A Terrifying Girl

"What are you doing here, Tenyo Yuyuki?"

The people who had suddenly appeared before them were Student Council President Horikita Manabu and Secretary Tachibana Akane. "Is there a rule forbidding first-years from entering the third-year area?"

Yeyue asked, somewhat puzzled.

Horikita Manabu gave Yeyue a long look without answering, then fixed a piercing gaze on Mizuno Yasuo beside him.

"We're just conducting an ordinary transaction. We haven't done anything that violates the School Rules."

Mizuno Yasuo took a step back and waved his hands in a fluster. It seemed that Student Council President Horikita Manabu really did command a great deal of authority.

"Peeping Tom, do you really think that excuse will fool our esteemed Student Council President?"

Just then, a mocking laugh rang out.

Ryuen, his eyes bruised and swollen, appeared before them with both hands in his pockets.

"If I remember correctly, you're Ryuen Kakeru from Class 1-C." Horikita Manabu pushed up his glasses and said coldly, "What is the meaning of this?"

"What's the meaning?" Ryuen Kakeru stared at Yeyue with dark purple eyes and said mockingly, "I thought this place would be a perfect school, or at least a fair one. Now it seems that was a huge misunderstanding."

Yeyue's expression also turned cold at the right moment.

Peeping Tom was probably the nickname Ryuen had given him, mocking what he'd done in C Class.

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

Unlike A Class and B Class,

C Class and D Class had too few capable people. Ryuen could only gather information himself and handle everything personally.

The gaze that had been watching them earlier must have been Ryuen's. He'd seen the entire transaction, and hadn't even bothered to hide it.

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

That was exactly what Yeyue wanted.

Otherwise,

there would have been no point in choosing to talk in a public place.

He'd already gotten 390,000 Private Points. As long as the cash route was closed off, Kouenji would have to at least make some effort to earn Private Points so he could afford his lifestyle.

But

what did Ryuen mean by that remark?

Was he trying to use the information as a bargaining chip to raise its value, threaten him, or make a deal with Horikita Manabu to earn Private Points?

No.

If he wanted to threaten Yeyue, it would be better to meet him alone later. And as information, it was worth far too little in a public place.

He was testing them—and, more specifically, testing Horikita Manabu's strength.

What arrogance.

"So something happened here."

Horikita Manabu had caught on. He pushed up his glasses and said calmly, "This school still can't be called perfect. Ryuen, tell me what you found. If it could benefit the school, I might be willing to give you a reward."

"You sure know how to talk."

Ryuen closed his eyes and sneered at Horikita Manabu's condescending, almost patronizing attitude. He took out his phone and said mockingly, "Sure. Give me � ten thousand Private Points, and I'll tell you."

Horikita Manabu glanced at him meaningfully. He hadn't expected this injured man to care so little about his dignity. More importantly, he was greedy.

"Ryuen Kakeru, that's enough." Tachibana Akane stepped forward, clutching her folder. She frowned in displeasure. "Something happened here that you consider unfair, right?"

Ryuen didn't even bother to acknowledge her. His arrogant attitude only irritated Tachibana Akane further. "Then you should tell the school voluntarily. And there are plenty of students here. Do you really understand how much � ten thousand Private Points is worth?"

In other words, Ryuen's information wasn't worth that many Private Points. If he thought something was unfair, he should tell Horikita Manabu willingly.

Yeyue also let his displeasure show.

It was inevitable that the loophole allowing cash to be traded for points would be closed. Even without Ryuen, Horikita Manabu would have asked other third-years about it.

His original plan had been to get enough Private Points to live comfortably, then close the loophole and motivate Kouenji to take action. So far, everything had gone smoothly.

If they continued, then as long as Ryuen was smart enough, they'd probably settle on a reward of -2,000 Private Points for Ryuen.

There was nothing wrong with that.

Yeyue glanced sideways at the flustered Mizuno Yasuo.

This leader of Third Year C Class was unexpectedly decent. He couldn't compare to people like Ryuen, but he was valuable enough as a pawn—and an easy one to acquire.

Yeyue had a fairly good idea of what Mizuno Yasuo wanted.

"School just started. The Student Council President must be busy and have little time to investigate, right?" Ryuen sneered. "How many points do you think are appropriate?"

"Indeed." Horikita Manabu didn't argue. He looked down at Ryuen. "Ryuen, since you're trying so hard to haggle, how about a thousand points?"

"You bastard."

Ryuen clenched his fists, his expression darkening instantly.

He'd estimated the minimum would be ten thousand points. A thousand was clearly an insult.

Ryuen might not care about his dignity when money was involved, but there was no need for him to keep taking insults like this.

"Hmph. Then go investigate it yourself."

He snorted.

Ryuen turned and walked away.

Suddenly,

after taking a step, Ryuen turned and threw a spinning kick at Horikita Manabu. But it missed.

Whether Horikita Manabu had anticipated it or simply had exceptional reflexes, he kept dodging Ryuen's attacks without countering.

"I have to say, this is unexpected."

As he dodged, Horikita Manabu spoke calmly.

He truly hadn't expected Ryuen to attack him in public.

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

"Horikita Manabu, right? I'm going to beat that arrogant face of yours into a pulp."

Ryuen Kakeru kept throwing punches, sneering as he did.

If Horikita Manabu dared to hit back, Ryuen could simply fall to the ground.

There was no way to frame Horikita Manabu in a hallway full of cameras, but with Ryuen's injuries, an investigation would certainly follow. It would eventually lead back to C Class, but all C Class had to do was deny it.

The main point was to drag Horikita Manabu into a brawl and draw the school authorities' attention. That would let Ryuen test more of the rules.

Besides,

Ryuen Kakeru believed Third Year B Class wouldn't pass up such an opportunity either. He'd heard that Miyabi Nagumo, the Vice President of Second Year A Class, was also at odds with Horikita Manabu. Faced with pressure from several sides, Horikita Manabu might lose his seat in A Class.

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

This fight was extremely unfavorable to Horikita Manabu.

"Aren't you worried?"

"Worried about what?"

"Nothing."

Yeyue shook his head.

It seemed Tachibana Akane hadn't considered the possibility that Horikita Manabu might lose at all.

"Enough." Horikita Manabu caught Ryuen's fist in his palm, his tone still cool. "Ryuen, you really are an interesting person. How about this? Tell me what you know, and I'll personally reward you with ten thousand Private Points."

"You're still saying that?" Ryuen took a step back and sneered. "Now I'm the one who doesn't want to let go. But if you bring out �, I might take pity on you and tell you."

"Ryuen, this is the third-year area. The longer this goes on, the worse it is for you. Don't tell me you don't understand that."

Horikita Manabu was right.

Even now, more than ten students were watching nearby. They could all serve as witnesses for Horikita Manabu.

"So what?"

Ryuen Kakeru sneered and stepped forward again, still poised to attack.

He couldn't possibly have failed to understand that, yet he'd done it anyway.

Yeyue looked around.

Dozens of people had already gathered to watch, making it difficult for the surveillance cameras to do their job.

He soon spotted Ishizaki among the crowd, along with two other guys. They were shoving aside people trying to take pictures with their phones, though Albert and Ibuki Mio were nowhere to be seen.

Ryuen was indeed gradually taking control of C Class.

The witnesses were a little thin on the ground, but Ryuen could still make excuses.

A despicable strategy.

He wasn't trying to win. He was just trying to force the other side to give in.

At worst, Ryuen would only have to pay the price of a period of suspension.

It was pure spite, with nothing to gain—or rather, ordinary people wouldn't go this far just to get information.

Ryuen's method wasn't bad, but he hadn't thought it through carefully enough.

"I see."

Horikita Manabu pushed up his glasses. He'd also noticed that Ishizaki and the others were stopping people from taking pictures.

"Be sensible. Get on your knees and apologize now, and maybe I'll let you off, Student Council President!"

Ryuen took another step forward and drove a straight punch toward Horikita Manabu's face.

However,

this time Horikita Manabu didn't dodge at all. He simply stood there, taking out a tissue to clean his glasses.

"Most disputes at this school are settled by the Student Council."

Ryuen's fist stopped just an inch from Horikita Manabu's face, but his expression didn't change.

After meeting the other man's gaze and studying him for a moment, Ryuen withdrew his fist. He put his hands back in his pockets and said mockingly,

"That's useful information. Seems like there really are a lot of unfair things going on at this school."

"Those with ability naturally get more."

"Heh."

Ryuen snorted.

He didn't reply or show the slightest embarrassment. Instead, he took out his phone again, ready to demand money.

"Ryuen, aren't you being a little too optimistic?" Yeyue said playfully. "I'm just exchanging cash for Private Points. What's the problem?"

Ryuen casually put his phone away, turned, and waved as he left. "Peeping Tom, when I have time, we'll play again."

His original purpose had been to gather information. Everything else that happened was just an unexpected bonus. As for ten thousand Private Points, Ryuen didn't care about that.

He was just a little surprised. Was Tenyo Yuyuki lashing out in frustration and trying to retaliate, or was this information simply not important to him?

He'd actually confessed on his own.

After Ryuen left, Horikita Manabu put his glasses back on.

"I see. Exchanging cash for points. Tenyo, your existence really is an unforeseen variable at this school. From now on, the school will prohibit the use of cash to exchange for Private Points."

Yeyue shrugged and changed the subject. "You look so cold, Student Council President, but you're surprisingly warmhearted. Why didn't you keep Ryuen here?"

Horikita Manabu could have used his position as Student Council President to make Ryuen's life miserable. He could at least have made him suffer, yet he'd done no such thing and had even revealed the information to him.

"That's up to you." Horikita Manabu said calmly, "This school does need competition, but we're not all enemies."

"Tenyo Yuyuki, if you want to Promote to A Class, climb your way up openly and honestly."

Horikita Manabu turned to leave. Tachibana Akane gave a slight, polite bow before following him.

Only then did Mizuno Yasuo let out a sigh of relief. A smile appeared at the corner of Tenyo Yuyuki's mouth.

"Mizuno Senpai, sorry for the trouble, but please give me � points again."

"Huh...?"

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

The Student Council President had just banned exchanging cash for points.

So what was this supposed to mean?

Mizuno Yasuo couldn't help feeling uneasy. His gaze shifted back and forth between Horikita Manabu and Tenyo Yuyuki.

Horikita Manabu also turned around and gave Tenyo Yuyuki a cold look.

After hesitating for a moment, Mizuno Yasuo gritted his teeth and transferred � Private Points to Yeyue.

Looking at the Private Points that had just arrived, Yeyue smiled at Horikita Manabu, then said playfully, "Mizuno, give me � points again."

Although Yeyue hadn't promised him anything, Mizuno Yasuo didn't hesitate this time.

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

After receiving the transfer, Yeyue gazed at Horikita Manabu with a smile.

Horikita Manabu hadn't expected this year's first-years to be so fond of pushing people.

"One week."

As soon as he said that, Horikita Manabu turned and left with Tachibana Akane.

"What a nice guy."

Yeyue shrugged.

Even as Student Council President, he couldn't make a rule take effect just by saying so. There had to be a process, and he ultimately needed the school's approval.

That would take a week.

Horikita Manabu didn't need to explain further.

That would give Yeyue more time to test how long the process took, and he might even suffer some losses for violating the School Rules.

Still, Horikita Manabu couldn't stop Yeyue from continuing to exchange points.

In the end, Horikita Manabu had still given him an answer. Just as expected, the siblings were both cold on the outside and warm on the inside.

As long as the other person had some real ability, Horikita Manabu wasn't stingy about bending ordinary rules.

With that thought, Yeyue turned and said,

"Mizuno, for the next three days, please help me get in touch with Third Year D Class and some second-years. If anyone's willing to exchange points for cash, let me know."

Even if Horikita Manabu had said one week, Yeyue didn't believe him. The sooner he achieved his goal, the better.

"No problem."

Mizuno Yasuo smiled and nodded.

Yeyue transferred twenty thousand Private Points to Mizuno Yasuo, then said calmly, "The rest is payment for helping me just now."

"No, I volunteered just now, too."

"Enough." Yeyue explained casually. "There's no need to let you come away worse off, and I won't shortchange anyone. We'll probably have more chances to work together in the future."

"I see. Then I won't stand on ceremony. Working with Tenyo really is a pleasure. It's my first time seeing President Horikita like that. I'm truly impressed."

Watching the twenty thousand Private Points hit his account, Mizuno Yasuo smiled and bowed slightly.

He'd left Mizuno Yasuo with the impression that he repaid every slight, but was also generous, and had demonstrated a certain level of strength.

He'd also hinted that he understood what Mizuno Yasuo meant.

The two of them could work even more closely together in the future—or rather, Mizuno Yasuo could become his subordinate...