The Strange Feeling in Kushida's Heart / A Master Manipulator's Training Manual

Although no shares were purchased, preparations could be made in advance. By subtly influencing the girl's views on social interaction during the initial contact, the resistance encountered when she wanted to take the initiative to shorten the distance between them would likely be much smaller.

"I'll think about it."

Horikita Suzuhime did not directly reject Hashiba Hikaru's suggestion. She was aware of her brother's situation in this regard. After all, Horikita Manabu was the Student Council President in junior high school, and he had long demonstrated his skills in coordinating interpersonal relationships and organizing.

However, the black-haired girl did not agree with her brother's way of thinking. She believed in the truth that the strong go it alone, which is why they always maintained a sullen relationship despite wanting to gain the other's approval.

"Well, there's no need to rush things in this regard. Just let Horikita proceed at his own pace."

Having gotten the answer she wanted, Hashiba Hikaru quickly changed the subject after this probing session.

Although Horikita Suzune disliked idle chatter, she was eating, so she gave a few perfunctory replies. After all, the other party was indeed her creditor, and it wouldn't be appropriate to be too rude.

In conclusion, thanks to Hashiba Hikaru's initiative, Horikita Suzune's tone and expression, while still cold, were noticeably better than before. After the conversation centered around Horikita Manabu, the girl's attitude improved somewhat, so the atmosphere between the two wasn't too awkward.

After the meal, Hashiba Hikaru didn't offer to take him back to his dorm, as that might be too much, so she simply said goodbye gently and they parted ways at the entrance of the Family Restaurant.

As he walked down the street, the boy took out his phone and started texting Kushida Kikyo.

Hashiba Hikaru: Kushida, today's task is complete.

Knowing that Hashiba Hikaru was going to inquire about Horikita Suzune's situation, the short-haired girl deliberately didn't go shopping with her group of girls, but instead used having something to do as an excuse to go straight back to her dorm.

Upon receiving the boy's text message, Kushida's face lit up with joy, a clear smile appearing on his small face. He immediately typed a reply.

Kushida Kikyo: How did it go?

Hashiba Hikaru: If we don't get any results, won't Kushida be disappointed?

Kushida Kikyo: Yes.

Hashiba Hikaru: That's good. I'm glad I succeeded.

Kushida Kikyo: Really?

Hashiba Hikaru: Although it took some effort, the result was good.

Upon seeing the reply from the other party, Kushida Kikyo immediately stood up from her stool.

Looking at her current expression and makeup through the mirror placed in the corner, the girl quickly typed on her phone.

Kushida Kikyo: What time are you going back to your dorm? Let's chat in your dorm later.

Hashiba Hikaru: I'll be there soon, I'm on my way back.

Chapter 133 Kushida's Strange Feelings

After receiving the text message from the short-haired girl, Hashiba Hikaru shook her head slightly.

After the previous deal was completed, this guy is no longer pretending. His attitude and purpose are very clear. He doesn't beat around the bush and directly states his desires, which makes him seem very honest.

Hashiba Hikaru didn't dislike this about her. After all, the more she revealed her desires, the better she could be used and manipulated. If she were too cunning and never took off her mask, that would be the real problem.

After quickly returning to the third floor of the student dormitory, Hashiba Hikaru saw the pretty figure in the corridor. The short-haired girl had a soft smile on her face, and their eyes met the moment the elevator doors opened.

Good afternoon, Classmate Hashiba.

"Good afternoon, Kushida. You're really in a hurry."

Hashiba Hikaru walked up to the other person with a smile, her tone teasing. "If I'm too slow coming back, are you going to wait here the whole time?"

"Maybe. If Classmate Hashiba doesn't come back until evening, I might just stand at your door the whole time."

The short-haired girl's smile remained unchanged, but her eyes flashed with a piercing light.

"Hehe, that's impossible. I promised Kushida I'd be back right away, so of course I can't break my promise."

The boy took out his access card from his pocket and led Kushida Kikyo to the door of his room, 301.

Upon entering the room, the gentle smile on the short-haired girl's face vanished instantly, replaced by her cold and expressionless expression once more.

Do you change size across different places?

After silently complaining to herself, Hashiba Hikaru reached out and opened the refrigerator door, her eyes searching for the drink she would be having later.

After his Private Points were credited in June, he immediately replenished his stock of cold drinks, since such essential items are indispensable in the hot summer.

"What would you like to drink, Kushida?" the boy asked without turning his head. "Or are you not drinking?"

"I want to drink!"

Kushida Kikyo sat down on Hashiba Hikaru's bed without any hesitation, speaking in a rather impolite tone.

I'll drink whatever you drink.

"Understood."

Hashiba Hikaru was already used to her unpredictable attitude; after all, it was all for the sake of increasing the stock price, so this was nothing.

After taking out two bottles of peach-flavored soda, Hashiba Hikaru walked over to Kushida.

"Here, the same soda as last time. I really like this flavor." After handing the drink to the other person, Hashiba Hikaru sat down on her stool.

"Is that so?"

After taking a sip of the ice-cold soda, Kushida Kikyo immediately felt a cool sensation rush into her mind, making her feel much more comfortable.

To maintain her excellent figure, the short-haired girl doesn't usually drink carbonated beverages, but now, when she's with Hashiba Hikaru, she forgets her usual habits and her emotions are always swayed by him.

"So, what information did you gather?" Kushida Kikyo held the soda in her hand, her gaze falling on Hashiba Hikaru's face.

"The information is that Horikita didn't do what you were worried about. She agreed to join the study group organized by the girls in your class, simply to tutor them in math. She left immediately afterward without lingering or having a meal together."

Hashiba Hikaru shrugged and slowly explained, "This is the real answer. You can rest assured for now Kushida."

"Is that really true? Can you be sure she's not lying?"

"Actually, Horikita's personality is quite obvious, isn't it? She wouldn't need to tell such a pointless lie when she's talking to me."

"Snort."

After hearing the other party's reply, Kushida simply hummed softly.

Her purpose was to confirm whether Horikita Suzune's relationships with the other girls had changed after she joined the study group. Although this woman looked down on everyone, she had clearly developed a unique connection with Hashiba Hikaru without Kushida's knowledge.

Therefore, we cannot completely rule out the possibility that she is willing to make friends. Once she has familiar people and someone to chat with, it will affect the safety of that important secret. That is why Kushida Kikyo urgently called on the boy to take action yesterday.

Now that she knew roughly what the other party had done yesterday, she felt much more at ease.

Although she was the social butterfly of Class C, the girl who invited Horikita Suzune to the study group was not a member of her clique. Asking them directly might cause more unnecessary problems.

Before Horikita's attitude becomes clear, sending Hashiba Hikaru to gather information is the best approach. Since he's not in the same class as me or Horikita Suzune, he doesn't need to care about what others think.

After finishing his thoughts, Kushida looked at the boy and suddenly spoke again.

"What excuse did you use to get her to come out?"

"Well, it was just a simple dinner invitation. It's not like we've met privately before." Hashiba Hikaru chuckled easily. "Anyway, we've already accomplished our goal for today. Does that mean the information Kushida gave me earlier has been negated?"

"..."

Upon hearing this, the short-haired girl remained silent for a moment before calmly saying, "Fine, this kind of cooperation will continue in the future."

"That's true, but don't forget your intelligence; it's the basis for mutual benefit."

Hashiba Hikaru took a sip of her drink, squinted her eyes, and revealed a very content expression.

"Classmate Hashiba, I have something to remind you."

Kushida Kikyo walked up to Hashiba Hikaru and said, slowly and deliberately, "Do you remember what I said last time? Now that the deal is done, don't betray me."

"I know, but why does Kushida keep emphasizing this?" Hashiba Hikaru smiled knowingly.

"Don't worry about the reasons. Just remember this: since you've chosen to stand by my side, you have to stick to it."

Kushida Kikyo's expression was cold when she said this, but a hint of anger had actually surfaced in her heart the moment the boy questioned her.

For some reason, after learning that the two had dined together in private, and that Hashiba Hikaru had paid for it, the girl immediately thought of the word "date."

Although they didn't seem to have that kind of relationship at all, a strange feeling inexplicably arose in Kushida Kikyo's heart.

So she vented her anger directly in a cold and sharp tone, both as a warning to Hashiba Hikaru and as a way to give herself a temporarily acceptable answer.

"Yes, yes, I understand."

Hashiba Hikaru nodded helplessly, and at that moment a new notification popped up in the System Bar.

[You successfully found out about Horikita Suzune's situation, which pleased Kushida Kikyo. She's become even more interested in you. Kushida Kikyo Stock price has increased by 20, currently at 40.]

Chapter 134 The Making of a Master Trader

After seeing Kushida Kikyo off, Hashiba Hikaru sat on a stool in her dormitory, staring at her System Panel.

It has to be said that operating based on the analysis of stock information is the best solution that will never go wrong. Although the stock price of the short-haired girl was previously reduced to the lowest point, it has now returned to 40.

If we continue along this line of thinking and using the same trading methods as the other party, we should be able to easily bring Kushida's stock back to a high price.

The boy examined the [Stock Interface] on the System Bar. He currently owned four stocks, and the ones driving up the prices were [Kushida Kikyo Stock], [Sakura Airi Stock], and [Shiina Hiyori Stock].

The highest price currently belongs to the first stock I bought, [Ichinose Honami Stock], which is currently priced at 170 points. Because he understands that rising stock prices represent increasing favorability, Hashiba Hikaru must be even more careful in his operations.

Ichinose Honami's previous confession made the boy realize the problems that can be encountered in stock trading. Before deciding on future plans, he needs to be more careful in his trading.

The relationship cannot undergo any substantial change for the time being; this is the most fundamental point. Moreover, in order to ensure that too many unexpected situations do not disrupt one's plans, the stock price increase needs to be controlled.

If you focus solely on boosting the stock price without paying attention to the appropriate level of discretion, you risk triggering unpredictable actions from the other party. This would require significantly more effort in subsequent operations and maintenance, making it a losing proposition.

As for lowering the stock price, after Kushida's experiment, the young man plans to select the next target for lowering the stock price. This candidate must meet multiple conditions and cannot be decided easily.

Just like Hashiba Hikaru, who is currently closest to Ichinose Honami, there are three different approaches that can be taken to lower her stock price.

[Risks associated with declining stock price: Lying to her, doing things detrimental to the class, betraying classmates]

Doing things that are detrimental to the class or betraying classmates are not things that Hashiba Hikaru would consider. After all, his goal is to lead the class to graduate as Class A. Doing such things would definitely be very troublesome, and the benefits are not necessarily greater than the risks, so he can directly rule out these options.

The only remaining option was to lie to her.

In fact, Hashiba Hikaru had lied to this pink-haired girl more than once since they met, but because Ichinose didn't find out, the stock price didn't drop.

If we want to implement this approach, perhaps we could directly expose some of the lies to her, which would be more in line with our own interests.

But ultimately, Hashiba Hikaru's feelings for Ichinose Honami were different from her feelings for other girls.

He wasn't some robot blindly executing plans for the sake of system funds. After spending so much time together, it would be impossible for him to have absolutely no feelings for Ichinose Honami.

However, he was still a ways off from being her lover, so he had Hashiba Hikaru reject the girl's confession and use delaying tactics to temporarily cover up the problem.

"For now, let's focus on the remaining three people."

Hashiba Hikaru stroked her chin. Ichinose Honami, since her current stock price is the highest, in order not to affect her subsequent trading strategy, she can be left to her own devices for the time being. Anyway, the pink-haired girl is quite busy lately.

In the time that followed, Hashiba Hikaru continued to execute her trading plan.

[Ichinose Honami Stock]

Because Ichinose Honami joined the Student Council through the boy's introduction, the two had much less time to spend together in private.

The pink-haired girl is very serious, both in her studies and in maintaining relationships with her classmates. After accepting Hashiba Hikaru's request to investigate Miyabi Nagumo with Ando, she has been working very hard in the Student Council.

Even many senior students spoke Ichinose of Ichinose, and her personal abilities were fully demonstrated in the Student Council.

[Sakura Airi Stock]

Sakura Airi remained aloof from everyone in class, but would proactively message Hashiba Hikaru whenever she had free time.

Hashiba Hikaru responded quite positively. Although this two-faced idol was also very popular, she and Hikari were not in the same class, so they didn't spend much time together in private, which allowed her to maintain a good distance.

Under the boy's deliberate control, he would meet with Sakura Airi about twice a week.

One time was when I helped Sakura Airi choose outfits for her blog photos, and another time was when we went to various hidden corners of the campus to take photos together.

When they were alone, Sakura Airi became more and more talkative. Although she didn't dare to express her feelings to Hashiba Hikaru, being able to spend time with him like this was enough to satisfy the girl.

[Shiina Hiyori Stock]

This quiet girl from Class D goes to the Library almost every day, so if Hashiba Hikaru wants to find her, she doesn't need to send a special message to Shiina Hiyori; she can just go to the Library.

Moreover, her seat was always the same, the same row of seats where we used to read together.

Because Hashiba Hikaru is a fan of mystery novels, and Shiina's stock price is currently relatively low, the boy takes the initiative to strike up conversations and bring up different mystery topics to discuss with her.

Although they gradually grew closer through their relationship as fellow book lovers and enthusiasts, Shiina Hiyori found herself increasingly drawn to Classmate Hashiba Hikaru their interactions.