Ibuki Mio Refuses to Give Up / How to Get Horikita Suzune to Give In

Hashiba Hikaru flipped the photo over; the back still had a few words written on it.

[From today onwards, I will change my name. From now on, I am Hashiba Honami, the wife of light.]

[I heard that Guang built this amusement park to fulfill a dream, and he even said I'd be the owner from now on. I have a feeling he's just trying to slack off.]

[But it doesn't matter, as long as I can be with the light forever, I'm willing to do anything.]

"The idea that I'll be opening an amusement park in the future... feels weird, and it even seems a bit like I'm just giving up."

Hashiba Hikaru touched her hair, her mind drifting to Sakura Airi and Kushida Kikyo. Judging from the information conveyed by the [Life Album], the two of them would continue to have a complex relationship with her in the future, and this was unlikely to change easily.

"Can we make choices that bring happiness to everyone?"

Just as the boy was deep in thought, his phone suddenly beeped with a text message notification. And this time, the message was from someone he hadn't seen in a long time: Shiina Hiyori.

Chat interface.

Shiina Hiyori: Classmate Hashiba, I've recently read several good mystery novels. Are you free tomorrow?

Hashiba Hikaru: I've been busy with Student Council matters lately, and by the time I finish, it'll be six o'clock.

Shiina Hiyori: It's okay, I can wait for you at the Library.

Seeing the expectation in the girl's words, Hashiba Hikaru thought of Shiina Hiyori Stock. Her stock price was currently 80. He hadn't met this quiet, literary girl in person since the start of summer vacation. Now it wouldn't hurt to meet her, after all, 3,000 shares was not a small number.

Hashiba Hikaru: Okay, I'll try to finish my work as soon as possible and then reply to Shiina's message.

Shiina Hiyori: I'll be waiting for you at our usual spot.

Hashiba Hikaru: Hmm.

At this moment, in the girls' dormitory, Shiina Hiyori sat at her desk, looking at the message of agreement typed by Hashiba Hikaru. The tension in her heart immediately turned into joy.

Knowing that her class was in competition with the other class, Shiina Hiyori never took the initiative to invite Hashiba Hikaru to meet privately. They usually bumped into each other in the Library and spent a short time together.

However, the rules of the Sports Festival temporarily changed this relationship. As classmates from the same camp, Shiina Hiyori felt that it would be fine to take the initiative to invite Hashiba Hikaru. After all, the two classes would be allies at the Sports Festival, so she could take into account both Ibuki's and her class's positions, while also satisfying her own little desire.

"Great, I can meet Classmate Hashiba tomorrow." Shiina stroked the covers of several mystery novels she had recently read, a blush creeping onto her face.

The next day, since Sports Festival Special Task Force had been formed, everyone in Class A was very busy during this training period. Apart from physical education classes, the students spent all their free time training hard, hoping to maintain their advantage in the upcoming competition.

After giving a few instructions to Kanzaki and the others in his group, Hashiba Hikaru quickly arrived at the Student Council, as he had an appointment that day and needed to finish his task as soon as possible.

Seeing the boy's serious and efficient work style, Sakayanagi, who was sitting opposite him, was somewhat puzzled.

An hour and a half later, after finishing the tasks assigned to her, Hashiba Hikaru sent Nagumo a message saying that she was leaving early after completing her mission, and then got up to pack her things.

"Um, is it over so quickly today, Classmate Hashiba?"

"Yes, I still have some things to take care of, so I'll be leaving now. See you tomorrow, Classmate Sakayanagi."

See you tomorrow, Classmate Hashiba.

The silver-haired girl nodded slightly. After the other person disappeared from sight, she took out her phone and sent a message to a Kamuro, telling her that a mission had arrived.

Meanwhile, Hashiba Hikaru had already quickened her pace to the Library, spotted the gentle-looking gray-haired girl at their usual spot. The girl was not only holding a book, but there were also several other books on the table in front of her, and a bottle of juice on the seat opposite her.

"Good afternoon, Shiina." Hashiba Hikaru pulled out the chair opposite the girl and greeted her with a smile.

"Good afternoon, Classmate Hashiba, it's been a long time."

When the long-unseen figure came into Shiina Hiyori's view, a bright smile immediately appeared on the girl's face.

"This is the juice I prepared for you; I heard it's your favorite peach flavor."

"Thank you, Shiina."

Hashiba Hikaru touched the still-cool soda with her hand, a smile playing on her lips, "So, Shiina, what book do you want to recommend to me? Can you tell me now?"

Chapter 242 Ibuki Mio is unwilling to admit defeat

In the quiet Library, Hashiba Hikaru and Shiina Hiyori sat facing each other.

He moved his gaze to the stack of books in front of the girl. He could tell that she not only loved reading, but also took good care of her books; the covers were clean and tidy, as if they had never been opened.

"These are the three books here."

With a smile, Shiina Hiyori pushed the three books in front of the boy, and while he picked them up and examined them, she began to introduce them to Hashiba Hikaru one by one.

"Two of these are works by Mr. Natsuhiko Kyogoku. One is 'The Summer of the Ubume,' which was his first published work, and the other is 'The Box of Goblins.' Although it sounds like a horror story, the reasoning logic inside is actually quite rigorous."

Hashiba Hikaru examined the cover illustrations of the two books. She had to admit that the titles and cover designs complemented each other perfectly, depicting extremely strange lines and patterns that allowed one to feel the author's whimsical ideas at first glance.

"The last one is Mr. Soji Shimada's 'The Phantom of the Ferris Wheel.' This work is quite interesting too, Classmate Hashiba," Shiina said with a smile, "I guarantee you won't be able to put it down once you start reading."

"Thanks for the recommendation, Shiina. I'll make time to read these books, and maybe we can even discuss the plot together."

Hashiba Hikaru appeared quite interested, not out of pretense to boost the stock price, but because he genuinely wanted to see if he could meet a like-minded person at the school, which the young man felt was quite a coincidence.

"Yes, I've already finished reading all three books, and I'm planning to try writing my own mystery novel... I might even need to ask Classmate Hashiba for advice then."

Shiina Hiyori spoke of an idea that had recently come to her, her gaze fixed intently on Hashiba Hikaru's face.

"Really? That's great! If it can really be published, Shiina might become a mystery writer!" Hashiba Hikaru exclaimed with a smile. "I'll be cheering for Shiina!"

"Not so fast. I still have a lot of things to think about, so I won't start writing anytime soon."

"Indeed, but I believe Shiina can do it well and create something new in her field of interest, which is something to be happy about for anyone."

Hashiba Hikaru placed the three books pushed towards her in front of her, her tone very serious. "If Shiina really intends to write a novel, you can always talk to me. Please feel free to ask if I can be of any help."

"Classmate Hashiba. I'll do my best." Shiina Hiyori made a cheering gesture, and compared to her usual quiet demeanor, this side of her made her more lively.

"Let's start the Reading Club then. There's still time before six o'clock. Let me see what Shiina thinks of the books she recommended."

Hashiba Hikaru opened the first mystery novel she had on hand. When she was with Shiina Hiyori, she didn't need to have many conversations. She could just show her love for mystery novels. This wasn't a pretense, but her most relaxed and genuine state.

"Yes, yes, I'm going to start reading too. I need to gather more material now."

The gray-haired girl looked at the boy who was focused on his book, a satisfied smile appearing on her lips.

Shiina Hiyori's favorite thing is being able to sit and read with Hashiba Hikaru. She doesn't want much; in the competitive environment of her class, being able to maintain this kind of closeness with her occasionally is enough.

However, besides sharing similar interests, the girl actually wanted to chat with him more in other ways, but she never dared to bring it up.

With more than a month to go before the Sports Festival, she wanted to find the right opportunity.

[As a fellow mystery novel enthusiast who greatly satisfies Shiina Hiyori, she wants to talk to you about things other than books. Shiina Hiyori Stock has risen by 20, currently at 100.]

After glancing discreetly at the system notification, Hashiba Hikaru didn't look up, but continued to focus on the book. She knew that dealing with this literary girl required a careful approach; a gradual, step-by-step approach was the best strategy.

Meanwhile, in a café at the Keyaki Mall, Ichinose Honami and Ibuki Mio had already met. Their coffees were getting cold, but they were clearly still talking.

"It seems that Ibuki's situation is really not good." The pink-haired girl looked worried after hearing Ibuki's explanation of the current situation in Class C.

"Ryuen's proposal has indeed garnered him a lot of supporters, but until the goal is achieved, it's all just empty talk. So I must lead the class to achieve better results in this Sports Festival and prove to everyone that he is not a good choice at all."

Ibuki Mio recalled the Class D assembly after the VIP Exam, when Ryuen directly proposed a new vote to elect the class leader. Although the final result was 22 to 16, and she was still elected, the situation was obviously worse.

Although Class D did not receive many Class Evaluation Points in the two Special Exam, the plan spearheaded by Ryuen resulted in a considerable amount of Private Points within the class, enough to convince many people of his words.

There are many reasons why Ibuki Mio is unwilling to back down. Besides disliking the other party's violent behavior, she wants to prove that she will not lose to him. Her competitive spirit plays a dominant role from beginning to end, so the girl will never give up easily.

"I think I understand now, so our two classes can cooperate this time."

Ichinose Honami remembered Hashiba Hikaru's words. Although she and Ibuki were friends, she couldn't let her emotions get the better of her at this time. In the end, the leadership of Class D had nothing to do with her; it was up to Ibuki to handle everything herself.

"Yes, that's what I think too. If it's just a competition of sports, Class A and Class D have a good chance of winning if they team up, because the senior students in the Red Team are very strong."

Ibuki Mio nodded and began to explain her thoughts, "If all three of our AD combinations can win, the Red Team will definitely achieve final victory."

"That's what I think too, so we can help each other out." Ichinose Honami's lips.

What do you mean by mutual help?

"Of course, we should cheer each other on during the training sessions for the Sports Festival. It would be much more efficient to have someone leading the training."

Ichinose Honami didn't mention any questions about the competition list or other information. Instead, she directly stated the simplest cooperation method, which was the safest solution and wouldn't affect the core decisions within Class A.

"Can Ichinose this collaboration plan? Did Hashiba agree to it too?" Ibuki Mio, somewhat puzzled.

"Of course, Kuang said last time that he would be in charge of all the Sports Festival matters, and he will assist me as my assistant."

The girl's face wore a bright smile; this wasn't a lie, but only part of the truth.

"Alright, let's continue to discuss the specifics of how to proceed. We should maintain contact as well."

"Um."

Chapter 243 The Way to Control Horikita Suzune

After Hashiba Hikaru finished her Reading Club with Shiina Hiyori, she returned to her dormitory with the three mystery novels in her arms.

It must be said that the gray-haired girl, as a seasoned mystery novel enthusiast, had quite good taste. The three books she recommended to him were all excellent works, so much so that Hashiba Hikaru forgot the questions she was pondering while reading and became completely immersed in the story.

"Anyway, it's quite comfortable being around Shiina," Hashiba Hikaru said as she swiped her card to enter. "She's emotionally stable, speaks softly, and can boost stock prices without much thought—truly the perfect person to make money from."

After entering the dormitory, Hashiba Hikaru took off his school uniform and put the books back on his bookshelf. He then opened the System Panel and began to think about his next stock trading plan.

[Stock Interface]

[Ichinose Honami Stock]

[Current Price: 260, Number of Quantities Held: 2000.]

[Sakura Airi Stock]

[Current Price: 270, Number of Quantities Held: 1000.]

[Shiina Hiyori Stock]

[Current Price: 100, Number of Quantities Held: 3000.]

[Kushida Kikyo Stock]

[Current Price: 180, Number of Quantities Held: 5000.]

"There are still a lot of cash reserves that can be cashed out, especially for Kushida," Hashiba Hikaru recalled her interactions with the short-haired girl with two faces. "If we raise her stock price to 200, that would be a full million in system funds."

"And the stock price changes after purchasing new items."

His gaze fell on the stock information he hadn't yet purchased. Horikita Suzune Stock's initial stock price had now reached 30, with 3,000 shares issued. If the stock price increased, the returns would be quite good.

However, boosting the stock price of that unapproachable Horikita is no easy task; a more comprehensive plan is needed, and now is a pretty good time to do so.

Horikita Manabu has already provided some resources. As a caring older brother, he has given Hashiba Hikaru not only authority in the Student Council, but also a substantial amount of Private Points.

The goal is to make Hashiba Hikaru useful when Horikita Suzune is carrying out her plan to collect 20 million points, which is also key to shortening the distance between them.

Hashiba Hikaru looked at the description of Horikita Suzune Stock; after using the Stock Analyzer, the information was very detailed.

[Horikita Suzune Stock]

[Stock Information: A high-achieving, long-haired, straight-haired, aloof beauty who always exudes an aura of "don't talk to me." She has no interest in socializing, prefers to be alone, dislikes teamwork, and adheres to a principle of distrusting everyone.]

[Stock price increase suggestion: Build a relationship of trust, support her progress, and help her catch up with her brother.]

[Risk of reduced stock price: Devaluing her approach to life, underestimating her abilities, and doing things detrimental to Horikita Manabu.]

"If you want to build trust, perhaps starting with her Point Collection Plan would be the best approach."

Hashiba Hikaru unscrewed the bottle of Peach Soda she had just received and took a sip.

He was devising a concrete execution plan in his mind, because as a member of the Student Council Club Management Department, he had many opportunities to communicate with various clubs in the school, which was a very good direction.

After roughly organizing her thoughts in her mind, Hashiba Hikaru opened her phone and sent a message to Horikita, the black-haired girl.

Chat interface.

Hashiba Hikaru: Good afternoon, Horikita- san, are you free now?

The black-haired girl, who had just finished eating and was sitting in her dorm reading a book, frowned slightly and looked puzzled when she saw the text message from Hashiba Hikaru.

Horikita Suzune: Is there something you need Classmate Hashiba?

Hashiba Hikaru: I'm planning to invite you to dinner, and we can talk about the plan you mentioned to Horikita-senpai last time.

Upon seeing this message, Horikita Suzune's expression changed.