redhead did not raise a single hand in retaliation, in fact, he welcomed the violent gesture with an eerie grin.
"Sudo-kun, Don't!" Hirata tried mediating once more, hoping to avoid violence.
Hurrying forward, he pried Sudo off of the visitor before he could hit him.
"Dammit! Lemme go Hirata!"
"Calm down! Hitting him won't change anything!" Hirata protested trying his best to keep him away.
"It'll wipe that stupid smirk off his face at least!" Was Sudo's angry retort.
"Even so! What's the point if you're going to end up getting in trouble for it?!" Hirata reasoned, earning a grunt from our resident redhead as he reluctantly stopped resisting.
"Tch, fine. Just get him outta here before I flip." He growled, stuffing his hands into his pockets and stomping back to his seat.
Sudo's temper coupled with his athletic physique was quite the nightmare for lightweight individuals such as myself. If we were to get into a fight, he'd probably beat the crap out of me. However, that boy, despite the clear difference in weight class, did not seem the least bit intimidated at the prospect of facing such a foe which meant that he was either confident he could handle him in a fight or he was trying to make it seem that way via pretence.
The foreign redhead eyed Sudo carefully, throwing one final taunt his way, "Would you look at that, he really can't not use his fists unless you baby him up."
"That's just pathetic."
At that, Sudo spun around with a snarl and marched back towards him, "Alright, no more chances."
"Please, stop it!" All eyes turned to Hirata who stood at the front of the class with a somber expression. He sighed, "If you're not going to be civil, would you please leave? You're making us uncomfortable."
The boy looked around the class one last time and smirked, "Hm. Alright then."
The bell blared as he opened the door and paused. Monty stood just outside the door, his face expressionless. It's likely he hadn't heard what had transpired just now.
"It seems I missed one. Oh well, I've already gotten what I wanted." After saying that, he took his leave.
That person...Based on his parting words, I doubt he came here to antagonize the class simply because he was curious. It almost seemed like he was collecting information on us.
But why would he need to do that? It's not like we're his enemies or anything.
-.-
-Monty's POV-
Ringgggg
The bell rang in my ears as I stopped before my classroom door, it was more quiet than I expected it to be. Reaching for the door, I was denied the chance as it opened itself to reveal a red haired boy with eyes bordering between gold and mercury.
"It seems I missed one." He stuck his hands into his pocket before gracing me with an indiscernible grin.
"Oh well, I've already gotten what I wanted." He shrugged, stepping past me before leaving down the corridor opposite of where I came from with his hands in his pockets.
I felt my eyes narrow subconsciously as I watched him leave.
Turning my attention towards the classroom, I noticed they were quiet for a change. How unusual.
Sudo and Horikita stood at the back of the class with furious expressions while Hirata at the front hung his head low in anguish. Most of the class, sans the apathetic Ayanokoji and Koenji, whose face displayed abide amusement, either seemed down in the dumps like Hirata or heated like Horikita.
I wonder. What did that boy do to cause such strong reactions?
My question was put on hold as music started playing through the speakers.
"At 5pm Japanese standard time today. We will be holding a student club fair in Gymnasium no. 1. Students interested in joining a club please gather in Gymnasium no.1. I repeat at-"
Clubs? I don't see a need for one at the moment. At any rate, "What happened?" I asked, receiving a reply shortly after.
"That jerk just came in here spouting off a bunch of nonsense!" Sudo snapped, striking the desk with his palm, "Talkin' 'bout how we're all 'defective' and whatnot! Seriously, what is it with them and that crap?! Those second year chumps said the same thing about me yesterday too!"
I see. "'Defective'." Looking around the class, I continued, "It's quite accurate."
The likelihood of two separate individuals labeling you with a slur upon their first encounter with you is roughly between 5-15%. The chances of that slur being the exact same is dependent on other's perception of you.
For example, I see Yamauchi as a liar. Reason being, none of what he says he's done is possible even in a hypothetical situation. Thus, he was lying.
The behavior this class has exhibited today was similarly congruent with their words. Not only were they the noisiest class on the block, they also housed quite a few odd balls so I'd wager branding us with this label was far from a coincidence.
Assuming that's true, then there's a possibility I was placed in here for being defective aswell. The only flaw I could think of was my disinterest in social interactions. But, was that really enough to place me in Class D?
"Huh? The hell'd you just say bastard!" Sudo raved, kicking his desk, his gaze, alongside those of many others narrowed at me. Unsurprisingly only two individuals seemed unbothered by my words, one of which still looked amused.
"Monty-kun...Do you really think that?" Hirata mumbled seemingly bothered by my words. The others had a similar reaction.
Ignoring their gazes, I walked over to my desk and took a seat, "Think what you want. I was only making an observation, nothing else."
Further talk of this would breed unneeded conflict, so I saw it best to end the conversation as it was. Sudo, however, still seemed angered by my words and stormed out of the class while Horikita and Hirata took their respective seats in silence.
I still felt their glares on me. I could placate their anger, but I wasn't particularly feeling the need to bother myself with such a tedious task, they'll soon forget anyways. More importantly, should this class truly be considered 'defective' the inverse could be said for Class A as well.
Given that the school's system was created precisely for real world application, there should be a chance for Class D to be promoted to the status of Class A.
If so, then how? By merit?
It was plausible. Miss Chabashira said we were given what we were valued, meaning, our actions should lead to meritorious outcomes.
For example. If we were to do well in club activities, there's a chance that we would be rewarded with a significant point increase.
Resting my head atop my open palm, I lazily peered out the window at the slow descent of the sakura leaves.
Hypothetically, I could purchase the information, seeing as said information would be located on campus. But, I'm certain we'd learn about it eventually so that would be a waste of points. The best thing to do right now, was to have patience.
With that out of the way, my next focus should be that individual from earlier. He resembled the typical delinquent in looks, however, his intellect was definitely not sub-par so he should prove to be quite useful.
"Hey, Horikita-"
"I'm not interested in joining a club." The apathetic boy seated behind me was swiftly cut off by the girl next to him. I could hear subtle signs of irritation in her tone, likely due to my and that boy's words.
"I didn't even ask anything yet."
"Well, what is it?"
"Are you interested in joining a club?"
"Ayanokoji, do you have dementia or are you just an idiot? Didn't I just tell you I'm not interested?" Horikita asked the question I'd been thinking.
"That doesn't mean you won't join though."
Horikita released a soft, exasperated sigh, "Well, since you apparently want to go find out about the clubs, why not ask your friends?" She regarded him condescendingly, "Oh right, you don't have friends do you?"
"Er-true. Since I failed to make friends on the first day, I thought that clubs would be my last chance."
"I suppose that's fair. But I'd prefer if you asked someone else."
"It's precisely because I don't have anybody else to ask why I'm having such a hard time!" Ayanokoji raised his voice but still managed to sound monotonous.
Mulling over his words silently, the black haired girl shifted her gradient red gaze to meet mine. I could already predict what she was about to say.
"Then, why not be more proactive? Monty-kun there also has no friends, as far as I know. So wouldn't he be an appropriate candidate as well?" She proposed to the boy, roping me into their conversation against my will.
I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little miffed. Though, I can't fault her. It's likely she still felt resentment towards me for my earlier addressal of the class, and by extension her, so this could be her was of taking revenge against me.
"Monty. Would you like to check out the clubs with me?" Ayanokoji asked flatly. He didn't seem particular enthused or hopeful of my compliance. It felt more like he was expectant.
I turned my head slightly to look at him. I thought about declining, but I realized venturing to the Gymnasium may be beneficial for me in the long run. Even though I find it tedious, there's a definite possibility that this club fair may play an integral role in learning more about how this school operates.
Looking on ahead, I gently adjusted my green rimmed glasses with a nod, "I won't stay long though."
"Oh, that's alright." He replied monotonously, "I never planned to stick around anyway."
Horikita's face twisted briefly before settling on a mix of resigned irritation, "Good. At least now, he won't bother me." She seemed relieved to have deflected his attention elsewhere, however, her ire towards me had all but diminished.
She was probably hoping for me to be visibly troubled by her inclusion so that she could feel satisfied.
Reaching into her bag, she retrieved a book titled Crime and Punishment.
It's a novel authored by Russian, Fyodor Dosteovsky. What it entailed was a rather interesting story that featured questions of morality and what is right or wrong in the eyes of justice.
Criminality, morality, and guilt were central preoccupations of Dostoevsky's story. It also touched on other themes such as, nihilism, guilt and religion to name a few.
The protagonist, Rodion Raskolnikov, commits the great crime of the novel: he robs and murders the pawnbroker and her sister Lizaveta, an innocent bystander. Throughout the story's duration, Raskolnikov must come to terms with his feeling of remorse, or lack thereof, for the act of taking another's life.
He argued that the pawnbroker did no good for society and therefore to him, her death was of no consequence; he saw his actions as serving "Justice" rather than commiting a Crime deserving of punishment. Hence the name, Crime and Punishment.
Raskolnikov's decision to kill the pawnbroker lady under the guise of enacting justice and benefiting society is a composite argument of fraught morality.
From a purely logical standpoint, one could argue that eliminating someone who is perceived as a parasite to society might seem justifiable. However, this rationale is fundamentally flawed.
Firstly, the notion of determining someone's worth or the impact of their existence on society is subjective and inherently biased.
Who grants the right to an individual to decide the fate of another based on their perceived utility? This leads to a detrimental chain where anyone could justify heinous acts under the pretense of a higher moral cause.
Secondly, Raskolnikov's belief that the pawnbroker's death would benefit society ignores the legal and ethical frameworks that govern civilized societies.
Laws and ethical norms exist for the very purpose of preventing the chaos that would ensue if individuals took justice into their own hands. Unintentionally or not, his actions undermine these societal constructs and promote anarchy.
Additionally, the psychological impact on Raskolnikov himself cannot be overlooked.
His subsequent guilt and mental turmoil show that his theoretical justifications did not align with the practical and emotional reality of committing murder. This dissonance further discredits his initial rationale.
Lastly, even if one were to entertain the idea that the pawnbroker's death served a greater good, the unintended consequences — including the trauma inflicted on others and the broader societal implications of vigilantism — outweigh any potential benefits.
The act sets a dangerous precedent and erodes the foundational principles of justice and morality.
At it's core, justice is treating all individuals fairly and impartially, without discrimination or favoritism as well as protecting the legal and moral right of said individuals.
So, while Raskolnikov's reasoning might appear to have some logical foundation, it is deeply flawed when scrutinized through ethical, legal, and practical lenses.
In summary, Rodion Raskolnikov's actions cannot be justified as a means of serving justice but rather providing exposure to the dangers of individual moral absolutism and the inherent complexity of human society.
"Is there a reason why you keep staring at me, Monty-kun?" Horikita's irritated gradient reds found my bespectacled amber eyes, drawing me from my thoughts. It seems I'd been staring for quite some time. I must have been too absorbed in my analysis.
Averting my gaze, I closed my eyes. I didn't particularly feel like answering, but a situation like this has already occured once before. Avoiding the topic a second time could lead to a troublesome misunderstanding, so, I answered.
"I found your choice of book interesting, that's all." I decided on after brief contemplation, meeting her narrowed gaze once more.
Her brows furrowed slightly as her grip on the book tightened, "Is that so? I didn't realize my reading habits were of such interest to you." She replied with a cold tone.
"They aren't. The book is."
"You've read it before?" Ayanokoji asked, his voice lacking any real curiosity.
"You haven't?" I threw the question back. My glass guarded eyes peered lazily into Ayanokoji's apathetic browns as he replied.
"I've heard about it."
Horikita glanced between the two of us, her irritation slightly culled by curiosity as she remarked in a measured tone of voice, "It's not a light read. If you're not prepared to dive into deep philosophical questions, it might not be for you."
Ayanokoji tilted his head slightly, his expression and tone unchanged, "Isn't it just differing perspectives on morality and justice?"
I leaned back in my seat, "You're right. Whoever you heard it from must've been quite knowledgeable on the subject."
"You could say that."
Horikita's eyes narrowed slightly, "It raises questions regarding our actions and beliefs. Questions such as: Why we do what we do, and whether or not the ends truly justify the means."
"Do they?" Came Ayanokoji's query.
"I believe so." She nodded, "To dish out justice, sacrifices are required. Those sacrifices may come in the form of ending a life that threatens the stability of a society or disregarding personal ties and feelings with the ones involved in the crime. However, to do that, we need to be a fair judge of another's character and be able to view the situation objectively so that the end can truly be justified by the means."
"Huh...I see." Ayanokoji muttered.
"How about you? Do you believe the ends justify the means?" She asked me.
My gaze remained locked with hers as I replied, my voice steady, "In most cases, no. The process is just as important as the result. While there are times when the greater good might necessitate morally grey actions, they are often consequential."
"So, you believe in a balance?" Ayanokoji questioned.
I nodded, "Justice isn't only about being a fair judge of character; it's also being unbiased and responsible. Our actions cause ripples, and those ripples can either build or destroy those around us. For example: If you were to stab me and I stabbed you back in retaliation, that could be classified as self defense from a personal standpoint. But, what I'd done was still assault in the eyes of the law so it's only right that both of us are reprimanded equally for our crime."
"Although doing that would be contradictory. Afterall, locking up someone who was defending themselves would be classified as unjust treatment of an innocent. However, regardless of the crime's nature, should the victim wield violence unnecessarily or do something that warranted the treatment they got, they should be punished in accordance to the' severity of their actions."
"Which is why doling out justice requires one to be unbiased, a fair judge of character and willing to take responsibility in the event that they've wronged the other party." I concluded my speech.
"That's...." Horikita's face scrunched slightly as she trailed off. Her gaze shifted and narrowed as if she was trying to dissect my words to find some sort of err. Ayanokoji, though, remained expressionless throughout the whole conversation so I was unsure of whether or not he really understood anything I'd said.
"You've constructed quite a solid argument." Horikita finally spoke up, her arms crossing smoothly across her chest, "Though your points somewhat differ from mine, your views on justice...are rather admirable." She spoke forcefully through squinted eyes.
I suppose she wasn't one to give compliments. Though, seeing as I got my point across, I don't need to continue this conversation. On another note, my standing in her eyes should have been elevated a fair bit after that brief exchange.
She seems like someone who respects people that are intelligent which means she likely won't try to argue or undermine me after this. Atleast, not unless her pride gets in the way.
Glancing out the window again, I watched the golden sun slowly descend from its perch in the azure skies as I drifted off into my own world.