Chapter 13 - Chapter 121-130

Chapter 121 Don't tell me they kissed

Horikita Suzune remained silent for quite a while. She turned her face and shot a quick glance at Shimizu Akira.

"...You're right." She withdrew her gaze, her voice softer now, yet clear enough.

"Shimizu-kun... is indeed someone who might be able to do it."

As those words left her mouth, even she was a bit surprised. But she truly couldn't find a reason to refute it—Kushida Kikyo was right. In this class, the only person who seemed capable of carving "persistence" into their daily routine like her brother was indeed Shimizu Akira.

After all, being able to get up early every single day without fail to exercise—a figure she occasionally saw whenever she passed the sports field—was a testament to a resilience that was second to none.

"..." Kushida Kikyo froze as well, a flash of genuine astonishment crossing her eyes. She really hadn't expected the other girl to admit it so readily—especially without looking for an excuse to argue as she usually did.

To anyone with eyes, it was obvious that Horikita Suzune's respect for her Student Council President brother reached a point that was almost "beyond reproach."

'How interesting.'

The little calculator in her mind whirred rapidly.

'She's actually willing to compare Shimizu Akira to her brother?

Could it be... she actually likes him?'

As soon as the thought popped up, she dismissed it herself. When she mentioned dating Shimizu Akira earlier, Horikita Suzune clearly hadn't shown any special reaction; she didn't even knit her brows.

'But surely she doesn't feel absolutely nothing? She's probably just the type who is very dense regarding emotions!

Being able to say "He might be able to do it"—at the very least, she acknowledges him, right? This kind of tacit approval wrapped in admiration is buried much deeper than straightforward praise.'

Thinking this, the smile in Kushida's eyes deepened, her eyes taking on a mischievous curve.

'Hehe, it looks like there's definitely some goodwill there.'

But the moment the thought settled, the curve of her lips stiffened, and her expression quietly darkened.

'Wait!'

A thought surged up, making her fingertips tighten instinctively.

'That being said, once their relationship improves, will she talk to Shimizu Akira about my old business from junior high?'

She knew girls like Horikita Suzune all too well—they looked cold, yet they rarely acknowledged others easily. Especially since the girl clearly compared others to her brother; for her to say "He might be able to do it" was an extremely high evaluation in itself.

'In that case, is the only boy she currently looks up to Shimizu Akira?'

This conclusion made her feel inexplicably flustered. She could even imagine the aftermath: with Horikita Suzune's personality of giving her all once she's made up her mind, if she actually started dating Shimizu Akira, she would probably dump all the secrets in her heart onto him. This was strikingly consistent with a certain boy's private analysis from before.

When that time came, even if Shimizu didn't ask anything, she might proactively mention Kushida's past.

'He's the one person I don't want to know my true nature...'

As this thought surfaced, images flashed uncontrollably before her eyes—not just the disgusted looks of her classmates upon discovering her true face, but the way Shimizu Akira would look if he became disappointed.

'No, that guy wouldn't dare hate me. I have leverage over him—that school uniform with his fingerprints on it. I still haven't washed it; it's tucked away safely in my room.'

At this, her tensed shoulders relaxed slightly, and her fingers weren't as stiff.

'If he dares to hate me, that would be his own death sentence.'

She slowly lowered her head, a flash of ruthless cunning in her eyes, though her lips curled into a strange arc.

'If it comes to that, I'll just expose the fact that he touched me that day and let the whole school know. Want to force me out of this school? I'll at least drag him down with me to make it worth it.'

This thought was like a stabilizer, slowly calming her panicked heart. She wasn't afraid; she still had a final move—Shimizu Akira was her safety net. At worst, they could transfer schools together. If she fell, she would never let Shimizu Akira stay here peacefully—she had always been this selfish.

Just like that night when she stared into his eyes and said, "If you dare betray me, you're dead"—that wasn't just talk.

However... if it really came to that, she might give him some "compensation." Didn't he mention he liked lap pillows? Once they're expelled, there would be plenty of time to let him lie there as much as he wanted.

Her thoughts drifted a bit too far, and she gave a light cough to bring herself back. It was too early to think about these things. Even ignoring the fact that there were no signs of them dating yet, was she really incapable of making a few small moves?

Fortunately, through the date with Shimizu Akira yesterday, she had already grasped part of Horikita Suzune's character and information. She would find another chance to strike up a conversation and probe further. If they really couldn't get along, she would have to find another way out—like looking for Horikita Suzune's own "dark history." As long as she held leverage over her, she wouldn't have to fear her talking.

Only when she had completely handled this matter would she be able to truly breathe a sigh of relief. By then, no one in this school would be able to threaten her again—those secrets buried in her junior high days could rot in her gut forever.

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After asking her questions, Kushida Kikyo waved at the two of them with a smile and turned back to her seat.

Shimizu Akira watched her back, unable to guess the intent behind her words just now; why did she suddenly turn the topic to him?

"Horikita, there's something I need to tell you." He paused, then took the initiative to speak. "I'm the one who told Kushida that you and the Student Council President are siblings."

The hand Horikita Suzune used to hold her pen paused. She turned her face to look at him. "So, what kind of 'bewitching potion' did she feed you?"

"She asked, so I answered her question. I didn't say anything else," Shimizu explained. "If you're asking whether there was a 'bewitching potion'... I can only say, yes, there was."

As soon as he said it, he remembered what Kushida had specifically instructed—to keep the lap pillow a secret. Thinking about it, that lap pillow really was like a sugar-coated trap. In a sense, it could be considered a bewitching potion.

"What exactly did you two do?" Horikita Suzune's voice rose sharply, her eyes filled with obvious scrutiny.

"There are things you can't say?"

Although she didn't usually pay attention to such things, she had seen snippets in movies and vaguely knew about the ambiguous connections between men and women. At the thought of

the words "things you can't say," her earlobes turned bright red instantly, and blurry images flashed uncontrollably in her mind.

But then she thought it was absurd—they weren't even dating, how could they...

But the other party was Kushida Kikyo. The kind of girl who was socially graceful and always surrounded by people; maybe she took these things very lightly?

'Don't tell me... they kissed?'

Chapter 122 Horikita Suzune: I am no longer who I used to be

Horikita Suzune glanced at him, her tone turning a few degrees colder: "I take back what I said earlier—you can't compare to my brother at all. My brother would never be so easily seduced like you."

Shimizu Akira looked at her expression, which clearly indicated she was imagining the worst, and the corner of his mouth twitched. He was truly stuck between laughter and tears. "Hold on, hold on. I don't know what you're inventing in your head, but it's definitely not the kind of 'seduction' you're thinking of."

'At most, it was just a lap pillow; that's a far cry from 'seduction', right?' He added silently in his mind.

"But you're right, I really can't compare to your brother." He shifted the topic, his tone becoming much more sincere.

"Whether it's ability, character, or responsibility, the Student Council President is beyond reproach. I personally respect him very much."

These words came from the heart—Horikita Manabu's calm and reliable aura was indeed worthy of respect.

Horikita Suzune's expression softened slightly. Her fingers paused on her textbook as she suddenly remembered something else: "Kushida-san mentioned earlier that you reported a shop to the Student Council? Did you go to the Student Council room to find my brother?"

"I didn't go to the Student Council." Shimizu Akira shook his head. "Actually, I have your brother's contact information. We added each other as friends, and I messaged him directly."

As he spoke, he instinctively lifted his phone, as if to prove he wasn't lying.

Horikita Suzune's gaze inadvertently swept across his phone screen. When she saw the chat records clearly, her pupils shrank slightly—the screen showed the dialog box between Shimizu Akira and her older brother, and scrolling up several screens still didn't reach the beginning.

"You... sent that many messages?" Her voice carried a trace of undisguised surprise.

"Ah? Is this considered a lot?" Shimizu Akira was stunned for a moment. He picked up his phone and looked. "It's only about two or three messages a day. Most of the time it's complaining about the school system, and occasionally mentioning interesting things happening in the school."

He spoke nonchalantly, as if it were the most ordinary exchange.

Horikita Suzune, however, stared at the sheer volume of chat logs, filled with an overwhelming sense of envy. Even she herself rarely had the chance to talk so much about daily life with her brother.

"By the way, after I left last time, did you two siblings have a proper talk?" Shimizu Akira asked curiously, following the thread of the conversation.

"...No." Horikita Suzune remained silent for a long time before squeezing two words through her teeth.

Since the last time she met her brother downstairs at the dormitory and was caught by Shimizu Akira—other than asking him about "the relationship between Tachibana Akane and her brother"—there had been no other communication. As for meeting face-to-face, she didn't even dare think about it.

Mainly, she was afraid of embarrassment. After all, she was still languishing in Class D, while her brother was already the Student Council President standing at the top of the school. If others saw them walking together, she wouldn't mind the gossip, but the idea of making her brother lose face was what concerned her most.

"Don't tell me you sent your brother more of those 'Chuunibyou' lines like 'Brother, please watch my performance in Class D,' 'I am no longer the person I used to be,' or 'I will reach Class A with firm resolve'?" Shimizu Akira narrowed his eyes, deliberately imitating the tone she might use.

"I didn't! The current me wouldn't say things like that!" Horikita Suzune glared at him suddenly, her ears turning red with anger—what kind of person did this guy take her for?

She clenched her fists, almost actually kicking him. If she hadn't been mindful of being in the classroom, she probably would have thrown the textbook in her hand at him.

At the start of the term, she might have held onto the idea of "making her brother look at her in a new light," but now that it had been over a month since school started, she was no longer that person who only hung her determination on her lips!

'Uh—'

As soon as that thought emerged, her heart skipped a beat. Wait, the phrase Shimizu Akira just used, "I am no longer the person I used to be"... she seemed, she seemed to have actually said something similar in her heart just now.

She had literally just thought it!

"Shut up." She squeezed two words from between her teeth, her voice cold as a layer of ice.

Now she truly did not want to speak to this guy anymore.

Every single time, he could accurately poke at her inner thoughts, making her fingers go numb with rage, yet she could never find the right words to refute him—it was simply suffocating. She turned her face away, pretending to focus on her textbook, not wanting to spare even a glance for the guy next to her who wore a "just as I thought" expression.

"Alright, alright, I'm done teasing you." Seeing that she was really about to blow a fuse, Shimizu Akira quickly restrained his smile and suggested, "How about this: tomorrow is Friday. After school, I'm going to find the Student Council President. How about I take you to see your brother?"

Horikita Suzune's pen tip paused. She turned her face to look at him, her eyes filled with obvious doubt. "...?"

"I actually have matters to discuss with him." Shimizu Akira's tone became more serious, and he added, "And your brother seems to have run into some trouble lately. As his sister, aren't you curious about what's bothering him? Also, help me out a bit; after all, your brother is quite intimidating."

Horikita Suzune's fingertips lightly rubbed the barrel of her pen. She stared down at the words in the textbook, and after a long while, squeezed a sentence from her throat: "...I understand."

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Noon arrived quickly.

Shimizu Akira had just finished lunch when the phone in his pocket vibrated—it was a message in the class group. Kushida Kikyo suddenly notified everyone to gather in the classroom immediately.

When he returned to the classroom, more than half of the students were already seated, whispering in groups of two or three, all guessing the reason for the sudden assembly. After waiting a few more minutes, the last few late students hurried in, and the classroom was finally mostly full.

Just then, the classroom door was gently pushed open. Two girls stood at the doorway.

"Good afternoon, everyone in Class D!" The girl wearing a beret spoke first. She raised a hand to press down on the brim of her hat and bowed slightly to the people in the room, her movements playful yet polite.

The purple-haired girl standing beside her ignored the somewhat deliberate pleasantries, merely scanning the crowd of Class D with an air of indifference. When her gaze circled half the room and landed on a certain familiar figure, her brow rose imperceptibly.

The original noise in the classroom quieted down. Many people looked at the door curiously—these two were clearly not Class D students, and they didn't know who they were suddenly looking for.

"An introduction might be a bit late! I am Sakayanagi Arisu from Class 1-A, and the person beside me is Kamuro Masumi. For the time being, I serve as the leader of Class A," she said with a light chuckle.

"Someone from Class A?!"

"What are they doing in Class D all of a sudden?!"

"Excuse me, who are you two looking for?"

Several low discussions instantly broke out in the room. Yamauchi Haruki craned his neck to observe the doorway, his gaze lingering on the two girls. He couldn't help but whisper: "But seriously, they're both so cute—especially the one in the beret, her eyes are like a little deer's. But why is she a cripple?"

Kushida Kikyo walked quickly to the podium and explained to the classmates in the room: "Sorry for disturbing everyone's break time. It's actually because yesterday afternoon, Sakayanagi-san said she had important information she wanted to share with Class D."

Chapter 123 Sakayanagi Arisu: What is wrong with these Class D people? Is 200,000 even expensive?

Shimizu Akira had actually tried using an alternate account yesterday to contact Ryuen Kakeru, Kushida Kikyo, Hirata Yosuke, and Ichinose Honami to ask how much they knew about this month's special exam.

The results, however, were somewhat unexpected—aside from Ryuen Kakeru, who deliberately gave no response, the others explicitly told him that Sakayanagi Arisu from Class A had already reached a cooperation agreement with them beforehand. Among them, Ichinose Honami specifically mentioned that the other party had set two conditions: first, the cost for the intelligence was 200,000 points; second, she had to be the one to personally announce this news to each class.

Splitting 200,000 points among everyone in the class would come out to roughly 5,000 points per person. He thought this matter would drag on for another two days, but he hadn't expected Sakayanagi Arisu to move so quickly—this very noon, she had come knocking on their door with her companion.

"Classmates, I'd like to take a moment of your time." Sakayanagi Arisu walked onto the Class D podium. Her eyes beneath her beret curved into crescents, and her tone was light yet clear. "Actually, there is a special exam this month as well. As it happens, I have already uncovered information related to the exam—this intelligence can help Class D gain up to 100 Class Points."

She paused, her fingertips lightly tapping the edge of the podium. "I am here to inform you of this fact."

As soon as she finished speaking, the classroom exploded with whispered discussions: "Why would someone from Class A help us in Class D?"

"Aren't we in a competitive relationship?"

"Is there really a special exam this month? There hasn't been any news at all..."

Doubtful gazes landed squarely on Sakayanagi Arisu on the podium, as well as the purple-haired girl beside her who remained silent.

"Mm, yes, there is." Sakayanagi lightly waved her finger, her tone carrying a hint of guidance. "Has no one noticed that several unsolvable, difficult problems were hidden in the previous exam papers? Those were actually hints left by the school—those questions were never meant to be solved normally by first-year students."

"Huh? There's such a thing?"

"I didn't notice at all..."

"Wait, isn't it just that most of the questions were too hard to solve?"

Yamauchi Haruki, Ike Kanji, and Sudo Ken huddled together, whispering with lowered heads, their faces full of belated bewilderment.

"Heh, interesting." Koenji Rokusuke suddenly let out a light chuckle, slowly twirling a pen between his fingers as his gaze fell on Sakayanagi Arisu. "These clues indeed suggest a special exam. However, what is your objective? Class A and Class D are competitors; why go out of your way to help?"

"Why help you? It's quite simple, really." Sakayanagi's smile remained unchanged, but her tone became a bit more serious.

"I simply don't want to see 'that person' continue to profit off the four classes anymore."

She paused, resting her fingertips lightly on the podium's edge. "Last month, a mystery person contacted me saying surveillance cameras could be rented. Our class spent 3 million points to rent them. And this month, that 'Mystery Person' intends to repeat the trick by selling information about the special exam to all four classes. My goal in making this information public is to sabotage his plan—I simply don't want him to be so smug. That is the primary reason."

As her voice trailed off, she tilted her head slightly. Her gaze beneath the beret slowly scanned the Class D students below, carrying a trace of subtle scrutiny.

Every word she spoke was true—not a single part was false. A portion of her goal in going public was indeed to stop that mystery person. After all, if one wants to win others' trust, occasionally tossing out parts of the truth is often the most effective method. Furthermore, she had already guessed it—Class D had likely rented the cameras as well.

"What? Class A rented the cameras too?"

"Our class rented them before! We also spent 3 million points!"

"So that's how it is... That person actually wants to sell info again?!"

Just as she predicted, as soon as she finished speaking, a chorus of agreement rose from the audience. Several students instinctively chimed in, their tones filled with obvious resonance.

Sakayanagi Arisu's ears twitched slightly—she had captured a much more critical piece of information.

'Selling information again?'

That mystery person had previously only done business with "renting surveillance"; how did it suddenly turn into "selling information"? In other words, it seemed this mystery person had conducted a separate information trade with Class D once before.

'Interesting.

I didn't expect that a trip to Class D would yield such a bonus harvest.'

"So Sakayanagi-san was also schemed against by that guy!"

"To even trick such a cute girl, that person is just too much!"

"Don't worry! We definitely support you!"

A few exceptionally enthusiastic voices came from below. Sakayanagi glanced toward the sound—it was two boys who looked somewhat rash, their eyes full of blunt support.

'And these two are...?' she wondered silently. 'They don't look particularly bright. Still, having people like this in Class D makes things easier. Just keep supporting me like that.'

With these voices taking the initiative to side with her, the rest of the conversation would be much easier to navigate.

She withdrew her gaze, her smile remaining gentle. "Since we all have a common enemy, things are easy to handle. However, I spent a lot of effort organizing this information, so I can't just give it away for free—I intend to sell it to you all for 200,000 points. This price shouldn't be considered expensive, right?"

Yes, 200,000 points. She had spent an entire afternoon at a cafe organizing screenshots of several exam papers; this intelligence was never meant to be free. And the price was already very reasonable—you have to realize that the mystery person sold just the surveillance for 3 million last month. For core intelligence directly linked to a special exam, she conservatively estimated it was worth at least 500,000.

200,000 points, split among everyone in Class D, was only 5,000 points per person.

"For you, this is definitely a guaranteed profitable trade," she added with a well-placed air of certainty.

She turned her gaze back to the two boys who had been enthusiastically supporting her, expecting some backup. To her surprise, their faces instantly slumped, and their voices were filled with complaints:

"Huh? You want points? I thought this was free help!"

"200,000 points? How are we supposed to come up with that?!"

"We can't afford that price at all!"

Sakayanagi Arisu's eyes widened slightly. She suspected she had misheard.

200,000 points was considered expensive? She clearly remembered that Class D had just received 530 Class Points this month. In other words, each person had 53,000 private points; even getting four people to pool their money would be enough. Not to mention they had 40 people! How could contributing less than a tenth of their points be called expensive?

What surprised her even more was the attitude of these two—just a moment ago they were all about "full support," yet the second they heard the word "points," their faces flipped instantly.

Chapter 124 Sakayanagi Arisu — Driven to Heart Pain by Class D

Sakayanagi Arisu's fingertips paused. She even instinctively wanted to confirm whether she had made a slip of the tongue and said "2 million"—otherwise, why would there be such a massive reaction?

"200,000 points... Class D should still be able to afford that, right?" She looked at the whole class, her tone carrying a hint of imperceptible confusion.

She suddenly thought of her own Class A—yesterday, when she proposed this intelligence, the class immediately approved 200,000 points as a reward. In her view, she actually felt it was a bit low, because 200,000 really wasn't a large sum.

"...We can't produce that!"

"Everyone would have to cough up 5,000 points!"

Voices of opposition rose one after another, and several students even furrowed their brows.

Only then did Sakayanagi Arisu realize, in hindsight, that the point reserves and consumption concepts of different classes were actually this far apart. A figure that was taken for granted in Class A had actually become an "astronomical price" requiring debate here in Class D.

'However, isn't this gap a bit too much?'

Sakayanagi Arisu looked at Kushida Kikyo beside her, who was also looking at her with an awkward expression. Her gaze swept across the room and eventually landed on the boy with the particularly prominent jawline. This guy was clearly the one shouting the loudest just now; how did he change into a different person in the blink of an eye, leading the complaints?

'Truly boring.'

Her finger tapped lightly on the handle of her cane, and the gaze beneath her hat chilled slightly—people like this, who only shout empty slogans but immediately retreat the moment actual interests are involved, truly couldn't pique even a bit of her interest.

"Sakayanagi-san, can't you tell us for free?"

"We really can't produce a single point. Renting the surveillance last month already cost us a fortune."

"Exactly, we're Class D and you're Class A. Even if you earn points from us, it won't be much, right?"

Several people chimed in one after another. Their tones were earnest, but the underlying meaning was plain as day—they wanted the information for nothing.

Listening to these words, Sakayanagi Arisu felt her temples throb faintly, and her heart reflexively tightened. She felt as though she was about to have a heart attack. She even felt the urge to hurl her cane at their faces.

'These people... they actually want to play the empty-handed wolf?

What logic is this?'

She sneered in her heart. Did they really take it for granted that someone else's hard work should be given away for free? She was currently a core figure of Class A; was the time and energy she spent organizing this intelligence born out of thin air? Was she just supposed to let these people "freeload" it?

The way they spoke was truly righteous and confident.

She even couldn't help but imagine—if she were a member of Class D, would these people be even more unscrupulous in reaching out their hands to demand things? Just thinking about that scenario caused a surge of physiological discomfort; she felt nauseous!

In a sense, she truly experienced what it felt like to "be a Class D student" today—having one's results coveted as a matter of course, without even the most basic awareness of equivalent exchange.

She lowered her eyelids, hiding the surging impatience in her eyes. But she couldn't just turn around and leave yet. That mysterious person might be watching from some corner—if she gave up on this deal, that person would be able to sit back and reap the spoils.

But staying was also miserable. From time to time, the people of Class D would blurt out phrases about "getting info for free," which stung like fine thorns, causing an indescribable sense of annoyance. This feeling was like falling into an obvious trap, caught between a rock and a hard place.

Leaving meant handing the opportunity to the mysterious person; staying meant having to patiently deal with these muddled fools.

'It's like having one's flesh cut with a dull knife.'

She took a light breath. Since it was an open scheme, she had no choice but to accept it. She couldn't let the guy hiding in the shadows make a joke out of her.

"Heh." Standing to the side, Kamuro Masumi crossed her arms and let out a cold laugh, her tone carrying undisguised mockery.

Half of this laugh was for Sakayanagi Arisu—a dignified core member of Class A, entangled by these Class D people to the point of being unable to move; the other half was for Class D—not even understanding basic equivalent exchange and only thinking of freeloading. It was no wonder they were the bottom-tier class.

She glanced at the people below who were still mumbling about "making it cheaper," and suddenly understood a bit why Shimizu Akira was unwilling to exert effort for his own class.

Rather than having his blood sucked by people who only know how to reach out, it was better to do nothing and have some peace. Thinking this, she suddenly felt lucky—thankfully she had been assigned to Class A and didn't have to work with such trashy people.

Kamuro Masumi moved half a step closer to the podium and said to Sakayanagi in a voice only the two of them could hear: "If you ask me, just leave. Wasting time with these people isn't worth it."

"Rather than letting these people take advantage for nothing, I want to see 'that guy' fail to earn his points even more." Sakayanagi Arisu forced a smile toward Kamuro, her voice kept extremely low, though a trace of grit-toothed determination was hidden in the tail end.

"You won't understand this feeling—I just don't want him to get his way."

Even if she had to make a losing trade, she had to let the guy hiding in the shadows know that earning money under her nose wasn't that easy.

"I understand. I fully comprehend Class D's current situation. How about this—regarding the intelligence for this special exam, I will provide it to everyone for free. I hope you can all achieve a good score in the midterm exam. I also hope Class D remembers this gift from Class A."

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Shimizu Akira sat in his seat, watching Sakayanagi Arisu on the podium actually reveal the contents of the special exam in full detail. What surprised him even more was that she had even printed a set of exam papers in advance to distribute for the students in the front rows to pass around.

'What on earth is she thinking?'

He was truly a bit bewildered. She's really giving the info away for free?

He stared at Sakayanagi Arisu's somewhat humiliated face and suddenly realized—she was hell-bent on cutting off his path. To prevent him from earning even a single point from Class D, she was willing to completely disregard her own interests, preferring to earn nothing just to throw the intelligence out.

She was using the "Seven Injury Fist" style—hurting herself first to hurt the enemy.

'That's truly... ruthless enough.'

Shimizu Akira leaned against the back of his chair, watching the shocked and dazed expressions of the Class D students as they received the papers, and for a moment didn't know what to say. To be honest, he had indeed toyed with the idea of selling intelligence, but at most, he only wanted to earn 400,000 or 500,000 points and call it a day. But Sakayanagi

Arisu was something else—she would rather be freeloaded by Class D than let him earn a cent.

'Should I say... as expected of the 'Mad Hatter'?'

He laughed secretly in his heart. The pronunciation of "Arisu" was similar to "Alice," and combined with that signature beret, she really was like the eccentric and persistent Mad Hatter from the Alice story—once she decided on something, she would push the plan to the end even if it cost her own interests.

Chapter 125 What about reporting the exam papers? Does it count as cheating?

After leaving the Class D classroom, Sakayanagi Arisu went straight to Class B and similarly informed them of the intelligence regarding the special exam.

Naturally, she didn't collect points this time either—since even Class D was able to get it for free, she had no reason to charge Class B a separate fee. She wouldn't do something as foolish and inconsistent as that.

As expected, Ichinose Honami showed a look of sincere gratitude, and the gazes of the others in Class B were mostly appreciative, lacking the "taken-for-granted" composure shown by Class D.

Sakayanagi felt a slight sense of relief in her heart—so not all classes were full of vampires like Class D. It was truly wonderful that there were mostly normal people in this school.

However, Class B didn't actually let her make the trip for nothing. Ichinose Honami specifically added her contact information and insisted on transferring 200,000 points over.

Sakayanagi Arisu did not accept them—compared to these few points, having Class B owe her a favor was a much more profitable deal. A favor from Class B was the greatest harvest Class A could obtain from this month's special exam.

Finally, there was Class C.

Just as Sakayanagi reached the classroom door, before she could even raise her hand to knock, she saw Ryuuen Kakeru leaning against the doorframe. He was staring at her with cold, sunken eyes, a mocking smile hooked on his lips.

"The business of renting surveillance last month—was that your doing?" He got straight to the point.

"Hehe." Sakayanagi's fingers holding the handle of her cane paused slightly. "Regrettably, the person who did that was not me."

"Then what are you doing here looking for me?"

"Naturally, I'm here to tell you the intelligence regarding this month's special exam."

"Oh?" Ryuuen raised an eyebrow. "You'd take the initiative to send intel to other classes? Is it because that guy came online to send messages yesterday? Or—has this been a play directed and acted out by you from start to finish?"

"You suspect that I did all of this? Interesting, well then..." Sakayanagi tilted her head slightly. "What is your basis for that?"

Ryuuen sneered, looking down at her with a squint, and spat out two words: "Your old man."

The moment the words left his mouth, the air in the corridor seemed to stagnate for an instant.

The smile on Sakayanagi Arisu's face vanished completely.

This guy! He actually dared to imply she was a little princess relying on her father?

Actually, this matter couldn't be hidden for long—the Chairman's name was printed clearly in the enrollment manual, and anyone with half a mind to connect the dots could guess it. But this also meant that Ryuuen Kakeru had definitely investigated her on purpose.

'A mere delinquent... it seems I underestimated him before!'

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After school, Kushida Kikyo had already sent photos of several exam papers to the class group. Several students in the class with unsatisfactory grades immediately perked up, their faces showing obvious excitement—with these ready-made answers, as long as they memorized them well, there was a high probability they would pass the exam at the end of the month.

"Sakayanagi-san is such a great person."

"Yeah, yeah, as expected of someone from Class A, her vision is on another level."

At that moment, Yamauchi Haruki rubbed the back of his head and smiled, his tone carrying a bit of unrealistic expectation: "Speaking of which, my personal points are almost bottomed out... How about I go and borrow some from her? Since she's willing to give us the papers, she should agree, right?"

As soon as he said this, Ike Kanji was stunned, then slapped him irritably: "Don't push your luck. It was nice enough of her to give us the intel for free, and you want to borrow points too?"

But Yamauchi clearly wasn't listening, still staring at the photos of the papers in the group and muttering: "I'll just try, what if it works?"

Looking at his "taken-for-granted" attitude, several more level-headed classmates silently looked away.

Shimizu Akira felt that this was probably one of the main reasons why Class D could never climb up and why Class A became Class A.

"The exam papers?" Horikita Suzune looked at the photos in the group and couldn't help but mutter to herself, "To think the school would prepare something like this... This way, even the failing students can barely manage to pass."

"All four classes should have received the news by now," Shimizu Akira added from the side, his gaze sweeping across the classmates still discussing the papers.

Horikita Suzune turned to look at him: "The reason you suddenly said no more tutoring these last few days, could it be because you knew about this in advance?"

"I'm not as omnipotent as you think." Shimizu shrugged, his tone devoid of much emotion.

"I just happened to have something else to attend to."

She wasn't entirely wrong; he had found out about this on Tuesday. But there was no need to explain the details to Horikita Suzune.

However, speaking of which, since Sakayanagi Arisu had notified the other three classes, all four classes now knew of the existence of the "test papers."

Did this count as public cheating?

A thought suddenly popped into his head: if someone reported this to the school authorities, would the school still use the original papers?

After mulling it over, he found the idea quite interesting. He took out his phone and sent a message to his homeroom teacher, Chabashira Sae, specifically asking this question.

He received a reply quickly.

Chabashira Sae: Class A actually went out of their way to share the news with Class D?

Chabashira Sae: Regarding the question you asked, my view is—if it doesn't form enough public pressure, the school will not easily change the exam papers.

Chabashira Sae: Because purchasing old exam papers from the second and third years is not considered a violation.

Chabashira Sae: That is a different matter entirely from "this midterm exam's papers being maliciously leaked"—after all, the final right to set the questions still remains with the school.

Shimizu Akira looked at the screen and felt she made a valid point. In the final analysis, the four classes were merely using old papers from upperclassmen to review; it didn't count as the school "intentionally leaking questions."

In that case, if nothing unexpected happened, the school wouldn't change the papers.

'Perhaps similar things happened in previous years, and rules for dealing with it were established long ago.'

Maybe what the school truly wanted to test was never "whether one could pass by memorizing old papers," but whether students could break out of the framework of "rote memorization" and proactively find ways to solve problems outside the rules.

Speaking of which, he wondered how many years this second-month special exam had been running. They surely wouldn't use the same set of papers for seven or eight years in a row, right? Thinking of it that way was quite interesting.

It was hard enough for a few students to see through these implicit rules and put effort into utilizing previous years' papers for early preparation; if the papers were changed just because someone reported it—that would undoubtedly be a huge injustice to those who proactively discovered the rules, and it wasn't the situation the school wanted to see.

Of course, some students with good grades felt this was unfair—they had relied on day-after-day effort to stabilize their grades, so why should others get similar scores just by rote-memorizing purchased papers?

Some felt this "shortcut" should be reported, but others felt that those who could find the papers from upperclassmen and see through the rules had also put in a lot of effort and weren't necessarily having it easier than those who kept their heads in their books.

Looking at it this way, it seemed that no matter which side you leaned toward, absolute fairness was impossible to achieve.

Actually, the assessment method of this second-month special exam was itself a bit "unreasonable." Conventionally, academic ability—the most basic skill—should be a straightforward contest with no room for shortcuts.

Why use old questions on purpose?

But thinking carefully, this "unfairness" was a bit like a microcosm of society—in the workplace, what a leader notices is never just your effort in working with your head down; those who know how to observe the rules and find efficient paths often gain recognition as well.

Perhaps the school set such an exam precisely to let the students understand this logic in advance?

ps: An explanation. My understanding is that for the school to publicly change the exam papers, there usually needs to be evidence; after all, words alone carry no weight. Another prerequisite is that a group of high-achieving students would need to collectively protest and make a scene. In the current situation, the protagonist first approached the homeroom teacher privately, and what he asked was merely a hypothetical question about "if someone reported this," which is not a real report. From the school's perspective, they can't change the papers just because of one probing question; that would be too sensitive. Not to mention the workload of changing the papers—wouldn't that be an admission of guilt? It's the same in the real world; would a whole system be overhauled just after receiving one tentative report call? It's not realistic. At the very least, evidence would have to be presented.

Chapter 126 Shiina Hiyori is a little rich girl with a public expense fund

"...Since you have the Japanese language exam papers now, do you still plan on having tutoring sessions? If you don't need them, I can give you a full refund of your points." Horikita Suzune considered for a moment, her tone remaining direct.

"I still want them," Shimizu Akira replied decisively. "But I have to wait until I finish being busy with this current stretch. The Japanese tutoring will go on as usual; it's just that there's too much going on this week, so let's push it to next week."

He calculated in his mind: he had just given Shiina Hiyori information related to the computer this morning, so there was a high probability she would contact him this week. As for Japanese... they might be able to deal with the midterm exam by relying on the test papers this time, but they might not have such good luck in future exams. It's better to be safe than sorry; there's nothing wrong with building a solid foundation in advance.

Just as he finished speaking, the phone in his pocket suddenly vibrated.

Shimizu Akira took out his phone, and the name flashing on the screen was exactly as he expected—Shiina Hiyori.

"Shimizu-kun, do you have time after school today? Could you accompany me to the electronics store near the school?" The voice on the other end was very light, carrying a hint of a cautious inquiry.

"Sure," he responded simply.

"Then... is it okay if we meet at the entrance of the electronics store at 4:00?"

"That works."

After hanging up, he checked the time—there was still half an hour until school let out.

Shimizu Akira recalled the words he had said to Shiina Hiyori this morning. Those misleading pieces of information he had deliberately mixed in had indeed led her to make deductions in the wrong direction.

He went back to the dormitory to rest for a while, and didn't head toward the school's electronics store until the clock on the wall pointed to 3:50.

This shop was considered the largest comprehensive electronics store on campus: everything from small household kitchen appliances to digital products like laptops and digital cameras, all the way to mobile phones and accessories, was available. If a phone malfunctioned, it could also be repaired here, making it quite convenient.

Just as he came to a halt at the store entrance, he saw that Shiina Hiyori had already arrived.

As the two were about to walk inside, a middle-aged, balding, slightly overweight uncle responsible for reception came forward to meet them. His gaze lingered on Shiina Hiyori's face and silver hair for a moment; his eyes held a trace of undisguised scrutiny, and he even

instinctively widened his eyes, as if startled by her exceptionally outstanding appearance and rare hair color.

Shimizu Akira shifted half a step closer to Shiina Hiyori without making it obvious, perfectly blocking that slightly suggestive gaze. "Listen, uncle, stop staring. Think about your age; it's not quite appropriate."

"You—" The overweight uncle froze on the spot, clearly not expecting a student to be so direct, and the smile on his face stiffened.

"You misunderstand." He quickly forced out a smile again, but it didn't reach his eyes, and his tone carried a bit of greasy defense.

"I was just startled by this student's hair color; it's truly rare."

"Let's hope so," Shimizu Akira replied flatly, his dismissiveness completely undisguised.

He turned his head and gestured to Shiina Hiyori with a tilt of his head.

"Let's find another staff member."

After saying that, he led Shiina Hiyori toward the inner part of the shop, deliberately avoiding that man.

"Shimizu-kun... you..." Shiina Hiyori seemed to have just come to her senses, blinking her eyes with a hint of daze and helplessness in her tone.

"Don't blame me for being forceful. That man didn't look like a good person," Shimizu Akira slowed his pace and turned his head to explain to her.

He was currently acting as the "consultant" she had temporarily hired, after all; he couldn't just watch her be offended by that kind of gaze.

"You misunderstand... I didn't mean to blame you at all." Shiina Hiyori shook her head with a light smile, the daze in her eyes clearing and being replaced by distinct gratitude. "On the contrary, I should be thanking you."

She was a girl and was more sensitive than anyone—she knew perfectly well what was hidden in the look that uncle had given her. It contained amazement at her rare silver hair, but even more so, that kind of undisguised desire that made one feel repulsed. Before she could react, she had been protected behind him by Shimizu Akira's subtle movement.

From helping her organize her reasoning regarding the computer this morning to this timely intervention just now... unknowingly, the other party had already helped her quite a lot.

Shiina Hiyori looked at Shimizu Akira walking beside her, the corners of her mouth curving into a faint arc as she said softly: "Shimizu-kun is indeed a very qualified assistant."

"After all, you paid points," Shimizu Akira responded. "Equivalent exchange."

Even though he said that, a subtle feeling of guilt inexplicably rose in his heart. After all, he had originally taken the initiative to contact Shiina Hiyori because she was investigating the "surveillance rental" matter—in a sense, he had approached her with an agenda.

Shiina Hiyori's personality was actually very pleasant; she was gentle, and her voice when she spoke was soft, as clear and light as a voice actress—even just listening to her speak could unconsciously calm one's inner irritability. She seemed to carry her own purifying aura; no matter how hot-tempered a person was, after staying with her for a while, they would instinctively become quiet and calm.

In a certain sense, calling her a "true angel" would not be an exaggeration.

Unfortunately, her current identity was that of a detective.

As that thought flashed by, Shimizu Akira had already raised his hand to point ahead: "There are other clerks over there; let's go ask. While we're at it, let's see if we can find a list of all students who have bought a computer here since the start of the term."

Shiina Hiyori caught on immediately, nodding as she followed his footsteps.

"Mm! We might discover something. However, I think that person is very likely a first-year freshman; otherwise, they wouldn't know exactly who the core figures of the four classes are. We mainly just need to look at the first-year list."

The person who received them this time was a young clerk wearing glasses, who spoke very politely: "What would you two like to look at?"

"We want to check the records of first-year students purchasing computers in the store from the start of the term until now," Shimizu Akira stated his intent directly.

"It would be best if we could have the purchase dates and specific student information. If we wanted to buy this information, how many points would we need to pay?"

Seeing the clerk hesitate, he added: "We can provide class certification and sign a non-disclosure agreement ensuring we won't reveal it to others. How many points would it take to exchange for a purchase record that meets these criteria?"

These words laid out the meaning of "equivalent exchange" very clearly.

The clerk's fingers holding the tablet moved, clearly weighing the options—transactions in the school were often settled with points, and the other party had proactively offered a guarantee. After all, it was just a list of computer buyers; it wasn't an unreasonable request.

She hesitated for a moment and finally nodded: "I'll go ask the store manager for a price. Please wait here for a moment."

As the clerk turned to walk toward the back hall, Shiina Hiyori quietly touched Shimizu Akira's arm, her voice kept very low: "Let me be the one to pay the points. I have the investigation funds given by Ryuen-kun."

Shimizu Akira raised an eyebrow and gave her a somewhat surprised look.

'I didn't expect her to be a little rich girl holding a "public expense fund" after all.'

Chapter 127 Sakura-san is Superman

In less than three minutes, the clerk walked back quickly, holding a printed A4 sheet of paper, her tone more certain than before: "The store manager has decided—the filtered purchase records will be charged per entry. Each entry for basic information costs 1,000 points; if you need the specific purchaser and the exact time labeled, it's an additional 2,000 per entry. The total cost for the summarized information you requested is 30,000 points. Additionally, this needs to be reported to the Student Council, as they will keep a backup of your information. Is this acceptable?"

The two looked at each other and nodded in succession.

Shiina Hiyori then took her phone out of her pocket: "Let me pay the points."

Seeing her decisive movement, Shimizu Akira did not contest it—since these were the investigation funds given by Ryuen, it was perfectly appropriate to use them for this.

She swiped her phone on the terminal, and after a soft "beep," the female clerk handed over the A4 paper. "This is the printed record. The purchaser's names and classes are marked on it."

When Shiina Hiyori took the paper, her fingertips paused slightly.

Shimizu Akira leaned in to look at the record sheet—there were ten people on the list in total.

Divided by class: 1 person from Class D, 2 from Class C, 4 from Class B, and 3 from Class A.

Four of them were people he recognized: his own classmate, the "Professor" who always carried a laptop; Ichinose Honami from Class B; Sakayanagi Arisu from Class A; and Ryuen Kakeru from Class C.

For high school students, specifically buying a computer wasn't actually that common—if one really wanted to play games, a Switch was enough to handle things; if it was for studying, the equipment in the school computer lab was perfectly adequate. Therefore, ten people distributed across four classes was a logical result.

"...Shiina-san, what do you think?" Shimizu Akira asked as the opportunity arose.

"The mystery person is very likely among these ten people." Shiina Hiyori lightly tapped the list with her fingertip.

"Since all four classes are involved, how about this—Shimizu-kun, will you handle the students from Class D and Class B? I'll take responsibility for the Class C and Class A side."

"Can you handle that?" Shimizu Akira raised an eyebrow.

"Shimizu-kun... don't look down on me." Shiina Hiyori looked up, her tone carrying a hint of earnest persistence.

"I can naturally communicate with my own classmates, and there are only three students from Class A on the list. I really only need to strike up a conversation with those few people."

"Fine, let's do it as you say." Shimizu Akira nodded, tearing off the portion belonging to Class D and Class B from the list and folding it.

"Contact me anytime if there's news."

"Mm, this should be the final investigation." Shiina Hiyori held the list for Class A and Class C in her hand.

"Once we finish our respective inquiries and exchange information, Shimizu-kun won't need to specifically set aside time to help me anymore."

Her voice was very light, as if afraid of disturbing something—she likely felt it wasn't good to keep troubling others.

"...Alright," Shimizu Akira responded, his gaze falling on her hand holding the half-sheet of A4 paper.

Those hands were slender and fair, and her fingertips were slightly flushed from gripping the record sheet just now.

'Once this matter is over, she'll probably turn back into that girl who stays quietly in the corner of the classroom.'

As soon as this thought surfaced, he pushed it back down.

He folded his half-list twice and stuffed it into his school uniform pocket, lightly pressing it with his fingertips to ensure it wouldn't fall out: "Then that's it for today; we'll act separately. If you discover anything, contact me anytime."

There was no need for reminders like "don't mess up"; they both knew how to proceed.

-

-

-

After Shimizu Akira and Shiina Hiyori parted ways and he pushed through the door.

Out of the corner of his eye, he suddenly caught a familiar figure—it was Sakura Airi from his own class. She was looking down, her bangs covering half her face, walking toward the store with very light steps, as if afraid of startling someone.

"Sakura-san?" Shimizu Akira stopped and called out to her.

Sakura Airi's footsteps jerked to a halt. It took two seconds before she slowly raised her head, her voice almost too quiet to hear: "Shi... Shimizu-kun."

"Are you here to exchange a camera?" he asked casually, his gaze falling on the digital camera cradled in the girl's arms.

"Um... that, the focus seems to have a bit of a problem." Sakura Airi's voice dropped even lower, her fingertips instinctively tightening around the camera strap.

"I see." Shimizu Akira nodded and didn't ask further.

"Then I won't disturb you."

After saying that, he turned and left. He thought he heard a very faint "goodbye" come from behind him.

However, after walking just a few steps, a trace of curiosity suddenly flickered in his heart. He hadn't expected Sakura Airi to have a hobby for photography—she was always quietly staying in the corner in class, speaking in a thin, soft voice; one really couldn't tell she would tinker with a camera.

Wait—he suddenly remembered something particularly interesting.

Doesn't Superman wear a pair of glasses to hide his identity? And Superman's day job is a reporter, usually running around everywhere with a camera.

It fits. It all fits!

'Thinking about it this way, Sakura-san seems more and more suspicious!'

.

.

Regarding the student in his own class who bought a computer, Shimizu Akira discovered that the two of them had actually added each other as friends long ago.

His name was Sotomura Hideo, though the people in class preferred to call him by his nickname, "Professor." He was an otaku obsessed with anime and computer knowledge; his schoolbag was always stuffed with the latest issues of manga magazines, and his eyes would light up when talking about programming terminology.

When Shimizu Akira called him, the two of them chatted quite smoothly—they even naturally talked about ACG (Anime, Comic, Games) culture for a bit. From the plot direction of new seasonal anime to character voice actors, the Professor could spout a wealth of expertise.

However, Shimizu Akira soon discovered that his own hobbies weren't even worth mentioning in front of the other guy. When talking about classic "old-school" anime from twenty years ago, the Professor could accurately recite the production staff list, and he even remembered the storyboard details of certain obscure OVAs—this reserve of ACG knowledge was indeed much more solid than his own.

As the conversation got lively, Shimizu Akira took the opportunity to ask about the purpose of his computer purchase.

"I just purely wanted to play galge (bishoujo games), and it's also more convenient for writing code," the Professor responded.

"Plus, a laptop can be brought to the classroom! I can occasionally play a bit secretly during breaks."

He said this with the pride of a teenager sharing a small secret.

Listening to this, Shimizu Akira felt it was reasonable—given the Professor's level of obsession with ACG, buying a laptop specifically to be able to play games and write code at any time was perfectly normal.

In this way, Sotomura Hideo of Class D had a completely logical motive for buying the laptop, so he could naturally be excluded as a "suspect."

Though, strictly speaking, Shimizu Akira himself was the "person who rented the surveillance."

Chapter 128 The Bullied Mysterious First-Year Underclassman

Shimizu Akira was just about to head to the cafeteria for a meal when his phone suddenly rang. Checking the caller ID, it was Sato-senpai from the Boxing Club.

"Shimizu! Where are you right now?" As soon as the call connected, Sato's boisterous voice surged through the receiver.

"Sato-senpai?" Shimizu Akira raised an eyebrow. "Is there training today? Do you need me to show my face?"

"It's not about training! It's my own private matter." Sato paused before explaining,

"A kouhai known to my girlfriend is being bullied, and I want you to come over and sit with us for a bit—just to show your face and provide some backup. I doubt we'll need to throw any punches; just consider it coming to watch the show."

"Alright, I'll be right over," Shimizu Akira agreed. Sato-senpai had looked out for him many times, after all; he had no reason to refuse this request.

"Then come straight to the window seats on the first floor of the cafeteria. We're all waiting here!"

Hanging up, Shimizu Akira turned toward the cafeteria. As soon as he pushed open the glass doors on the first floor, his gaze was drawn to a long table by the window—Sato-senpai was sitting right there.

The sturdy physique Sato had built through years of boxing was truly eye-catching; with those broad shoulders and thick back sitting in a chair, one could recognize him at a glance even from three or four tables away.

Sitting across from Sato was a girl with a high ponytail that swayed gently with her movements—likely his girlfriend. However, they weren't the only ones at the table. Several third-year senpais from the boxing club were also there, every one of them a tall guy with broad shoulders and a narrow waist, their school uniforms bulging with muscle.

Untouched meal trays sat on the table; they clearly weren't here to eat. The group sat side-by-side, radiating a natural sense of pressure even in silence, leaving the surrounding tables vacant.

"Shimizu, over here!" Seeing him, Sato immediately waved. His voice was as booming as it was in the training hall, making him stand out in the quiet cafeteria.

"Coming," Shimizu Akira responded, walking over quickly to take an empty seat at the long table.

"Shimizu, you haven't been slacking on your training lately, have you?" Sato patted him on the shoulder with moderate force.

"Are you getting enough practice in every day?"

"Yeah, I train for about an hour and a half every day."

"Let me see—" A tall senpai nearby glanced up at him and suddenly smiled. "He doesn't look like he's bragging. The few steps he took coming over were very steady; he's clearly put work into his lower body."

The group naturally drifted into talking about boxing—from the feel of newly replaced gloves to last week's friendly match with another school. Sato's girlfriend listened quietly, occasionally interjecting a comment or two with a smile when Sato asked her something.

After a few minutes of small talk, Sato's girlfriend suddenly turned to Shimizu Akira. "Little Shimizu, do you have a girlfriend right now? If not, how about I introduce one to you?"

"Uh..." Shimizu Akira answered honestly, "I don't have one for the time being."

"Eh? Then that's perfect!" Sato immediately chimed in, slapping the table with a loud thwack.

"My girlfriend knows plenty of girls and has a sharp eye; you can't go wrong letting her pick one for you! But forget about the third-years—Shimizu still has three years left at school. Finding a first-year underclassman would be just right; they can be together longer."

"A first-year kouhai, of course I have one," Sato's girlfriend laughed. "Actually, it's that cute kouhai I mentioned to you before—the one who asked us for help with the bullying situation."

When she said the word "cute," she specifically winked at Shimizu Akira as if hinting at something.

Listening from the side, Sato immediately slapped his thigh: "Right, right! It's that kouhai! She's very good-looking and has a very gentle personality. She'd be a great match for you, Shimizu!"

"Uh... Senpais, let's prioritize solving the bullying issue first." Stunned, Shimizu Akira changed the subject, feeling somewhat caught between laughter and tears.

How did a simple favor suddenly turn into a matchmaking show? Then again, who exactly were they talking about? Cute, gentle personality... among the first-years, there weren't many who fit that description.

"Right, we'll talk about that later. Here they come!" Sato-senpai suddenly narrowed his eyes, casting his gaze toward the other side of the cafeteria. "That's the gang."

Shimizu Akira followed his gaze and saw a group of people walking in arrogantly from the entrance—led by a boy with a buzz cut who deliberately swayed his shoulders heavily as he walked.

He froze for a moment—they were people he knew. It was none other than Ishizaki Daichi's crew from First-Year Class C.

'Why them?'

"Let's go, everyone follow me." Sato-senpai stood up, his voice dropping an octave.

"The kouhai mentioned that it's this lot."

The moment he spoke, the other boxing club senpais stood up with him. They all had physiques from years of boxing; as they stood, they brought a rush of air, and the originally relaxed atmosphere instantly turned tense.

Shimizu Akira followed closely behind as they walked up to Ishizaki Daichi, perfectly blocking his path to the dining tables.

Ishizaki Daichi was just about to greet his friends—intending, as usual, to find some "soft persimmons" in Class B to annoy—when he looked up and crashed into a wall of shadows.

He instinctively tried to put on his usual arrogant front—after all, as one of Ryuen Kakeru's associates, he usually walked tall among the lower years—but when he saw the lineup in front of him, the words got stuck in his throat.

Every boy blocking him was half a head taller than him. Especially the third-year senpai in the lead, who was nearly 1.9 meters tall with shoulders as broad as a wall—even sturdier than the Black student in their class. The senpai had a third-year badge pinned to his collar, and his arm muscles strained against his sleeves. Just standing there, he radiated a "don't mess with me" aura.

Ishizaki's Adam's apple bobbed. This physique and this grade level made them people he absolutely could not afford to offend. He could already imagine how long he'd be bedridden if hit by a fist like that.

"P-Please, senpais, is there something you need from us?" He shed all his arrogance, his voice becoming several degrees softer than usual while his heart pounded: Which incident exactly pissed these people off?

"You're Ishizaki Daichi, right? It's you lot who have been harassing our kouhai and her classmates lately, isn't it?" Sato-senpai took half a step forward, looking down at Ishizaki with zero politeness in his tone.

"I heard you're from First-Year Class C? Listen up—from now on, you are not allowed to go near her or her classmates again."

Ishizaki and his crew retracted their necks, not even daring to breathe loudly.

Sato swept his gaze over them again, his tone softening slightly but carrying a casual weight of oppression: "I'm letting you off easy for the sake of your classmate, Yamada Albert. That kid trains hard in the boxing club and performs well; if he spared with me now, he could probably last ten rounds."

He paused.

"I'll let you go today."

He emphasized the last sentence heavily. "But hear me well—if there is a next time, I won't be this easy to talk to. Don't think you're safe just because you're under the surveillance cameras. We're about to graduate; we stopped caring about things like Class Points a long time ago."

At these words, the faces of Ishizaki and his crew turned pale. Yamada Albert was among the top three fighters in their class; hearing this, it was clear this senpai held a high position in the boxing club and didn't even view Albert as an equal—could he be the Club President himself?

If they offended him and he got Albert expelled, they would likely be beaten to a pulp by a furious Albert. Even more terrifying was the latter half of his speech—third-year students about to graduate truly had no reason to care about school rules or Class Points anymore. If pushed, these people wouldn't play by the rules at all.

Ishizaki felt the skin on the back of his neck tighten, but his mind was a mess—he truly couldn't recall which girl he had offended lately.

"T-This senpai," he looked up with a strained effort, his voice wavering with uncertainty.

"This bullied kouhai you're talking about... who exactly is she?"

Before Sato could speak, his girlfriend interjected with a clear chill in her voice: "It's Ichinose Honami of First-Year Class B. You've been pestering her classmates non-stop these past few days. Even if it's to compete for the Class A slot against Class B, using these methods is going too far."

Chapter 129 I'll set up a date with Ichinose for you!

"A classmate of Ichinose Honami's?"

These words were like a pebble dropped into water; Ishizaki Daichi was momentarily stunned.

'So it was because of this?'

He quickly ran through the facts in his mind—it was indeed Ryuen who had told them to keep an eye on Class B and occasionally cause some minor, nagging trouble to disrupt their state of mind. He hadn't expected that after only a few days, Class B's counterattack would arrive at this very moment.

"...Ahem, right, I understand." Ishizaki cleared his throat, forcing an awkward smile onto his face. He was a man who understood the circumstances; the people in front of him were clearly characters he couldn't afford to provoke. Continuing to act tough would be nothing but asking for trouble.

Fists the size of sandbags were practically hovering over his face.

He stole a glance at Sato-senpai's tensed jawline and quickly bowed and scraped: "Then, senpais, we'll take our leave first."

Having said that, he didn't dare linger. He turned around and led his classmates—who were similarly shrinking their necks—out of the cafeteria in a hurry, completely forgetting that they had come there to eat.

Only when he stepped out of the cafeteria doors did he breathe a sigh of relief, though his mind was already racing—it seemed the plan to harass Class B could not continue. He had to rush back and report this to Ryuen Kakeru and let their leader decide.

After the previous incident where he had acted on his own to smash the surveillance cameras and was severely reprimanded by Ryuuen, he didn't dare make his own decisions anymore—especially involving third-year senpais. This had to be reported to Ryuuen exactly as it happened.

.

.

.

On the other side, Shimizu Akira finally realized that the bullied underclassman Sato-senpai had mentioned was actually Ichinose Honami of First-Year Class B.

'So that's how it is.'

A thought flashed through his mind.

'Is this Ichinose-san's method of defense?'

He had originally thought that Class B would be pestered by Class C for a good while, or at least be confused for some time. After all, Ishizaki Daichi was one of Ryuuen's associates, and they usually operated without a bottom line.

He hadn't expected that in just three or four days, Ichinose Honami had already used her personal network to find help and quietly solve the problem.

No arguments, no conflict—simply relying on interpersonal relationships to suppress the opponent's arrogance. This maneuver was more efficient than he had imagined.

Shimizu couldn't help but make a comparison in his mind—if he were the one being pestered like that, the fastest solution he could think of would probably be to corner them in a place without cameras and use his fists to make them never dare bother him again.

It wouldn't have even occurred to him to ask senpais from the boxing club to intervene. After all, he never liked depending on others; if it was something he could solve himself, he always preferred to shoulder it alone.

However, he also felt that if he truly did ask for help, Sato-senpai and the others would likely be willing to assist.

In Ichinose's case, she could naturally think of seeking help from upperclassmen—this method had a distinct "Ichinose style": gentle yet highly effective.

"Mm-hmm... the matter is settled! That gang from First-Year Class C shouldn't bother your class anymore." Sato's girlfriend picked up her phone and dialed Ichinose.

"There's no need to specifically thank me," she said into the receiver with a light laugh.

"You went out of your way to accompany me shopping last week, didn't you? And didn't you insist on paying for the milk tea last time? Hehe, there's no need to be in such a hurry to pay back the points I lent you! We third-years aren't actually that short on points."

Hearing the other party on the phone talking about treating them to a meal in gratitude, she hurriedly waved her hand: "Hey, hey, there's no need for a treat! Actually, the boxing club didn't really do anything—you know their physiques; just standing there is enough of a deterrent. It didn't take any effort at all. If you run into trouble in the future, just come to me whenever possible."

After hanging up, she turned and winked at Sato: "Done. Ichinose said she'll bring us cookies she made next time."

"Oh! That kouhai's cookies taste quite good!" Sato-senpai nodded, then turned to Shimizu Akira.

"You came at a good time; you're in for a treat. Consider this an instance of me owing everyone a favor. Since the matter is settled, everyone should head back."

As he spoke, he was the first to grab his jacket from the back of the chair. The other boxing club senpais also rose one after another, walking out of the cafeteria chatting and laughing.

Shimizu Akira really didn't feel like he had done anything—he was just called over to stand there and watch quietly from start to finish. The ones who actually spoke and negotiated were the senpais. To be honest, today he felt more like a "placeholder" used to fill out the numbers.

"By the way, Little Shimizu!" As the group reached the cafeteria entrance, Sato's girlfriend suddenly turned back and waved her phone at him, her tone full of teasing.

"Ichinose just said she owes me a favor—I'll help set up a meeting with her later, so make sure you perform well. You should know her, right? She's a famous beauty among the first-years. You're really getting a bargain here."

Shimizu Akira was slightly stunned; he hadn't expected these senpais to actually take the "matchmaking" talk to heart. It was actually Ichinose.

But then again, the senpais of the boxing club certainly moved with lightning speed—from arriving at the cafeteria to settling the harassment from Class C, it took less than ten minutes. Throughout the whole process, not a single punch was thrown; relying purely on their sturdy physiques and a few words, they scared off Ryuuen's people.

This gave him a strange feeling of "dimensional reduction strike." After all, they were students of Third-Year Class A. Having stayed in this school for three years and experienced so many special exams, they had long been used to the storms.

Plus, with the Student Council President sitting in their class and their own formidable strength, they naturally had no reason to take First-Year Class C seriously.

Ryuen Kakeru probably wouldn't use these kinds of tactics against Class B anymore. He did love using underhanded tricks, but he was a smart man at the end of the day—he should clearly understand the consequences of offending third-year senpais, especially those from Class A. Having such senpais step in to provide cover saved a lot of subsequent trouble.

"Come to think of it, it seems I wasn't mistaken—the boxing club really knows how to protect its kouhais."

Looking in the direction the senpais had left, this thought suddenly occurred to Shimizu. For the boxing club to stand up for a kouhai like this, even being willing to intervene in an "outside request," showed just how protective these senpais were. Staying in such a group meant that even if you encountered trouble, someone would have your back.

For example, Karuizawa Kei, who joined the club last month.

Speaking of her, Shimizu Akira finally remembered that tomorrow was Friday—the day their previously agreed protection contract officially expired. He wondered if she had saved up enough points by now.

Actually, in a sense, since she had already joined the boxing club and had so many protective senpais around, there was naturally no need for her to rely on him for protection anymore.

Chapter 130 Ryuen Kakeru: Flipping the table by reporting the papers is debatable.

"Boss Ryuen, that's the situation—I'm afraid we won't be able to lay a finger on Class B anymore." Ishizaki Daichi stood before Ryuen Kakeru with his hands hanging at his sides, his tone carrying a hint of frustration as he recounted the encounter in the cafeteria in full detail.

After listening, Ryuen raised his eyes to look at Yamada Albert, who was standing to the side. "Yamada, according to what Ishizaki said, the man who stepped in is the Captain of the Boxing Club? You've been in the club for a long time; if you went up against him, would you have a chance of winning?"

Yamada Albert first nodded vigorously, as if confirming the fact that it was indeed "the Captain," then quickly shook his head.

His Adam's apple bobbed.

"The Captain is... the runner-up of the National Boxing Championships... I... cannot beat him."

The last few words were spoken slowly, but they were clear enough—that was strength even he had to revere.

"A national runner-up, huh." Ryuen repeated slowly, dragging out the end of the sentence as if weighing the gravity of those words.

Ishizaki stood nearby, even making his breathing shallower—he knew all too well what this look of Ryuen's represented. The calmer he appeared, the more complex the calculations in his mind were.

Yamada Albert remained where he was. He had seen Sato a few times during training at the Boxing Club; the man's punching speed was as fast as a gust of wind. If they truly fought, he wouldn't last five rounds.

"Understood." Ryuen suddenly smiled. "Since it's a character we can't afford to provoke for the time being, let's stop for now."

Ishizaki was stunned. "But Boss Ryuen, our plan against Class B..."

"The plan is static; people are dynamic." Ryuen stood up lazily and paced to the window, his gaze sweeping over the students passing by below. His tone carried a bit of displeasure at having his rhythm disrupted.

"It seems I misjudged this time—that woman Ichinose actually managed to get the third-years to intervene. It seems her 'social butterfly' act isn't entirely useless. To drag third-year senpais into this, she either paid a massive price or she's truly good at winning people over. Either way, she's thornier than I thought."

He suddenly recalled the exam paper Sakayanagi Arisu had left behind at noon and the details of the special exam she mentioned. Later, he had specifically gone to the second-year area to scout for information and found that all of it was actually true.

'If I took a recording of my conversation with the second-year senpais just now, combined it with that paper as evidence, and got a portion of the students to go on strike and protest on the grounds of 'exam unfairness'—if it escalated to that point, the school, under public pressure, would surely be forced to revise the papers, right?'

This thought suddenly flashed into his mind.

But he quickly calmed down—changing the papers held absolutely zero benefit for Class C.

He could figure it out with his toes; the ones who would benefit most from such a move were Class A and Class B. Those guys already had good grades; even if the papers were changed, they'd likely pass steadily. But Class C and Class D were different; several people might end up failing.

At the start of the term, he had declared he would lead everyone in Class C to Class A. If someone fell behind because the papers were changed, it would undoubtedly be a slap to his own face.

As for studying—Yamada Albert's grades were passable, and he could pass every subject; but Ishizaki Daichi beside him was different, still sporting "red lights" (failing grades) in several subjects. Expecting Ishizaki to sit down and study properly? It would be more practical to let him save his brain and just be a loyal thug. At least swinging fists utilized his "value" better and much more efficiently than gnawing on textbooks.

'That woman from Class B always plays the role of the 'socialite.' Whether it's an act or she's sincere, she definitely wouldn't dare make a move on the papers—she wouldn't risk her reputation.

The woman from Class A went out of her way to leak the info to the other classes. She must have guessed the possibility of someone reporting it, yet she didn't do it herself. She likely wants to win over the other classes, so she won't proactively report it either.

Does she think I can't see through it? A class only gains about thirty-some Class Points at most.

I have to worry about the failing students in Class C, so I won't choose to report; Class D's grades are even worse than Class C's, so they definitely won't do it either.'

Every class had their own reservations; no one could truly file a report regarding the papers.

But looking at it from another angle, this "unable to report" situation had actually become an "advantageous" balance for all four classes—at least for now, no one would break the existing stability by reporting the papers, and no one would bear the extra risk of the papers being changed.

However, Ryuen Kakeru could never truly treat that paper as a guaranteed safety net. Distrust was something carved into his bones—he was born with a skepticism toward phrases like

"safety net." In his view, people who completely trusted a so-called "guarantee" were the true fools.

Who could guarantee that some brainless idiot wouldn't suddenly bring the matter of the papers into the light? Or perhaps the school had prepared sets A and B, and the one out now wasn't the final version at all?

It was better to be safe than sorry.

Since he couldn't move against Class B for the time being, he simply didn't plan on making any more moves to interfere with other classes this month. Focusing on "class construction" was the priority.

The week was about to end, leaving only three weeks until the midterm exam—and the final week would have to account for the actual exam time. The days left for Class C to review were actually not many.

"From today on, tell everyone to focus. Stop thinking about going out to mess around. Listen well in class and master the exercises afterward," he instructed Ishizaki.

"I'll bring out the papers in the final week. When the time comes, even if I have to force them, I'll make the whole class memorize the key points."

This was likely the most stable and optimal solution for Class C so far. Right now, compared to using tricks to interfere with others, clutching the chips in his own hands was more important.

In this month's special exam, a class could get a maximum of 100 points. Class C had to get over 90 points; otherwise, it would be easy for the other classes to pull ahead.

Of course, this didn't mean he had completely abandoned his plans to harass other classes—it was merely a temporary postponement, to be executed next month instead. Next month was the monthly test; there probably wouldn't be any special exams. The third month would be the best time to target the other classes and slash their Class Points.

If he couldn't move Class B, weren't Class A and Class D still there to watch? Rather than wasting energy on a Class B that he couldn't bite into for now, it was better to turn his gaze toward targets that were easier to break through—there would always be a class that let him find a weakness.

However, the bad news was that the other four classes likely all knew about the papers. His only worry now was that these people might think they had a safety net and wouldn't have any heart left for studying.

Fortunately, he suppressed Class C with violence; everyone would still follow his orders under duress. The other classes, especially Class D, wouldn't necessarily be that obedient.