Creak.
The door opened.
When Prince Ganlongdao walked into the room, Dragon Garden took the initiative and started a conversation.
With a hint of teasing in his voice, he said:
"Wow, it's only been two days since you last came to my room. I thought you usually came by every five to seven days. What made you come so soon this time?"
"Today's points didn't come through, so I figured you'd be wondering what was going on. I came to tell you about the situation."
Prince Ganlongdao pulled out a chair from the desk and sat down, briefly explaining what was happening in the class.
First, the class had Class Points, and each student's Private Points were tied to them.
Second, only students who graduated from Class A would have the freedom to choose their careers.
Third, the midterm exam was their latest chance to earn Class Points.
Hearing this,
Dragon Garden had already gotten a general idea of what had happened. With an amused look, he said:
"So, according to you, I didn't get any Private Points transferred today because Class C's Class Points were completely wiped out. And we'll probably drop to Class D next month?"
Unlike Kaneda and the others,
Dragon Garden hadn't taken any of this to heart.
Having their Class Points reduced to zero was a trivial matter!
They could just win them back later.
Like Prince Ganlongdao, he had absolute confidence in his own abilities.
"If things go the same way as last month, then probably."
Prince Ganlongdao nodded frankly.
Kazuma Sakagami had only said that the midterm exam could earn them Class Points. He hadn't said how many.
If Dragon Garden kept skipping class,
then no matter how well the others did, they probably wouldn't make up for the points he cost them.
"So what?"
Dragon Garden's smile seemed to brighten.
"Doesn't that mean you're in a pretty bad spot?"
"Huh?"
Prince Ganlongdao tilted his head in confusion. "Why?"
"..."
This time,
Dragon Garden was the one left dumbfounded.
Why?
You're asking me why?
Dragon Garden frowned.
"Hold on. I'll ask you anyway: Ganlongdao, you haven't united the class yet, have you?"
"Huh? I took care of that on the second day."
Prince Ganlongdao looked a little exasperated. "Except for one stubborn idiot who keeps causing trouble for the class and doesn't feel the slightest bit guilty about it."
"After leading the class into this mess, nobody's upset with you?"
Ignoring the jab, Dragon Garden frowned.
Dragon Garden understood, too.
He'd skipped class for a month, and plenty of people would surely blame him for the problems.
But
as the class leader, Prince Ganlongdao would inevitably have to bear responsibility. Some people would definitely be unhappy about it and put pressure on him.
If he couldn't take the pressure,
Prince Ganlongdao would either have to give in to him or be driven out by Class C.
So why did it seem like
Prince Ganlongdao was still so calm and unbothered?
Of course,
Dragon Garden had only ever used force to control the class. How could he understand the advantages that came with Prince Ganlongdao's political savvy?
"Dragon Garden, I think you've got the wrong idea."
Prince Ganlongdao looked a little exasperated.
He stood up, took out his phone, and showed Dragon Garden the class group chat.
[Yogo Komiya: Damn it, this is all that jerk Dragon Garden's fault.]
[Takumi Oda: Seriously. If that guy hadn't skipped class for a whole month, our Class Points wouldn't have been reduced to zero.]
[Reon Kondo: When that guy finally comes back to school, I'm going to find a chance to beat the crap out of him.]
[Yuji Nomura: If you ask me, he already beat people up at the start of term. We should just report him to the school and get Dragon Garden expelled. Keeping a guy like that around is asking for trouble.]
[Daichi Ishizaki: That's enough. Have you all forgotten what Dragon Garden used to do? Besides, Prince Brother hasn't said anything yet. What's the point of you all making a fuss here?]
[...]
[Saki Yamashita: Delicious food.jpg]
[Nanami Yabu: We're lucky Prince Brother is managing our money. If he weren't, I'd have been living on scraps this month.]
"???"
Dragon Garden furrowed his brows, a head full of question marks.
This made no sense!
He could understand people blaming him.
But why were some of them praising Prince Ganlongdao?
Managing the money?
Even if Prince Ganlongdao deserved some credit for keeping track of everyone's Private Points,
that was certainly impressive.
But
as the leader,
wasn't he supposed to take responsibility?
Of course he wasn't!
If a leader had to take responsibility, what was the point of being a leader?
Power
was about winning over a small group of people and managing a large crowd of fools.
With Shiho Manabe speaking up for him, Dragon Garden serving as an outlet for everyone's frustration, and Prince Ganlongdao's own strength and style, nobody dared to pick a fight with him for the time being.
Of course,
there was one other crucial factor.
Prince Ganlongdao's relaxed, carefree attitude.
It gave everyone the feeling that there was still hope.
As long as there was hope, everything was fine.
With that, Prince Ganlongdao returned to the desk and sat down.
Looking at the silent Ryuen Kakeru, he said casually:
"Don't worry. They're just talking. Besides, I think very highly of you. As long as I'm here, I won't let you get expelled. Let's keep seeing who can hold out longer~"
"Will they kick me out first, or will you give up first?"
Hearing this,
Ryuen's gaze turned cold, but he didn't reply.
Whether Prince Ganlongdao really thought highly of him or would actually protect him didn't matter. Ryuen didn't care about any of that.
He could leave the dorm whenever he wanted.
Even if he went back to the class right now, he was confident he could make Kaneda and the others shut up.
As for avoiding expulsion,
that wouldn't be difficult for Ryuen.
Whether Prince Ganlongdao meant it or not, Ryuen was confident either way...
Even if they kept competing,
Ryuen was still confident he could keep going.
No matter how bad his surroundings got, no matter how much mental strain came from shutting himself away for so long,
Ryuen was absolutely confident he could persevere until victory,
until Prince Ganlongdao admitted defeat.
However,
how long would that take?
Given the current situation,
it would take at least a few months to break Prince Ganlongdao mentally. It might even take years.
If they kept competing,
there was no end in sight!
Ryuen was confident enough, but that didn't mean he was stupid!
Even if he could beat Prince Ganlongdao after a few months,
what would be the point?
By then,
it would probably be impossible to move up to Class A.
Even Ryuen wasn't so arrogant as to think otherwise.
The other classes weren't stupid, either.
Giving ground for a month was one thing, but if they stayed stuck for months without doing anything,
even he wouldn't be confident he could catch up with the other classes.
At that point, at most, he'd be a class leader living a little more comfortably.
That meant nothing to Ryuen.
Watching the silent Ryuen Kakeru, Prince Ganlongdao's lips curled slightly.
Just as he'd expected.
After hearing all this,
Ryuen's attitude had finally changed!
At last,
Ryuen spoke.
Before you continue