Classroom of the Elite, After the Intel Refreshed, They Always Want to Conquer Me! 6

Shimizu Akira did not care much about him; having said what needed to be said, he turned and left the scene directly.

Not far away, Kushida Kikyou approached with a light gait, tilting her head slightly.

"What happened to everyone? Why did you suddenly start arguing?" She folded her hands over her chest, a look of concern appearing on her face.

Yamauchi Haruki seemed to have finally found his soul again and complained indignantly, "...Tch... I just said a few things about Horikita Suzune, and that guy acted like a completely different person! It's just inexplicable!" He waved his arms exaggeratedly, "Could it be that those two are already together?"

"Yamauchi! Can you just stop it!" Ike Kanji couldn't help but frown and interrupt him, "They're just normal classmates talking; after all, they sit next to each other. There weren't any inappropriate actions, so can you stop being so binary?"

"Fighting because of Horikita Suzune...?" A trace of imperceptible strangeness flashed in Kushida Kikyou's eyes, but she quickly returned to her gentle smile, "Alright, alright! I believe Shimizu-kun didn't mean it. After all, he's a kind person who gives up his seat to grandmothers! What our class needs most right now is unity. Can you let this matter go for my sake, Yamauchi-kun?"

"...Fine! Since Kushida-san is asking..." Yamauchi Haruki pretended to rub his reddened palm and acted magnanimous.

He was secretly delighted, feeling that this was a good opportunity to get closer to the girl he liked.

Just as he was about to take the opportunity to invite Kushida to go karaoke singing with him, he saw that she had already turned around and walked over to students from other classes.

Yamauchi's hand, extended halfway, hung awkwardly in the air.

A small group of four girls was whispering not far away.

"Hmph! Serves him right!" Shinohara Satsuki crossed her arms, "We should have taken the chance to teach him a good lesson just now!"

Matsushita Chiaki's eyes lit up, "Who cares about that disgusting Yamauchi! A guy with nothing but lewd thoughts in his head! Did you see? That move Shimizu-kun made just now—it was incredibly cool, wasn't it!"

Mori Nene coughed lightly, "Who was it that said Hirata-kun was the coolest in the school just a moment ago? You change your mind faster than flipping a book."

"Oh, stop it! Hirata-kun is definitely cool... but the way Shimizu-kun looked just now is even cooler!" Matsushita Chiaki suddenly lowered her voice and leaned toward her companions mysteriously, "If you could date someone like that, you'd definitely feel super safe! You'd never have to worry about being bullied by others again!"

Karuizawa Kei, who had been silent all this time, suddenly raised her head upon hearing this, a strange glint flashing in her eyes.

"...Not being bullied?"

010 The bet with Sakayanagi Arisu, the stake is 100,000 points

Shimizu Akira slowly curled his fingers. When he held the other person's wrist just now, he had used at most thirty percent of his strength.

There is never only one way to solve a problem.

If one were to divide it theoretically, it is nothing more than the two paths of force and strategy.

In this society that prides itself on civilization, people always advocate winning through intelligence.

But sometimes, force is indeed the most straightforward way to solve a problem—especially when your opponent simply cannot understand reason.

Shimizu Akira has never been a person who follows the rules, so this time he simply used force to resolve the trouble.

"Using violence to solve problems? That really is a barbarian's approach."

A familiar voice came from behind, and the crisp sound of a cane tapping the ground approached from afar.

Sakayanagi Arisu was standing by his side before he knew it, a faint, mocking smile hanging on her lips.

"Sakayanagi-san, are you peeking at me again?" Shimizu Akira glanced at her sideways, "It seems you are even more clingy than I imagined. If I were dating you, you'd probably install spyware on the other person's phone. Typical 'obsessive' behavior."

The term "obsessive" made Sakayanagi Arisu's expression stiffen for the first time.

She had indeed been secretly observing this boy since the entrance ceremony—especially after witnessing that subtle tug-of-war between him and the boys in his class.

"Tell me your name." She suddenly looked straight into his eyes, her tone brooks no refusal.

"Shimizu Akira." Shimizu Akira answered nonchalantly, "I have things to do. Sorry, I don't have time to pull strings with you."

Although the other party had a head of silver hair he quite admired, he was really in no mood to deal with such a troublesome person right now.

"Make a bet with me." Sakayanagi Arisu's cane tapped the ground lightly, "Let's bet on which time frame Kamuro Masumi will make her move."

Shimizu Akira was about to refuse, but she suddenly held up five slender fingers.

"Fifty thousand points as a stake." The silver-haired girl's lips curled into a confident arc, "Are you interested now?"

"I see." Shimizu Akira looked at her with a half-smile, "You finally understand the reason I refused."

"Of course." Sakayanagi Arisu nodded slightly, "You have no interest in things without profit, right?"

At the entrance ceremony just now, she had been thinking about this question.

It wasn't until a few minutes ago that she realized she had made a low-level mistake—this bet had no appeal to him at all.

So, she decisively took out half of the points she currently held. Fifty thousand points converted to yen is only fifty thousand yen, which is nothing more than pocket money for a young lady of the Sakayanagi family. What's more, in this special school, she was confident that with her intelligence, earning back these points would be as easy as pie.

Shimizu Akira tapped his arm with his fingertips, lost in thought.

Earning fifty thousand points on the first day of school seems pretty good, right?

"Is it too little?" Sakayanagi Arisu stomped her cane lightly on the ground when she saw he didn't answer for a long time.

"What are the rules?" Shimizu Akira finally spoke.

"It's very simple." A cunning arc hooked the corners of her lips, "We each predict the timing of Kamuro Masumi's theft. Whoever accurately predicts that she will make a move within one minute and speaks it out first is the winner. The predicted timing must be at least 20 seconds in advance; it is forbidden to predict at the moment the other party is about to make a move."

Her cane drew an elegant arc in the air, "If the prediction fails, the next time you must wait for the other party to speak first before you can continue."

Shimizu Akira raised an eyebrow upon hearing this: "You really treat other people's theft as an entertainment show, don't you?"

Sakayanagi Arisu chuckled, "Isn't this more interesting? Turning a boring daily life into a chessboard of games." She tilted her head, "What, Shimizu-kun, has your sense of justice suddenly flared up?"

Shimizu Akira's words were right on the tip of his tongue when the phone in his pocket suddenly vibrated.

He pulled out his phone, and the name of his homeroom teacher, Chabashira Sae, appeared on the screen.

"One moment." He made a pause gesture to Sakayanagi Arisu, "I need to reply to a message."

The silver-haired girl gracefully twirled her cane and gestured for him to go ahead.

Chabashira Sae: Where are you right now? Come to the office when you have a moment.

Shimizu Akira's fingertips tapped rapidly against the screen:

Shimizu Akira: Is it urgent? Don't tell me the reward for "that matter" has finally arrived?

The other party replied almost instantly:

Chabashira Sae: You're sharp. We'll discuss the details when you get here.

Shimizu Akira glanced at Sakayanagi Arisu, who was waiting patiently beside him, and continued to reply:

Shimizu Akira: I can't get away right now. By the way, can you really buy anything with school points?

Chabashira Sae: As long as it doesn't violate school rules. Why, is there something specific you want to buy?

Shimizu Akira: There is. How about this: I'll pay 10,000 points if you run an errand for me, Teacher.

There was a pause of several seconds on the other end of the phone before a final message arrived:

Chabashira Sae: Interesting. Tell me first what exactly you want to buy.

A few minutes later.

The two of them tacitly arrived at the convenience store and hid once again behind the familiar corner shelf.

It wasn't long before Kamuro Masumi's figure appeared among the aisles.

She first made a show of picking out a few notebooks, then her footsteps drifted unconsciously toward the adult alcohol section.

"The target is alcohol." Shimizu Akira lowered his voice, "Indeed, minors can't buy that."

"That's why she has to steal it." Sakayanagi Arisu whispered in agreement, suddenly pulling a beautifully wrapped candy from her pocket, "Shimizu-kun, would you like to try one? I brought it from home; it's quite delicious."

Her slender fingers nimbly peeled back the wrapper and held the candy out to him.

Shimizu Akira narrowed his eyes: "Sakayanagi-san, are you trying to use candy to plug my mouth so you can be the first to state your prediction?"

"Oh my, you really are hurtful." The silver-haired girl wore a wounded expression, but the smile in her eyes betrayed her.

"...I'll just pretend you're being sincere." Shimizu Akira finally took the candy and put it in his mouth, but as he leaned down, he casually picked up the candy wrapper from the floor.

"Don't litter."

Sakayanagi Arisu twirled her cane, unconcerned: "What does it matter? ...Someone will come to clean it up eventually; otherwise, what is the point of the convenience store hiring these clerks!"

Shimizu Akira gave her a long, deep look.

Sakayanagi Arisu's contempt for ordinary people was etched into her very bones; she didn't even bother to hide it.

Still, the candy in his mouth was indeed sweet. It seemed this young lady was at least honest about her taste in snacks.

--I'll make her pay the price for this arrogance in a moment, hehehe.

"Shimizu-kun," Sakayanagi Arisu suddenly lowered her voice, "I'll offer another 50,000 points for the right of first speech this time. I must be the one to speak first, how about it?"

Her cane tapped lightly against the floor, and a look of absolute certainty flickered in the silver-haired girl's eyes.

Shimizu Akira nearly choked on the candy: "You can even trade for this? And you're spending 50,000 points—aren't you afraid of losing everything?"

She tilted her head, revealing a triumphant smile, "After all, in this school, points can buy 'anything'."

Sakayanagi Arisu chuckled and twirled her cane, "If I were to lose even with this, I might as well live on the free meal plan for the rest of the month."

When Sakayanagi said this, it sounded more like a joke.

But Shimizu Akira didn't laugh at all; he simply watched her with a gaze bordering on pity.

(What a pitiful child.)

He recited in his heart.

(This arrogant young lady probably doesn't realize that she's about to hand over her entire fortune on the very first day of school.)

011 Today's Outcome: Shimizu Akira's Victory

Shimizu Akira lowered his head slightly, preparing to pull his phone from his pocket to check the time.

"It is currently 10:14:23," Sakayanagi Arisu, standing at his side, suddenly said with a smile.

This sudden time-telling caught Shimizu Akira off guard; for a fleeting moment, he felt as if he were being served by a beautiful girl acting as a human alarm clock.

He subconsciously glanced at his phone screen—10:14, accurate to the second.

"You don't even trust me with this? You really are suspicious." Sakayanagi Arisu's silver-white hair swayed gently as she shook her head, "And yet, you were much more enthusiastic when talking to that black-haired girl."

"You saw that too?" Shimizu Akira was startled by her words and, as a reflex, took half a step back to put some distance between them.

Sakayanagi Arisu froze.

Is it really necessary to be so disgusted?!

She gritted her teeth in secret—in terms of looks and temperament, she clearly didn't lose to that girl.

"My hair color is silver-white, you know!" she said, unconvinced, as she twirled a lock of hair around her finger. "Isn't this the hair color Asians yearn for the most? Does it not attract you even a little bit? Why do you always hide from me?"

Ever since they first met, she had been completely baffled—why did this boy act like he had encountered a ferocious beast every time he saw her, as if he couldn't wait to flee the scene immediately?

"The hair color is indeed beautiful, and I really do want to touch it," Shimizu Akira admitted frankly, before his tone shifted. "But I'm more worried that one day I'll be secretly recorded or filmed by you, or inexplicably become a pawn in your schemes, and end up mired in trouble."

Admittedly, the girl before him had an exquisite face, but behind those seemingly innocent eyes, who knew how many calculations were hidden?

When it came to such a black-hearted character, no matter how cute the exterior, he was determined to keep a safe distance.

Sakayanagi Arisu suddenly chuckled, a flash of seriousness appearing in her eyes.

"So that's it... you're afraid of those things." Her voice softened slightly. "Please rest assured, I would never use low-handed tactics like recording or filming to threaten you."

She looked straight into Shimizu Akira's eyes and said, word for word: "For a respectable opponent, using such methods would be far too rude."

Seeing her sincerity, Shimizu Akira nodded: "Since you've said as much, I'll trust you this once."

"However—" Sakayanagi Arisu suddenly changed the subject, "looking at it this way, that black-haired female classmate must be the innocent and naive type, right? That's why you can talk to her without any defenses?"

"Innocent and naive?" Shimizu Akira shook his head with a laugh. "She isn't stupid at all; she's just a bit too persistent sometimes."

The smile at the corners of Sakayanagi Arisu's mouth deepened. "I understand~" she said, deliberately drawing out the end of her sentence. "Boys are all like this; they prefer to spend time with simple and cute girls!"

Shimizu Akira shrugged: "I can't deny that point. You should understand now why I keep you at arm's length."

Getting along with girls who were too smart felt like having to be on guard at all times; it was just too exhausting.

Sakayanagi Arisu's thoughts suddenly split into two subtle paths; she realized the double meaning in Shimizu Akira's words—it was both an affirmation of her intelligence and a clear expression of his desire to keep his distance.

This realization made her feelings become complicated.

The corners of her lips curled upward involuntarily, only to press into a straight line the very next second.

She certainly didn't harbor any special feelings for the boy in front of her, it was just that...