"Dokuho, you actually remembered everyone's names?"
"I secretly recorded it on my phone while you were introducing yourselves, then memorized them overnight."
"Seriously?"
"No. If I did that, everyone would think I was a creep."
The school cafeteria.
After getting their meal sets, Dokuho Kouya and the others found an empty spot to sit. They chatted as they ate.
Seeing Dokuho Kouya joking around of his own accord, the students who had come with him immediately relaxed.
"So Dokuho really isn't hard to get along with after all." Mako Amikura put a hand to her chest and spoke with relief.
She had originally worried that Dokuho was rather withdrawn and that it would be difficult to get along with him.
But after actually spending time with him, she realized that wasn't the case at all. On the contrary, Dokuho was quite the conversationalist.
"I can't imagine that the Dokuho we see now and the one who gave that speech this morning are the same person." Recalling what had happened that morning, Norihito Watanabe hunched his shoulders.
That morning, Dokuho Kouya had revealed the school's hidden rules to everyone in class. He'd also said he wouldn't offer the class any more advice, and that he intended to collect 20 million personal points to rise to Class A.
At the time, he'd seemed like a big shot who disdained working with others.
If Norihito Watanabe hadn't seen Dokuho Kouya chatting and laughing with Sayo Ando, who sat beside him, at noon, he wouldn't have dared come along for lunch.
"I was surprised too." Sayo Ando nodded in agreement. "The Dokuho we saw this morning was completely different from the impression he usually gives."
Of everyone in class, she had definitely spent the most time with Dokuho Kouya.
Not only did she sit next to him, she'd also gone shopping with him at the convenience store that afternoon. And that morning, just after leaving the dormitory, they'd gone to the cafeteria for breakfast together.
In all their interactions, the impression the boy had given her was that he was considerate and kind. He'd been nothing like the forceful person who'd stood at the podium that morning.
It was like they were two different people.
Hearing his friends' confusion, Dokuho Kouya was pleased.
Good.
This was exactly the effect he wanted.
Most of the time, he looked like an ordinary Class B student.
But when it came to critical moments, such as a Special Exam, he could show a side completely different from that of his classmates—even giving the impression that "if I get serious, I can turn the tide."
He was in the most united class, Class B, and seemed friendly. He was also capable, yet unwilling to help the class, preferring instead to rely on himself to collect 20 million points.
All these contradictions came together to create a false image.
False as it was, it was an image no one else could imitate.
[Sound check...]
A girl's clear, sweet voice came over the cafeteria speakers.
[Good afternoon, students. This is Akane Tachibana, secretary of the Student Council.]
[The club fair will be held at the First Gymnasium at 5 p.m. today. Any interested students are welcome to attend.]
[I'll repeat that...]
The new students who were eating stopped what they were doing and listened to the announcement.
"There's a club fair this afternoon." Mako Amikura's eyebrows lifted. She clasped her hands together and said excitedly, "Did any of you join a club back in middle school?"
Having found a new topic, Mako and the others stopped discussing Dokuho Kouya's image and started talking about their middle school sports experiences.
"I was in the Volleyball Club in middle school."
Sayo Ando smiled as she shared her experience. "If this school has a Volleyball Club, I'll definitely sign up."
"I thought you played basketball, Sayo." Norihito Watanabe looked a little surprised.
"The basketball coach in middle school did try to recruit me, but I still liked volleyball more." Sayo Ando smiled.
"Volleyball practice must've been really tough, right?" Tetsuya Hamaguchi asked.
"Yeah, I can't deny that." Sayo Ando lowered her lovely eyebrows with a helpless look, as though recalling the grueling days of training.
"Even though practice was so tough, Sayo still wants to join the Volleyball Club in high school. That feels so youthful."
Mako Amikura clasped her hands together and said enviously, "Should I join a sports club too?"
Mako Amikura's bright eyes flickered as she looked at her friends expectantly.
"How about we all go check out the First Gymnasium this afternoon? There might be some fun clubs."
"I don't mind." Norihito Watanabe smiled sheepishly.
"I want to see if there's a Volleyball Club first." Sayo Ando was still thinking about playing the volleyball she loved.
"I'd also like to see what the clubs at Advanced Nurturing are like." After speaking, Tetsuya Hamaguchi turned to the boy beside him who hadn't said anything. "What about you, Dokuho? Are you going to the club fair?"
Dokuho Kouya shook his head. "I've got some things to take care of this afternoon, so I'll have to skip it for now."
No way.
As far as he remembered,
the highlight of the club fair was the Student Council president bringing the entire gymnasium to silence without saying a word.
He had no interest in doing someone else's work for them.
Even if he did go, he'd only show up after the Student Council president had used the "silence" skill.
"Are you planning to start the 20 Million Points Collection Plan, Dokuho?" Norihito Watanabe asked curiously.
At his question, everyone nearby turned to look at Dokuho with curiosity.
"I am," Dokuho Kouya replied with a slight nod.
While resting the night before, he'd already been thinking about how to collect more personal points.
If everything went smoothly, he could probably earn an extra hundred thousand or so points each month.
Still, it definitely wouldn't be as much as he'd earned yesterday from the match.
"Oh?"
Hearing this, Mako Amikura grew interested. "Dokuho, can I watch from the sidelines?"
"Sure." Dokuho Kouya wasn't afraid of being watched.
If anything, he wanted others to see him, then spread the word.
"By the way, Mako, aren't you going to the club fair?" Dokuho Kouya asked teasingly. "You were the one who first suggested we go."
"Ahaha..." The purple-haired girl with her hair in a ponytail laughed awkwardly. "The clubs aren't going anywhere. I'd rather see how Dokuho earns points than go to the club fair."
Her reasoning was perfectly normal and logical.
Who wouldn't want to learn how someone else made money?
It was just that what Dokuho Kouya was about to do couldn't be copied, even if others watched from the sidelines.
Before you continue