Countless compliments surrounded Kushida Kikyo, and she was enjoying every bit of it. Still, she put on a humble smile and waved them off.
"But what we learned at the study sessions is our own knowledge, and this test was just a coincidence. It wasn't as amazing as everyone says."
But her words only made the others admire her even more.
"Kushida, you're too humble. Without you, a lot of people wouldn't have passed."
"Exactly! Those questions weren't something a normal person could solve!"
Sitting at his desk and listening to everyone fawn over Kushida, Gojo Satoru wasn't surprised. He'd expected this from the very beginning.
"Gojo, can we talk outside?"
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka came over to Gojo's seat and called to him quietly.
"Mm."
"So, what do you think of Horikita now?"
The two strolled side by side around the school grounds. Gojo was curious.
"She's a little different from what I expected. She's somewhat arrogant and thinks too highly of her abilities."
That was true.
After listening to him just now, Gojo had gotten a rough idea of what had happened.
At first, Ayanokoji had simply given Horikita some of her old test papers and passed along some information.
But it seemed that after seeing the list of people who'd been abandoned, she'd figured out that he was the mastermind.
She'd taken it upon herself to give the test papers to Kushida Kikyo, who handed them out to the whole class—except for him.
Was she just unwilling to accept it? Did she think she could do a better job without abandoning anyone? She really thought she was Horikita Manabu.
"Are you angry?"
Seeing Gojo remain silent, Ayanokoji felt a little puzzled. Although Gojo had predicted this from the start, surely seeing it actually happen would still make him angry?
But Ayanokoji was overthinking it. There was no need to get angry.
"I don't really care. Ever since you got involved, I haven't been the one doing the heavy lifting.
"Besides, I never planned to get involved in the first place. It's a lot of effort for little reward, and it wastes my time.
"The bigger their problems get, the more work you'll have to do. No matter which class I graduate from, it won't affect my future."
Is that so?
Ayanokoji was surprised by the unexpected answer.
"Didn't you already promise Chabashira-sensei?"
"Didn't you already get on the track? It doesn't matter which of us finishes first, does it?"
He really does know how to slack off.
Knowing that Gojo intended to leave everything to him, Ayanokoji felt a little helpless.
"What are you planning to do next, then?"
The question left Gojo without an immediate answer. Class D had too many problem students. Staying there would only waste his energy. He should go have some fun in another class.
"I'll probably transfer to Class B first. Compared to my current class, I'd rather go spend some time with my girlfriend."
He already has that many points?
Ayanokoji was shocked. It hadn't even been two months since the start of the school year, and Gojo had already scraped together 20 million Private Points.
But it sounded like he had far more than that. Still, if he could transfer classes, why not go to Class A?
"I remember you have a girlfriend in Class A, Gojo.
"Why are you going to Class B instead of Class A?"
"Well, mainly because Class A's atmosphere is too serious. It's no fun at all. Class B has more pretty girls, and they're so nice to talk to."
Blindsided by that answer, Ayanokoji didn't know what to say.
After all that, was he just going after the girls?
Was dating really that interesting?
But it didn't matter anymore. It seemed Gojo didn't care which class came out on top in the end. As long as Gojo could help him escape that person's control, that was enough.
The process didn't matter. As long as they won in the end, everything would be fine.
Before they knew it, they'd reached the shopping district.
With the Midterm Exam over, the first-year students had started coming out again.
They sat down at a café and ordered a pile of desserts and two cappuccinos.
Perhaps because of its decor, the café was full of girls, and it was almost completely packed.
Gojo's striking looks drew countless glances.
He didn't react. He was used to getting stared at.
Ayanokoji, on the other hand, was having a hard time. He'd only planned to blend into the background, but now all these people were watching him. He couldn't sit still.
Although plenty of girls were looking over, they were also watching the people around them, wondering who would make the first move.
But their hopes were about to be dashed. The first person to approach wasn't a girl, but a boy with gorgeous blond hair.
"Sunglasses Boy, what a coincidence! I didn't expect you to find this place, too.
"How is it? The desserts and coffee are delicious, aren't they?"
Ignoring Ayanokoji Kiyotaka beside him, Koenji Rokusuke sat down next to Gojo. The two upperclassmen behind him followed suit.
As soon as he'd settled into his seat, Koenji reached for a little cake to try.
!!!!!
But his hand suddenly froze. A chill ran through his entire body!
"If you want to keep that hand, don't move."
Gojo's cold voice rang out. In an instant, the whole café was filled with an icy chill, with Koenji at its center.
Now that's terrifying.
Koenji was more shocked than anyone. Just that aura alone had made him start trembling. Was this really a human being?
He'd always considered himself the greatest genius, but he'd never expected to meet someone like this.
"Hahaha~
"I was just joking. You don't mind, do you, Koenji?"
Seeing how tense the atmosphere had gotten, Gojo returned to his usual playful manner.
But Koenji didn't think he'd been joking.
He drew his hand back, and his stiff expression relaxed into a smile.
"That was quite the joke, Gojo-kun."
Though it was hard to believe, he really had been intimidated. He'd even instinctively reverted to addressing Gojo more formally.
The two upperclassmen beside him were still trembling. They sat upright with their heads lowered, lost in thought.
"Come on, Koenji. You were the one being rude.
"It's bad manners to take things without asking, and this is a dessert I like."
Gojo spoke with a smile the whole time, but Koenji could still feel the pressure surrounding him.
"I really am sorry. How about this?
"To make up for it, I'll pay for everything at this table."
Koenji made the generous offer with ease.
It was only a table of desserts, but Gojo hadn't just ordered a lot—everything was expensive, too. The total would be at least 30,000 or 40,000 points.
But where had Koenji gotten that many points? Ayanokoji wondered.
Given how freely Koenji spent, and the fact that he wouldn't receive any points this month, how could he still produce tens of thousands of points? Did he have another source of points, too?
"Isn't that only natural?
"You've made quite a lot of points off me. You're lucky I'm not asking you to split them with me."
Gojo pointed out the source of Koenji's points, then glanced at the upperclasswoman beside him, who had her head lowered. The corners of his mouth lifted slightly.
Noticing Gojo's gaze, Koenji decided not to hide it.
He hadn't expected Gojo to figure it out so easily. As expected, he was nothing like those fools.
"Hahaha, that's an interesting way to put it, Gojo-kun. How can you say I made points off you?
"Those students were simply too ignorant. Most of them only see what's on the surface and can't understand what true ability is."
Before you continue