Iron Crush

Kashiwagi Nagisa stood at the school gate wearing a disciplinary armband, her scrutinizing gaze sweeping over every student who passed by. Occasionally, a blond student would make her take a second look, but in the end, she was always met with disappointment.

Kashiwagi Nagisa lowered her head dejectedly and muttered to herself:

"Still no one?"

Just as she was feeling dejected, the girl caught sight of a familiar figure from the corner of her eye—

The eldest daughter of the Shinomiya Family, one of the four great financial conglomerates: Shinomiya Kaguya.

Her appearance and family background were both impeccable. Even Kashiwagi Nagisa instinctively felt inferior in front of her.

But Shinomiya Kaguya was also Shuchiin Academy's famous Ice Queen. Her wine-red eyes always held a coldness that kept others at arm's length, and she rarely associated with anyone.

Born into the Shinomiya Family, Shinomiya Kaguya had received the family's strict imperial education from a young age. Looking down on others came naturally to her, and her first thought was always to find a way to make use of them—

"Me included."

Kashiwagi Nagisa watched Shinomiya Kaguya enter the school, narrowing her eyes slightly.

Although they had formed a temporary alliance, it had clearly fallen apart by now. Shinomiya Kaguya must have discovered some important information that she herself didn't know, and decided to discard her without hesitation after determining that she was no longer useful!

Once Shinomiya Kaguya disappeared from sight, Kashiwagi Nagisa immediately pulled out her phone and found a familiar profile picture on LINE. The contact name was 'Shijo Maki'.

Kashiwagi Nagisa gripped her phone, both thumbs rapidly tapping out a message:

"Maki, Shinomiya Kaguya is here. Help me!"

"Is that really necessary?"

Shijo Maki replied quickly, the words revealing her extreme reluctance.

Kashiwagi Nagisa sent an emoji of two hands pressed together:

"Please!"

"This is a once-in-a-lifetime request!"

"Ahhh! Fine, I get it! But you have to compensate me afterward!"

"No problem!"

Seeing that Shijo Maki had finally agreed, the heavy stone in Kashiwagi Nagisa's heart finally hit the ground.

Shinomiya Kaguya's personality was indeed highly suited to becoming a strong person. But precisely because of that personality, she had yet to make a single person she could call a friend.

She was different. She could always ask her friends for help!

At this very moment, she wasn't fighting alone!

Kashiwagi Nagisa put her phone away confidently and was just about to leave when a black-haired boy who had been waiting for a long time hurried over.

Tanuma Tsubasa quickly approached and gently offered her the bottle of mineral water in his hand:

"Nagisa, thanks for your hard work—"

The smile on Kashiwagi Nagisa's face instantly vanished. Expressionless, she walked straight past him without even sparing him a glance.

At that moment, the gentle smile on Tanuma Tsubasa's face completely collapsed.

A girl with long red hair, star-shaped hair accessories hanging on either side, and a sailor uniform different from those of the other students entered the classroom. She smiled and greeted her newly acquainted friends warmly and politely:

"Ohayō, Kitagawa-san, Miura-san."

"Ohayō, Nakano-san."

Kitagawa Marin waved with a smile and asked curiously:

"Is Nakano-san's uniform still not finished?"

"Mm."

Nakano Mayu nodded lightly, her tone seeming somewhat helpless:

"They said it might take another week."

Miura Yumiko and Kitagawa Marin exchanged a glance, both wearing slightly complicated expressions.

Although the uniforms at Shuchiin Academy had a standard design and all looked the same, there were actually major differences.

For example, Mixed Academy students' uniforms were mass-produced according to height. Because of differences in their builds, some students' uniforms ended up a size too large, while others' ended up a size too small.

By comparison, Pure Academy students' uniforms were handmade by artisans, and even the fabric used was different.

Although the two uniforms looked exactly the same on the surface, these subtle differences, difficult to notice at a glance, still highlighted the difference in status between the two sides to the fullest!

Although Nakano Mayu was a Mixed Academy student, that was only because she had not attended Shuchiin Academy from a young age. It did not mean that her family background was poor—being able to have Shuchiin Academy's tailor artisans personally make uniforms for them was something ordinary people could never accomplish.

"Kitagawa-san, your manicure..."

Nakano Mayu looked at Kitagawa Mim's hands in surprise.

Kitagawa Marin openly showed her the bandage on her ring finger:

"I removed my manicure over the weekend."

Nakano Mayu was stunned:

"Eh? Why? It was really pretty. I was even planning to get one done this week..."

Kitagawa Marin shook her head:

"Don't, whatever you do. It looks great while you're wearing it, but removing it is torture. If you aren't careful, you'll injure your hands like I did. And wearing a manicure for too long can damage the structure of your natural nails, causing them to split and become thin and brittle. They'll look worse, and they'll be easier to injure..."

"Eh?"

Nakano Mayu looked frightened and hurriedly shook her head:

"Then I won't get one after all."

Ding-a-ling-ling~!

The warning bell rang. The students, who had been gathered in groups of three or five, returned to their seats, and Nakano Mayu was no exception.

However, as the girl walked back to her seat in the last row, she passed the blond boy in the row ahead and noticed that he had been watching her the entire time.

The girl paused and gave a quiet snort to express her displeasure.

Kira Yoshikage shifted his gaze away from the girl's fair hands, feeling somewhat regretful.

What a pity she's in the back row. If she were in the front, perhaps I could admire them during class too...

Tap! Tap!

A female teacher in a white coat entered the classroom, and the room, which had still been filled with whispers, instantly fell silent.

Although she was a beauty, this homeroom teacher was a strict teacher through and through!

Seeing that she did not need to tell the students to "quiet down" like teachers in other classes, Hiratsuka Shizuka nodded in satisfaction. She then turned around and wrote several large characters on the blackboard:

"Work-Study Program."

Surprised voices rose from the students below, but before they could begin discussing it, Hiratsuka Shizuka swept her gaze around the room and slowly began:

"In principle, the school does not allow students to take part-time jobs without permission."

"But considering that the annual tuition for Mixed Academy is too high at 1.5 million yen, the school has joined forces with Shinomiya Kaguya, the largest shareholder of Ministop, to launch a 'Work-Study Program,' providing fifty part-time positions for students at Shuchiin Academy."

After pausing, Hiratsuka Shizuka continued:

"The hourly wage is 1,200 yen, one-third higher than the minimum wage. If you need this opportunity, you can register with me. But!"

Hiratsuka Shizuka slapped the desk and emphasized her words, silencing the classroom, which had grown somewhat noisy from the shock:

"Before signing up for a part-time job, you must obtain your parents' permission. Understood?"

"Understood!"

The students below answered excitedly.

Hiratsuka Shizuka nodded in satisfaction, but when her gaze swept over Kira Yoshikage in the second-to-last row, her brows knitted involuntarily. Kira Yoshikage did not seem very interested. He was gazing casually at the scenery outside the window.

Chapter 38: Iron Crush

Ding-a-ling-ling~!

The bell signaling the end of class rang. Hiratsuka Shizuka put down her chalk and glanced at Kira Yoshikage in the second-to-last row:

"Kira Yoshikage, come to my office."

Kira Yoshikage said nothing. He stood and followed Hiratsuka Shizuka out of the classroom.

The moment the two of them left, whispers immediately filled the previously silent classroom.

"That delinquent got called to the office again!"

"If you ask me, he must have gotten into a fight with someone over the weekend and been reported to the school!"

"Seriously, why was trash like him even admitted to Shuchiin Academy?"

"Teacher Hiratsuka is way too protective of him. She still hasn't expelled him after all that?"

"Maybe there's some unspeakable relationship between them?"

"Eh? No way!"

"Why not? If you ask me, Teacher Hiratsuka must have been threatened by him!"

"Eh? Is that the kind of relationship they have?"

"What else did you think it was?"

"Speaking ill of people behind their backs is wrong..."

A certain pink-haired, transparent girl whispered this, but like the girl herself, who had little presence, her words were automatically ignored.

Nakano Mayu listened to the whispers around her and frowned slightly.

She was not very familiar with Kira Yoshikage. They had barely spoken a few times, and her first impression of him had been terrible. But she hated judging people by their appearance, as well as speaking ill of them behind their backs.

Besides, judging from her own experience, although Kira Yoshikage did look very much like a delinquent, he was surprisingly easy to talk to. Otherwise, he would not have given up his seat for her in the cafeteria...

But! But he had actually criticized her for disturbing his studying when she tried to talk to him!

That one thing was absolutely unforgivable!

Nakano Mayu puffed out her cheeks slightly. The girl still held a grudge over the matter to this day.

And it definitely wasn't because her academic performance was poor!

Definitely not!

"Nakano-san."

A short-haired redheaded girl offered a "kind" reminder:

"You're sitting behind that delinquent, so you have to be careful. If he harasses you, make sure to tell the teacher immediately!"

Nakano Mayu looked up at her. She only remembered that the other girl's name was Sagami Minami—

On the day she transferred, the other girl had taken the initiative to approach her, seemingly wanting to become friends.

At the time, Nakano Mayu had actually been quite happy.

But now she felt somewhat disappointed, because this discussion about Kira Yoshikage had been started by Sagami Minami.

For Nakano Mayu, who had transferred into the school, this was actually a good opportunity to integrate into the group.

Complaining about and criticizing someone or something together with everyone else made it easy to gain the other students' approval. That would allow her to naturally blend into their little circle and become friends with them.

However, Nakano Mayu did not respond. She could not accept speaking ill of someone behind their back!

That was just being a gossip!

When Nakano Mayu continued not to answer, Sagami Minami, feeling snubbed, gradually became impatient.

What? I was obviously trying to help you fit in with everyone!

And yet you're treating me with contempt. Doesn't that make me look like a clown?

Sagami Minami sneered:

"Hey, Nakano-san, why aren't you answering? Don't tell me you like that delinquent?"

"No such thing!" Nakano Mayu denied immediately.