Taking Action

After winning, Sudo went to take a shower in the club's changing room by himself.

Ayanokoji had left early to take care of something.

That left Zhuge Linghao standing there, staring blankly.

With no other choice, Zhuge had to swallow his pride and pester the basketball club captain relentlessly.

The captain was so fed up with him that he finally made an exception and let Zhuge use the showers.

Ishizaki Daichi, the green-haired student from Class 1-C, finished showering first and received a phone call.

"Big Brother Ryuen."

A menacing voice came from the other end. "You idiot. You missed the perfect opportunity to make your move."

"I-It's like this... There's always someone with the target, so we haven't found a chance to act..."

"Make your move by tonight at the latest. Otherwise, you know what'll happen."

"Yes, sir!"

Ishizaki hung up, his eyes turning vicious. "Komiya Yego, Kondo Suzune, proceed with Plan A."

Six in the evening, outside the basketball club.

Now that the points had been distributed, Zhuge Linghao had no reason to keep an eye on Ken Sudō.

So he was trying to come up with a casual excuse to slip away...

What perfect timing. A great excuse had just presented itself!

"Hey, red-haired monkey! You looked like you were having a blast playing basketball just now!"

"If that black-haired telephone pole hadn't made that god-tier game-winning shot, you'd be bawling like a girl right now, wouldn't you?"

Ishizaki Daichi stood with his hands in his pockets, sneering.

"What did you say? Looking for a fight?" Ken Sudō was ready to explode at the slightest provocation.

"Heh. You got the guts to come with me? I know a quiet place."

"And this has nothing to do with you, telephone pole, so get lost!"

Sudō, ever the loyal friend, spoke up too. "These guys have had a grudge against me for ages. This has nothing to do with you. You should go."

Zhuge Linghao took the advice and cooperated, darting off in a flash...

Of course, he hadn't actually left!

Zhuge Linghao, the resident rubberneck, was back in action. He quietly followed the group.

The sunset streamed through the iron-barred windows, casting a soft glow across the old-fashioned tiled floor.

"This angle's nice!"

Click, click...

Sakura Airi, who hated socializing, was taking selfies in the hallway on the third floor of the Special Building.

Without her glasses and with a light touch of makeup, she looked just like an idol!

It was a far cry from her usual plain, gloomy, bespectacled appearance.

"This composition is beautiful."

Click, click...

"Blur the background... Wait, someone's in the shot?"

"Is that... Zhuge?"

"And Sudo, plus three people I don't recognize."

"Are you guys ever going to quit?"

Ken Sudō had had enough. Those thugs had been provoking him every few days, and now they'd even insulted him by saying he had parents who'd given birth to him but never raised him!

He couldn't take it anymore.

Before he could make a move, Ishizaki and the other two rushed him.

Kondo Suzune, the buzz-cut one, circled behind Sudō and wrapped both arms around him.

Ishizaki Daichi grabbed Sudō by the collar.

Komiya Yego, with his medium-length hair, weakly punched Sudō in the stomach.

Watching from a distance, Zhuge Linghao immediately saw what was going on. That guy wasn't even putting any strength into it!

Oh no, Sudō's going to get hurt!

Ryuen, is this your scheme?

```[Ding! The host's classmate Ken Sudō is being "beaten to a pulp." A quest is being triggered...]

[Option A: A shameless Wing Chun master. The host rushes into the fight, gives the three students from Class C the international sign of friendship, then takes advantage of their anger to use advanced footwork, dodging and weaving as he pulls down their pants! Then he laughs "Hahahahahaha!" and breaks into a disco dance, deliberately leaving himself open! When the three charge at him, the host unleashes a flurry of chain punches to their faces. Afterward, he declares with a look of lonely invincibility: "How lonely it is to be invincible!"]

[Option B: A fledgling action star. The host strikes a showy pose and menacingly demonstrates the basic moves of the Wing Chun master from the previous option: asking hand, slapping hand, spreading hand, wing arm, circling hand, pressing hand, blocking hand, pointing hand, chain punches, empty punches, turning horse to block, turning horse to plow, turning horse stance, and more. Finally, he shouts nervously: "I'll take on ten of you!"]

[Option C: A professional boxer who can only use his legs. The host quickly throws thirty punches at the air, then does everything in his power to brag about how fast and hard his fists are! Then he suddenly spouts nonsense: "Do you know what it means if I throw a punch? It means I've thrown a punch." Finally, he takes down all three with a sweeping kick.]

[System, you're really "law-abiding," huh? I've got no choice, do I? You're making me fight, aren't you?]

Zhuge Linghao chose Quest A for two reasons.

First, while playing basketball, these three had secretly elbowed him and stepped on his feet, so Zhuge wanted revenge by giving them all black eyes.

Second, he was just really curious about what color underwear they were wearing!]

After completing the quest, the three students from Class 1-C fled in disgrace, not even daring to make threats.

"Not bad, Zhuge! That diversionary tactic was impossible to defend against!" Ken Sudō said excitedly.

He hadn't realized Zhuge Linghao was a Wing Chun master. His attention had been entirely on the pants-pulling, so he thought Zhuge had won with some brilliant trick.

"Nothing special. Third best in the world."

"But judging by the way you were throwing punches, have you been training in secret?"

"You figured it out! All right, I'll tell only you, so don't let it slip..."

"Actually, I practice calligraphy and piano..."

Looking at Sudō's bewildered expression, Zhuge Linghao laughed happily.

Ryuen, what else are you going to do to bring Class D down? Bring it on!

In a karaoke room, Ryuen and the other students from Class C were living the enviable high life amid all the glitz and glamour.

Suddenly, the door swung open, and Ishizaki Daichi and the others stumbled inside. With blood still running from their noses, they cried out pitifully, "Big Brother Ryuen, we got beaten up!"

"Hm? The plan was for Sudo to beat you up."

"N-No, Zhuge Linghao did it! That guy's terrifying!"

"Zhuge Linghao? Wasn't I supposed to have you deal with Ken Sudō? Why'd you go and pick a fight with him?"

Ryuen mused, That guy gave off a strong sense of pressure at the start of the school year. I'd probably have to use seventy percent of my strength to beat him!

"We were fighting Ken Sudō, but Zhuge came out of nowhere. He beat us up—and damn it, he only hit our faces!"

"You still have the nerve to talk? Albert, take care of this!"

Ryuen swirled his wineglass and gave the Black Bodyguard a look.

And so, Ishizaki and the other two suffered a second beating.

Ryuen looked at the badly injured trio, his voice icy. "Now hurry up and go find the student council president. Accuse Zhuge Linghao and Ken Sudō of violently assaulting you."

"I'm going to get those two expelled."

Meanwhile, terrified, Sakura Airi clutched her camera tightly and ran toward the dorms without daring to look back...

Horikita Suzune happened to be reading in the study room in the Special Building. As she watched Sakura Airi flee like a startled bird, a question mark slowly appeared above her head.