Do You Take Me for an Idiot?

Under Katsuragi's watchful gaze.

The six students from Class C split into two teams of three.

On one side,

Prince Ganlongdao led Kaneda and Shiho Manabe.

On the other,

Dragon Garden led Albert and Ishizaki.

Kaneda and Shiho Manabe clearly didn't know how to play, while the three on the opposing team seemed to have some experience.

Simply put,

Prince Ganlongdao was playing three against one.

Watching the scene unfold,

Katsuragi's brow furrowed.

Judging by what Prince Ganlongdao had said earlier, he'd brought his girlfriend to play basketball.

If so,

he must have wanted to impress her and show off his strength.

In that case,

he'd need to make sure his team had a fighting chance. Bringing two beginners along seemed completely unreasonable.

By Katsuragi's reasoning,

Prince Ganlongdao should have been teamed up with Albert, with the two of them taking Shiho Manabe, while Dragon Garden and Ishizaki took Kaneda.

Only that lineup made sense to a normal person.

Since it didn't make sense,

the only explanation was that Prince Ganlongdao and the others had ulterior motives.

Unless he wasn't here to play basketball at all, but had come to find Katsuragi and sound out his abilities.

At that thought,

"So you really do underestimate me..."

Katsuragi chuckled.

Clearly,

he wasn't an idiot either. He'd figured it out in an instant.

They were using this setup to observe how he handled the situation. They obviously thought little of him.

Still,

being underestimated wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

It gave him the chance to keep his own abilities hidden while observing how his opponents reacted.

However,

the next second,

Katsuragi began to doubt his own judgment.

He watched as

Prince Ganlongdao took the ball from Shiho Manabe, dribbled forward, and muscled his way into Albert, forcing him backward.

"Damn."

"Albert, what good is being that big if you're just going to stand there?"

"..."

Albert's face twisted with pain. He had no idea how to explain himself.

After all, they were boys.

Even if they were here to gather information, that didn't mean they couldn't enjoy playing basketball.

When they'd heard how the teams were split, they'd been a little displeased.

After all,

Kaneda and Shiho Manabe were clearly just there to make up the numbers.

They hadn't planned to take things seriously. Instead, they'd intended to take turns playing one-on-one against Prince Ganlongdao.

But they hadn't expected

Prince Ganlongdao to be so absurdly strong.

Albert dug his feet into the ground, as if he were wrestling with a tank that just kept rolling forward. He couldn't stop it at all and was pushed straight into the paint.

Then,

Prince Ganlongdao reached the basket, leaped into the air, and slammed the ball through with a powerful dunk,

sending Albert crashing to the ground.

"Prince Brother, that was awesome!"

Shiho Manabe and Prince Ganlongdao high-fived to celebrate the score.

On the other side,

"Albert..."

Dragon Garden couldn't help laughing. "I thought you were just easygoing and liked using your size to shove people around. Now I'm starting to wonder if you're actually useless—or if you're kissing up to him and going easy on him."

"No..."

Albert stammered, unsure what to say. Behind his sunglasses, he stared at Prince Ganlongdao in confusion.

Two months ago,

he'd still been able to hold his own against Prince Ganlongdao.

Even when Prince Ganlongdao wanted to beat him, he'd needed to rely on clever moves and technique.

But now...

The gap had left Albert questioning things, too.

Was he no longer fit to stand in front of Prince Ganlongdao, or was it because he hadn't eaten enough at lunch?

"Cut it out."

Prince Ganlongdao walked over and scoffed:

"I told you three to come at me together, but you wouldn't listen. Dragon Garden, why don't you come try your luck?"

"Don't regret it."

Dragon Garden frowned, genuinely puzzled.

Albert didn't seem like the kind of person who'd kiss up to anyone. How had the gap between them gotten so big?

They started another round.

Relying on his physical strength,

Prince Ganlongdao shoved Albert backward again and again.

Behind Albert, Ishizaki and Dragon Garden whipped around, craning their necks as they stared at Prince Ganlongdao.

Dragon Garden was dumbfounded.

He'd known from swimming class and regular PE that this guy was in great shape.

But he'd never imagined he was this strong.

It was like a battering ram crashing into their bodies, shoving them forward in repeated, relentless bursts.

This made no sense!

How could anyone be this physically strong?

It was beyond anything they could understand.

A person's body had its limits.

What Dragon Garden and the others didn't know was that

after gaining the power of the Demon Back, Prince Ganlongdao had seemingly unlocked his body's limiter.

Before,

no matter how much he trained,

his muscles had barely grown any stronger.

But now,

even though he was training just as he had before,

his muscles were gaining strength as noticeably as a beginner's.

In just a few days,

though his physique didn't look any different, he'd become more than twice as strong as he'd been at the start of the school year.

Of all of them,

Shiho Manabe felt the change most keenly.

Now she both loved and feared Prince Ganlongdao. She'd even hinted several times, asking what he thought of Saki Yamashita and the others.

On the other side,

Katsuragi crossed his arms, beginning to doubt his own judgment.

He'd thought Prince Ganlongdao and the others had come to find him, but now it seemed more like an act. Were they all working together to show off in front of that girl?

That sort of thing

might fool an inexperienced girl like Shiho Manabe.

But fool people who knew the game?

Ridiculous.

One guy dribbling against three people,

including a big man like Albert?

Did they take him for an idiot?

Who were they trying to fool?

Even James might not be able to pull that off!

If that was the extent of Prince Ganlongdao's ability, Katsuragi figured they might as well skip the physical fitness events from now on.

He'd thought Prince Ganlongdao really wasn't holding back.

Turns out, that was all he had.

A flashy showman with no substance.

Katsuragi shook his head

and turned back to play with his companions.

Though he was wary of Prince Ganlongdao's perceptiveness, his need to save face and show off in front of girls was a weakness.

As long as he found the right weakness,

dealing with Prince Ganlongdao wouldn't be difficult.

Besides,

he didn't need to take Prince Ganlongdao down. He only had to be on his guard.

The only shame was that

Class A and Class C

could have worked together. Class A wanted to hold on to its position, while Class C could use the opportunity to climb higher.

They'd had a natural basis for cooperation.

Unfortunately,

after seeing Prince Ganlongdao's performance,

Katsuragi had already decided that he wasn't someone they could work with.

On the athletic field,

there was a metal staircase used as a timing stand.

For some reason,

the students at school who liked to fight and act tough all seemed to enjoy claiming this stand.

At that moment,

Prince Ganlongdao sat on the top step.

Dragon Garden and Kaneda sat on the second step, while Albert and Ishizaki stood on the third. The hierarchy was clear as day...

Shiho Manabe sat beside Prince Ganlongdao.

She'd bought drinks and popsicles for everyone, and looked down at the others from time to time, lifting her chin with pride. She was so easy to read, and so easily satisfied.

Being materialistic and competitive were flaws for ordinary people.

But for the rich, they were the most reassuring virtues.

Dragon Garden drank his beverage, completely uninterested in such a shallow woman.

"You've seen him. What do you think?"