Consolidation

After school, Ryuen and his two companions surrounded Sawahara. The black student, Albert Yamada, showed no particular expression, but Ishizaki, standing beside him, looked somewhat awkward. Because Sawahara had helped him out of a tight spot earlier, doing this now made him feel a bit uneasy, but since he had already submitted to Ryuen, there was no other choice.

"Let's go." Despite being surrounded by three large men, Sawahara wore a smile on his face. He rose calmly and left the classroom with Ryuen and the others, looking not at all like someone being coerced, but rather like a boss surrounded by his underlings.

"Tsk." Ryuen clicked his tongue. "You sure know how to put on an act. I hope you still have that expression on your face later."

Watching this scene, Ibuki Mio gritted her teeth and chased after them from the classroom.

As mentioned before, there were many blind spots in the school's surveillance, as if they had been left there intentionally.

The small woods behind the school building were one such place. Since school had just ended, it was unlikely that any couples looking for a tryst would choose this time, making it truly deserted and the perfect place to settle a dispute.

Upon arriving, Sawahara took off his jacket and hung it on a nearby tree branch. He still had classes tomorrow and didn't want to get his jacket dirty here.

"Are you coming at me one by one, or all at once?" Sawahara shook out his wrists, his face still devoid of any panic.

"Heh, you really are arrogant." Hearing Sawahara's words, a cruel grin appeared on Ryuen's face. He didn't hesitate to launch a sneak attack with a punch, while simultaneously giving an order, "Ishizaki, go intercept that tail following us."

The next morning, the students of Class C sat in the classroom early, waiting for the final result. Regardless of whether Ryuen or Sawahara had won, there would only be one voice left in the class from now on.

"Do you think Sawahara could win?"

"It's doubtful. After all, even that Yamada lost."

"Are we really going to have to submit to that guy Ryuen?"

"What, do you want to go and fight him yourself?"

"I..."

The people in the class didn't have to wait long before the protagonist of their discussion arrived.

Ryuen, Ishizaki, and Yamada were the first to enter the classroom. There were no visible wounds on their faces, but the bandages on their arms undoubtedly spoke to the intensity of yesterday's battle. Yamada didn't appear to have any surface injuries, but his gait looked strange, suggesting he had also taken some hits. Ishizaki was the least injured of the three, sporting only a bandage on his face.

Watching Ryuen sit silently in his seat, everyone in the class finally realized one thing: Ryuen had lost last night, and all three of them had lost together.

Some felt relieved that the class would not be ruled by the tyrant Ryuen.

Others looked grave, wondering how Sawahara would manage the class.

But regardless of what they thought, Sawahara finally arrived. Instead of walking straight to his seat as usual, he stopped at the podium.

The students looked at their new class leader and were surprised to find that he had no injuries on him, and his clothes were as neat as ever.

"After a friendly exchange with Ryuen yesterday, I will be leading the class from now on," Sawahara announced.

Hearing this, the students weren't surprised, but their expressions turned strange at the word "friendly."

Friendly enough to cause broken bones?

"I'm announcing a few things. First, starting next month, half of the points deposited for everyone at the beginning of the month will be handed over to me."

"What!"

"How can you do that?"

"On what grounds!" The stone stirred up a thousand waves; no one was willing to give up the benefits they had already earned, and a chorus of opposition erupted in the classroom.

"Heh." Ryuen let out a disdainful scoff. "You idiots think you have a choice?"

At this moment, those who had been opposing finally remembered that the person standing on the podium was the same guy who had beaten all three of them into this state.

And so, the so-called opposition came and went quickly, and the classroom returned to silence.

"I don't like using violence," Sawahara said again after they had quieted down. "If anyone is unwilling to pay, that's fine. I won't use violent means to force you... but you will have to bear the consequences yourselves."

Hearing this, many in the class looked relieved, while people like Kaneda were more concerned about the word "consequences."

"What are these consequences?" Kaneda asked without hesitation, playing the role of a straight man at the right time.

"You should have realized by now that this school isn't as good as you thought. The cafeteria and shops have many free items, which means this school never lacks people who have nothing. The competition between classes is extremely fierce." Sawahara helped the still-bewildered students organize the school's intelligence. "This school admits 160 freshmen every year, yet now the second-year class has fewer than 140 students, and the third-year class has fewer than 150. Even Class A of the third year has fewer than 40 students."

"What does that mean?" Some were still confused, not understanding what these figures represented.

"Idiot, it means there will likely be expulsion penalties in future exams." Those who were a bit smarter had already understood Sawahara's meaning.

"How could that be..."

"Don't think you can just coast through this school; it's not that simple." Seeing that the class finally understood, Sawahara continued, "If you don't believe me, you can go find upperclassmen to verify it later. Of course, given that we are currently in the exam period, much of this information should still be under lockdown."

"If you refuse to hand over your points, then if we encounter exams related to expulsion later, I will prioritize abandoning those members and will not provide any help."

"Ha, isn't this just protection money? You sure talk a lot," Ryuen mocked from his seat.

"I really wish you could find a better way to phrase that, Ryuen," Sawahara sighed. "I prefer to call it 'insurance'."

"Hmph." Ryuen snorted and said nothing more.

"There's no rush on this point, as it starts from next month; you have plenty of time to consider it.

Second, starting today, everyone must attend class on time for the rest of the month. Tardiness, leaving early, eating in class, playing on phones, and fighting are prohibited. If these occur, the points to be handed over next month will increase by 10,000."

Sawahara issued his second order, aiming to preserve as many class points as possible and avoid falling too far behind the other classes right from the start.

"Third, starting today, Kaneda will organize study sessions. The bottom ten students from this week's quiz must participate, and others are encouraged to join."

This was to prepare for the next exam.

"Alright." Kaneda pushed up his glasses and agreed, as this was something they had planned beforehand.

"That is all I need you to do for now." After saying this, Sawahara turned his head toward the classroom entrance, where their homeroom teacher was already waiting. "My apologies, Sakagami-sensei, for taking up your time."

"It's no problem at all. As a teacher, I'm very happy to see the students in my class getting along so harmoniously."

The corners of Kazuma Sakagami's mouth curled up uncontrollably; in less than a week, the class had been completely integrated, and there was no doubt that this class had the potential to be promoted.

However... Sakagami looked at Sawahara, still feeling a sense of unease in his heart. Was this truly a trump card, or was it a joker?