The compass in Horikita Suzune's hand stabbed straight toward Yuki's side. She'd completely run out of patience with his attitude.
Letting out a helpless sigh, Yuki instantly caught her wrist with his right hand, lifted it upward, then pulled back.
Horikita lost her balance and crashed into his chest—making it look exactly like she'd thrown herself into his arms.
Catching Yuki's scent and feeling the warmth coming from him, Horikita's expression instantly changed.
"You bastard, let go of me. Now."
"Calm down." Releasing her, Yuki smiled. "What's the point of me messing with you? I can tell you the information, but you have to agree to one condition."
"Amamiya Yuki, don't even bring up dating. I will never agree to that."
Horikita hurriedly backed away a few steps. Maybe because it was her first time being that close to a guy, her confidence looked a little shaky.
"I know." Yuki sat back down on the bench and glanced at the empty seat beside him. "Sit. Let's talk."
"If you try anything weird again, don't blame me for getting rough."
After hesitating for a moment, Horikita still sat down next to him.
She wasn't afraid of Yuki at all. That brief exchange earlier didn't mean anything—neither of them had gotten serious.
Having studied martial arts, Horikita was extremely confident. If they really fought, Yuki wouldn't be her opponent.
"Of course not."
Yuki spoke casually, pulled out pen and paper from his bag, quickly wrote something, then handed it to her.
"As long as you sign this contract, the information is free."
"Amamiya Yuki, what is this supposed to mean?"
Looking at the contract, Horikita slowly frowned.
The terms were extremely simple.
First: When answering any question from Kushida, Horikita Suzune must respond with "So what?"
Second: She is forbidden from revealing any information about Amamiya Yuki.
Otherwise, she must pay Amamiya Yuki five million personal points.
In simple terms—it was a scapegoat contract.
Horikita didn't really care about that. There was just one thing she couldn't understand.
"Who is Kushida Kikyo?" she asked coldly. "And what exactly are you trying to do? What consequences will this contract bring me? If I don't understand that, I won't sign."
"Are you serious?" Yuki looked speechless. "Kushida Kikyo went to the same middle school as you, and she's in your class now. You heard her name during self-introductions."
"So?"
After his explanation, Horikita remembered the name—but only barely.
She didn't care about Kushida at all. What she cared about was what Yuki's plan would cost her.
"Fine."
Yuki smiled indifferently. "Sign this contract, and you'll earn Kushida Kikyo's hostility. For the next three years, she'll probably target you like crazy."
After a short pause, he added playfully, "Five thousand personal points, or this contract—both get you the information you want. Horikita Suzune, which one do you choose?"
"There's nothing to choose."
Without any hesitation, Horikita signed the contract.
She was even secretly pleased.
Before the trade even started, she'd already gained two pieces of information.
[Points can buy everything] and [Contracts]. Judging by Yuki's attitude, this contract clearly carried strong binding power and would be recognized by the school.
And—
There was no need to care about Kushida Kikyo's hostility. At worst, it'd be bullying or gathering girls to isolate her.
She never planned to build relationships anyway. All she wanted was to get closer to her brother. As for bullying, she trusted her own strength.
As for hiding Yuki's identity—
That was even more irrelevant.
In short, Horikita felt she'd taken zero losses and gotten Yuki's information for free.
Huge win.
"Alright. Where's the information?"
"That's a surprisingly bold choice."
Yuki accepted the contract, feigning surprise.
Horikita tucked her hair behind her ear and said coldly, "You were probably trying to scare me with this contract so I'd choose the other option and pay fifty thousand points. Unfortunately for you, the door-in-the-face tactic doesn't work on me."
"And I'm not interested in everyone getting along. You miscalculated."
"Fair enough." Yuki shrugged and glanced at the two cans of black tea beside her.
This time, Horikita handed one to him. "Alright. Now tell me the information."
She believed she'd won this negotiation and decided to be magnanimous.
"Of course. I'm not the kind of guy who breaks promises."
Yuki played with the can and said, "First—starting next month, the school will stop handing out one hundred thousand personal points. Instead, they'll use the S System for comprehensive evaluation."
"The S System?"
Horikita instantly locked onto the keyword.
"Right." Yuki nodded. "A system that scores classes based on daily behavior and exam results. The points awarded are class points—also known as S points."
"I see. So that's why free items exist."
Horikita frowned, clearly displeased. "You're saying the class's overall performance affects personal points. What's the conversion rate between class points and personal points?"
"One hundred to one."
Yuki smiled calmly. He completely understood her reaction.
Someone as capable as Horikita hated the idea of being dragged down by others.
"No wonder Instructor Chabashira said strength is everything."
Horikita analyzed aloud. "They're forcing students to understand the importance of money. To live comfortably, students must discipline themselves, improve their grades, and earn points."
She finished thinking, then looked at Yuki again. "Anything else?"
"Of course."
Yuki stood up, casually tossed the empty can into a trash bin, and continued.
"Students are divided into Classes A, B, C, and D. Only graduating from Class A makes you an elite, with the freedom to choose any major corporation."
"The other classes exist purely as nourishment for Class A's growth. Class D, especially, is labeled defective."
Horikita stood up abruptly, her eyes sharp as she stared at Yuki.
"Is that true?"
Her grades were top-tier even across the entire country. Her athletic ability too. She could've freely chosen any elite high school.
And yet—
Here, she was labeled defective.
"That's the reality." Yuki replied calmly.
After a moment of silence, Horikita slowly regained her composure. If she didn't start in Class A, then she'd climb there and prove herself.
"So this is the true face of merit-based education."
She could already imagine how brutal this school's exams would be.
And—
In this country, résumés were everything. Once you were labeled "failed," finding another job became extremely difficult.
Failing to graduate from Class A likely meant being branded a loser. Graduating from B, C, or D could even be considered a negative evaluation.
"Suzune, that's all the information. Anything else you want to ask?"
Yuki picked up his shopping bag, clearly planning to head back.
This information would be common knowledge within a month. There was no reason to hide it—let alone the truly important intel, which he'd never share.
Horikita sneered lightly. "This is information that should've been shared with the entire class. And you used it to trade with me—don't you feel ashamed?"
"Not at all."
Yuki smiled indifferently. "I have no interest in reaching Class A, and no obligation to help the class."
After a brief pause, he added, "Now that you know the information, how you use it is up to you."
"I see. Wanting a pleasant high school life is your freedom. Just don't get in my way."
With that, Horikita picked up her shopping bag and returned to the dorms without hesitation.
Now that she had the information, she had no interest in why Yuki didn't want to reach Class A—and no desire to keep talking.
As long as she could reach Class A and show Horikita Manabu her growth over these three years, her brother would surely be proud.
"So that's all she's capable of right now."
Watching her back, Yuki muttered.
Advancing to Class A was a basic requirement of the Amamiya family's assessment—but you should never let others know what you truly want. That only becomes a weakness.
He'd been prepared for her follow-up questions. Instead, she'd completely brushed him off.
This wasn't just narrow vision anymore. Arrogance, pride—her flaws were painfully obvious.
Of course, he'd also noticed her strengths: solid logic, sharp intuition, excellent ability to grasp key points.
Consistent inside and out. Not very gentle—sharp tongue, soft heart.
Most importantly, her execution was exceptional—stronger even than Ichinose's group. And that "never stop until the goal is reached" mentality.
If properly trained, she'd make an excellent leader.
After a short wait, Yuki headed back to his dorm.
Room 402 was his assigned single unit.
Despite being solo, it had a kitchen, toilet, bathroom, bedroom, and balcony. A school backed by the state really spared no expense.
"Just over ten thousand points left."
Looking at his phone, Yuki flopped onto the bed.
On the first day alone, he'd spent over eighty thousand points. Besides buying the untraceable account from Chabashira, he'd also purchased a standing punching bag.
"All preparations are done. I'm actually looking forward to tomorrow."
Logging into the account he'd bought from Chabashira, he posted a thread on one of the school's forums.
Then he immediately abandoned the account entirely.
The account that cost fifty thousand personal points had already fulfilled its purpose.