"I can help you get into the student council. If you just say yes, you won't even need an interview. Next month, you could start with me." Faced with this blatant offer to pull some strings, Kohei Katsuragi, for once, fell into a long silence.
"You're not seriously trying to trick us, are you?" Totsuka Yahiko didn't buy Kaoru Mitoma nonsense.
"Even if you're close with the student council president, this is way too much!"
"There's only one spot. It's my privilege. How you want to doubt me is your business, but I'm not giving it to you out of charity," Kaoru Mitoma replied.
In an instant, veins bulged on Totsuka Yahiko face as he clenched his fist. This guy was seriously pissing him off.
"Say that again if you dare?"
"Yahiko!" Katsuragi Kohei stopped Totsuka Yahiko, then turned to Kaoru Mitoma and said in a low voice,
"What do you want in exchange?"
There was no way anyone would fall for something like this. If they had any doubts, they could just ask Horikita Manabu to confirm it. As for how Kaoru Mitoma could guarantee this, Katsuragi Kohei couldn't even begin to imagine.
He felt like there were some clues, but he couldn't piece them together yet. After all, no one would ever expect a first-year to spend a million private points to buy a spot in the student council. The real question now was why Kaoru Mitoma wanted to give him this spot. What was his goal?
"The deal is simple. I'll get you into the student council, and in return, you have to fulfill three requests for me," Kaoru Mitoma added. "They won't be too hard. I'll take your abilities and level into account."
Katsuragi Kohei pondered for a moment.
"What exactly are the conditions?"
"For now, there's only the first one. The other two haven't been decided yet," Kaoru Mitoma said.
"I'll let you know in advance when it's time to start."
Katsuragi Kohei looked hesitant. This kind of unpredictable deal made it hard for him to make up his mind.
"You're not going to make Katsuragi do something weird, are you?"
Totsuka Yahiko glared at Kaoru Mitoma, clearly unhappy.
Who would want to make a bald guy do something weird anyway?
"The list of students selected for the student council will be announced next month. Give me your answer by the end of the month at the latest."
He originally thought Katsuragi Kohei would take a long time to consider, but as soon as he finished speaking, the latter made up his mind.
"No, I'll give you my answer right now." Kohei Katsuragi looked seriously at Kaoru Mitoma.
"I accept your terms, Mitoma." In response, Kaoru Mitoma nodded without asking why.
He open his phone and sent a message to Manabu Horikita. In less than a moment, a reply came back.
"You're in, Katsuragi." Kaoru Mitoma turned the chat screen toward Kohei Katsuragi, the most eye-catching words right there, just as he'd said.
"Looks like it's real…" Yahiko Totsuka leaned in, saw it clearly, and was completely stunned.
Kohei Katsuragi saw it even more clearly. He stared at the screen for a long time, saying nothing. Yesterday in class, Kaoru Mitoma performance wasn't particularly impressive. He was more like a student called on by the teacher, giving off a sense of resignation.
When it came to explaining personal points, Kohei Katsuragi thought he was a pretty sharp student, with decent reactions and thinking. But now, Kaoru Mitoma had completely shattered that impression.
If he hadn't happened to go to the student council, he might not have known even now that Kaoru Mitoma had joined. Not only could he join the student council, but he could also get other people into the student council. This was no ordinary student anymore—no matter where you put him, he stood out as exceptionally talented!
More importantly, Katsuragi Kohei suddenly realized another, even more terrifying problem.
"Mitoma, can I ask you something?"
"What?"
"How many personal points did you have before?"
"Over a million."
"..."
There was no doubt about it now—this was a man who had surpassed him. Moreover, he might even be a step above Sakayanagi Arisu, in every sense of the word. Katsuragi Kohei suddenly felt a surge of confidence. With a monster like that in their class, he couldn't imagine Class A ever losing. Surely they wouldn't end up getting someone like Kaoru Mitoma expelled, right?
....
That same day. Classroom of Class D. While the teacher was lecturing, most of the students were busy with their own things—playing on their phones, sleeping, or whispering to each other. There were so many of them it was impossible to count.
The teacher seemed to turn a blind eye to what was happening below the podium, continuing the lesson as if nothing was wrong. Horikita Suzune thought these people were beyond saving. Still, no matter how hopeless they were, she wasn't about to meddle in their business.
After class, Suzune Horikita took out a book by Dostoevsky, flipped to the page she'd marked last night, and continued reading as if no one else was around.
"Hey, Horikita, want to have lunch together today?" a boy next to her asked.
"I'll pass. Your group is way too crude," Suzune Horikita replied without even looking up.
"I won't deny that, but are you bringing a bento again today?" he pressed.
"The supermarket has free ingredients. Using those, I can make a nutritious bento," Suzune Horikita explained, almost like she was reciting a formula. Even though the school gave out a hundred thousand personal points, Suzune Horikita wasn't the type of girl who spent a lot.
If there are free ingredients, why not use them?
The boy watched her reaction, looking a little envious.
"That look on your face is disgusting, Ayanokouji," Suzune Horikita shot him a cold glare.
The boy name was Ayanokouji Kiyotaka. On the first day of school, she and he had taken the same bus to ANHS, so you could say they had a bit of a connection. Since they'd been placed in the same class and even sat next to each other, Horikita Suzune would occasionally respond to him with a couple of words, but that was about it.
Seeing her react like that, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka immediately looked away and stopped talking, as if he was afraid she'd stab him with a compass again.
Just then, a girl suddenly walked up to Horikita Suzune, making her instinctively frown. The girl was Kushida Kikyou, a strange one who, on the first day, had declared she wanted to be friends with everyone and had been pestering her ever since.
Not long ago, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka and Kushida Kikyou had tricked her into going to a café, saying she always acted alone and looked too lonely, so they wanted to be friends with her. Horikita Suzune didn't think being alone was lonely at all. Friends, to her, didn't really mean much.
Before coming to this school, she'd never made any friends, never added anyone contact info, and never hung out with classmates. Yeah, ever since kindergarten.
"Horikita, I ran into someone you know on the way here. We chatted for a bit, and he wants to meet you. When are you free?"
In that instant, Suzune Horikita froze. Could it be her brother?
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