"Alright, Kawasaki," Masao said, leaning against a desk with practiced nonchalance. "Let's swap contact info. I know a pretty incredible tutor."
Kawasaki Saki's eyebrows drew together, her usual guarded expression tinged with skepticism.
"An incredible tutor?"
"Absolutely." Masao's smile was all confidence. "With his help, you could easily pull up your scores."
The promise of better grades was a potent lure. A flicker of genuine interest crossed Kawasaki's face, but she didn't let it cloud her judgment.
"What are his conditions? His rates?"
"No special conditions. Just a willingness to learn. As for the cost…" Masao pretended to think, rubbing his chin. "How about… eight hundred yen per session?"
"Eight hundred yen…" Kawasaki repeated quietly. It was suspiciously cheap for private tutoring.
But then again, Masao himself was living proof of a miraculous turnaround—from the bottom of the class to the very top. That had to count for something. After a brief internal debate, she pulled her phone from her bag. It was worth a try.
'Mission accomplished.' Masao saved her number, the ghost of a triumphant smile on his lips.
"Just message me ahead of time if you want a session, and we'll find a time that works."
Kawasaki gave a single nod.
Back at his seat, Masao watched the blue strands of Kawasaki's hair fall over her shoulders as she returned to her notes.
His smile deepened. There was no mysterious tutor, of course. The 'amazing tutor' was him. The plan was simple: get her alone at his place for some intensive, one-on-one… instruction.
He wasn't worried about her reaction to the deception. He had plenty of faith in his own methods. One session, and he was sure she'd be hooked, coming back for more.
The eight-hundred-yen fee? A mere formality. His mind wandered into more lucrative, and far more interesting, territory.
If she really gets into it… becomes desperate for more lessons… I could always adjust the price. And if she can't afford the new rate… well, maybe we could work out an alternative form of payment.
'Hehehehehe'
——
The start of class jarred him from his fantasy. With exams finished, the period was dedicated to reviewing the test—a tedious affair for someone who'd aced it.
Masao felt the familiar itch of boredom. Perfect scores bred a certain kind of restlessness.
Quietly, he retrieved his phone, set it to silent, and opened his messaging app. His gaze landed on the diligent figure in front of him.
[Masao]: How's the review going? Stuck on anything? My offer stands.
He saw her shoulders tense slightly. A moment later, she subtly angled her phone below desk level, read the message, and shot a brief, warning glance over her shoulder before turning back to the teacher.
[Kawasaki]: After class. I'm listening.
'The diligent, serious type,' Masao mused. 'That whole "delinquent" look is such a misleading façade.'
With Kawasaki temporarily off the table, he scrolled through his contacts. His thumb hovered, then tapped another name.
[Masao]: Hey Yukinoshita. Actually paying attention? Since we're both sitting on perfect scores, we could make a break for it and skip class. More productive uses of our time, don't you think?
The reply took a moment.
[Yukinoshita]: Be my guest. Just try not to get caught by Hiratsuka-sensei. Oh, and do let me know before you skip out—I'd be happy to give her a heads-up.
[Masao]: How cruel, Yukinoshita! But… gotcha! Caught you not paying attention in class!
[Yukinoshita]: How childish.
The conversation died there. Unfazed, Masao scrolled again. A certain mischievous senior came to mind.
[Masao]: Fujiwara-senpai! The exam results are out. How'd you do?
The reply was almost instantaneous.
[Chika]: Oh, Masao-kouhai! Guess what rank I got?
[Masao]: Senpai, you're not even listening in class? You must be pretty confident—did you do really well?
[Chika]: You guessed it! I'll have you know, I got first place in my entire grade!
Masao blinked at the screen.
[Masao]: …What? How? Seriously?
Across the city, in the opulent halls of Shuchi'in Academy, Fujiwara Chika grinned at her phone, imagining his stunned expression.
[Chika]: What's the big deal about first place? It's not that hard. I just applied myself a little and it happened.
It was a masterclass in humble bragging.
In reality, his earlier, offhand comment about finding a "top-ranked tutor" had needled her pride into a secret, sleepless crusade of revision. Her success was hard-won, but she'd never let it show.
For Masao, the news was staggering. Shuchi'in was a fortress of academic overachievers, its summit perpetually guarded by monsters like Shirogane Miyuki and Shinomiya Kaguya. For Chika to breach it…
[Masao]: Senpai… you cheated, didn't you?
[Chika]: Really now, Masao-kouhai! Where's the basic trust between people?
[Masao]: I mean, you say first place isn't hard, but it's you, Senpai. It's really hard to connect you and 'top of the class'.
[Chika]: Why shouldn't they be connected? And what do you mean, 'first place isn't hard'? If it's so easy, why don't you go get first place and show me?
[Masao]: Well, as it happens, your humble junior here scored a perfect mark and took the top spot in his grade.
The roles were now reversed.
[Chika]: No way… How did you pull that off? You cheated, didn't you?
[Masao]: Hey now, Senpai. Where's the basic trust between people?
[Chika]: But it's you, Masao-kouhai! If I remember correctly, you were dead last before, right? It's really hard to connect you and 'perfect-score, top-of-the-class'.
[Masao]: That's because I'm a hidden genius. I just cracked open a book for a bit, and a perfect score was a piece of cake.
[Chika]: That's my line!
[Masao]: But thinking about it, it's pretty wild that we both ended up as number one. Congrats, Senpai!
[Chika]: I think the 'wild' part is mostly on your end. Going from the bottom to the top? Not even manga are that unrealistic. But congrats to you too, Masao-kouhai!
[Masao]: Oh, stop. Your achievement is way more impressive. Shuchi'in is the top school in Japan—the competition must be fierce. For you to rise above everyone, Senpai, it's truly admirable.
[Chika]: Oh, you're too kind…
Their mutual disbelief had melted into a warm, competitive camaraderie, the texts flying back and forth in a comfortable rhythm.
At the front of Shuchi'in's classroom, the teacher noted Chika's poorly concealed, glowing smile as she stared at her lap. Given her extraordinary and frankly unexpected achievement, the teacher chose to indulge her just this once.
At the front of Masao's classroom, however, the teacher's eyes narrowed. They zeroed in on a familiar pair of glasses reflecting a phone screen's glow.
"You! The young man with the glasses! On your phone! Stand up!"
The teacher's voice cut through the hum of the review session like a blade.
"Just how well did you do on this exam that you can afford to ignore the lesson? Look to your classmate for inspiration!" The teacher's hand swept dramatically towards no one in particular . "He went from last place to first! Why can't you apply yourself like Tanaka Masao?"
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