Classroom of the Elite, I Also Want to Be a Good Person

"No, this is the perfect leverage to order you around."

His smile unchanging, Aoyama flatly rejected Kushida's request.

He even stated his purpose outright, forcing Kushida to abandon her unrealistic expectations.

Having gone to such lengths to secure this blackmail material, there was no way he would just delete it on a whim.

"Impossible. If you don't delete it, I will immediately report your threatening behavior to the Student Council President. You wouldn't want to lose your position as Vice President of the Student Council, would you?"

"Coercing a girl in private—is this really something a Student Council Vice President should be doing?"

Clenching her fists in anger, Kushida put on a "nothing left to lose" act, seemingly unafraid of Aoyama exposing her true colors.

Unlike Karuizawa, who folded at the first sign of a threat, Kushida had a much tougher personality and was far more difficult to handle.

"That's only if you can produce evidence." Facing Kushida's defiance and her encroaching presence, Aoyama didn't step back even an inch.

"You said it yourself—I am the Student Council Vice President. Do you think Horikita President will believe you, or me? Kushida Kikyo of Class D."

The moonlight from the inconspicuous crescent moon was less than half as bright as the incandescent streetlights.

The chilly sea breeze ruffled Kushida's brown hair, and for a moment, she didn't move at all.

Even her defiance couldn't rattle Aoyama.

No matter how hard she racked her brain, she couldn't come up with a way to neutralize Aoyama's threat.

"Start by doing things for me. If I'm in a good mood, I might delete the video." Seeing that Kushida couldn't come up with a counter, Aoyama delivered a line typical of a movie villain.

"What do you mean 'if you're in a good mood'? Doesn't that just mean you'll never delete it?"

"I never said that." Aoyama leaned against the railing, facing Kushida directly. "I'll delete it when I no longer need you, provided you don't play me false and actually complete the work I assign you."

"The first thing you need to do is help Horikita Suzune ascend to the position of leader of Class D."

Upon hearing the name Horikita Suzune, the expression on Kushida's face was one of indescribable frustration.

"Huh?! Help that stuck-up bitch Horikita? Absolutely not!"

"Besides, I don't have that kind of ability. That woman is hated by most of the students in the class; how could I possibly pull that off?"

"Even with Hirata, it wouldn't work. No one would accept that arrogant woman."

After her initial refusal, Kushida pulled a cold face to excuse herself.

"If they don't accept her, then just force them to." Aoyama stared at Kushida, expressionless. "I've already planned it out. Your most important task will be to convince The Three Idiots to accept Horikita's threats."

"If you fail, the video I just recorded will be sent to those three."

"Being disgraced and looked down upon even more than Horikita—listen to me and push her to the top."

"You only have two paths in front of you."

Chapter 31: Continued Threats

"What is your relationship with Horikita?"

After a long silence, Kushida asked, suppressing the dissatisfaction in her heart.

If she could, she really didn't want to help Horikita; it was even more painful than having to praise Yamauchi for being a smart person.

"Mutual benefit. She is still useful to me for the time being, so don't get any funny ideas." Knowing the conflict between the two, Aoyama warned Kushida in advance.

Horikita Suzune and Kushida Kikyo had been students in different classes at the same middle school.

During their middle school years, the fact that Kushida was a two-faced person was accidentally discovered by a classmate, and what awaited her was, naturally, isolation by the entire class.

As the isolation gradually escalated into bullying, Kushida didn't just sit there and wait for her end.

She began leaking the dark secrets of the students she had gathered before her true nature was exposed, one by one.

For example, who had bad-mouthed whom behind their backs, which female student had been involved in "papa hunting" outside of school, and who had stolen their friend's partner.

In just one day, a chaotic brawl broke out in Kushida's class, and the final result was that the entire class was dismantled; those who could transfer schools did, and those who could transfer classes did.

That year, the graduating class was effectively reduced by one because of Kushida.

"I can be useful too. I can also engage in mutual benefit." Kushida hadn't given up on the possibility of not helping Horikita Suzune.

She had no interaction with Horikita Suzune in middle school, but the mere fact that Horikita Suzune knew her true colors was enough for her to be hostile.

Moreover, just looking at Horikita Suzune's aloof demeanor made her feel uneasy.

"Class D currently needs an iron-fisted leader, and you aren't it."

Without a hint of tact, Aoyama gave a blunt answer that infuriated Kushida.

With The Three Idiots and various other eccentric characters, the leader of Class D would be nothing more than a figurehead without a firm hand.

Kushida, who only thought about playing the "good person" to gain friends' trust and dig for secrets, could never be firm enough to be a leader.

"Karuizawa is my person, and she will help me keep an eye on you."

"I don't think you want to know the consequences of messing up the first task I've entrusted to you."

Glancing at the time on his phone screen, Aoyama left Kushida standing there with a complex expression and set off toward the dormitory building.

Because the place Kushida had chosen was too remote, by the time he made it back to the dorms, it would be nearly curfew.

"Who was that girl who was just there?"

"Horikita Suzune."

Waving his hand behind him, Aoyama spoke without a hint of fluctuation in his tone.

It was as if he were stating a simple truth.

The day after Kushida tacitly agreed to support Horikita, Aoyama called out Hirata Yosuke, the boy implicitly recognized as the leader of Class D.

Naturally, the "rebel" Horikita Suzune was also with Aoyama.

"I believe I am better suited than you to be the leader of Class D."

In a booth at a cafe popular with students, Horikita Suzune stated her objective point-blank, her expression devoid of any unease.

"Class D is down to two hundred and fifty class points, all because you indulge Yamauchi and his group. The girls around Karuizawa follow suit, and it is all a result of your inaction."

"If it were me, I would have used force to stop the rule-breaking behavior of Sudo and the others."

Right from the start, Horikita stepped precisely onto Hirata's minefield.

And just as Aoyama had expected, the brow of Hirata, who had been able to maintain a gentle smile until now, was tightly furrowed.

"Horikita-san, your way of thinking is a bit too extreme. I cannot approve of you."

"Besides, aren't Yamauchi-kun and the others behaving much better now?"

"That's because they're afraid," Aoyama interjected.

It was fine when the class point results didn't change in April.

But by May, when they realized their points had shrunk by seventy-five percent, the naked reality of their massive loss of benefits was laid bare, and the students of Class D could no longer endure it.

Under the weight of public resentment, even Sudo, who had the hottest temper, couldn't act tough anymore and kept his head down.

"This has nothing to do with Aoyama-kun. These are internal affairs of our class. What is wrong with keeping the status quo?"

"I think it's wrong. And for the record, I am not seeking your help or approval; I am issuing an ultimatum." Horikita Suzune retorted to Hirata with a very firm attitude.

During the two times she saw Sudo's disputes being stopped by Hirata, she had noticed that Hirata possessed an unusual obsession with maintaining harmony within the class.

He had taken a hard punch from Sudo without showing a hint of anger on his face.

Even after being helped up, he immediately went to soothe the girls who spoke up for him.

"Tomorrow after school, I will use the remaining two hundred and fifty class points to threaten the others into accepting my leadership."

"Kushida and Karuizawa have already agreed to support me, and you will too."

"Are you crazy, Horikita?" Hirata could no longer afford to be polite. "Doing this won't save you; it will cut off any possibility of you making friends in Class D."

What Horikita was about to do was like a member of a robber gang telling the boss to give up his position, or else she would call the police and they would all go down together.

No one would want to be friends with a Horikita like that.

"Did you instigate her, Aoyama?" Realizing he couldn't persuade Horikita, Hirata turned his target toward Aoyama, who was leisurely drinking tea.

"I provided the idea. I did something similar in Class A."

With a calm smile, Aoyama blocked Hirata's accusations.

Since he had done it himself, it couldn't be said that he was specifically trying to sabotage Horikita Suzune.

"You could have been more popular, had more friends." Hirata gave a bitter smile. He had friends in Class A and had heard the complaints from Class A students about Aoyama.

Things like "what a disappointing handsome guy" or "it would be better if he weren't so mercenary."

Raising his right hand, Aoyama made a money-counting gesture. "As for me, this is all I need."

The reason he went to such lengths to help Horikita Suzune rise to power was primarily because Hirata was too incompetent to collect class fees.

"I have a way to make everyone in Class D pass the midterm exams. Remember to cooperate with Suzune tomorrow."

"And don't worry about me doing anything bad to Class D, because only when Class D's points are high will there be spare cash for me to scrape off."

"Kushida hasn't paid the fifty thousand personal points she owes me this month, and you won't be able to pay your fifty thousand next month either, right? If you default, I'll report it to the Student Council, and both of you will be expelled."

Carrot and stick—Aoyama presented both to Hirata.

Whether he wanted to help or not, Hirata had to support the move to back Horikita Suzune.

As long as the three big figures of Class D's popularity worked together, Horikita's rise to power wouldn't be too difficult.

"Do you think my brother would approve of my methods?"

After Hirata left with a look of reluctance, Horikita Suzune suddenly spoke while stirring her coffee.

Seizing a leadership position through threats was, by any measure, an unorthodox path.

"Based on my understanding of Horikita President, he would approve. However, he wouldn't be approving of your methods, but rather the fact that you had the guts to do it." Aoyama brought the warm black tea to his lips.

"He is the type of brother who would rather you make a mistake than do nothing at all."

"As long as you can learn from the experience and grow, he will be happy."

Chapter 32 Rumors Abound

"Did you hear? Horikita Suzune from Class D is seeing Aoyama Shiki from Class A."

"Haven't they been seeing each other for a while? I've run into Aoyama-kun coming out of Horikita-san's room, and not just once."

"Do you think they've already done that?"

"Done what?"

"You're so naughty."

Horikita-san, is it?

As the two girls chatting about the hot topic gradually walked away, Shiina sat in the corner of the cafeteria, slowly sipping her warm soup, the image of the cold beauty Horikita Suzune appearing in her mind.

The most talked-about figure among the first-years had shifted from Student Council Vice President Aoyama Shiki to the leader of Class D, Horikita Suzune.

She was yet another student who had become a class leader by threatening her own classmates.

Moreover, compared to the violent threats of Ryuen Kakeru, Horikita Suzune's methods could be considered even more shameful and contemptible.

Yet, despite such underhanded tactics, the three central figures of Class D—Hirata Yosuke, Kushida Kikyo, and Karuizawa Kei—had all stepped up to support her and vouch for her.

Aoyama-kun, are you the one pushing this from behind the scenes?

Having finished her lunch completely, Shiina picked up her empty tray.

The leader of Class C, Ryuen Kakeru, was a capable man with strong initiative.

Knowing that the four classes were in a competitive relationship, Ryuen had been scouting for students in other classes to exploit since the middle of April.

By now, excluding Class B, people in both Classes A and D had been bought off, and intelligence from both classes had made its way to Shiina.

Among these, Aoyama's forceful promotion of Katsuragi bore a striking resemblance to Horikita Suzune's actions.

"What a coincidence, Shiina, you've just finished too."

While pondering what role Aoyama played in this affair, a gentle male voice came from beside her as Shiina headed toward the dish return area.