The School Where Only He Is Absent

Miyano sat in the vehicle that served as the school bus, his eyes drifting out the window as his mind wandered far away.

"With your ability, as long as you perform normally, taking first place will be more than enough."

The swimming coach smiled and offered comfort, assuming Miyano was nervous.

He was accompanying Miyano as his coach in the back seat, while the driver was teacher Simakudian, who wore a stern expression, clearly the type of rigid, old-fashioned man.

"It's fine, I was just thinking about something else. By the way, when are we returning to school?"

"We'll head back as soon as the competition ends this afternoon."

Since it wasn't a matter of great importance, the swimming coach immediately answered Miyano's question.

"I see..."

Miyano said no more, continuing to look out the window in silence, while Simakudian glanced at him briefly through the rearview mirror before remaining quiet.

And so, the three of them traveled toward their destination in silence.

"Boss Ryuen, are we still going to proceed with the harassment plan against Class B as usual? Isn't that a bit... not great?"

Ishizaki Daichi asked cautiously. Ever since the four... no, the three of them were unilaterally beaten up by Miyano a few days ago, Boss Ryuen had seemed a bit depressed, and he had been speaking much less than usual.

"Don't come asking me about such trivial matters; the plan proceeds as usual."

Ryuen Kakeru scratched his head, looking slightly annoyed. He had never cared about how others felt, or rather, he disdained to care.

To him, as long as the final result was favorable, that was all that mattered. As for the process?

Everything was for the sake of reaching his goal, and he could use any means necessary to achieve it.

What if he was despised? What if he was hated? It wouldn't cost him a single piece of flesh.

"O-okay."

Ishizaki Daichi stood up and left to notify the rest of Class C. All their plans were communicated verbally so that no evidence would be left on the network.

Ryuen Kakeru was that kind of cautious person; many people knew things were his handiwork, yet they could never find any evidence to accuse him.

Testimony alone was simply not enough.

Because people were creatures that could be bought, and in modern society, there had been too many incidents of baseless slander. Nowadays, the government was extremely careful about such matters, fearing that their credibility in the eyes of the public would drop even further.

"Ryuen, you really can't change your nature, can you?"

Ibuki Mio said with disgust. She loathed the man in front of her, yet for some reason, he trusted her deeply.

"Ibuki, this is my way of survival. How about it? Have you been conquered by my charismatic personality yet?"

Hearing Ibuki Mio's voice, Ryuen Kakeru looked up and flashed a fearless smile.

"Are you referring to that 'beaten dog' look you had a few days ago? If so, then I have truly been 'conquered' by you."

Ibuki Mio didn't hold back as she exposed Ryuen Kakeru's wounds, laying them bare for all to see.

"That time was indeed my mistake. I didn't expect there to be such a 'monster' in this school."

Ryuen Kakeru was not the type of man who refused to admit his failures. Fortunately, this failure hadn't caused any terrible consequences; instead, it had allowed him to gain some valuable intelligence.

Miyano Makoto—this man was absolutely dangerous.

He didn't believe that someone with such skills could be a gentle little lamb; this wasn't a fairy tale.

Did people really think a hero would be some kind of benevolent soul?

"Then just wait to be taught a lesson by him."

Ibuki Mio mocked him. She eyed Ryuen Kakeru's posture, which seemed slightly more hunched than usual.

"But you're really lucky. That Miyano doesn't seem to be at school today; I didn't see him this morning."

"Ibuki, excellent intel. I really didn't misjudge you."

Hearing this, Ryuen Kakeru stood up abruptly, patted Ibuki Mio on the shoulder, and laughed.

"Let me turn this school upside down!"

"You jerk!"

Ibuki Mio forcefully swatted away the hand Ryuen Kakeru had placed on her shoulder, her face showing undisguised disgust.

"I advise you not to underestimate him."

"I have never had such a thought."

The two parted on their usual sour note. Ibuki Mio left in a huff, and Ryuen Kakeru gave a slight wave, prompting Ishizaki Daichi, who had just finished delivering the notifications, to trot over eagerly.

"Boss Ryuen, any further instructions?"

"Keep an eye on the behavior of the Class B students. If anything seems off, stop all actions immediately. I have a feeling this isn't as simple as it seems."

"Understood, I'll pass the word along right away."

Upon learning that Miyano might not be at school, Ryuen Kakeru's suspicions only deepened. Would the other party really be caught off guard?

He decided to step out and observe for himself in a little while.

"What are you so happy about?"

Inside the Class A classroom, Sakayanagi Arisu asked with curiosity.

Honami usually walked into the classroom with a sunny smile, but today was different; her face wore a smile so radiant it could melt anything, even making Sakayanagi Arisu feel a hint of fear.

Something was wrong, something was definitely, undeniably wrong.

"Is it that obvious?"

Honami tilted her head and reined in her smile just a little.

"As long as you know, I'm not that curious anyway."

Sakayanagi Arisu didn't even need to guess; she could have figured out with her eyes closed that this had everything to do with Makoto.

"Hehe, it's nothing major, really."

Honami scratched her cheek with her index finger, looking completely bashful.

"Oh, right, right, I almost forgot the important stuff."

She patted her cheeks hard to clear her head.

Honami, oh Honami, stop thinking about those things; the top priority is the issue within the class.

The existence of the past exam papers had once again confirmed Makoto's capabilities to the students of Class A, and Honami had not hidden the source of the information.

However, the fact that the source was someone from Class B caused many students to express concern, with Hashimoto Masayoshi being the first among them.

"I asked Mashima-sensei, and the private points required to transfer classes are 20 million. Before your boyfriend transfers here, could we have Katsuragi or Sakayanagi serve as our leader instead?"

That was the sentiment he wanted to convey.

Because Sakayanagi Arisu had been getting too close to Honami, Hashimoto Masayoshi also didn't fully trust her loyalty to Class A.

"Hashimoto-kun, come here for a second."

Honami beckoned him over. Hashimoto Masayoshi was currently the leader of the neutral faction in Class A; as long as she told him, she wouldn't have to worry about the rest.

"What is it, Angel-sama?"

Hashimoto Masayoshi was acting like a severe case of middle-school syndrome. He didn't address Ichinose Honami by her surname, but rather with the cringe-inducing "Angel-sama," and correspondingly, he referred to Sakayanagi Arisu as "Princess-sama."

Anyone who didn't know better would think they were living in the Middle Ages.

"I'm sorry for making you worry earlier, but I think after seeing this, you won't have anything else to say, right?"

Honami generously handed over her phone, signaling for him to look at the information on the screen.

Hashimoto Masayoshi's pupils contracted sharply. What met his eyes was a balance of nearly 16 million private points. Although two-thirds of Class A's total private points were concentrated in Honami's hands, such an abnormal figure clearly couldn't have been achieved in a mere two months.

"Th-this is...?"

Hashimoto Masayoshi asked in a daze; he already had a guess in his heart, but he still couldn't believe it.

Seriously, man? Your boyfriend is that insane? He just hands over 10 million like that?

And where did he even get 10 million? Where in this school is there a place for him to earn that much money?

Horikita Manabu: Don't @ me.

"Now you understand, right? Your worries were all unnecessary."

Honami maintained a polite smile. For Makoto's sake, she had to work even harder!

She would strive to become a wife worthy of him.

"I understand. I have no doubt that with Angel-sama and Princess-sama working in harmony, Class A will surely be able to strike down any invading enemies without leaving a single one behind."

Most of the worry in Hashimoto Masayoshi's heart had vanished. Although both leaders seemed uninterested in class competition, as long as Ichinose's boyfriend transferred over, everything would be fine!

As for Katsuragi Kohei?

Sorry, they weren't really close.

At the start of the school year, relying on his excellent academic grades and his stiff, serious attitude, he had tried to seize the throne of Class A's leadership.

However, Ichinose Honami—who was just as capable and even slightly superior in academics—had emerged out of nowhere. After she pointed out part of the school's true nature and revealed that her phone had one more zero in private points than the rest of the students, the class had voted with their feet and unanimously decided that Ichinose Honami was their leader.

Katsuragi Kohei could only rub his bald head in response to that.

Forget it, he just needed to focus on doing his own thing.