Arisu showed an interested expression to the young man in front of her, while occasionally tapping the cane in her hand.
"You are Akasaka Ryunosuke from Class D, aren't you?"
"Being able to enter the student council in just two days, you are the first person in Advanced Nurturing High School history to do that. I'm very interested in you, Akasaka-kun~"
Arisu showed a cute face, but her gaze was as if looking at a new toy. On the other side, Ryunosuke crossed his arms and legs casually.
"It turns out your reputation really matches the real thing, Sakayanagi Arisu. I'm also very interested in you. How about we make a bet?"
"Oh? Bet on what?" Arisu asked curiously.
Ryunosuke initially wanted to extend one finger, but he remembered yesterday's 193 Yen expenditure that made his point balance no longer a round one million. He changed his finger to the number nine.
"Let's bet with a wager of 900,000 personal points."
"The bet is on next month's class rankings. Whether I can drag you down from the Class A throne!"
Arisu's pupils narrowed. Her friendly expression disappeared, replaced by a cold gaze. Meanwhile, Ai and Masumi standing beside her showed shocked expressions. They seemed not to understand what Ryunosuke's words meant.
Based on Class A's current situation, aside from the leaders at the top who knew the actual situation, other students were completely blind. So, it was natural if Ai and Masumi didn't know anything. Ai might have felt something was strange but had no proof, but Arisu must have already known this school's secret.
Seeing the change in their expressions, Ryunosuke showed a confident smile and continued baiting. He knew exactly what type of person Arisu was; that girl wouldn't refuse an interesting challenge. For a young lady like her, this was just a way to kill boring time, because she actually wasn't too interested in ordinary school life.
Sure enough, as Ryunosuke predicted, Arisu didn't refuse. She instead stared at him like staring at prey and said slowly.
"I... why should I agree?"
"Betting with you would only make Class A have to be vigilant at all times against dirty tricks you might pull. It seems there's no benefit for us, right?"
"Give me... one reason that can convince me."
Arisu didn't refuse, but also didn't immediately agree. She took a position in the middle. Ryunosuke's lips curved into a cunning smile.
(Finally... the bait is taken.)
Arisu shivered slightly seeing that smile. She felt the young man in front of her had bad intentions and she felt as if being "stripped naked" by his gaze.
Ryunosuke slowly lifted his teacup, sipped it a little, then said the thing that most caught Arisu's attention.
"Aren't you curious... how I will drag Class A down from your throne?"
Arisu instantly felt interested. Her eyes stared straight at him. "Oh? Try telling me."
Ryunosuke's lips formed a slightly cruel smile, making the three girls in front of him feel uncomfortable. However, they still listened patiently when he began to speak.
"I think Sakayanagi-san already understands... this school's regulations, right?"
Although it sounded like a question, Ryunosuke said it in a very confident tone. Arisu just nodded slightly as a sign of acknowledgment.
"Then the rest will be easy." Ryunosuke clapped softly, signaling the three girls to pay attention because he was about to play his ace card.
The three girls stared at him with curiosity. However, the words that came out of Ryunosuke's mouth next sounded so arrogant that they were stunned.
"Class A, B, C, and D. From top to bottom represents differences in ability. Class D is the worst, and Class A is the best. Could it be that Sakayanagi-san... doesn't dare to bet with me despite having such a huge advantage?"
"If so, you're really a loser..."
Ryunosuke showed a mocking expression, openly provoking Arisu.
Sure enough, provoked by that sentence, the three girls across from him clenched their fists. Arisu thought for a moment, then instead smiled.
"I see... Akasaka-kun really has an excellent method."
"You want to use this provocation to force me to make a transaction. But unfortunately... I'm not the type of person who's easily influenced by emotions. Your strategy... doesn't work on me."
Ryunosuke didn't care about Arisu's rebuttal. He kept staring at her sharply, as if very confident that the girl would agree.
This made Arisu frown slightly; she felt displeased because she felt "read" by the person in front of her.
Although feeling displeased, Arisu still gave the answer she had actually decided from the beginning. She opened her small lips and uttered a sentence that contrasted greatly with her small body.
"Although I can read your strategy, what you said has some truth."
"If Class A doesn't even dare to take this bet, then we don't deserve to bear the name Class A."
"But more importantly is..."
Arisu's body leaned forward toward Ryunosuke. She spoke in a tone like a little devil, her pitch-black eyes as if wanting to swallow him whole.
"I'm very interested in your method... to drag Class A down from our position."
"So, let's bet! Akasaka Ryunosuke!"
Arisu showed a smile like a yandere, as if she had just found a very tempting new toy. Finally the two reached an agreement and prepared to sign a contract.
Due to time constraints, the contract was handwritten and composed entirely by Ryunosuke, then handed to Arisu to be checked. After confirmation, the bet officially began.
[Contract Contents: Akasaka Ryunosuke personally declares war on Class A. This bet is a personal matter and does not involve other class members.]
[The bet value is 900,000 personal points.]
[If on next month's point distribution day Akasaka Ryunosuke fails to bring Class A down to Class B position or lower, he must pay 900,000 points to Sakayanagi Arisu.]
[If Akasaka Ryunosuke succeeds in bringing Class A down to Class B position or lower, he will receive 900,000 personal points from Sakayanagi Arisu.]
[This bet is confidential and personal. It is forbidden to invite classmates to help directly; violators will be immediately declared losers.]
[Signature: Sakayanagi Arisu Signature: Akasaka Ryunosuke]
[Contract valid from school day 6 (April 8) until next month's point distribution day (May 3).]