In Classroom of the Elite, but in the Underworld Chapter 37

"Hello, Big Bear."

"Eh--?"

The young girl let out a startled sound. Upon noticing his gaze, she hurriedly covered her skirt, her cheeks flushing red as she said:

"Eito, you're so mean!"

"Ah, sorry about that, Wang Meiyu."

This cute, petite girl was none other than Wang Meiyu.

"Forget it." Wang Meiyu sat on the other side of the tree. "Why haven't you been looking for me lately? And even after we arrived on the island, you haven't spoken to me once."

"Uh, well, about that..."

"You were off playing with women again, weren't you? I saw you walking with Horikita just a moment ago."

"..."

"And yesterday, you were with Sakura the whole time."

"..."

"Why aren't you saying anything? Feeling guilty?"

"Look... Miss Wang Meiyu, why do you sound just like my mother?"

"Hmph, I'm not concerned about you. I just think what you're doing is bad for Kikyo. You shouldn't be a playboy."

"How many times do I have to explain?" Eito sighed. "There's nothing between me and Kikyo."

"I don't believe you. I just don't believe you!"

Believe what you want, then.

However, he couldn't actually say that out loud:

"Tell me, is there something you want me to do again?"

Ever since he used his superpower to perform a card-vanishing trick last time, she had been pestering him to see new magic tricks.

He didn't have enough brain cells to keep coming up with new ones.

Though, if she wanted to see him smash a boulder with his bare hands, he wouldn't mind performing that.

"Um... can you perform seppuku? Japanese people seem to really like that."

"Cough, cough..." Eito choked and sat up straight. "If you want to kill me, just say so. No need to beat around the bush."

Wang Meiyu waved her hands frantically:

"No, no! If you die, there will be no one left to perform magic for me."

"Then I'd rather just die."

"No, that's not what I meant. I meant, you... you look better than the magic... ah... no, that's not what I meant either... you..."

"Alright, I get it." Eito patted the back of her head. "You just want to see a magic trick, right? Follow me."

"Mm-hmm."

Taking advantage of a moment when no one was watching, he pulled Wang Meiyu to a deserted stretch of beach.

The sea was calm, and pigeons were circling overhead.

He picked up a wooden stick from the ground, sharpened it with a seashell, and took aim at a pigeon in the sky.

Then, he activated his superpower.

With time slowed down tenfold, the pigeon's flight speed looked like a snail's pace in his eyes.

He activated another superpower, taking control of the pigeon's body and forcing it to fly in the direction he had anticipated.

Whoosh.

The result was exactly as he had expected; the wooden stick pierced through the pigeon's body, knocking it down from the sky.

Faced with a scene that only appeared in kung fu movies, Wang Meiyu opened her mouth wide in shock:

"Eito, you... have you studied kung fu?"

"It's a secret."

Eito winked and began roasting the pigeon over a fire on the ground.

Wang Meiyu sat down beside him, tugging at his clothes:

"Hey, teach me that move. I want to learn~"

"You wouldn't be able to learn it." Eito shook his head.

"Why? If you can do it, why can't I?" Wang Meiyu pouted, her small face filled with dissatisfaction.

"Your body is too weak. To learn it, you'd need at least ten years of practice."

"Eh-- is it that much trouble? Forget it, then."

As she said this, Wang Meiyu stared intently at the pigeon in his hands and swallowed hard.

The food over the past two days had been far too plain, so the sight of pigeon meat now had her absolutely famished.

Waiting for the meat to turn a golden brown, Eito picked it up, blew on it, and handed it to her.

"Um... can I really eat this? Will you be upset if I do?"

Miu asked cautiously.

"Of course not. Watching you eat is the thing that makes me happiest."

"...You're so kind."

Miu took the grilled pigeon skewer and began to eat.

Perhaps because he was still there, the young girl ate with a certain reserve, taking small, slow bites.

Sometimes, watching a cute girl eat is an interesting experience in itself.

Once Miu finished, he took a tissue from his pocket, wiped her mouth, and cleaned the grease off her hands.

Miu didn't say a word, letting him tend to her, though her face flushed a rosy red.

Although her parents had stopped doing this for her when she was very young, experiencing it now still brought a sense of warmth, as if she had returned to her childhood.

"Alright, let's go."

Eito called out, tidying up the trash.

As a side note, littering would result in a deduction of points.

But Miu grabbed his arm:

"Eh—I don't want to go back, it's too boring."

"Fine."

He continued to accompany Miu as she played by the seaside.

Going into the water would soak their clothes, so they could only play on the shore. For the sake of mobility, Miu took off her shoes, her fair, delicate feet pressing into the sand.

The shore was littered with shells, starfish, small crabs, and plastic bottles that had drifted in from afar.

Eito collected these items, trimmed them, and strung them together to hang around Miu's neck like a necklace.

An African tribal chief?

No, more like a tribal chief's daughter.

A woman destined to inherit the entire tribe.

Miu was in high spirits, running back and forth beside him, the smile on her face never fading.

This made him feel like a father taking his daughter out for an excursion.

While he felt gratified, he also harbored a faint sense of worry.

Which brat will be lucky enough to end up with her in the future?

He was overthinking it.

"Let's head back," he said.

"Oh."

Miu looked a bit reluctant, but she followed him obediently nonetheless.

"Can we come back and play again next time?"

"...Maybe next time." Eito gave a mysterious smile.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Depends on my mood."

"Tch—how stingy."

Miu pouted, but she still broke into a smile.

Just like that, they returned to the base.

Chapter 48: Ibuki Mio

Upon returning to the base, they happened to see Yamauchi bringing back a girl.

She had short blue hair; although she looked cute, her cold, aloof aura made her seem unapproachable at first glance.

Her face was bruised and her clothes were dirty, as if she had been in a fight.

According to her explanation, she had a falling out with the boys in her class, which led to a conflict where she was beaten up and kicked out, leaving her with nowhere to go.

Only Eito knew that this was a performance orchestrated by Ryuen Kakeru of Class C, intended to infiltrate Class D and uncover the identity of their leader.

As for her tragic situation, the kind-hearted people of Class D took her in.

Hirata and Kikyo, needless to say, were sure to step up and support her. The girls felt sympathy for her plight, and seeing that she was quite pretty, the boys didn't object either.

And so, this undercover agent, Ibuki Mio, stayed in Class D. Fortunately, there was plenty of food, so the impact of one extra person wasn't significant.

Yamauchi seemed very satisfied with his heroic performance and specifically leaned in to tell him:

"Do you think I have a chance with her?"

"No."

"Eh—don't girls usually fall for the guys who save them? I clearly helped her, so my chances should be pretty high."

"That's manga." Eito patted him on the shoulder. "You need to learn to face reality. Would you develop feelings for a pig that saved you?"

"...So all my hard work was for nothing?"

"Not at all." Eito shook his head.

"Why not?"

"Figure it out yourself."

Regarding Yamauchi bringing Ibuki back, he didn't think it was Yamauchi's fault.

Even if Yamauchi hadn't run into Ibuki, someone else eventually would have. As long as Class D had the intention to treat her, she would inevitably end up staying in Class D; it was unavoidable.

"Yamauchi, I'm giving you a mission now: go annoy that person."

"How do I annoy her?"

"Just talk to her the way you usually talk to girls."

"Oh... wait, was I just insulted?"

"Never mind that, just go."

Yamauchi trotted happily over to Ibuki's side and started talking to her.