"What took you so long and why does your face look so sweaty?" Suzuni asked, raising her left eyebrow, I forgot to wipe the sweat off my face, but more importantly, would it be a good idea to tell her the truth? No, it's best to keep this a secret so as not to cause trouble for Ishida-sai.
I grabbed a chair and sat down: "Well that's....I was accidentally locked in the restroom, apparently the cleaning lady locked the door and didn't realize I was inside." "Huh?"
"I was late to pee" Well it looks like I put myself in a bad position, but while I was thinking about completing the parts of my lie I spotted a black bag with the word "No frontier" written in white with a shiny chain under the table we are sitting at, from its shape it looks like a girl, but whose?
"Oye Suzoni, was there someone here before I came in?" I asked
"Aah, moments before you came, Jihan-chan was here and said she wanted to go to the restroom but she was late." Suzuni said
"Hmmm, do you think she was locked in there?" I asked
*Cold look from Suzuni*
"Well, well, well, hehehehehe, uh, by the way, Suzuni, is it true that there is a symposium on artificial intelligence to be held today?"
"Yes, and there will be scientists and prominent names in this field in addition to the press and government channels, our university is the first in this specialty and they have announced a project that will revolutionize humanity, especially medicine, computing, and digitization, but I don't know. But I don't know what exactly this project is, and I tried to ask other students about it, but they don't know anything about the form of the project, and the professors refused to disclose it, neither the form of the project nor the names of the scientists or those related to this field."
replied, "Interesting Suzoni, you have ignited my curiosity about this project that will change the world," I said excitedly.
"Sorry to douse your flame, but ordinary students are not allowed to enter the seminar, you have to get a license to enter, and the students who have a license are either by the university itself for their research on this field or by the recommendation of the professors." "Oh that's it then, unfortunately it looks like we won't get to see the technology develop up close," I replied, "Never mind Ryuichi. But at least we will be watching the seminar on TV, it will be a live broadcast so don't worry." Suzuni replied trying to console me.
But Suzuni, this may not be a big deal to you, as for me, it was my dream to attend such seminars because the passion for technological sciences was born in me from a young age, I saw technology as a great blessing given to us, but it seems that this enthusiasm will be postponed once again.
The moment I was talking to myself, Suzuni's voice dispelled all my thoughts
"Ryuuichi-kun?" Suzuni exclaimed *sound of clapping her hands in front of my face*
"Oh, I apologize I got lost in thought"
"As usual you get lost in your thoughts and leave me alone like an idiot"
"*chuckle with a smile* I apologize, but speaking of the seminar, where is it going to be held?" I asked.
"As I recall, it's in Amphitheater 10, but you're not going there, are you? You don't want to get in trouble with the dean" she replied with a question.
"Okay, you're right, I'll just watch from afar, I'll have one of my friends in the Informatics department inform me of everything that's going to happen there" I said, Wow, she read my mind, that's what is expected from Suzoni.
"Informatics department?" *she put her hand down her face waving her index finger* Well that makes sense, they will have something directly or not related to the college project, I'm sure. "Don't worry, I'll handle the situation very carefully," she said.
"The seminar will start at 3:00 p.m. I looked at my watch and it's now 2:11 p.m." I said.
"55 minutes left," I said in a low voice.
Suddenly, while I was immersed in my thoughts, a strong sound scattered all my thoughts.
"Awwww, look who we have here. ... It's been a while since we talked to each other, ryooooo-weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee...." He said it in a provocative way
His voice was infuriating, Suzuni's head was buried in her hands out of fear, I slowly turned my head towards that person, it was him....the person whose hatred was akin to that of the devil if not the devil himself.
"What do you think you're doing, you scared the girl and the people here, and how many times have I told you not to call me by my first name, Takahashi Nakamura?" I said.
"Aah, it's good that you remember the name of the person who has supported your family for years." ..... "Oh to be precise, your poor helpless mother, she barely has enough money for her daily bread, her husband's salary alone is not enough to cover her needs."
"You... How dare you, take it back now, or else--"
"Or else what? Are you going to hit me? I don't think a rat like you can even touch me, shut up and cry in your poor mother's arms, don't you realize why she's been suffering for nine years? Hey, don't tell me it's because your father abandoned you, God, I can't be talking to an idiot like you, Ryuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu-uuuuuuuu. Nakamura said with a sneer on his face, holding it in his left hand, through which he was gazing into his eyes like a monster with a wide, provocative grin.
At this moment when I was looking at him with the force of shock at what my ears had received from his mouth, a voice came into existence. ....
"Enough of this!!!!!" It was Suzuni's voice, her scream could be heard throughout the western part of the college.
"Yari, Yari, I think my eardrums were destroyed by your screaming, why--" he said but was interrupted by Suzuni.
"Who are you? And why are you talking like that to Ryuichi? You're ruining the atmosphere."
"Who gave you permission to speak? And on top of that, you interrupted me, you have to- "I don't care, I don't need anyone's permission to talk, what I care about is my safety and the safety of my friends, and you're threatening my safety and Ryuichi's safety by being here, why did you talk like that to him and why are you gloating about his financial situation?" Suzuni asked with fear and anger in her eyes.
"Suzuni...." I said
Nakamura brought a chair, sat on it, put his foot on the chair and then started a scene that chilled the cafeteria.
*sound of applause*
"Hahahahahahahahahahahahaha... That's interesting. What a lecture. I was very impressed. It's great to see friends clinging and defending each other so valiantly..................................... Suzuni and I looked at him with disgust, but his laughter was followed by silence and intense pressure, then his tone of voice changed to that of a monster that wants to prey on its prey.
"Because I want to destroy these false ties....It seems your hearing is like your sight, listen girl, don't make me repeat myself or your left eye won't see the sunlight like its sister." "You will pay the price you bastard, keep her away from--" I got up from the chair to warn him, but within seconds I started to see the place upside down, I didn't understand what happened, and then. ....*Baaaaaaaaaaaaaagh, the sound of impact* The right side of my head hit the table, the pain was so intense that I saw a white flash with a ringing sound in my ear.
"Rioweiichi!" Suzuni screamed, putting her palms to her mouth.
"I warned you rat, whoever dares to interrupt me will be worse off than this!" he said, holding my head. He said while holding my head with blood dripping from it.
On the other side, the voices of the students began to rise in terror.
"Help, someone report to the student council."
"Please help!"
"Calm down, I'll go to the student council right away, don't worry." said one of the students trying to calm the atmosphere, but he quickly froze in place due to Nakamura's pressure looking at that poor student.
"Oooooooooooo, no one is leaving this place, whoever leaves the cafeteria door is not going home." He then walked over to the student, "Hey, who let you make decisions here?"
"Don't you see how bad his condition is? His head is bleeding, he may have a concussion, he should get medical help right away" said the student
"Ah yes, you are right, Mr. Doctor" replied Nakamura, then things took another turn..... Nakamura punched the student's stomach so hard that he started drooling, he grabbed his stomach hard and his face was sweating a lot, and without resistance he fell to the ground and started screaming in pain.
*The sound of the student screaming in pain*
"Oh my God, what a waste, it wasn't even a hard hit." Nakamura mocked him.
Nakamura put his right foot on the boy's face and started laughing in a scene that shocked all the students, it seems that the boy wanted help from one of the students but no one moved, it seems that the food chain has already been determined.
"A-----Reg----Sasa------Do----Ni" he said in a desperate attempt to ask for help, I wanted to lend a helping hand but I was ashamed of a feeling that made the blood stagnate in my legs, I couldn't move an inch....It was fear, I was the first time I felt this feeling for the first time.
Suddenly, an unexpected person entered the cafeteria, or should I say appeared out of nowhere, I couldn't quite recognize him, but he had long white hair, was wearing the same uniform as our class, and was advancing towards Nakamura.
"Looks like you're having some fun here, Takahashi-san," he said, grabbing Nakamura's shoulder. Nakamura seemed surprised by the appearance of this person, even I didn't notice him.
"Who are you? I didn't notice you," he said in surprise.
"Hahaha, sorry, but I was here a while ago."
"What?" "Tachi... Don't joke with me, you brat," said Nakamura, suddenly pulling his left hand out of his pocket and sending his fist towards that person's face, but my eyes saw something else, "Disappeared?" I said
"Hmmm?" Nakamura said
Then we saw that person step back and take out his phone: "Feiyu, that was close, Takahashi-san, you have violated university rule 296-3-b, which prohibits violating campus rights, including students."
"Oh really? It was an accident, I was helping this kid get food down his throat, if I hadn't tried to help him he would have choked." Nakamura replied.
"You were helping him? But the camera footage shows otherwise." "What?" he said, pointing his finger at
. "No way," Nakamura replied, raising his head to where the white-haired man's finger was pointing, i.e., where the cameras were.
"I'll keep in mind that you wanted to help him, but why are you stepping on the kid's face? Is that also helping him? I can't believe you're that stupid, Takahashi-san, what a pity," said the white-haired man, and clicked the video play button: *Video of Nakamura beating the student*
"Does that make sense?" I said in a low voice, he recorded the moment of Nakamura's assault, but what puzzles me is when was he here?
"You fucking bastard, are you threatening me now?" "No, I'm just warning you, I can't believe you don't know the difference between a threat and a warning, Takahashi-san," said Nakamura with a slight smile. "I wouldn't recommend it, Takahashi-san," said Nakamura, walking quickly toward the white-haired man
"It's too late, I promise you'll never pronounce my name correctly again" Nakamura held his fist with that monster grin, 1. 5 meters
The white-haired man closes his eyes, the distance between them has become 1 meter
This is bad, he will definitely smash that kid's face, I have to do something, but I can barely stand, I still feel very dizzy and when I saw Suzuni, she was so shocked that she would faint soon, but what's stranger than that is the coldness of that kid's nerves.
But in an instant, the boy dodged Nakamura's punch aside as if his existence had vanished in a flash, "Again?" "Hey," whispered the boy, now seeing Nakamura's body from the right side, he pulled the sword of his left hand up, aiming it at his neck.
"No way," said Nakamura, shocked by the boy's reaction but frozen in his attack stance, the boy started to bring his sword down on Nakamura's neck and for a moment I felt his intent to kill.
But at the same moment, a girl with dark blue hair walked into the cafeteria, holding the boy's hand a few inches from Nakamura's neck and saying, "Stop this madness, both of you."
"Oya oya oya, you're late as usual Jihan-chan, but I see you're not alone" said the boy
"Yes, when you sent me that video, I expected a disaster, so I went to ask for help from the college security guards and brought paramedics with me" replied Jihan
"Now I understand, I owe you, without you I would have been expelled for a year and a half" said the boy with a slight smile, but these words had a deep meaning for Nakamura, he felt a kind of inferiority and bullying for the first time.
"Don't send me!" Nakamura shouted, but before he could finish his words, two security guards intercepted him.
"What now? Get out of my way," he continued.
"That's enough, you've gone too far," said the security guard and grabbed him by the shoulders.
"Get out of the way, Jean! "I don't think it's a good idea to lay a hand on a security guard, Takahashi Nakamura, you're a master's student majoring in nuclear physics, and according to the college's rules, you'll be suspended for 5 years and have both your master's and bachelor's degrees revoked, then you'll be taken to court and most likely go to prison for the damage you did to the two students, but I already made a deal."
"Deal? What do you mean, girl?" she said. Nakamura asked
"Yes, to keep things from getting that far, we have decided to keep it within the college as long as no one has filed a complaint against you, but you will be brought before the disciplinary board according to Decree No. 2.06.619 with your parents brought in" I replied
"Well that sounds like a satisfactory agreement for all parties, doesn't it Ayajin-san?" "Um, uh-huh, sounds like it to me," he asked. "Hey guys, no need for all this *cough*, I'm fine, just check on Ayajin-san's health" said the student
"But you don't sound like that, besides, such measures are necessary to keep the students and the institution in order, now relax and let the medics do their job" said the boy
"Um..." he nodded
"Now what do you think Takahashi Nakamura-san, what do you think?" Jihan asked
"Fuck you, do whatever you want, I don't care, cheer up rat, it'll work in your favor, you'll earn extra income from me" Nakamura grumbled.
"Stop babbling you bastard, you have to suffer the consequences of your actions" said one of the guards.
"Alright Ms. Jihan, we'll take him to the disciplinary council and then call his parents to come to the college" said the other guard.
"Come on, let's go!" he finished.
"Chi...when did lowlifes start negotiating with their masters?" said Nakamura with a grumble.
"So, Ayajin-san, how's your head?" "A little better, the pain has subsided, even the bleeding has stopped, but I'm worried about the student who almost broke his windpipe, please check him first," I said fearfully, "Okay, I will, how about you Suzuni-san?"
Suzuni looked a mess, she hadn't said anything since the boy came in, she wanted to answer him but could barely move her lips.
"I'm fine" she replied with difficulty breathing.
"Okay, I think Jihan will take care of you, I'll go to the other boy" he said with a slight smile.
"Sorry I'm late Suzuni-chan, I lost my house keys so I looked for them" Jihan said.
"Uh uh it's okay, you would have been hurt if you were here" Suzuni replied
As the white-haired man was checking on the injured boy, I wanted to ask him about something that had been puzzling me since he entered
"Ito... I think I saw you somewhere, but my memory is a little fuzzy." "Oh, sorry, I didn't recognize myself at first, my name is Hime Ryoko, I think I remember you, you were the one behind me on the bus and slept on my back." "Yes, I remember, sorry about the bus, and this is Hime-san, and thank you." "No, it's okay, just call me Ryoko," said
..." I smiled silently
"Okay guys, please listen to me, we hope you're okay and we're sorry for what happened today, you had a scary moment, but in moments like this we have to stay calm and help each other, don't let panic take over so that there is no chaos, and we will do our best to make sure it doesn't happen again" "Are you giving them a revolutionary speech or what?" "No, I'm just trying to calm them down," Ryoko replied with a smile.
"But you look like a revolutionary leader."
"Oh, do I really?"
"Yeah, badly."
"You're so mean." Amazingly, they seem to be getting along and the sound of student laughter is all around, but Ryoko's tone changes; "Oi Ryoichi. Ken, what does this idiot have to do with you?" "Um, it's actually a long story and I don't feel well enough to talk, sorry," I replied, I can't tell them what happened between me and Nakamura, I don't want to feel someone's pity for me.
"He's right, we should take him to the student doctor for treatment" Suzuni said.
"And you too Suzuni, you don't look well, you should go with Ayajin-kun too" "It's okay, I'm going home, I just need to rest and I'll feel better," replied Suzuni
"Uh-ah, sorry, but I don't think the doctor is on duty right now, it's 2:30 in the afternoon," said the boy: The injured boy said
"Yes, probably so, her shift runs until 12 noon, okay, I'll call an ambulance to take you to the hospital" Ryoko said
"No need for all this, I can move, I just need to take a walk, plus I don't like the hospital atmosphere" I replied
"You're crazy, how can you move when your head has barely stopped bleeding"
"I told you not to worry, I'll walk with Suzuni for a bit, plus I have something important to do" "Oh my god," I said firmly, "You have what you want, but be careful, take my number, when you need something, call me, okay?"
"Yes, thank you Ryoko-san," I said, after we exchanged phone numbers, Suzuni said goodbye to her friend Jihan and we walked out of the cafeteria. It was sunny with a few clouds, and as we walked to the back gate of the college, I glanced at her and asked: "Suzuni, are you okay?"
She nodded her head: "Mmmm....." Suzuni was silent for a while and then she said, "If I hadn't sent you that message, I wouldn't have come and I wouldn't have gotten hurt, I apologize."
I said, "On the contrary, you didn't send that message unless you know that I like seminars like this, especially artificial intelligence, so don't apologize and forget about it." Suzuni smiled.
After we got out of the college, the bus came, "Oh my God, I have to hurry up.... aren't you going with me?" I asked Suzuni:
"No, I have work to do before that." I said, "Okay." Suzuni replied, and then she rushed to the bus but stopped and said in a loud voice: "شكرا لك ريووووووو-وييييييي-تشييييييي انتبه لنفسك"
لوحت بيدي لها مبتسما ثم ركبت سوزوني الحافلة و غادرت. I looked at my watch, it was 2:50 p.m. I hurriedly headed to Amphitheater X. When I arrived, there were a lot of people there, coordinators, faculty club members, and scientists. I saw a friend of mine from one of the clubs coordinating the symposium named Hiroki, he glanced at me and then pointed at me, "Oh Ryuichi, long time no see you around, what are you doing here?"
I replied:" I heard that there was a seminar on artificial intelligence and I wanted to attend and not miss such an opportunity."
"Yes, but unfortunately you won't be able to get in, the seats are already reserved for scientists and journalists, even we don't have a license to enter." He said, then someone came in wearing a uniform with an identification card on his neck, but I didn't catch it and Hiroki said "Sorry Ryuichi, I have to go, nice to see you my friend."
"Well, me too, another meeting" I have to find a way to get into the amphitheater, he said. I thought to myself, then something caught my eye and I said with a smile: "Hmmm, that's worth a try."
There are 6 minutes left in the seminar.