The entrance ceremony at Advanced Nurturing High School was just as tediously long-winded as one at any ordinary high school. Other than the student representative, Arisu Sakayanagi, taking the stage to deliver a speech, there was nothing remotely interesting about it.
Arisu Sakayanagi was a Class A student who would eventually split the class in two alongside Katsuragi Kohei. Quiet and reserved, she observed and judged things with clinical objectivity. Her legs were impaired, forcing her to rely on a cane, and her athletic ability was practically nonexistent. She alone knew about Kiyotaka Ayanokoji’s past, and she wanted to face him in a genuine contest.
Ryuen’s interest in her had nothing to do with her being Class A’s leader. He simply found the girl herself adorable. He liked girls who looked appetizing enough to make one want to devour them—or, more accurately, girls who inspired both possessiveness and the urge to protect them.
As they left the gymnasium, Ryuen stopped Suzune Horikita.
"Kakeru Ryuen. Let’s get acquainted."
Ryuen offered his right hand. It was a habit he had developed in his previous life: shake hands before speaking with someone.
But to Suzune, the gesture looked frivolous, like some street punk trying to hit on her. Ryuen had cut his hair short and looked somewhat handsome, and his manners before her were perfectly polite, but that changed nothing.
Suzune still did not spare him a pleasant expression. She had witnessed him giving up his seat on the bus earlier, and her first impression of him had been that he was an insufferable do-gooder. She had no interest in speaking with him at all. In the end, she merely frowned, ignored his hand, flicked her glossy black hair, and brushed past him.
Class C noticed Ryuen’s failed attempt to approach her. Some secretly laughed at him, some felt indignant on his behalf, some merely enjoyed the spectacle, and others could not have cared less.
In Class D, only Kiyotaka Ayanokoji and Kikyo Kushida noticed that Suzune had been approached. She did not have any friends in the class yet, after all. The only people who paid attention to her were Kushida, who regarded her as a thorn in her side, and Ayanokoji, who wanted to use her. In a sense, that was rather pitiful—though Suzune herself would certainly never see it that way.
Ryuen noticed the hostile looks directed at him from around his class. He was not worried about anyone ambushing him, but being stared at by other men was still disgusting. So, he left on his own and headed to the shopping mall to buy necessities and training equipment.
He had warned his classmates to spend their points sparingly, but he had no intention of depriving himself. He bought only the best toiletries and daily necessities, along with a punching bag and boxing gloves that cost fifty thousand points.
Looking at the twenty thousand points remaining on his student ID, Ryuen sighed.
"These points disappear fast. Ever since I started my own business, I’ve never been as broke as I am today. I need to find a way to get my hands on more points."
After confirming his dormitory address with the delivery worker, Ryuen headed to the school library. There was only one library on campus, open to all students and faculty. His reason for coming was simple: he wanted to find third-year students.
He sat in the main hall with one leg crossed over the other, waiting for the right person to appear.
Students in the library were not difficult to distinguish. Their microexpressions and bearing revealed plenty. First-years were livelier and still carried an air of immaturity. Second-years were more composed. Third-years looked noticeably heavier, burdened by two years of the school grinding them down and the pressure of imminent graduation. Even within the same year, each class had a different atmosphere. Class A students were naturally more confident. What Ryuen wanted, however, was someone from Third-Year Class C.
After observing the library for a while, Ryuen had roughly identified several students from Third-Year Class C. He selected a seemingly timid girl with braided hair, walked over, and tapped her shoulder.
"Hello. Could you do me a favor?"
The girl looked up blankly. Seeing the handsome, well-built boy before her, she stammered, "S-Sure. What is it?"
"I’d like to meet the person in charge of your class. Right now. It’s urgent."
Ryuen kept his voice low. Even an elementary school student knew not to make noise in a library.
The girl’s disappointment was obvious. So he was not here to flirt with her after all. Still, she took out her student ID and messaged her class representative. Sending a message cost her nothing, and the boy in front of her had said it was urgent. It seemed important—perhaps something involving the class. But when she thought about Class C’s situation, she could only sigh.
Ryuen had no desire to make small talk. He sat across from her, casually picked up a copy of The Red and the Black, and waited for Third-Year Class C’s representative to arrive. The braided girl did not speak to him either, returning to her own book.
What Ryuen did not know was that Hiyori Shiina was nearby. At first, she had found it strange that Ryuen had come to the library at all. He did not look like someone who enjoyed reading. Then she watched him approach a girl and assumed he had come to pick up girls, just as he had approached Suzune Horikita outside the gymnasium. Yet this girl was not particularly pretty, and after exchanging only a few words with her, Ryuen had sat down and started reading.
Strange. Hiyori was certain Ryuen had not come to the library merely to read or flirt. But she had no idea what he was actually planning. Remembering his order that morning for her to collect the class’s points, Hiyori decided to take this chance to tell him that she did not want to work for him.
But she had only taken a few steps when the Class C representative arrived. Hiyori watched Ryuen leave the library with the man, realizing she was too late. Then she noticed that Ryuen had left his book behind instead of returning it to the shelf. Frowning slightly, she walked over and put it back for him.
The Red and the Black. He has a little taste, at least.
Meanwhile, Ryuen and Third-Year Class C’s representative, Kosei Mizuno, moved to a café.
"We don’t know each other, do we, junior?"
The unremarkable-looking Mizuno struck first, immediately identifying Ryuen as a first-year while subtly elevating his own status.
"You’ve been having a rough time lately, haven’t you? No hope of reaching Class A, and graduation is right around the corner. What a tragedy."
Ryuen’s blunt jab at his sore spot did not anger Mizuno. As the person in charge of his class, he had enough composure for that.
"You didn’t drag me here just to mock me, did you? Stop playing childish games. Say what you want. Weren’t you in a hurry?"
"Boring."
Ryuen straightened in his seat and pulled a ten-million-yen check from inside his uniform. It had not even been folded, as though he had taken great care to protect it. Students were not supposed to bring personal belongings onto campus before enrolling, but where there were people, there was corruption. Ryuen spending money to purchase a few privileges was hardly surprising.
Mizuno stared fixedly at the check, his voice dropping.
"What do you want to buy from me?"
"You’ve already guessed, haven’t you? The only thing you have that’s worth anything to me is points." Ryuen spoke casually. "Your points will be useless once you graduate, and the school can’t guarantee you a job. Selling them to me is your best option, isn’t it?"
Mizuno was tempted. That was a ten-million-yen check—real money, not school currency. Ryuen sounded so unconcerned because he knew Mizuno would not refuse. Third-Year Class C had no hope of reaching Class A, and hoarding a few remaining points was meaningless. Exchanging them for actual yen was far more practical.
Mizuno also understood why Ryuen had sought him out. The strategy only worked on third-years. Third-Year Class D’s idiots would not have many points left. Class B was preparing for its final clash with Class A, so they would never sell points that could prove decisive. That made Class C the ideal target.
The real question was how many Class C points Ryuen’s check could buy.
That was the crux of their negotiation.
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