"...I owe you one." She spoke stiffly, her gaze drifting elsewhere.
"It was nothing. Don't worry about it." Shimizu Akira waved a hand casually.
After all, he'd only bought the beer because of his bet with Sakayanagi Arisu. Helping her out had just been a side benefit.
"Give me your contact information." The girl ignored his answer, took out her phone, and fixed her gaze on him.
Shimizu Akira paused, only then realizing that the girl in front of him was a thoroughgoing egoist.
He took out his phone and added her as a friend.
"You use your real name as your ID? You're a textbook example of a boring man."
"That way, people won't get confused."
"If you need help with something important, you can come to me. But you only get one chance..."
After saying that, she picked up her phone and turned away without hesitation.
Shimizu Akira had to admit that Kamuro Masumi was indeed a person full of contradictions. She bristled with spikes that warned people to stay away, yet she had frankly admitted that she owed him a favor.
She acted like she did whatever she wanted, but deep down, she unexpectedly stuck to her principles.
"That awkward honesty... isn't so bad."
He glanced down at the new contact on his phone. Compared with those insincere pleasantries, he preferred this kind of candor, sharp edges and all.
However, his contacts list had only two names: Kamuro Masumi and Sakayanagi Arisu.
"Maybe... I should try talking to my classmates in Class D?"
It wasn't that he was against socializing. He was simply the type to strike up a conversation only when he met someone who interested him.
It was the second day of school, and there were still only two names in his friends list.
His gaze moved down to the second piece of information:
[Information 2: Ichinose Honami of Class 1-B—after just one day of school, her contact list already had over a hundred friends, including many upperclassmen.]
"Other people already have hundreds of friends..."
He stared at the remaining bag of beer on the desk. Figuring out what to do with it really had become a problem.
As someone who didn't drink, he quietly considered the most sensible way to deal with it.
Maybe giving it to an adult was the best option? His homeroom teacher, Chabashira Sae, for instance, seemed like a suitable choice.
As his thoughts wandered, he remembered another important matter: an upperclassman named Yamamura xx seemed to be hiding some kind of secret.
For just ten thousand Private Points, he could get information about some of the S System's rules. No matter how he looked at it, that was a pretty good deal.
"Hey! You can't drink alcohol if you're under twenty~"
As he stood there, lost in thought, a sweet voice came from beside him.
He turned and saw a beautiful girl with pink hair. Her concerned eyes were fixed on the beer on the desk.
Shimizu Akira paused. The girl was the well-known leader of Class B. "Actually, I don't drink. I was just wondering what to do with all this beer."
"Really?" The girl's eyes lit up. "Our homeroom teacher happens to love drinking~ If you don't mind, why don't I take care of the beer?"
She tilted her head, thought for a moment, then added, "By the way, how much did the beer cost? I can transfer you some points."
"No need," Shimizu Akira said quickly, waving his hands. "You'd be doing me a huge favor by taking it."
"How could I do that!" The girl shook her head emphatically. "That wouldn't be fair to you. At least let me do you a favor in return!"
"But before that, please let me introduce myself!" The girl smiled. "My name is Ichinose Honami, and I'm from Class 1-B. Nice to meet you!"
Shimizu Akira's eyes widened slightly. For a moment, he was dazed.
—Ichinose Honami?
The one from the information, the "social genius" whose circle of friends had grown to over a hundred in just one day?
He gathered himself and replied politely, "I'm Shimizu Akira from Class D. It's nice to meet you."
"Huh? Class D!" Ichinose's eyes lit up. "What a coincidence! I know Kushida from your class. We exchanged contact information just yesterday!"
Shimizu Akira couldn't help taking another look at her.
—On the second day of school, she'd already made a connection in Class D?
(...Her social skills really are... terrifying.)
(Wait!... This might be the perfect opportunity!)
Shimizu Akira's eyes brightened slightly. He seized the chance and said, "Then I'll take you up on that, Ichinose. Actually, I'm looking for an upperclassman in Class 2-D. Could you introduce me?"
"Class 2-D? No problem. Leave it to me~" Ichinose Honami cheerfully patted her chest, her face blooming with a smile as bright as a sunflower.
(Could this person be the school's angel?!)
They'd only just met, yet she'd offered to help with the troublesome beer, and now she'd readily agreed to introduce him to an upperclassman.
He hadn't felt this kind of unguarded kindness in a long time.
019: Some of the S System's Rules
After Shimizu Akira finished his meal, Ichinose Honami had just handed the beer she was carrying to her homeroom teacher. The two of them ran into each other in the hallway.
They walked one behind the other toward the second-year classrooms.
Ichinose suddenly spoke. "Shimizu... If I remember correctly, you're the one who almost got into a fight with a classmate at the entrance ceremony, right?"
"That was me." Shimizu Akira admitted it calmly, though he was a little surprised.
He hadn't expected students from other classes to have noticed what happened.
"Really?!" Ichinose's voice suddenly turned lively. "That Yamauchi said some really awful things to the girls in your class. I think you were completely justified! It's just..." She tilted her head slightly and smiled kindly. "As high school students, maybe we could think about ways to resolve things without resorting to violence?"
Shimizu Akira was secretly astonished.
It was only the first day of school, yet Ichinose from Class B already seemed to know the details of what was happening in Class D.
Had she heard about it by chance, or was it... intentional?
He couldn't help taking another look at the smiling girl in front of him.
Unlike Horikita Suzune, whose coldness kept people at arm's length, Ichinose Honami seemed naturally skilled at weaving a web of relationships, handling every little detail just right.
Her innate social talent was truly impressive.
She was also remarkably tactful. Rather than directly criticizing his impulsiveness, she first affirmed his position, then gently offered advice.
She managed to get her point across without making him feel offended.
She was the very definition of "high emotional intelligence."
"Yeah, you're right." Shimizu Akira nodded in agreement.
"Really?" Ichinose Honami said brightly. "Shimizu, why don't we exchange contact information? We might need to get in touch sometime."
She suggested it so naturally, as though it were just a passing thought.
And just like that, Shimizu Akira had the contact information of a third classmate.
The two of them strolled to the entrance of Class 2-D.
On the way, Shimizu Akira had told Ichinose Honami the name of the upperclassman he was looking for.
It was lunchtime, and only a few students were in the classroom.
"Oh, isn't that Ichinose?" A girl came over with a smile.
"Senpai!" Ichinose replied warmly. "Actually, I came to your class to find someone named..."
Before Shimizu Akira could react, the girl everyone called "Yamamura-senpai" was already standing in front of them. She was the person he'd been looking for.
"Yamamura-senpai, could I speak with you privately?" Ichinose smiled and led her to a quiet corner of the hallway, moving so naturally that it seemed she'd planned it all in advance.
"Shimizu, I'll leave you two to it." She gave him a light nod and turned to leave before he could thank her, her retreating figure brisk and decisive.
Shimizu Akira looked at his phone.
It had been only twenty minutes since he'd run into Ichinose.
Subtracting the time she'd spent taking care of the beer, she'd found the right person for him in less than ten minutes.
Her incredible social efficiency left him speechless.
The way she handled things was nothing like a high school student's.
He hadn't even needed to hint that he wanted some privacy. She'd already known exactly when to step away, helping him without making it seem like she was intruding.
(It was like she could read people's minds...)
Shimizu Akira watched her leave, experiencing firsthand for the first time what it meant to be "a gentle rain that nourished everything without a sound."
Still, business came first.
Shimizu Akira let his gaze discreetly pass over the upperclassman, lingering for an instant on the rather meager lunch in her hands.
"Senpai, your class didn't get enough points this month, did it? Would you be interested in making a deal?"
Yamamura-senpai's fingers stiffened slightly. She looked up sharply, surprise flashing in her eyes. "You... You're just a new student, aren't you? You already figured out the points system on your second day... Are you from Class A?"
Her voice held both surprise and wariness. Her gaze swept around them, checking that no one else was paying attention to their conversation.
Shimizu Akira noticed her tense gaze and reassured her softly, "Are you worried someone might see us? Don't worry, there's no one nearby."
"It's not just that..." Yamamura-senpai lowered her voice. "The school's surveillance system is everywhere. If they catch us making a deal like this, our Class Points will be deducted."
"Class Points?" Shimizu Akira asked, putting on a suitably puzzled expression.
The upperclassman lifted her chin. "If you want to know the details, transfer me thirty thousand Private Points first."
"Ten thousand," Shimizu Akira countered without changing his expression.
"I'm taking a risk here!" she whispered urgently. "At least twenty thousand!"
"Ten thousand." Shimizu Akira kept his voice calm.
"...You freshman..." Yamamura-senpai glared at him through gritted teeth, then finally slumped in defeat. "...Fine. Deal. Transfer it first, and I'll tell you everything I know."
In the end, Shimizu Akira managed to get crucial information from Yamamura-senpai.
Aside from the basic class assignment system and the way points were distributed, he compiled five essential rules:
First, the school ranked classes by "Class Points," and classes could move up or down dynamically. For example, if Class D's points exceeded Class C's, the two classes would automatically switch ranks.
Second, Class Points directly affected students' individual benefits. The School Administration converted Class Points into Private Points at a rate of one to one hundred, distributing them on the first of each month.
Third, at the start of the school year, each class received one thousand Class Points by default. During the first month, students were expected to follow everyday rules. Tardiness, truancy, classroom misconduct, and other such behavior would all count toward deductions at the end of the month if caught on camera.
Fourth, although the penalties were strict, there were also ways to earn points. The school regularly held exams and events, and outstanding performances could win extra points for a class. But Yamamura-senpai's tone had turned noticeably bitter when she brought this up. For Class D, those opportunities were usually just a chance to make up the numbers.
Fifth, revealing the existence of the S System to newly enrolled students was strictly forbidden. If the surveillance cameras caught someone doing so, the person who revealed the information would have a certain number of Class Points deducted.
For this reason, students in Classes A, B, and C usually kept their mouths shut about it.
But things were different in Class D. When people were struggling to afford even the necessities, the collective good didn't seem so important.
A small number of Class D students were even willing to take the risk of secretly selling information.
If the School Administration hadn't explicitly forbidden it, given their circumstances, the students in Class D would probably have cornered every new student and sold them every last piece of information they knew.
After all, the School Administration wanted students to discover the rules through their own exploration. Selling information outright would undermine that process.
As long as people avoided the cameras and made small deals in secluded corners, the School Administration would usually turn a blind eye.
020: I Don't Want to Be a Blood Bag, So I'd Better Earn Some Private Points
There was an old saying in China: "Once you enter Class D, it's like plunging into a bottomless sea."
Before learning about the S System, Shimizu Akira had naively thought that if he got good grades at the end of the month, he might not get a hundred thousand points, but surely he could count on thirty or fifty thousand.
Now he understood—he was still too young.
The reality that Private Points and Class Points were forcibly tied together felt like a bucket of cold water dumped over his head.
He instinctively glanced around. The scene made his heart tighten:
It was only the afternoon of the second day of school, during third period, and Chabashira Sae was teaching the class. Yet several students were already sneaking looks at their phones.
In the corner of the classroom, a conspicuous security camera silently recorded everything.
Before you continue