Useful Tool

The gurgling sound of boiling water echoed in the small kitchen, white steam blurring Kazehara Tetsu's line of sight.

He stirred idly with his chopsticks, but his gaze fell hollowly on the splashing water.

Directly threatening Kamuro Masumi with the video was indeed the simplest method.

He could easily make her his dog, have her handle shady matters for him, and satisfy all kinds of his demands.

But a relationship built on fear like this was fragile and could collapse at any moment.

Once an unexpected event occurred—like the video leaking, or Kamuro Masumi finding a new backer—this "dog" might bite back at any time.

A dog that could think and hold grudges was always a hidden danger.

What he wanted went far beyond that.

What he wanted was heartfelt, absolute, unbetrayable loyalty.

To make someone submit completely, you first had to destroy everything they had, make them fall into a bottomless despair, and at their most helpless moment, descend like a "savior" and grant them redemption.

By then, he would no longer be a threat, but her only one.

The udon noodles slowly unfurled in the pot, and Kazehara Tetsu's thoughts, like the noodles, gradually became clear.

He needed a knife—a knife stupid enough that using it and discarding it would leave no trouble behind.

Class A students wouldn't do. Internal turmoil would harm his own interests.

Class B had Ichinose. With her personality, she'd likely turn things into a warm "mutual understanding," completely ruining his plan.

Class C...

The corner of Kazehara Tetsu's mouth twitched.

Those people were probably still a scattered mess, their internal power struggles not yet over. Making rash contact would only attract unnecessary attention.

So, only Class D remained.

A gathering place for "inferior goods."

A group of students rated as the worst by the school due to all kinds of problems.

Three people immediately came to mind.

"Xuteng Jian, Chi Kuanzhi, Shannei Chunshu..."

Class D's "Three Fools."

Xuteng Jian—violent impulse, simple-minded, easy to lose control.

Chi Kuanzhi—lecherous, boastful, but timid, prone to backing down at critical moments.

Shannei Chunshu...

Kazehara Tetsu's fingertips tapped lightly on the name "Shannei Chunshu." He was the one.

This man had an extremely strong vanity, loved to show off, always wanted to impress the girls, yet lacked the ability to match it.

He craved attention and recognition, had low intelligence, and was easily deceived and incited—he was the perfect chess piece tailor-made for this plan.

Shannei Chunshu could believe Sakayanagi Arisu's claim of love at first sight and trust that she was his girlfriend.

He believed Sakayanagi Arisu's verbal promise that Class A would vote for him in the class vote, and tried to force Ayanokoji to drop out—it was truly too foolish.

So if he were given a video with more substance than a verbal promise, his behavior would become even uglier.

He would hand the video over to him, let him "uphold justice," let him stir up trouble.

Given Shannei Chunshu's personality, once he got his hands on a "weapon" that could attack a Class A student, he would be unable to resist making it public immediately to show off his "ability."

On the second day of school, since classes had just started, the teacher basically went over the upcoming curriculum.

The morning passed quickly, and lunch break arrived.

As the bell rang, Kazehara Tetsu immediately left the classroom and headed straight for the Class D hallway.

His gaze swept quickly through the crowd, searching for his three targets.

Thanks to Xuteng Jian's conspicuous red buzz cut, Kazehara Tetsu soon spotted the three he was looking for.

The three walked together, chatting and laughing, not noticing Kazehara Tetsu's presence.

Kazehara Tetsu followed behind them, keeping a certain distance to avoid alerting them.

Soon, they arrived at the cafeteria.

The cafeteria was packed with people, the noisy sound filling the entire space.

Kazehara Tetsu watched helplessly as the three weaved through the crowd, looking for seats. With so many people around, he couldn't get close to them, let alone talk to them.

After a while, the three finished eating and got up to leave the cafeteria.

Seeing this, Kazehara Tetsu quickly followed.

They walked out of the cafeteria and headed toward Beech Tree Shopping Mall.

When they walked into a cafe, Kazehara Tetsu couldn't help but feel a little surprised.

He had originally thought they would go shopping or do something else—he never expected they would end up here.

The afternoon cafe wasn't crowded, with soothing jazz music playing.

He chose a corner seat by the window, ordered an iced Americano, then pulled out his phone and casually scrolled through videos.

"Pfft, so bitter. How can anyone drink this crap?"

"Eh, it's just something those face-conscious types like to drink!"

"Spending that much money on this stuff feels like a scam."

The grumbling soon reached Kazehara Tetsu's ears. He didn't act immediately, instead patiently waiting for the right moment.

After the trio finished their coffee, their conversation quickly turned to girls.

"Hey, don't you think Ichinose Honami is top-tier? That figure... tsk tsk..." Chi Kuanzhi's face was full of longing.

"Hmph, so what? If you ask me, that girl Sakayanagi from Class A is the real deal... that aura... if I could make her my girlfriend..." Shannei Chunshu started his daydream.

"Give me a break. You think you can chase girls?" Xuteng Jian let out a dismissive snort.

Now.

Kazehara Tetsu set down his coffee cup, stood up, and walked straight toward the trio's table, cup in hand.

He stopped beside their seats, looking down at the lecherous-faced Shannei Chunshu, a frivolous and mocking smile on his face.

"Classmate, I just heard something about you wanting to chase our class's Sakayanagi?"

His voice wasn't loud, but it reached the three of them clearly.

All three looked up at the same time. Seeing Kazehara Tetsu standing before them, they were momentarily stunned.

"You... who are you? From Class A?" Shannei Chunshu felt a bit creeped out under his gaze.

"Just a Class A student passing by. Heard some interesting talk, so I came over to say hello."

Kazehara Tetsu pulled over an empty chair, sat down at their table without ceremony, and placed his iced Americano on the table.

His gaze swept over the three faces, finally settling on Shannei Chunshu's: "Sakayanagi isn't that easy to chase. But... I can offer you a chance to get 'up close and personal' with a Class A girl—if you've got the guts."

"What kind of chance?" Chi Kuanzhi's interest was immediately piqued, his eyes lighting up.

"There's a girl in our Class A. On the surface, she acts all aloof, like an ice beauty. But actually..."

He deliberately dragged out his tone, a meaningful smile spreading across his face. "She's got a bit of an unclean little habit."

"A little habit?" Chi Kuanzhi's curiosity was fully hooked.

"A habit... of liking to steal things."

Kazehara Tetsu dropped this bombshell in an understated tone.

The three of them looked at each other upon hearing this, shock and disbelief written all over their faces.

"No way?"

"See for yourselves."

Kazehara Tetsu first shifted his chair, making sure his back completely blocked the camera behind him, before stopping.

He pulled out his phone, didn't hand it over, just fiddled with it in his own hands for a few moments, then placed it on the table, close to his side, so the camera couldn't capture it from above.

He turned the screen toward them.

On the screen, a video began to play.

Against a shelf background, Kamuro Masumi's profile was clearly visible.

The camera shook slightly, giving it a candid, voyeuristic feel.

The three unconsciously leaned in, heads crowding together, staring intently at the small screen.

They saw Kamuro Masumi pick up that lipstick, her feigned motion of putting it back, the instant her wrist flipped—the lipstick vanished like a magic trick, smoothly slipping into the pocket of her school uniform skirt.

The entire process was crystal clear, undeniable.

The video was only about ten seconds long, playing on a loop.