Classroom of the Elite, Oh No, I've Become a Stand-in

In a short while, a notification arrived confirming the transfer of 50,000 points.

[Horikita Suzune: I will find a way to pay you back the remaining points. I need to confirm this information with our homeroom teacher. Goodbye.]

[Mikage Touji: Goodbye.]

Mikage Touji stretched his limbs, loosening up his joints. Just as he was about to move on to his next task, his screen lit up again.

[Horikita Suzune: Um...]

[Horikita Suzune: Thank you.]

[Mikage Touji: Don't mention it. We're close enough that friends helping each other is only natural.]

A faint smile tugged at the corners of Mikage Touji's mouth.

No need to thank me... really...

Actually, it wouldn't matter if you didn't pay me back...

Horikita-san... have you never wondered why, out of all the people in Class D who could sell information, I chose you—someone with such a cold, difficult personality?

Because you were never my target to begin with!

Hahaha!

Mikage Touji wore the grin of a man whose scheme had succeeded perfectly. He smoothly switched his chat window to Horikita Manabu, sent him a screenshot of the previous conversation, and began to lecture him.

[Mikage Touji: How exactly did you raise your sister to be like this?]

A moment later, a message arrived from Horikita Manabu.

[Horikita Manabu: I will pay her debt for her.]

The sparse words revealed a deep sense of exhaustion within Horikita Manabu, as if he had completely run out of ways to deal with his dense sister.

[Horikita Manabu: This is indeed my responsibility.]

Mikage Touji attempted to stir up the guilt in Horikita Manabu's heart.

[Mikage Touji: How can you two siblings have such vastly different personalities? Who did she even learn this from?]

[Horikita Manabu: It is my fault. She has always been chasing my footsteps, but I didn't notice when she veered off the original path.]

Mikage Touji began to apply pressure on Horikita Manabu.

[Mikage Touji: So you didn't try to pull her back to the right path? You let her speed down the wrong road while you went off to enjoy yourself at Advanced Nurturing?]

[Horikita Manabu: That is correct... I only thought that if she stayed away from me, she might change back on her own. I didn't expect her to go further and further down the wrong path. It is indeed my fault.]

[Ding! 500,000 points received!]

[Horikita Manabu: Do not tell her about this.]

[Mikage Touji: No problem. After all, we're old customers. Whatever you say, goes! Scam-artist-rubbing-hands.jpg]

Plan accomplished!

Mikage Touji put his phone down, feeling satisfied.

As expected, compared to Horikita-imouto, whose class points were zero and who wouldn't be worth much even if I sold her off, this Horikita-bro, the Student Council President, was the one with the real deep pockets.

Keep it up, Horikita-imouto. Work hard and try to help me squeeze every last drop of oil out of your old man of a brother.

Of course, the most important thing is...

"Ahaha, Morishita, Yamamura, we've got our food expenses covered for the next year!"

Chapter 53: Leisure Time in May

The May sunlight spilled lazily across the campus. The sky was a clear, pale blue with a few wisps of clouds drifting aimlessly, and the shadows of the trees on the ground stretched longer and longer as the sun shifted.

Before one knew it, the third week of May had arrived.

While the various groups in Class A were methodically carrying out their review plans, the classes of the first year had each organized their own study groups to make a final sprint toward the Midterm Exam.

"So, why are you still here?"

In a corner by the window on the second floor of the library, Kamuro Masumi stopped her pen. She looked at Mikage Touji, who had already achieved the feat of graduating from the tutoring sessions yet remained in the library, attempting to grind himself into the dirt.

This guy had graduated at lightning speed in the very first week of tutoring. Starting with a foundation in Japanese Literature far inferior to her own, he had sped past her like a runaway truck, leaving her in a cloud of exhaust.

Then, he had shamelessly circled back around, sped past her again, and dealt her a second psychological blow.

This incredible speed of progress made Kamuro Masumi, who had once fantasized about surpassing Mikage Touji, doubt her own existence.

"Oh, come on, buddy, don't be like that. I'm just here to keep you company, aren't I? Even Katsuragi said that as long as you have the desire to improve your grades, you can come for tutoring regardless of whether you're passing or not."

Mikage Touji tucked his pen behind his ear and stared at the problems on his test paper.

He had no choice; he didn't want to go shopping with the Senior, so he had to keep grinding his grades.

The Senior wasn't as gentle as Mother Shiraishi. She adjusted the goals based on his mistakes, and the difficulty increased every time. If he couldn't finish, he would have to endure the Senior's "whipping" over the weekend.

"This is a good thing. Having higher grades is never a bad thing. In future special exams, there will definitely be some related to academic ability."

Shiraishi Asuka organized the test booklet she had finished grading for Mikage Touji and placed it into her bag.

"Are we finished?"

Shiraishi Asuka looked up at the book lying half-open on the desk, its pages fluttering in the air. "After this exam, this study group is going to disband. I feel a little reluctant to let it go." Sunlight fell upon her long eyelashes, casting faint shadows.

"Regarding that, I don't intend to disband it. Shiraishi-san is right; there will surely be more exams related to academic ability in the future. Keeping it will be useful later on. What are your opinions?"

Shiraishi Asuka pressed her palms together, her eyes shimmering with delight as she said, "I am naturally in favor of it."

"What about you, bro?" Mikage Touji looked toward Kamuro Masumi, who was buried in her practice problems.

"Does what I say even matter?" Kamuro Masumi looked up and shot him a look of extreme disdain.

Mikage Touji blinked. "How could it not matter? Isn't this just to give you a sense of participation and to demonstrate that I am a democratic person?"

"You guy..."

Gritting her teeth in annoyance, Kamuro Masumi showed no mercy. She lifted her toned, beautiful leg—clad in black calf-high socks—from under the table and kicked out at Mikage Touji.

"I dodge!" Mikage Touji tilted his thigh to the side, dodging nimbly with a smug smile. "That won't work, bro. You use this move every time; I've already developed a conditioned reflex."

Missing her mark and being provoked by Mikage Touji, Kamuro Masumi's temper flared instantly, a faint red flush staining her fair cheeks.

"If you've got guts, don't dodge!"

"If I didn't dodge, wouldn't that be a total admission of defeat?"

"You usually order me around to do so many things, it wouldn't kill you to let me kick you once!"

"No way, bro. That counts as an act of rebellion—assassinating the emperor. In ancient times, you'd be beheaded. To act so presumptuously now is truly treasonous. Cease your leg at once!"

"You actually still think of yourself as an emperor?!"

The pair of fair legs under the table blurred into afterimages, launching a series of rapid-fire kicks at Mikage Touji.

"I dodge again! And again! And I—oops!"

Emperor Mikage Touji was shot down on the spot by the assassin Kamuro Masumi.

Having successfully sanctioned Mikage Touji, Kamuro Masumi radiated a sense of satisfaction from the inside out, feeling as though she had a bit more energy to tackle her practice problems.

Shiraishi Asuka sat there quietly as always, resting her chin on one hand while watching their clash, enjoying the peaceful yet interesting time that belonged only to the three of them.

After lying on the table playing dead for a while, Mikage Touji suddenly lifted his head.

"By the way, bro, how is your mission coming along?"

"You actually care about this? I thought you had completely forgotten about it."

Kamuro Masumi looked displeased. Mikage Touji's behavior these past few days could be described as giving her the utmost freedom, but to put it bluntly, it was pure neglect.

Last time she wanted to report to him, he just tossed a link at her. When she clicked it, it was a mahjong game missing one player.

It turned out she was just being dragged in by this guy to make up the numbers!

Of course, that wasn't even the most shameless part. The most shameless thing was that this guy actually had the nerve to secretly message her, demanding she play certain cards to cooperate with him.

"How could that be? I still care about your physical and mental health. Besides, haven't I been sending you videos every day to help you learn?"

"Heh, it would be better if you weren't sending those comedy videos," Kamuro Masumi deadpanned, devoid of emotion.

Mikage Touji blinked, asking in disbelief, "Aren't they funny?"

"Is that the point?" Kamuro Masumi gritted her teeth.

"Watching more of them is good for your mental health. As long as your mind gets enough exercise, you won't care about those things anymore," Mikage Touji said righteously. "Those are videos I've treasured for a long time. I only send them to you, but if you don't like them, forget it. I'll find something else for you."

Kamuro Masumi's eyes flickered, her gaze drifting toward the window as she said unnaturally, "Whatever you want. I just treat them as daily comedy feeds anyway."

"So, should I keep sending them?"

"I said whatever!" Kamuro Masumi kicked Mikage Touji again, shooting him a glare of annoyance, her cheeks appearing even redder than before.

"..."

What exactly do you girls mean when you say "whatever"?

"What about the intel on Class D? Is there anything of value?" Mikage Touji finally remembered the real business.

"Class D currently has... well... I suppose you could call him the leader. A boy named Hirata Yousuke. He has organized the basic activities for Class D, but there is still a portion of students who are completely indifferent to his words."

"Hirata Yousuke..."

Mikage Touji rubbed his chin, muttering to himself, "Why does that name sound so familiar? Is he the handsome guy who is second on the abstract ranking list above me?"

"That boy with the brown hair over there."

Shiraishi Asuka tugged at the sleeve of Mikage Touji's arm, shifting his gaze to the first floor of the library, where several Class D first-year students were sitting together reviewing.

They were the same boys who had clashed with Horikita-imouto earlier, but this time, neither Horikita-imouto nor Cha Cha were in sight. They had been replaced by a sunny-type handsome guy whom Mikage Touji had never seen before.

At this moment, that Hirata Yousuke was wearing a gentle smile, constantly saying something to the Class D students around him. It looked like he was trying to persuade them to study seriously.

It seemed that even knowing the correct scope of the exam, Class D still faced the risk of expulsion.

Such persuasion appeared completely useless. The gazes of those Class D students were drifting, their minds elsewhere. They looked like they were doing practice problems, but in reality, they hadn't moved a muscle, as if their vocabulary reading had been stuck on the first word, "abandon," forever.

The effect felt even worse than letting Horikita-imouto teach them.

"Being a leader in Class D is truly difficult," Kamuro Masumi said, looking at the stalemate downstairs, a hint of sympathy appearing in her eyes.

"I couldn't agree more," Mikage Touji nodded in agreement.

After observing for a while longer, Mikage Touji concluded that those people in Class D were beyond saving and sat back down.

Subsequently, Kamuro Masumi mentioned the names of several capable students in Class D, such as Kushida Kikyou, Horikita Suzune, and Kouenji Rokusuke, even going so far as to describe the personality quirks of some among them.

Everything matched up perfectly with the information from Mikage Touji's other sources.

"Not bad, my friend." Mikage Touji looked at Kamuro Masumi in surprise. "I'm impressed. How did you get all this?"

Kamuro Masumi puffed out her chest proudly. "A petite, silver-haired girl from Class D told me."

"..."

"That silver-haired girl wouldn't happen to be named Sakayanagi Arisu, would she?" Mikage Touji's mouth twitched.

"You know her too? She seems like a nice person. I met her in the hallway, helped her carry her bag, and she added me as a friend and just told me."

Mikage Touji fell silent.

If there was any student in the first year who could make Mikage Touji feel troubled, Sakayanagi Arisu was definitely one of them.

It wasn't for any other reason than that frail-looking body of hers; she had given him quite a scare last time at the outdoor seating area of the convenience store.

For someone who looked like they might collapse at the slightest touch, Mikage Touji felt it was best to keep his distance.

After pondering for a long time, Mikage Touji spoke up: "My friend, how about... I give you a different task? I think Class B is a good choice. You could try that instead. Actually, I'm quite familiar with their class leader; we could even set up a joint social event."

"Is there a problem with how I completed this one?"

"That's not it."

"Then I refuse. I think this task suits me just fine."

"Alright then." Mikage Touji sighed helplessly.

If she didn't tell you that on purpose, I'll chop my head off and let you use it as a bowl!

Sakayanagi Arisu, what is she planning? Did she get so angry that she turned dark and wants to send this sinful Class D to hell? Or is she, like Chabashira Sae, trying to temper Class D? Or is she just a pure agent of chaos?

Recalling some of the things said during his previous conversations with Sakayanagi Arisu, the possibility of her being dark or just a chaos-seeker seemed much higher.