Classroom of the Elite, After the Intel Refreshed, They Always Want to Conquer Me!

(But the matter of the transaction...)

(I already owe a favor...)

After half a second of hesitation, she finally raised her hand and took the tissue with an air of indifference.

"Don't feel like you owe me a favor or feel bad about it; tonight's dinner has settled the score. To me, this is also a great opportunity to earn points, purely a fair trade." Shimizu Akira saw through her concerns and said nonchalantly, "Tell me. What kind of information do you intend to buy from me? Is it just that you want to know the truth about the class assignments?"

"..." Horikita Suzune's gaze sharpened instantly, "Shimizu-kun, judging by your tone, it seems you possess other information as well?"

"Well, you could say that." Shimizu Akira's lips curled slightly.

After a brief silence, Horikita Suzune lifted her chin, "...Tell me the truth about the class assignments first."

"It's actually quite simple." Shimizu Akira leaned back in his chair, "The school divides classes based on the students' level of excellence. During the entrance exam, every interviewer scores us based on our performance. By synthesizing these evaluations and certain special criteria, everyone is eventually assigned to one of four classes: A, B, C, or D. Class A is the best class, while Class D is the worst."

He looked straight at Horikita, his tone calm yet carrying an unquestionable certainty: "In other words—the elites go to Class A and B, while the mediocre are left in Class C and D."

"...That's impossible! Are you sure this is true?"

"I probed Chabashira-sensei on the first day of school. Besides, this is information confirmed personally by a second-year senior."

"But..."

"Still doubting?" Shimizu Akira interrupted gently, "Then tell me, Horikita-san, which class is your excellent brother—the Student Council president—in?"

"Third year... Class A."

This sentence landed like a heavy hammer.

Horikita Suzune's body swayed violently, "I was assigned to Class D... So, in the school's judgment... I don't even meet the passing grade?"

026 Protect me as a premise, and go out with me.

Horikita Suzune's life had always been shrouded by a shadow.

That was the back of her brother.

Some once joked that she was a "brother-con," but she knew clearly—it wasn't a twisted attachment, but pure admiration.

And now, fate had played the cruelest joke on her.

When she finally stepped into this academy where her brother presided over the Student Council, she was greeted with the label of Class D.

Between her and her brother, who sat high in Class A, lay a chasm of three letters.

Her nails dug deep into her palms.

She thought of her perfect attendance record in junior high, her report cards that were always at the top, and those nights of self-discipline that bordered on the ascetic.

All this evidence of her excellence was now crushed to pieces by the label of Class D.

"The class assignment system is unreasonable!..."

Horikita Suzune's voice seeped through her gritted teeth.

Anger boiled in her chest—not doubt toward herself, but the most intense rejection of this judging system.

"Shimizu-kun! Let's exchange contact information!" Horikita Suzune suddenly stood up.

"Oh? Suddenly so proactive?" Shimizu Akira raised an eyebrow. The two had just finished exchanging info and hadn't even had a chance to say much when his phone received a transfer notification.

"Eighty thousand points, there you go. We are completely square." Her movements were shockingly fast. The moment she put her phone away, that delicate face had already returned to its usual coldness, as if silently declaring, "If you dare to talk to me, I'll kill you."

Watching the girl's retreating figure, Shimizu Akira shook his head with a bitter smile: "She wouldn't go to confront Chabashira-sensei, would she..."

His gaze followed that stubborn figure until she disappeared at the cafeteria entrance.

There was a kind of near-arrogant confidence in Horikita Suzune.

When reality deviated from her expectations, she never wasted time on self-doubt—this near-paranoid certainty actually saved her from falling into pointless mental exhaustion.

However, this confidence would soon collide with cold reality.

Kouenji Rokusuke was the best example.

Shimizu Akira's report on Monday regarding the interviewer intentionally lowering his score ultimately failed to change his class assignment.

(Eighty thousand points right off the bat... Horikita-san is unexpectedly wealthy.)

Shimizu Akira gently rubbed his phone screen, the light from the transfer notification reflecting on his thoughtful face.

He had originally intended to charge a symbolic amount, as this was just information provided in passing.

(Could it be that the Student Council president secretly transferred his private savings to her?)

The thought had barely surfaced before he dismissed it—given that brother's personality, he likely wouldn't do something like indulging his sister.

(Wait... if this is most of her savings...)

(Then won't she have to eat dirt next month...)

However, Shimizu Akira's thoughts were soon drawn to his account balance—the number had broken the 300,000 mark.

Including the 80,000 transferred by Horikita, this figure might be quite substantial in the eyes of an ordinary student.

But he was just subconsciously converting it: according to the school's exchange rate, it was equivalent to a month's salary for an average wage earner.

300,000 yen; in Tokyo, you probably couldn't even rent a decent apartment with that.

(This is still far from enough... I need to break the one-million mark at the very least.)

Shimizu Akira locked his phone and slipped it into his pocket, his fingertips brushing against the folded piece of paper tucked inside.

He slowly unfolded it, and unfamiliar handwriting came into view:

[Come find me in Room 1203 after dinner tonight.]

The characters were quite elegant; it was clearly a girl's handwriting.

If he remembered correctly, the upper floors were exclusive to female students.

(An invitation from the girls' dormitory...?)

If this were Yamauchi Haruki or Ike Kanji, they would probably be dancing with excitement right about now.

After leaving the cafeteria, Shimizu Akira arrived at the dormitory lobby front desk and began to inquire about who lived in Room 1203.

"Student housing information is confidential~" The receptionist, wearing round-rimmed glasses, flashed a mischievous smile from behind her lenses. "It's better not to ask too many questions, student. However, do be careful."

She tapped her fingertips against her lips, offering an ambiguous expression.

This reaction undoubtedly confirmed the most obvious guess: it was indeed the girls' dormitory.

Shimizu Akira took the elevator, paused for a moment in front of Room 1203, and knocked gently on the door.

"Coming!" A crisp, pleasant voice responded from inside.

The door opened quickly, and Shimizu Akira recognized the person immediately.

Karuizawa Kei was wearing a loose short-sleeved T-shirt and casual shorts, her long legs appearing exceptionally fair under the hallway lights.

She leaned casually against the doorframe, her hair still slightly damp, as if she had just finished bathing.

"Shimizu-kun is here." She tilted her head, a faint smile playing on her lips.

Shimizu Akira couldn't help but take an extra look before quickly averting his gaze.

"Come on in!" Karuizawa Kei suddenly stood on her tiptoes, affectionately wrapping her hands around Shimizu Akira's arm.

The girl's soft touch came through clearly against the fabric of his uniform, accompanied by the faint, lingering scent of body wash.

She dragged him into the room, half-pushing and half-pulling him as if he were a large stuffed toy.

However, rather than her pulling with force, it was more that Shimizu Akira was half-willingly cooperating with her movements—had he offered even the slightest resistance, this slightly ambiguous "kidnapping" would have failed immediately.

He could clearly feel the soft pressure against his arm.

Instinctively, he had to admit that the sensation was indeed distracting—but his reason told him that this sudden intimacy was far too deliberate.

After all, the two of them were merely classmates.

Karuizawa Kei looked up, her cheeks flushed, her voice tinged with shyness yet firm: "Shimizu-kun... actually, ever since the entrance ceremony, when you stood up to Yamauchi-kun, I've had my eye on you." She paused, her fingertips unconsciously twisting the hem of her shirt. "Of course... part of it is also because of your looks..."

She took a deep breath, as if using all her strength to squeeze out the next sentence: "Um, please... on the condition that you protect me, go out with me."

Shimizu Akira was completely stunned upon hearing this.

What kind of confession was this? Others would at least say "on the condition of marriage."

This classmate, however, went straight for "on the condition of protection"—it sounded more like she was negotiating a bodyguard contract.

027 A Fair Trade

Karuizawa Kei held her breath unconsciously.

This was the first time in her life she had confessed to a boy.

The moment those shameful lines left her lips, the tips of her ears had already turned bright red.

Despite flaunting a gyaru appearance to the world, in reality, she didn't even have the experience of holding hands with a boy.

This clumsy confession was her first attempt, one she had staked all her courage on.

Of course, this was not born out of any romantic affection.

She knew better than anyone that she was simply seeking a powerful sanctuary.

As long as she could obtain the protection of Shimizu Akira, those bullying incidents, those hurts, would never come knocking on her door again.

She had to survive in this high school.

(Will he agree?)

Karuizawa Kei bit her lower lip anxiously.

She knew she wasn't unattractive, but...

While her chest wasn't exactly flat, compared to the girls in class who were more developed—

whether it was the proud curves of Hasebe Haruka.

Sakura Airi's voluptuous figure.

Even the aloof Horikita Suzune couldn't compare to her.

This sense of inferiority was currently pricking at her heart like tiny needles.

"Honestly, regardless of your original intentions, being confessed to by you like this does make me a little happy," Shimizu Akira said candidly after a brief moment of contemplation.

As a healthy male, it would be a lie to say he wasn't happy to be confessed to by a beautiful girl with such outstanding qualities in every aspect as Karuizawa Kei.

But on second thought, this declaration of dating "with the premise of protection" sounded strange no matter how he looked at it.

"Tell me, do you actually like me?" Shimizu Akira shrugged helplessly. "I think you're just lusting after my body."

As soon as the words left his mouth, he froze—he hadn't expected that one day, such a line would actually pop out of his own mouth.

But the facts were right in front of him! This cunning woman clearly had her eyes on his solid muscles!

"I..." Karuizawa Kei was momentarily speechless, her cheeks flushing red at a visible rate.

She truly couldn't refute it.

The defined outline of his abdominal muscles, along with the biceps faintly visible beneath his uniform, were indeed one of the important reasons she chose Shimizu Akira.

"I don't mean to blame you," Shimizu Akira shrugged, speaking frankly. "Everyone is a bit of a visual animal to some extent, and I'm the same."

"...Really?" Karuizawa Kei's eyes suddenly lit up.

This boy was unexpectedly candid, completely different from the image of someone deep and calculating that she had imagined.

This straightforward personality actually made her feel inexplicably at ease.

"But there is one thing that must be made clear," Shimizu Akira suddenly said with a serious expression. "Since we are officially dating, as a boyfriend, I will definitely want to kiss, touch, and even..." He paused, "it would be normal to progress to the final step. Are you sure you can accept all of this?"

He wasn't looking for a girlfriend just to have someone to look at.

If he couldn't have intimate contact, he might as well go after his 2D waifus.

"This..." Karuizawa Kei was momentarily speechless, her cheeks burning bright red.