The Terrifying Girls

"Tenyo Yuyuki, what are you doing here?"

Suddenly appearing before him were Student Council President Horikita Manabu and Secretary Tachibana Akane. "What, are first-years banned from entering the third-year zone?"

Yuyuki asked back, puzzled.

Giving Yuyuki a deep look, Horikita didn't respond. Instead, he turned his piercing gaze toward Mizuno Yasuo beside him.

"We're just conducting a normal transaction. We absolutely haven't done anything against school rules."

Mizuno Yasuo stepped back and waved his hands in a fluster. It seemed Horikita Manabu, as Student Council President, indeed held considerable authority.

"Peeping Tom, you think words like that can fool our great Student Council President?"

Just then, a mocking laugh rang out.

Ryuen, with bruised eyes, appeared before the two, hands in his pockets.

"I recall you're Ryuen Kakeru from First Year Class C." Pushing up the bridge of his glasses, Horikita said coldly, "What's the meaning of this?"

"What's the meaning?" Ryuen Kakeru's black-and-purple eyes locked onto Yuyuki as he sneered, "Originally thought this would be a perfect school—or at least a fair one. Now it's clear that was just a huge misunderstanding."

Yuyuki's expression also cooled at the right moment.

Peeping Tom—that must be the nickname he's given me, mocking my actions in Class C.

He wasn't surprised by Ryuen's appearance at all.

Unlike Class A and Class B.

Class C and Class D had too few usable talents. Ryuen had to rely on himself to gather intel and handle everything personally.

The gaze he'd felt watching earlier was probably Ryuen. He'd seen the entire transaction and hadn't bothered to hide it.

Exchanging cash for Private Points was indeed unfair to other classes. Ryuen might report it to the school.

That was exactly what Yuyuki wanted.

Otherwise.

Choosing to talk in this public place would have been pointless.

He'd already secured 390,000 Private Points. As long as the cash route was blocked, Kouenji would have to move at least minimally to earn Private Points to maintain his lifestyle.

But.

What did Ryuen's words mean?

Was he trying to use this intel as leverage to raise its value—threatening Yuyuki or bargaining with Horikita for Private Points?

No.

As a threat, it'd be better to meet Yuyuki alone later. As intel, in this public setting, its value was too low.

He was probing. And probing Horikita's strength.

Quite arrogant.

"It seems something's happened here."

Horikita caught on. He pushed up his glasses and said flatly, "This school can't yet be called perfect. Ryuen, tell me what you've found. If it's useful to the school, I'm not opposed to giving some reward."

"Quite the talker."

At Horikita's condescending, almost charitable attitude, Ryuen closed his eyes with a cold laugh, pulled out his phone, and sneered, "Fine. Give me Ten Thousand Private Points right now, and I'll tell you."

Shooting him a meaningful glance, Horikita Did Not Expect this injured man to care so little about his own dignity—what mattered more was his greed.

"Ryuen Kakeru, that's enough." Tachibana Akane, clutching her folder, stepped forward with a frown of displeasure. "Something unfair happened here, didn't it?"

Ryuen didn't acknowledge her at all. His arrogant attitude only annoyed her further. "Then you should be more willing to report it to the school. Besides, with so many classmates here, do you really understand the value of Ten Thousand Private Points?"

The implication was that Ryuen's intel wasn't worth that many Private Points. If he felt something was unfair, he should just tell Horikita.

Yuyuki also wore a look of displeasure.

The loophole of exchanging cash for points was bound to be closed. Even without Ryuen, Horikita would have asked other third-years for information.

His original plan was to secure enough Private Points for a comfortable life, then seal the loophole to boost Kouenji's motivation. So far, it was going smoothly.

If things continued, and if Ryuen was smart enough, it would probably end with Ryuen getting a reward of 20,000 Private Points.

That wouldn't be bad.

Yuyuki glanced at the flustered Mizuno Yasuo.

This leader of Third Year Class C was surprisingly decent. Not as sharp as Ryuen and the others, but valuable enough as a pawn—and an easy one to acquire.

Yuyuki had a rough guess about what Mizuno Yasuo wanted.

"School just started. The Student Council President must be busy, with little time to investigate, right?" Ryuen sneered. "How many points do you think is fair?"

"True." Horikita didn't argue, looking down at Ryuen. "Ryuen, considering how hard you're bargaining, how about one thousand points?"

"You bastard."

Clenching his fists, Ryuen's face instantly darkened.

He'd estimated at least Ten Thousand Points. One thousand was nothing but an insult.

For money, Ryuen truly didn't care about his own dignity, but that didn't mean he'd let himself be repeatedly humiliated and still grovel for more.

"Ha, then go investigate yourself."

A cold snort.

Ryuen turned and walked away directly.

Suddenly.

Ryuen took one step, then spun back with a roundhouse kick aimed at Horikita Manabu, but it hit nothing but air.

Whether it was anticipation or exceptional reflexes, Horikita Manabu kept evading Ryuen's attacks without any intention of countering.

"This is quite unexpected."

While dodging the attacks, Horikita Manabu spoke calmly.

He truly hadn't anticipated Ryuen daring to throw hands in such a public place.

The wounds on Ryuen's body were his greatest shield.

"Horikita Manabu, right? I swear I'll beat that arrogant face of yours into a bloody pulp."

Ryuen Kakeru swung his fists relentlessly, letting out a cold laugh.

If Horikita Manabu dared to fight back, he'd just drop to the ground on the spot.

Though in this hallway full of cameras, framing Horikita was impossible, with his injuries, an investigation would definitely be triggered. It'd eventually trace back to C Class, but as long as C Class denied it, that was fine.

The main point was dragging Horikita into a brawl, drawing the school authority's attention, and testing more of the rules.

Moreover.

Ryuen Kakeru believed Third Year B Class wouldn't let such an opportunity slip by. He'd also heard that Second Year A Class's Vice President, Nagumo Miyabi, had a grudge against Horikita. With pressure from multiple sides, Horikita might lose his seat at the top of A Class.

Sometimes, all it took was one person to start, and countless others would pile on.

This fight was extremely unfavorable for Horikita Manabu.

"Aren't you worried?"

"Worried about what?"

"Nothing."

Yeyue shook his head.

It seemed Tachibana Akane hadn't even considered the possibility of Horikita losing.

"Enough." Catching Ryuen's fist with his palm, Horikita Manabu's tone remained cold. "Ryuen, you really are an interesting guy. How about this: tell me what you know, and I'll personally offer Ten Thousand Private Points as a reward."

"Still spouting that nonsense." Stepping back, Ryuen let out a cold laugh. "Right now, it's me who won't let go. But if you cough up ten thousand, I might just be generous enough to tell you."

"Ryuen, this is Third Year territory. The longer this drags on, the worse it gets for you. Surely you understand that much."

Horikita Manabu was right.

Even now, over a dozen students had gathered nearby to watch, and all of them were witnesses for Horikita.

"So what?"

Ryuen Kakeru sneered, stepping forward again, ready to strike at any moment.

He couldn't possibly be unaware of that, yet he still did it.

Yeyue scanned the surroundings.

Dozens of people had already crowded around to watch, making it hard for the cameras to function properly.

Soon, he spotted Ishizaki among the crowd, along with two other guys pushing and shoving people trying to take photos with their phones. But there was no sign of Albert or Ibuki Mio.

Ryuen was indeed steadily taking control of C Class.

Though these people were flimsy as witnesses, they could still argue their way out.

A despicable tactic.

Not aimed at victory, just at forcing the other side to compromise.

And at worst, Ryuen would only pay the price of suspension for a while.

Pure spite—or rather, an Ordinary Person wouldn't go this far for information.

Ryuen's method wasn't bad, but it wasn't thorough enough.

"I see."

Horikita Manabu pushed his glasses, also noticing Ishizaki and the others blocking some people from taking photos.

"Be smart about it. Kowtow and admit your fault now, and maybe I'll let you off, Student Council President!"

Ryuen stepped forward again, throwing a straight punch at Horikita Manabu's face.

But this time.

Horikita Manabu didn't dodge at all. He just stood On The Spot, pulling out a tissue to wipe his glasses.

"Most disputes in this school go through the Student Council for judgment."

The fist stopped a hair's breadth from Horikita Manabu's face, yet his expression remained unchanged.

Locking eyes with the other, Ryuen withdrew his fist after a moment's pause, shoved his hands back into his pockets, and said with a hint of mockery, "Got some good intel. Seems like this school's unfairness runs deep."

"Those with real ability naturally get more."

"Heh."

A cold snort.

Ryuen didn't respond, showed no awkwardness, and instead pulled out his phone again, ready to demand money.

"Ryuen, aren't you thinking too highly of yourself?" Yuyuki said with amusement. "I'm just exchanging cash for Private Points. What's the problem?"

Shrugging, Ryuen pocketed his phone, turned, and waved as he walked away. "Peeping Tom, when I have time, let's play around."

His original goal was just to fish for information; everything else was a bonus. As for the Ten Thousand Private Points, Ryuen didn't care about them at all.

He was just a bit surprised—was Tenyo Yuyuki lashing out in embarrassment, or was this intel simply not that important to him?

That he'd confessed so readily.

Once Ryuen was gone, Horikita Manabu adjusted his glasses.

"I see. Exchanging cash for points. Tenyo, your existence is indeed a miscalculation for this school. From now on, cash exchanges for Private Points are prohibited."

Yuyuki shrugged and changed the subject. "The Student Council President has such a cold exterior, but inside, he's surprisingly soft. Why didn't you go after Ryuen?"

He could have used his authority as Student Council President to crush Ryuen—at least make him bleed. Instead, he did nothing and even handed over the info.

"Think what you will," Horikita Manabu said flatly. "This school thrives on competition, but we're not enemies."

"Tenyo Yuyuki, if you want to Promote to A Class, do it fair and square."

Horikita Manabu turned and left. Tachibana Akane gave a polite bow before following.

Mizuno Yasuo finally let out a sigh of relief. The corner of Tenyo Yuyuki's mouth curled into a smile.

"Mizuno Senpai, could you transfer me some points again?"

"Huh...?"

Mizuno Yasuo's eyes went wide. He wondered if he'd heard wrong.

The Student Council President had just banned cash-for-points trades.

So what was this now?

A flicker of worry crossed his mind. Mizuno Yasuo's gaze darted between Horikita Manabu and Tenyo Yuyuki.

Horikita Manabu turned back, glaring coldly at Tenyo Yuyuki.

After a moment of hesitation, Mizuno Yasuo gritted his teeth and transferred some Private Points to Yuyuki.

Watching the points land in his account, Yuyuki smiled at Horikita Manabu, then said teasingly, "Mizuno, give me some more points."

Though Yuyuki hadn't made any promises, Mizuno Yasuo didn't hesitate this time.

"President Horikita, aren't you going to do anything? Or is it that you can't?"

After the transfer went through, Yuyuki gazed into Horikita Manabu's eyes with a grin.

Horikita Manabu hadn't expected this year's freshmen to be so aggressive.

"One week."

With that, Horikita Manabu turned and left with Tachibana Akane.

"What a good guy."

Yuyuki shrugged.

Even as Student Council President, he couldn't just snap his fingers and create a rule. There was a process, and ultimately, the school's approval was needed.

That timeframe was one week.

Horikita Manabu didn't need to explain further.

It would force Yuyuki to waste time figuring out how long the process took, maybe even trip over the School Rules and take a loss.

But he couldn't stop Yuyuki from trading points either.

In the end, Horikita Manabu still gave an answer. As expected, both siblings were cold on the outside but warm inside.

As long as someone had real ability, Horikita Manabu wouldn't be stingy with ordinary rules.

Thinking this over, Yuyuki turned and said, "Mizuno, over the next three days, I'll need you to contact Third Year D Class and some second-years. If anyone wants to exchange points for cash, have them reach out to me."

Even if Horikita Manabu said one week, Yuyuki didn't fully believe it. The faster he achieved his goal, the better.

"No problem."

Mizuno Yasuo nodded with a smile.

Yuyuki transferred another Twenty Thousand Private Points to Mizuno Yasuo's account and said flatly, "The rest is payment for your help just now."

"No, that was also my choice just now."

"Enough." Yeyue explained casually, "There's no need for you to suffer loss, and I won't shortchange anyone. We should have more cooperation in the future."

"I see. Then I won't hold back. Working with Tenyo is truly a pleasure. That was the first time I'd ever seen President Horikita like that—truly impressive."

Watching the twenty thousand private points arrive in his account, Mizuno Yasuo smiled and gave a slight bow.

He had already left Mizuno Yasuo with the impression of being someone who repaid both grudges and favors generously, while also demonstrating a certain level of strength.

He had also hinted that he understood what Mizuno Yasuo meant.

From now on, the two could have even closer cooperation—no, it should be said, a subordinate relationship.