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

"Of course, as long as you don't mind." Mikage Touji smiled as he picked up some beef, then provoked Morishita Ran, "See, Yamamura is different from the stingy Lord Morishita."

"I, I certainly wouldn't mind."

"Consider yourself lucky to have escaped this time, Mikage Touji." Morishita Ran, feeling relieved, still refused to back down.

"Likewise, Lord Morishita."

As the beef entered his mouth, the rich aroma of the meat instantly spread across his tongue, forming a marvelous pairing with the smooth, chewy, and elastic texture of the udon noodles.

Hmm... as expected of the spoils of war he had worked so hard to snatch back from Katsuragi-san, it was delicious.

After quickly finishing his dinner, the phone in his pocket vibrated.

[Ding! 200,000 points received!]

Having once again drained the gold coins of Horikita Manabu, Mikage Touji looked with satisfaction at his increasingly plump electronic wallet.

He could roughly guess the reason why Horikita-imouto had suddenly come to borrow points from him; otherwise, why would she have only borrowed eighty thousand?

Besides, as long as her Brother could still pay his debts, how could he, the dignified Minister of Revenue of Class A, ever be short of silver?

Horikita-imouto!

It is a pity that I couldn't help you much this time. If you encounter difficulties again, please be sure to seek help from your only friend—Mikage Touji!

Although you lost points, and your Brother lost points, you still have me!

I can fully serve as your only friend, providing you with all support except for actual help, and while I'm at it, I'll keep up the good work and squeeze your Brother's wallet—

The phone, which was about to be put away, was snatched away by a small, unclean hand stained with a bit of curry sauce the moment Mikage Touji broke into a smile.

"Smiling so happily..."

Morishita Ran, who had just suffered a major loss, glanced at Mikage Touji suspiciously. After muttering a few words, she turned her gaze to the phone screen.

Then, she saw a long string of transfer records from Horikita Manabu on the phone.

"..."

The surrounding air seemed to freeze at this moment.

Two seconds later, Morishita Ran turned her head abruptly, looking at Katsuragi Kōhei, who had just become a member of the Student Council, and then at Mikage Touji, who had received a large sum of money. She put on an expression that said, "So you finally reached this point," sighed heavily, and shook her head in disappointment.

Then, she shoved the phone back into Mikage Touji's hand, pulled out her own phone with lightning speed, and dialed—

"Hey!"

Mikage Touji pressed down on Morishita Ran's palm, his defense spilling out instantly.

"It's not what you think!"

"No need to say anything, just turn yourself in, Mikage Touji!"

The situation on the field reversed instantly. Morishita Ran's eyes filled with pity, "I was wondering why you've been so generous lately, even ordering double portions of chashu with your ramen. So it turns out you've been committing the evil act of human trafficking."

"And I never expected that Student Council President Horikita Manabu would be this kind of person. There must be a massive and intricate chain of interests behind you two. It doesn't matter; today, I, Morishita Ran, will uphold justice and destroy my own kin for the greater good!"

"You're the one who adds the most toppings, okay? No! That's not the point right now!" Mikage Touji pulled on Morishita Ran's palm, "In any case, I can explain!"

"No need to explain." Morishita Ran said firmly, "I will visit you every year and bring you magazines."

"After you get out, if you can't find a job because you've been to prison..."

Veins popped out on Mikage Touji's forehead.

"If you are discriminated against by others..."

His fists clenched involuntarily.

"If you can't find a girlfriend..."

His teeth ground together.

"And if you are homeless."

Fury ignited in his eyes.

"Just come to the Morishita Family, and Lord Morishita will reluctantly bestow a job upon you."

"Then I am truly troubled by Lord Morishita's kindness." Mikage Touji gritted his teeth.

"Don't mention it, I've always been very generous." Morishita Ran tilted her head, her ponytail swinging, and said proudly.

"Regarding this, I wish to file an appeal, petition a higher court, and state my grievances!" Mikage Touji slammed his hands on the dining table, shouting his innocence.

"Since that's the case..."

Morishita Ran pulled back her hand, sat down again, and pulled Yamamura Miki, who was silently watching the show, over. Sitting on either side of the table across from Mikage Touji, she squinted at him like a police officer interrogating a suspect in a detention center.

"Suspect Mikage Touji, you have 10 minutes. Please explain why there are such frequent and massive financial transactions between you and Student Council President Horikita Manabu."

Mikage Touji crossed his hands, rested his chin on them, and smiled confidently, "Of course, it's because—"

The words he was about to say instantly stuck in his throat, and a drop of cold sweat slid down Mikage Touji's forehead.

Because of what?

That he had bumped into an injured Horikita-imouto on his way to feed pigeons, brought her to the infirmary, resolved a small friction between her and Horikita Manabu, and then repeatedly jumped back and forth every time Horikita-imouto sought his help, all to rake in a fortune?

"What about your testimony, Mikage Touji? Speak..."

Beneath that lighthearted tone lay the cold, indifferent face of Morishita Ran.

"Because... because..."

Mikage Touji stood there sweating, muttering to himself for a moment before a cold glint flashed in his eyes. He slammed his hands together and declared with ironclad certainty:

"Yes! There is indeed a massive exchange of benefits between me and Horikita Manabu. I sold Katsuragi to Horikita Manabu like a pig for slaughter, and in return, I received a head-hunting fee of 500,000 points!"

"There is indeed a vast and intricate chain of interests behind the Student Council, headed by the president and vice-president, Horikita Manabu and Nagumo Miyabi. Furthermore, there is some sort of ambiguous relationship between them. I am willing to atone for my crimes and lead the charge in exposing them both!"

Faced with a topic that was difficult to refute, Mikage Touji decided to cover it up with an even more explosive one.

"Let me tell you, actually, those two..."

Oh, oh!

The Class A students who were eating and eavesdropping on the gossip around the three of them nodded thoughtfully.

I see...

So that's the kind of relationship the two Student Council presidents have? No wonder they always felt the way those two interacted was strange.

A few weeks later, a bizarre rumor began to circulate secretly across the school's various forums. After years of being passed down by students, it became one of the Seven School Mysteries of Advanced Nurturing.

Chapter 59: Love Letter

On a June morning, before the sun had officially climbed over the hills, a single cicada's cry fell, followed by a chorus of chirping that erupted like a torrential downpour across Advanced Nurturing, desperately venting their desire for a mate.

Woken up by the cicadas, Mikage Touji walked into the school building early in the morning filled with resentment, only to see the cold-faced Morishita Ran.

At the shoe lockers, Morishita Ran was opening her locker to take out her indoor shoes.

Seeing Mikage Touji, Morishita Ran paused, said nothing, and silently changed her shoes.

It seems she was also tormented by the cicadas today.

With a sense of schadenfreude, Mikage Touji opened his own shoe locker.

"Squeak—"

"Bang—"

The locker door slammed shut with unparalleled speed, emitting a slightly sharp sound.

Something that didn't belong in this locker just appeared!

Masaka!

Mikage Touji kept his expression neutral, took a deep breath, and slowly opened the locker door a crack.

A sliver of light shone through the gap into the square interior of the locker.

It was clearly high-quality stationery, folded into a small, exquisite rectangle with a cute heart-shaped sticker in the center, and the handwriting was clearly not that of a boy.

There's no mistake, this is—a love letter!

Has this kind of Japanese anime development finally come to me?

Filled with excitement, Mikage Touji reached out his sinful hand with a tremble.

"What are you do—"

"Bang—!"

The locker door slammed shut once again.

Mikage Touji turned around, pressed his body against the locker behind him, and said with a calm, indifferent expression, "Nothing, a dead cockroach suddenly appeared in my locker, it startled me."

I absolutely cannot let this person know! Otherwise, she would one hundred percent drag the entire class along to eat this melon!

Morishita Ran stared at him with suspicious, wide eyes, and a bead of sweat slid down Mikage Touji's forehead.

"How strange."

Dropping that sentence, Morishita Ran turned and walked toward the classroom.

"Please hurry up, Mikage Touji-kun."

"Right!"

Mikage Touji let out a long sigh of relief, reopened the locker, quickly shoved the love letter into his pocket, and quickened his pace to catch up with Morishita Ran.

"Morishita Ran-san, may I ask what time you woke up today?"

"The same time as you, Mikage Touji-kun."

Throughout the entire morning, Mikage Touji was restless and itching with impatience, but to prevent Morishita Ran behind him from ruining his grand plan, he had to patiently drag the time out until the end of class.

With the leisurely, deep tolling of the Big Ben, the morning classes at Advanced Nurturing finally came to an end. The students of Class A left the classroom one after another to head to the school cafeteria or other places to eat. A small number of students had brought homemade bentos or bought light meals at the convenience store to eat right there in the classroom.

"Mikage-san, want to go eat together?" Hashimoto Masayoshi was the first to extend an invitation.

"No, I have other things to do."

"The three of you again?" Hashimoto Masayoshi rubbed his chin, glanced at Morishita Ran and Yamamura Miki, and teased, "You really are inseparable."

"Heh heh." Mikage Touji crossed his arms and smiled confidently, "We three are the Class A Weirdo trio, so of course we have to stand out and act together!"

"Fine." Hashimoto Masayoshi shrugged, turned around, and walked toward another corner of the classroom, "I'll go find Kito instead."

After dealing with Hashimoto Masayoshi, Mikage Touji swept a glance over the remaining students in the class; there were about a dozen or so left in the room.

Mikage Touji tilted his head back and asked Morishita Ran, who had been focused on assembling her new equipment.

"What are you having for lunch later?"

"A bento from the convenience store."

"I have something to take care of in a bit, could you pick one up for me while you're at it?"

"Sure."

Plan successful!

Mikage Touji smiled triumphantly; once he lured Morishita away, no one would bother him while he checked the contents of the love letter.

10 minutes later.

Morishita Ran sat in her seat, not making a move.

"Um... Morishita, it's about time to go buy those bentos."

Morishita Ran nodded, continuing her work unhurriedly, "Okay."

Another 10 minutes passed.

"Morishita-san, time is running out, you know."

Morishita Ran continued to nod, "Okay."

Yet another 10 minutes went by.

Sensing something was wrong, Mikage Touji stood up from his seat silently, "I'm getting a bit hungry, how about I go buy the bentos instead?"

"Okay."