Chapter 249
After arranging things for both Class C and Class D and seeing off several satisfactory representatives, Aragaki Shun received an invitation from Katsuragi Kohei.
However, he had no intention of going out for coffee as invited, so he simply replied with an email, telling them to come to the Cultural and Entertainment Club's Activity Classroom on their own.
In less than ten minutes, Aragaki Shun met the four core members of Class B: Koenji Rokusuke, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, Katsuragi Kohei, and Ryuen Kakeru.
"You're moving quickly. You've specifically asked to meet with me to discuss this. It seems you've already decided on the first and last place in Class B?"
"Akito's not beat around the bush, Aragaki, do you think we can talk? We're willing to sign a debt agreement as is customary."
Faced with the slightly amused question from the Leader of Class A, the first to respond was not one of the other three, but Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, who always preferred to stay out of the way and maintain a low profile... This was truly a rare occurrence.
If nothing unexpected happens, this Masterpiece should have already guessed that this Special Exam was deliberately set up for him by someone sent by his father.
Unfortunately, this time, Aragaki Shun will not give them the answer they are hoping for.
"If I put it in Class B, the maximum I'd get from this Class Vote would only be six million Private Points, which is far too little for me. I have no interest in it at all."
If a contract were to be signed, Class B might be willing to give him the entire six million installment in order to collect the transfer fees for the last three terms.
But even if he could pay in installments until graduation, six million yen at once wouldn't be enough for Aragaki Shun.
Therefore, if we are to cooperate, we must adopt a more sincere approach.
"Does this continued, languishing existence, truly align with your aesthetic?"
"Koenji, it's come to this point, shouldn't you face reality by now!"
331. It's okay to lose, but never surrender; adding flowers to brocade versus being on the verge of death.
"Does this continued, languishing existence, truly align with your aesthetic?"
"Koenji, it's come to this point, shouldn't you face reality by now!"
The casual words caused the expressions of the students in Class 1-B to change drastically.
It was obvious that Aragaki Shun was trying to persuade Koenji to surrender and stop leading Class B in futile resistance.
"I have complete control over three of the four first-grade classes, the entire second-grade class obeys my orders, and the Third Year have less than a month left before graduating and leaving school. How can you, with only one class, possibly stand against me?"
"Instead of continuing to struggle and losing face time and time again, Koenji, and the rest of you, why don't you just transfer to my Class A group together?"
In fact, among all the students in Class B, only the four in front of them had a relatively strong fighting spirit.
It's hard to say about Katsuragi Kohei, since he comes from a poor family and all he wants is to get ahead. With Koenji's promise as a guarantee, he can achieve his goal of reaching Advanced Nurturing regardless of whether he graduates from Class A or not.
So if Koenji votes, then this former Moderate Faction leader of Class B will definitely not continue to persist.
But the other three— Ayanokoji— were probably thinking something, Ryuen Kakeru might just be trying to prove himself, but the only person in charge of Class B right now is Koenji Rokusuke.
Once the opposing team concedes defeat, neither the Masterpiece nor the gang leader will have any prestige to continue leading a class with low morale.
The only question is, will Beautiful Brother really choose to surrender?
"No! No! No!"
Koenji held up his index finger and waved it in front of Aragaki Shun, his tone so firm that it showed no sign of wavering.
"Surely Aragaki- boy doesn't understand? Beauty may fade, it may wither, but it must never—bow down and admit defeat!"
As he finished speaking, a smile still lingered on his lips, but an unprecedented coldness appeared in his eyes.
"I am the only son of the Koenji Conglomerate, and I am destined to be a strong man who will shoulder the responsibilities of this country in the future. Aragaki Shun should know what this identity means."
This means that the word "surrender" never existed in Koenji Rokusuke's dictionary, nor would it ever exist.
He can keep losing, lose until the very end, but he must never surrender halfway through before the dust settles.
Ultimately, whether or not they graduate from Class A is completely irrelevant to the heirs of conglomerates.
If Koenji continues to drift along like he did when he first entered the school, then all he needs to do is ensure that he is not expelled by the regular students and that he can transfer to Class A upon graduation.
But now that he has stepped forward to take charge of Class B and has clearly confronted Class A, which includes Aragaki Shun and Kanzaki Ryuji, he cannot simply back down as he did before.
It's a very simple principle—under normal circumstances, each year, about 40 students graduate from Class A in the Advanced Nurturing. He can't appear too useless, worse than ordinary people, so he needs to collect Private Points to ensure he can transfer to Class A at the last minute.
When he's not involved in the struggle, this is quite easy for him. After all, not everyone in this world is like Miyabi Nagumo, who would inexplicably restrict the actions of a conglomerate heir.
But once he took control of Class B and clashed with Class A, represented by Aragaki Shun, the nature of the matter immediately changed.
Although in the eyes of those important figures, such intra-school class competitions may just be a game between children, they can indeed see the abilities, temperaments, and ways of handling things of their younger generations in these contests.
Therefore, Koenji Rokusuke definitely didn't want to lose, otherwise his family and onlookers would think that the heir of the Koenji Conglomerate was far inferior to the heir of the Aragaki Family, which would have a significant impact on his future.
But what the elders in the family found even more unbearable than the final defeat was the surrender halfway through.
A match against Aragaki Shun and Kanzaki Ryuji would be a win or a loss, as the two players are not far apart in status and it would be normal to win or lose.
However, if one surrenders before the contest is over, it's not a matter of ability, but rather a matter of mentality and willpower.
The former wouldn't affect his position; after all, the Koenji Conglomerate was a large and powerful family, and as long as they didn't mess things up, it wouldn't matter if the heir was a little incompetent. But the latter would truly be fatal.
With the entire conglomerate backing you up, you couldn't even withstand the pressure and surrendered halfway through just playing school games with your peers. What will happen when you completely take over the family's power!
So you're going to keep struggling?
The Student Council President nodded, not surprised by the failure of this recruitment attempt.
Losing to Aragaki Shun and not graduating from Class A would only be a loss of face for Koenji; he'd have to be out of his mind to give up on something like that.
It was just a casual remark; it would be great if it came true, but it wouldn't matter if it didn't.
"Struggle? Why make it sound so harsh? Adversity is only temporary; beauty like me will naturally usher in ultimate victory."
Despite losing the game, Beautiful Brother still appears full of confidence.
Aragaki Shun dismissed this statement and turned to look at the other three.
"And what about you, Katsuragi, Ayanokoji, and Ryuen?" After calling out each name, the Leader of Class A whispered enticingly, "If any of you have the idea of joining Class A, I can use praise votes from other classes to grant you Permanent Transfer Quota, and then spend Twenty Million Personal Points to cancel the penalty for breaking the contract."
Upon hearing this, the four students from Class B present immediately turned pale.
They were all Akito, so they naturally understood what Aragaki Shun meant by those words—it didn't matter whether the four of them accepted the invitation or not; the key was that Aragaki Shun now had the ability to recruit people from Class B.
Thinking of this, Ryuen Kakeru crossed his arms, his knuckles turning white from the excessive force, and a ferocious glint flashed in his eyes.
He never intended to bow down to Aragaki Shun, but as time went by, the chances of winning against this bastard were indeed decreasing.
"Sorry, I'm not interested in 'victories bestowed upon us'."
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka remained expressionless, his cold, golden eyes unfathomable.
Perhaps joining Class A and receiving Aragaki Shun's protection would better protect him from attacks from the White Room, and rationally he shouldn't refuse the invitation... but entrusting his freedom to someone else would undoubtedly be foolish.
Moreover, as his Masterpiece, this was the first time he had been inspired to fight. Regardless of whether he won or lost, he wanted to experience this feeling until the very end.
As for Katsuragi Kohei, it goes without saying that with Koenji Rokusuke as a safety net, he had no reason to abandon his class and go alone.
"It seems I'll have to put in some effort to find other people in Class B who are willing to cooperate."
Shrugging, Aragaki Shun showed no disappointment. With a smile, he explained his plans while observing the expressions of the four people with amusement.
Class A is already strong enough; adding a few more fighters would just be icing on the cake.
But can Class B afford the continued loss of personnel?
332. Tsukishiro meets Ayanokoji; Is Aragaki Shun a whetstone?
The two classes ultimately failed to reach an agreement.
After understanding Aragaki Shun meant, Koenji and the others decisively left the Activity Classroom of the Cultural and Entertainment Club.
Next, they also have to figure out how to deal with the onslaught from the other three first-grade classes.
Although the chances are slim, it would be best to use a reasonable strategy to limit the top spot in Class B to one of three: Koenji, Ayanokoji, or Ryuen Kakeru.
Only in this way can the benefits of this Special Exam be maximized.
Otherwise, if the Permanent Transfer Quota were to fall into the hands of another student, and if Aragaki Shun were to influence them further, Class B might lose another student.
Including Hashimoto Masayoshi, who will also be expelled in this Class Vote, that means losing two qualified combatants in a row, which will definitely have a significant impact on the future.
Aragaki Shun naturally understood this as well, but he wasn't the one who should be worried.
After he was left alone in the Activity Classroom, the boy thought for a moment and then sent an email to Hasebe Haruka.
[Aragaki Shun]: "Kaka, do you want to transfer to Class A at this time?"
Among the girls he's currently dating, Shiranami Chihiro and Ichinose Honami were originally members of Class A, Tachibana Akane is Third Year senior, and Wang Meiyu, Yamamura Miki, and Shiina Hiyori have already joined Class A. Once the Class Vote is over, Ibuki Mio will also officially transfer to another class.
As a result, only Hasebe Haruka remained alone in the other first-year classes.
It's not scarcity that's the problem, but inequality. If the other party is willing, Aragaki Shun can first use Transfer Ticket to pull Hasebe into Class A, and then give her the Permanent Transfer Quota won first place in the Class Vote.
In this way, the girl with Blue Long-Haired Girl won't feel like she's being ostracized and harbor resentment.
But surprisingly, Hasebe chose to refuse this excellent opportunity.
[Hasebe Haruka]: "Huh? Are we transferring classes now?"
[Hasebe Haruka]: "Although I'd like to spend more time with Shun, I think I'll pass. If I leave, wouldn't Airi be the only one left in Class D?"
[Hasebe Haruka]: "Shun knows her personality well. It wouldn't be good if that child was all alone and got bullied. Let's wait for a chance later, and then I'll transfer classes with Airi."
It's clear that the girl feels guilty towards her only best friend because she ran away.
Hasebe Haruka is the type to side with her family regardless of right or wrong; she doesn't think there's anything wrong with transferring to Class A because of her lover's favor.
But she already snuck away once before, and now she's going to leave her best friend alone in Class D to run off with the person she likes... isn't that just too inhumane?
After much deliberation, Hasebe ultimately decided to reject the tempting offer.
[Aragaki Shun]: "Alright, after I fulfill my promise to Airi, I'll help you two with the transfer procedures. It shouldn't take long."
After ending his email conversation with his lover, Aragaki Shun tapped the table with his index finger, a thoughtful expression on his face.
Class A still has one transfer spot, but since Hasebe doesn't need it and there are no other suitable options at the moment, they might as well continue to poach people from Class B.
Thinking about this, the Leader of Class A felt that he should first go and discuss with the transfer students who originally belonged to Class B, such as Yamamura Miki, Kamuro Masumi, and Sakayanagi Arisu, since they should know better whether there were still suitable talents left in that class.
It was approaching dusk.
Not long after leaving Aragaki Shun's Activity Classroom, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka to the other core members of Class B and was about to head to the Keyaki Mall to buy some things when he suddenly received a strange email on his phone.
After a brief consideration of the pros and cons, he ultimately accepted the invitation and arrived at the deserted special teaching building.
Then a middle-aged man grabbed him by the neck and slammed him against the wall!
"I am Tsukishiro, serving as the Acting Board Chairman this time."
A gentle smile appeared on Tsukishiro's face, but his hand pressing down on Ayanokoji's neck showed no mercy, rendering him unable to utter a sound.
"You're not as amazing as the rumors say, Ayanokoji."
The Masterpiece remained silent, calmly casting its gaze upon the conspicuous surveillance camera in the corner, its meaning self-evident—was it reasonable for the Acting Board Chairman to commit violence against ordinary students?
"Don't worry, because I've already replaced the cameras shooting here with fake footage."
In short, whatever happens will not be recorded.
But Ayanokoji still showed no sign of resistance.
The other party is the Acting Board Chairman; if he rashly retaliates, he doesn't know how they might use him.
Tsukishiro verbally claimed that the surveillance footage was fake, but no one knew how much of it was true.
If only the footage of Ayanokoji assaulting the Acting Board Chairman were edited out, he would definitely be finished as an ordinary student.
"Well then, this is a message from your father. Apparently, it says, 'I have no intention of continuing to play this game. Come back immediately.' If your answer is YES, blink twice."
Without letting Ayanokoji speak, and without even offering a "NO" option, Tsukishiro Tsunenari simply relayed a message from a certain behind-the-scenes politician.
However, the Masterpiece remained silent, seemingly determined to continue its silence.
"Aren't you going to try to put up any resistance? Let me see you're not just a normal kid."
The Acting Board Chairman muttered something that seemed to be getting boring, and the grip on his neck tightened.
After repeated provocations without receiving the desired response, the two stared at each other for a long time. Tsukishiro realized that the person in front of him would not retaliate, so he let go.
"You're only qualified in terms of insight; I'd really like to see your power."
With a hint of regret, the middle-aged man clapped his hands twice and emphasized again, "Stop making any more pointless and willful moves. Treat these few days as your last vacation. You should go back to your father's side."
Unfortunately, I have absolutely no intention of withdrawing from this school.
Ayanokoji shook her neck expressionlessly, her face showing absolutely no sign of being persecuted.