"Thank you for looking after me, senpai. I'll definitely find you within three days."
Outside the school building, the orange-haired girl bowed solemnly. Her alluring, curvaceous figure flashed into view for an instant.
"Of course. Enjoy your first day, Kushida. I hope you have a wonderful time at the school. I'm looking forward to seeing you again."
Dongfang Yi remained where he was, smiling and waving. He played the part of a senpai to perfection.
And so, the two of them stood smiling at the entrance, saying their goodbyes...
Standing at the entrance, saying their goodbyes...
At the entrance, saying goodbye...
Goodbye...
Are you seriously still not leaving? ×2
The exact same thought occurred to both of them at once.
Kushida Kikyo stayed put to show the senpai her heartfelt respect and admiration, like a bright, charming girl who was new to the school. It would make her seem even cuter and earn his goodwill.
Dongfang Yi stayed put because...
He had no idea how long the opening ceremony would last.
To enjoy the look on the black-hearted angel's face when they met again, he had to keep his ability called Stealth active throughout the entire ceremony.
Not moving now was the best way to conserve what little stamina he had left, so he could hide himself during the upcoming group activities and maintain his image as a tall, dependable senpai.
The more convincing the act, the better.
"The bell's about to ring. This is an important part of starting school, so you don't want to miss it. You should head inside."
Dongfang Yi offered his advice kindly.
Do you really want me to waste what little stamina I have left?
"Okay, senpai. I'll be off, then."
Kushida Kikyo waved and walked into the school building, looking back every few steps.
It wasn't that she'd changed her plans. It was because taking advice was a virtue for a junior.
Especially in Japan, where senpais were practically above the heavens.
Disobedience was one of the easiest ways to leave a bad impression, and winning people over was her greatest strength. She would never casually go out of her way to step on land mines.
Charm was a skill, too.
And she'd been honing it for a long time.
Passing students stared at the pair in surprise and whispered among themselves.
"Senpai? Since when did we have a senpai like that at this school? He's so handsome."
"Should we ask him for his Line ID?"
"A gentle senpai and a cute junior. They look so close!"
"But something feels off. Do we even have anyone like him in the second year?"
"I don't think so."
"Wait, is he a third-year senpai? I want a senpai to dote on me, too. Let's go ask for his Line ID."
"That can't be right. How could a senpai that handsome be unknown among the third-years? There are only so many students at this school."
"...You have a point."
"I'm saying, it's weird."
Under the curious, probing gazes of the crowd, Dongfang Yi smiled and waved, then walked toward the place where Kushida Kikyo had disappeared.
At last, to the astonishment and confusion of everyone watching, he vanished around the first-year stairwell.
"So he really was our junior..."
"What a mischievous junior~"
"I forgot to ask the junior for his Line ID."
Dongfang Yi stood outside the classroom.
He looked at the words First Year Class A above the door and felt a little emotional.
Sometimes, the gap between people was greater than the gap between people and dogs.
Some people were born into hell, while others were born into... well... a life of luxury.
A perfect start—that was me, Dongfang Yi~
This class assignment was... unexpectedly comfortable.
At least for the first part of his growth, he wouldn't have to worry about not being able to afford meat, buy clothes, or get shoes.
Still, it wasn't all that great.
After all, in his eyes, this seemingly comfortable start was the second-worst possible option. There was no question about it.
Class C would've been much better, if only because Class A didn't earn much either.
If he'd been born into Class C, Dongfang Yi could've tried collecting protection money without feeling guilty—fees for protecting his classmates from Ryuen's harassment.
But in this class, he could only say there was no money to save at all.
That certain someone had far too much of a habit of controlling the points. Sure, the school was in a sense part of her family's business.
But that was still miserly beyond belief.
In every bit of the story Dongfang Yi had seen, Class A, the class that was supposedly the strongest, always had its points hovering around a thousand.
As students, they could live comfortably enough.
The problem was that by graduation, they probably wouldn't have earned even as much as he'd spent in a single month before!
For Dongfang Yi, who was completely broke, that was terrifying.
In theory, he shouldn't have had to worry about a few measly coins. What transmigrator from the city didn't have a system that rewarded them with the local currency?
But Dongfang Yi's system shop really didn't have anything like that right now.
So he'd have to fend for himself and skim a little off the school to solve his future survival problems.
Of course, he didn't need to think that far ahead yet. For now, he just needed to enjoy the thrill of starting with a full purse.
Dongfang Yi found his seat by checking the names on the blackboard.
Back row, by the window. The king's territory.
The perfect protagonist's seat.
Pretty good~
He sat down and looked around.
He had a great view of the room and could see all the students coming and going, which made it easy to match some of the characters from the story to the people around him.
For instance, the guy with a shiny, bald head and the weathered face of a middle-aged man was clearly Katsuragi Kohei. The flamboyant fellow beside him, flailing his arms around, was probably Totsuka Yahiko.
Then there was the boy a bunch of girls were chatting with. If Dongfang Yi wasn't mistaken, he was Satoshi Ritonaka, the most handsome supporting character in the first year.
He was the guy who'd claimed the top spot on the handsome-boy rankings within two months of starting school, only to be shelved without much of a follow-up.
Oh, and there was that normal-looking guy who seemed completely out of place, with an art style that didn't match anyone else's. Kito Hayato looked like the protagonist of some story about ghosts or something had wandered into the wrong series... He was pretty easy to recognize.
But those people weren't who Dongfang Yi cared about. There was only one person on his mind—
One of the three great enchantresses of Classroom of the Elite, the absolute powerhouse who'd crushed bald Katsuragi and united Class A. The undefeated queen of internal strife.
Sakayanagi Arisu!
She was important, both for her background and for the story.
Very important.
But that wasn't what interested Dongfang Yi. Before coming here, he'd already settled on a plan for the future and prepared a backup.
Unless something unexpected happened, this delicate, powerful rich girl would become his enemy before the end of the first year.
If something did go wrong, he'd have no choice but to stay in Class A and work diligently for the good of the class.
Either they'd become enemies or they'd become allies. There was no third option.
For now, he was curious about how Sakayanagi Arisu had earned the approval of everyone in Class A, making them stay loyal to her even as they slid into the abyss.
The original story said it was her charisma...
But how could anyone have that much charisma?
Even Kushida Kikyo, an enchantress who'd cultivated her craft to perfection, could only fool a bunch of spineless idiots into playing house.
Dongfang Yi couldn't help but make that malicious guess.
He had no proof, but every reason to suspect that Sakayanagi's campaign to unite the class had a lot to do with her background.
He narrowed his eyes and lightly pressed his lips together.
That girl was absolutely cheating!
"Is that Sakayanagi? That Sakayanagi!"
Some students began cheering excitedly.
"Which Sakayanagi? Is that a famous name?"
A clueless new student asked, not understanding.
"Didn't you check the school website before coming here? The chairman's last name is Sakayanagi!"
"You mean... You can't mean... Are you saying... She's the chairman's daughter?!"
"Arisu, may I ask how you're related to the chairman?"
A curious student called out from the crowd.
Their animated discussion drew more people over, until the White-Haired Loli was surrounded on all sides.
"The chairman is my father. But please don't treat me differently because of him. More than being the chairman's daughter, I'd like to spend these three years with you all as an ordinary student."
The petite, white-haired girl sat serenely in her chair, a sturdy-looking little cane resting beside her knee.
Her voice was gentle and warm, her speech unhurried. Her delicate brows and eyes curved slightly, giving her a naturally approachable air.
She sat straight, her manner composed and graceful, and she knew just how to conduct herself. She had clearly received excellent etiquette training.
Her radiant smile was like a spring breeze to everyone listening, inspiring in them a desire to protect her.
The group of fools gathered around her had clearly failed to see her true nature.
They also hadn't realized that the girl was observing them like chess pieces. Instead, they eagerly vied with one another to tell her their names and what they were good at.
The classroom grew even livelier.
Dongfang Yi knew exactly what they were thinking. After all, who wouldn't love a cute, white-haired, legally adult girl who looked like a little girl and was also rich?
If he didn't know that she had a difficult childhood friend and an extremely self-centered personality, every bit as obsessive as Kushida Kikyo's, honestly, he'd be tempted to find out what it was like to live off the chairman's daughter.
But that was just a joke in his head. As a transmigrator with a system, why would he put his fate in someone else's hands?
Dongfang Yi smiled at himself.
Living off someone else's money was just too low-class.
It would drag down his own standing.
Better to make an honest fortune by taking advantage of this school.
Otherwise, I'll have no choice but to start robbing people.
I hope these Japanese people know what's good for them.
Before you continue