"Sonoko, Ran—this is a bento I made myself. Please, take it."
The next day at lunch, Baishi Hui walked into Class 2-B and handed the two girls a homemade lunchbox each. Since he had to cook for himself anyway, he figured he might as well make a couple extra. Whether they liked it or not was their problem. His job was just to show some sincerity.
"Wow! You made this yourself, Baishi? Thanks!!" Sonoko practically lit up as she accepted the bento. Then she immediately turned to glance smugly at Shinichi, her expression clearly saying: See? I told you he wasn't the type to take the money and run!
Shinichi scratched his head, shooting Baishi a strange look. Could I… have judged him wrong?
"This is too much, really," Ran said, feeling embarrassed. "I didn't do anything to deserve this."
"If you two hadn't forgiven me, I'd probably be sitting in a detention cell right now." Baishi pushed the bento into her hands, not taking no for an answer.
"Thank you… then, Baishi, why don't you eat with us?" Ran invited warmly.
"Sure," Baishi nodded. Not that he needed the invitation—he'd planned to anyway, to get closer to them. He dragged a chair over and sat down. Then, turning to Sonoko, he said:
"Sonoko, about that money—I don't think I'll be needing it anymore. After school, I'll head home and give it back to you."
"Huh? Why?" Sonoko blinked.
"That loan shark office got burned to the ground," Baishi said with a smirk, not bothering to hide his amusement.
"What?!" Shinichi froze, remembering something. "I saw the breaking news last night… Was it that 'NiuNiu Finance' place?"
"That's the one." Baishi nodded. "By the time I got there, the place was already up in flames. Fire trucks tried to go in, but a bunch of people blocked them off—looked like other borrowers."
Ran wrinkled her nose. "Serves them right. That's what happens when you prey on people."
Sonoko nodded seriously. "Even heaven couldn't stand it anymore. That's why lightning struck them—or, well, fire in this case."
"It wasn't an accident," Shinichi said, flipping open his bento. "I saw the follow-up report. They found two charred bodies inside. Based on the bullet holes in the bones, they were shot dead with a rifle before the fire."
"So what? Isn't that normal for gangsters?" Sonoko shrugged, then gasped when she tasted Baishi's cooking.
"True. Yakuza are dangerous—better to stay far away from them," Ran agreed, smiling as she shared her lunch with everyone.
"This wasn't a gang war," Shinichi muttered, already lost in deduction mode. He rubbed his chin. "A witness saw someone in a strange half-mask leaving the scene. My guess? It was one of their debtors. Someone who couldn't pay back and chose to risk it all. The shooter's probably one of the borrowers, and the debt must've been huge. Using a rifle suggests he's tied to the underworld."
But while Shinichi muttered his theories, Ran and Sonoko ignored him completely, too busy showering Baishi with praise for his cooking.
Baishi just chuckled. He knew Japanese girls were experts at "emotional support." Even if the food tasted like crap, they'd politely compliment it. Whether they actually liked it would show in how much they ate.
To his surprise, they really did finish every bite. Not only that, they even washed the bentos and returned them to him, sparkling clean. Classy. I can't compete with that level of courtesy, Baishi thought.
After lunch, he agreed to meet Sonoko after school to return her money, then went back to his own class, 2-D.
There, he finally opened up his "Bandit System."
[Current Mission: Accumulate 100 million yen in illicit funds. Progress: 173 million yen.]
[Mission Complete. Reward: Gene Enhancement Serum.]
[Gene Enhancement Serum: Strengthens advantageous genes, optimizes disadvantageous ones.]
[Bandit Shop Unlocked!]
[New Mission: Accumulate 1 billion yen in illicit funds. Progress: 0.]
Baishi had already drunk the serum last night. It was sour-sweet, like a sports drink.
He'd looked up what "advantageous" and "disadvantageous" genes meant. Taller, better-looking, smarter, more stamina—that was advantageous. Baldness, big noses, sickness-prone genes—that was disadvantageous. Basically, he'd been optimized across the board. Pretty solid reward.
Then he checked the Bandit Shop.
[Handgun: 50,000 yen. Any model. Includes 5 magazines.]
[Assault Rifle: 100,000 yen. Any model. Includes 5 magazines.]
[Sniper Rifle: 200,000 yen. Any model. Includes 5 magazines.]
[Grenade: 50,000 yen. Any type.]
[...]
Dirt cheap, tons of options, and free ammo. The system was practically begging him to cause chaos.
He admitted, he was tempted. His fingers itched to splurge.
But no—being a bandit had no future. Bandits were like rats in the street, hated and hunted by everyone. What kind of bandit ever had a happy ending? Even if you were strong, so what? When the JSDF shows up with Osprey helicopters, you're toast.
As the legendary Azu once said: "So what if you can fight? Strength means nothing. In this world, you need power, background, connections."
Nope. He was never going to be a bandit. Being a detective was the real golden road.
Ignoring the weapons, he checked out the "skills" tab.
[Basic Combat Knowledge: 100,000 yen. Upgradeable at double cost.]
[Basic Firearms Knowledge: 100,000 yen. Upgradeable at double cost.]
[Basic Explosives Knowledge: 100,000 yen. Upgradeable at double cost.]
[...]
Cheap. Way too cheap.
Skills came in four tiers: Basic → Proficient → Expert → Master. The total cost to max out a skill? Just 1.5 million yen. Practically free.
Unlike other systems that restricted the user with paywalls, this one was encouraging him to go wild.
Eyes watering with gratitude, Baishi swept the shelves clean, buying every useful skill he could.
After setting aside Sonoko's billion yen "ransom refund," he still left himself five million yen as pocket money.
When he looked at his now-crowded system panel, Baishi felt dazed.
I've only been in this world for one day… and I've already maxed my stats.