"If you really can't figure it out, you can spend points to buy the information from me." Shimizu Akira leaned forward slightly and lowered his voice until only the two of them could hear. "I can give you a twenty percent discount. I guarantee it'll be worth every point."
"No need!" Horikita Suzune refused almost reflexively, her voice firm and unyielding. "I can figure it out myself."
His proud female desk mate had absolute confidence in her intelligence.
This kind of information usually required extensive socializing to gather clues, and with Horikita's keep-your-distance personality...
Shimizu Akira couldn't help imagining her trying to ask upperclassmen about it. Her icy attitude alone would be enough to send people running.
If socializing was off the table, even he would have a hard time thinking of another way to uncover the hidden rules.
The morning classes began as scheduled.
Shimizu Akira opened his brand-new textbook and lightly brushed his fingertips across the page.
His grades had been pretty good in his previous life, but Japan's education system was another matter entirely.
Math and English were manageable, since formulas and grammar worked much the same way.
But when the Japanese teacher began explaining classical grammar, his brow furrowed despite himself.
"In this passage from The Pillow Book, Sei Shōnagon uses a special rhetorical device..."
The teacher's voice gradually faded into indistinct background noise.
Shimizu Akira stared at the dense annotations in his textbook, feeling as if every kanji were dancing before his eyes.
He rubbed his temples without thinking, but the small gesture didn't escape the notice of the person sitting beside him.
"Heh~"
Was she laughing at me?
The moment the lunch bell rang, the classroom erupted into a buzz of activity.
"Want to head to the cafeteria together?" A handsome, sunny-looking boy stood in the middle of the aisle and smiled as he invited them.
Shimizu Akira recognized him at a glance: Hirata Yosuke, one of Class D's central figures. Kanji Ike had told him about him just yesterday.
"Sure! Let's go together, Hirata!" Several boys immediately responded with enthusiasm.
Come to think of it, the group of gyaru led by Karuizawa Kei is pretty eye-catching, too.
Shimizu Akira searched through his memories, his gaze drifting toward the other side of the classroom.
017 In the End, Karuizawa Kei Still Gave Up on Hirata Yosuke
"Sure, sure~"
With a playful yet pleasant voice, a girl with a chestnut-brown ponytail rose gracefully from her seat and slipped into the group as naturally as could be.
She had a delicate, doll-like face, but what stood out most was her distinctive honey-colored skin. She looked as if she'd just returned from a vacation in Hawaii, or perhaps had been born with sunshine in her veins.
Karuizawa Kei, the central figure of Class D's gyaru group.
She casually twirled a strand of hair. Her uniform skirt swayed gently as she walked, and she radiated a bold, sweet charm.
That tanned skin... Did she go out of her way to get a tan?
But Shimizu Akira's gaze shifted to his third piece of intel.
[Intel Three: Karuizawa Kei of Class 1-D is looking for a "fake boyfriend" to act as a shield.]
Wait... Is Karuizawa Kei interested in Hirata?
Shimizu Akira suddenly realized something, his gaze moving back and forth between the two.
It made sense when he thought about it. In every class so far, Hirata had eagerly raised his hand to answer questions, displaying impressive knowledge.
He really is an all-rounder...
He was flawless in both looks and ability. Hirata Yosuke was like the perfect male lead straight out of a school manga: handsome, excellent grades, and a gentle personality. Even after Shimizu Akira had left the day before, Hirata had stepped forward to organize the introductions.
The ultimate all-rounder, Hirata Yosuke!
No wonder even the leader of the gyaru group sees him differently.
But Karuizawa Kei's motives don't seem entirely innocent.
Honestly, he had a hard time understanding the logic behind this piece of intel.
In the class hierarchy, gyaru groups were always considered "Tier 0," right alongside delinquents.
They should be thanking their lucky stars if they weren't bullying others. Why would they need protection?
Unless... Karuizawa Kei has gotten herself into some kind of trouble?
But that has nothing to do with me.
He didn't know how his classmates saw him, but Shimizu Akira knew exactly what he was: based on how he'd acted in class so far, he was just an ordinary student.
Shimizu Akira... He really isn't an ordinary student.
As she pretended to toss her hair, Karuizawa Kei once again glanced at Shimizu Akira in the corner of the classroom.
She quickly looked away, a flippant smile on her lips, and continued discussing lunch options with Hirata Yosuke.
"I hear the ramen set in the cafeteria is pretty good," she said brightly.
In fact, ever since school had started the day before, this boy named Shimizu had caught her attention.
While everyone else had been busy making new friends, he alone had gone after their homeroom teacher, Chabashira Sae, and stopped her outside the classroom.
The way Chabashira-sensei treated him... There was something awfully intriguing about it.
Karuizawa Kei's thoughts drifted back to the entrance ceremony the previous morning.
She clearly remembered that before Shimizu Akira arrived late, another boy had hurried into line in a panic. Chabashira-sensei had merely glanced at him coldly, not even bothering to scold him.
But everything had been different when Shimizu Akira arrived at the last minute.
Chabashira Sae hadn't been particularly harsh with him. If anything, there had been a hint of compromise in her manner that was almost impossible to detect.
More strangely, she had even gestured for Shimizu Akira to stand at the very front of the line—the prominent spot that should have belonged to a class representative or a top student.
If you dislike someone, you can simply ignore them. But paying them special attention... usually means there's something more complicated going on.
Karuizawa Kei might have been average at academics and sports, but when it came to socializing, her bad experience with her middle school past had taught her to watch people closely as she spoke with them.
If she didn't, she was even afraid she'd lose the "gyaru" label altogether.
All in all, in Karuizawa Kei's eyes, Shimizu Akira was already on the same level as Hirata Yosuke.
"Karuizawa, are you listening?" Hirata's gentle voice brought her back to reality.
"Ah, sorry." She blinked. "I was just thinking about something."
"By the way, if there's a conflict between classmates and one of them is someone you know, Hirata, how would you handle it?" Karuizawa Kei asked, making it sound like a casual question.
"Well..." Hirata thought for a moment, then smiled warmly. "I'd handle it fairly. We're all classmates, after all, so I wouldn't take anyone's side."
"As expected of Hirata. You're so fair," one of the boys beside them immediately agreed.
"Yeah, you're such a nice guy," Karuizawa Kei chimed in with a laugh.
But inside, a ripple stirred.
A nice guy who didn't take anyone's side?
His answer made her feel inexplicably disappointed.
Hirata's even-handed nature was certainly admirable, but given her personality, she'd rather have a friend who would stand by her when it mattered.
In a romantic relationship, she also hoped her future boyfriend would be "selfish."
She wanted tenderness that was hers alone—something that would make her feel unique.
Because, deep down, Karuizawa Kei was a girl who desperately lacked a sense of security.
Should I really get that boy named Shimizu Akira to play the role of my "fake boyfriend"?
But if I chose Hirata...
With his good-natured personality, if he learned about what had happened to her in middle school, he'd surely agree without hesitation to pretend to be her boyfriend, wouldn't he?
After all, he was the kind of person who would protect others unconditionally.
But—
If it were Shimizu Akira...
Her throat tightened slightly, and an uncertain restlessness spread through her chest.
Would he really be willing?
When it came down to it, they were just ordinary classmates, not even friends. They hadn't spoken to each other once.
Even if she laid all her weakness and shame bare before him, why would he take on all that trouble for her? Sympathy? Pity? Or...
Would he simply not care?
The image of Shimizu Akira striking Yamauchi Haruki without a moment's hesitation suddenly flashed through her mind. His decisive manner was in stark contrast to Hirata Yosuke's ever-gentle restraint.
If it were him...
She could almost picture it. If she were "dating" Hirata Yosuke and got into a conflict with another classmate one day, Hirata would still wear that perfect smile and say, "Let's all get along." Just imagining it made her chest feel tight.
That kind of everyone-gets-the-same-sweetness treatment... No thanks!
Karuizawa Kei took a deep breath.
I've decided—
I'll choose Shimizu Akira.
Karuizawa Kei suddenly realized there was a more practical question.
So, is there anything about me... that would attract him?
018 Did She Bring the Beer Back?/A Chance Encounter with Ichinose Honami
Today's lunch was the signature tonkotsu ramen with bone broth.
Shimizu Akira had always loved Japanese ramen, especially the rich broth paired with springy, thin noodles.
The shop had added tender fish cake and bright green spinach as toppings. The spinach leaves peeked through the rich broth, making his mouth water just looking at them.
Just as Shimizu Akira was about to pick up his chopsticks, an unexpected guest sat down across from him.
"I'm not drinking it. Here, take it back," the purple-haired girl said out of the blue.
Kamuro Masumi pushed a bulging plastic bag in front of him.
Through the translucent plastic, the neatly arranged beer cans were clearly visible.
Shimizu Akira raised an eyebrow and looked her over. "Did you think the alcohol content was too low?"
"That's not the point!" Kamuro Masumi's voice suddenly rose, drawing glances from several nearby students.
"I have something I want to ask you. What class are you in? What's your name?" She leaned forward slightly. "How did you know my class and name?"
Shimizu Akira calmly took a sip of broth before replying at an unhurried pace. "First-year Class D. Shimizu Akira."
He paused. "As for how I knew your information..." He shrugged. "Sakayanagi Arisu told me."
—Strictly speaking, it wasn't a lie. After all, the first time they'd met, that cunning Class A student had indeed let Kamuro Masumi's information slip without meaning to.
"...It was Classmate Sakayanagi?"
Of course she knew Sakayanagi Arisu. Yesterday, during the new students' arrival, the girl with a cane and a boy named Katsuragi Kohei had immediately become the focus of everyone in Class A.
Why would Sakayanagi tell a Class D student about me?
For that matter, why is this person helping me?
Kamuro Masumi frowned slightly and studied Shimizu Akira.
With his calm, unbothered expression, he didn't look at all like someone dealing with a girl he was interested in.
Could I have misunderstood?
Maybe he really had only reached out to help out of kindness?
Before you continue