Katsuragi Kohei glanced at Sakayanagi, who stood across from him. After a moment's thought, he nodded. "I agree with Classmate Hashiba's suggestion."
"What do you think, Sakayanagi?"
"Then I agree as well. What is it you wish to discuss with us?" Sakayanagi Arisu turned her gaze to Hashiba Hikaru and Ichinose Honami.
"Please take a look at this first." Hashiba Hikaru gestured for Ichinose Honami to separate two sheets from the stack of Contracts in her hands. She handed one to Katsuragi Kohei and the other to Sakayanagi Arisu.
Once they'd read the terms, Katsuragi Kohei's expression changed dramatically. Sakayanagi Arisu, on the other hand, wore a faint smile. The two of them reacted in completely different ways.
"So the discussion you mentioned is about selling us Class A the school's hidden rules and forbidding us from reselling them?"
"That's right, Katsuragi," Hashiba Hikaru said. He glanced at Katsuragi Kohei, then turned to face the students of Class A. "It may be the first day of school, but the information the administration has let slip is already enough. Haven't you noticed that something is unusual about this school?"
"What do you mean?"
Katsuragi Kohei was usually levelheaded, but it was hard to keep the agitation out of his voice after hearing this.
"Hashiba means that someone in his class has already solved the school's mystery and found the answer," Sakayanagi Arisu said, suddenly setting off toward Hashiba Hikaru. As she walked, she continued, "Now, the person who solved it first wants to tell those who haven't figured it out what the answer is—and charge them for it."
"Am I right, Hashiba?"
Sakayanagi Arisu stopped. She was now very close to Hashiba Hikaru, close enough for him to catch the faint fragrance on her.
"That's right." Hashiba Hikaru looked into the silver-haired girl's purple eyes and spoke slowly. "Of course, we paid Private Points to get the answer, and we're now willing to sell the information to you."
"This Contract is our proof."
Ichinose Honami followed up at just the right moment. "By showing you this Contract, we're proving to Sakayanagi and Katsuragi that the school has approved our claim that Class B obtained the hidden rules."
"I see."
Katsuragi Kohei nodded. The Contract bore the school's official seal, just like the Acceptance Letter, so it was unlikely to be fake.
"Some of the things that happened today did make me feel that something was off about this school, but I never imagined they were part of a mystery set by the administration."
Katsuragi was levelheaded, not someone who let his pride get in the way, so he quickly admitted he'd missed something. He asked Hashiba Hikaru, "So how much are you asking for the rules?"
"One million Private Points. The price is firm." Hashiba Hikaru held up one finger, his tone resolute.
He'd settled on the price with Ichinose Honami while they were carrying textbooks. After all, if they asked for two million outright, they'd be much more likely to get turned down.
If Class A rejected the offer, its students might ask their homeroom teacher to confirm whether the hidden rules existed. That would be like giving away the information for free.
So when naming their price, they had to make it count and keep the initiative firmly in their hands.
"..."
"Isn't that a little too expensive?"
By then, the students of Class A had heard the whole conversation. The hot-tempered Yahiko immediately stood up and shouted, "Aren't you making this up?"
"Watch what you say. We got the rules through a teacher, and Class B paid a total of three million Private Points for them."
Hashiba Hikaru gave Totsuka Yahiko a cold glance, then turned to Sakayanagi and Katsuragi Kohei. "That's why we need you to sign a Contract forbidding resale. We plan to sell the rules to the other three classes, which will let us recoup the Private Points we spent."
"That way, Class A only has to pay one-third of the cost to get the hidden rules. What do you think?"
"I understand," Katsuragi Kohei said, quickly grasping the plan. "Once the deal is done, Class B can split the cost of purchasing the rules among the three classes, while your own class doesn't have to pay anything, right?"
"If we were the first to figure out the answer, why shouldn't we collect a fee?"
Hashiba Hikaru met his gaze, his attitude still firm.
He was taking a gamble.
A gamble that they'd believe his lie.
The First Deal Is Complete
While Hashiba Hikaru and Katsuragi were trading words, Ichinose Honami felt as though her heart was about to leap out of her chest.
When she heard Hashiba Hikaru claim they'd paid three million for the rules, the girl panicked. After all, it would be easy to verify.
But Ichinose soon realized that although Hashiba Hikaru was lying to them, he showed no sign of it. Instead, he acted as if he had every right to say what he was saying.
"If it's one million, then each student in Class A only has to pay twenty-five thousand Private Points. That seems acceptable." Katsuragi turned to Sakayanagi Arisu. "What's your answer, Sakayanagi?"
"I agree with Hashiba. This is a very worthwhile deal." Sakayanagi Arisu nodded gently. "I don't think anyone would be foolish enough to hesitate between paying three million and paying one million."
"Good."
Although Katsuragi and Sakayanagi didn't get along, he was a Class A student, and his powers of observation and analysis were excellent. He understood that if the school really did have hidden rules, the sooner they learned them, the better.
He immediately rallied some of the supporters he'd gathered in Class A that day and had them collect points from their classmates. But when Hashiba Hikaru glanced toward Sakayanagi Arisu, he saw that the girl with the cane hadn't moved. She was simply staring off into space.
Ichinose Honami couldn't help asking, "Sakayanagi? Aren't you going to help collect the points?"
"Leave physical work like that to Katsuragi. Everyone in my class heard our discussion, so they can make the best decision for themselves. They won't cause trouble by refusing to pay."
"I see. It seems you know your classmates in Class A quite well, Sakayanagi."
From what he'd seen so far, Hashiba Hikaru could draw at least one important conclusion: although Class A's students were highly capable overall, its two most popular students didn't get along. Their struggle for control of the class was even playing out in the open.
That was undeniably good news. At least he didn't have to worry that Class A would unite and hold on to first place. It gave Class B more opportunities.
Before long, Katsuragi had finished collecting the points. When he came over, Hashiba Hikaru gestured for Ichinose to hand him the Contract.
"Before the deal goes through, every student in Class A has to sign this Contract. Then we can proceed with the exchange of rules for points."
The Contract Hashiba Hikaru had printed at Chie Hoshinomiya's office was simple. It stated that after Class B sold the Deep Rules to Class A for one million Private Points, all Class A students were forbidden from reselling them.
To be safe, Hashiba Hikaru had also added a clause forbidding Class A students from discussing the Deep Rules with students from other classes.
Anyone who violated the Contract would receive the school's harshest punishment—expulsion.
Once every step was complete, Hashiba Hikaru looked at the stack of signed Contracts in front of him, then pulled out the School Rules Notebook containing the information.
"Money first, goods second."
Hashiba Hikaru glanced at the bald boy in front of him, then patted Ichinose Honami on the shoulder. "Ichinose, go collect the points. Have Katsuragi transfer them to your account."
"Okay, I understand."
Ichinose Honami immediately took out her phone and showed him her Student ID.
Katsuragi quickly completed the transfer on his phone, then confirmed, "Ichinose, I've sent the points to you."
"Let me check."
Ichinose Honami opened her Student ID. When she saw the 1.05 million Private Points displayed on the screen, the weight in her heart finally lifted.
"Hashiba, Class A has transferred the points."
"Good."
Hashiba Hikaru smiled faintly, handed the School Rules Notebook he'd just organized to Katsuragi, and prepared to return to the classroom with Ichinose Honami.
"Please wait a moment, Hashiba."
Sakayanagi Arisu had been watching Katsuragi collect points from the class and hand out the Contracts. At last, she spoke up, fixing the boy with her purple eyes. "I'd like to know who in Class B first realized the school had hidden rules."
"Was it you, or Ichinose?"
Hashiba Hikaru met Sakayanagi's gaze. After a brief pause, he answered directly, "It was me. Did you need something, Sakayanagi?"
"I wouldn't say that. I just think you're an interesting person, Hashiba. I imagine we'll be dealing with each other again."
A poised smile appeared on Sakayanagi Arisu's small face.
"I think so too. We'll be taking our leave, then. You two can share the rules with your classmates."
Hashiba Hikaru didn't plan to stay in Class A's classroom any longer. He'd already gained plenty from this visit—not only Private Points, but also information about Class A.
"Goodbye, everyone."
Ichinose Honami waved to the students of Class A, then followed Hashiba Hikaru out of the classroom.
Only after the two of them had disappeared down the hall did Sakayanagi Arisu and Katsuragi Kohei begin inspecting the School Rules Notebook Hashiba Hikaru had left behind.
The information about Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing High School completely overturned everything the students of Class A had imagined.
A school founded on the principle of meritocracy, the functions of Class Evaluation Points and Private Points, and a future in which only one class would be allowed to graduate.
Once the rules had been fully revealed to Class A, sharp-witted Katsuragi Kohei immediately realized that something was wrong.
"If the school follows a system of competition between classes, why would Class B be so kind as to sell us the rules? There has to be something going on."
"What do you think, Katsuragi?"
After reading the school's Deep Rules, Sakayanagi Arisu showed little emotion. She still looked like a serene little princess.
"My guess is that if the school really operates according to these rules, then this deal can't be that simple. They may be holding something back from us."
"That makes sense. But I think we should deal with something else now." After turning the Deep Rules over in her mind, Sakayanagi Arisu's tone grew sharp again. "Don't forget, Katsuragi. We still haven't chosen the class representatives for Class A, have we?"
"..."
"Now that we know the school's Deep Rules, Class A needs an excellent leader more than ever. That's the only way we can maintain an advantage in the class competition and ensure that everyone can graduate successfully."
Katsuragi forced down his anger and gritted his teeth. "You think you're that person, Sakayanagi?"
"Of course. If I'd rate Hashiba a solid A, then you'd only get a C, Katsuragi."
"Then just watch, Sakayanagi. I'll show you who's best suited to lead Class A."
"Heh. I don't think I'll lose."
Freshman Liaison Meeting
When Hashiba Hikaru and Ichinose Honami returned to Class B, the classroom immediately grew lively.
"It's Hashiba and Ichinose."
"You're back!"
"How did it go? Was the deal successful?"
As soon as the two walked into the classroom, their classmates crowded around them, all eager to hear how the first deal had gone.
"Of course it was a huge success!" Ichinose Honami pulled out her phone and showed everyone the number on her Student ID. With a satisfied smile, she said, "We sold the rules to Class A and got one million Private Points."
"That's great! I knew we could trust Hashiba and Ichinose."
"Yeah, I'm so glad it worked out."
"But why one million? Didn't we pay two million?"
Someone voiced their confusion, but a classmate quickly cut them off.
"We're not only selling them once. There are still Class C and Class D. I'm sure Hashiba has a reason."
Seeing how puzzled everyone was about the price, Hashiba Hikaru simply explained, "I set the price at one million to give them a reason to believe Class B was being sincere. I told them our class had spent three million to buy the rules."
"Then we sell to each class and recoup the three million. That way, they'll believe we're only trying to make back what we spent, not simply trying to earn points."
"After all, Class A's students are clever. If they asked why I wanted to sell the rules, how would I explain it?" Hashiba Hikaru shrugged, looking helpless.
"Hahaha, I see."
"Hashiba, you're really clever!"
After hearing his explanation, all the Class B students gathered around burst into laughter. The classroom was filled with a cheerful atmosphere.
"Um, should I divide the points among everyone now?" Ichinose Honami looked at the Private Points on her phone. It was such a large sum that she felt uneasy. "Since we all chipped in two million to buy the rules, we should split the proceeds evenly."
"No rush, Ichinose." Shibata Sou stopped her and advised, "From Hashiba's plan, we still have two classes left to sell the rules to, don't we? Maybe we should wait until everything's done before dividing the points."
"Shibata's right. Let Ichinose hold on to the points for now. We still have fifty thousand, anyway."
"Yeah. Without Hashiba and Ichinose, we wouldn't have gotten any of that million back."
The students of Class B were easygoing. To them, staying united was the most important thing right now, so they quickly reached an agreement.
Moved by how much everyone trusted her, Ichinose Honami's heart swelled with emotion. Determination appeared on her lovely face, and she spoke emphatically. "Thank you for trusting me. I won't let you down. I'll do my best to lead Class B forward!"
Hashiba Hikaru gazed at the determined expression on Ichinose's face. He felt that recommending her as the class leader had been the right decision. Her trustworthy nature was incredibly useful.
Whether it was uniting the class or acting as a point-hoarding piggy bank, she could do it all.
With that thought, Hashiba Hikaru looked at his System Panel again. Sure enough, a new notification had appeared.
[You helped the class gain one million Private Points. Ichinose Honami's trust in you has increased. Ichinose Honami Stock Price has risen by 10 points. Current stock price: 70]
Nice! It looked like she'd soon break through the 100-point mark. Then he could cash out and buy items from the shop.
Before you continue