Branch Cake

The next day.

Today was the first day of formal classes. Perhaps because they were still riding the high of yesterday's fun, many students didn't even bother to sit down until the bell rang.

However, neither Sae Chabashira, who served as the homeroom teacher, nor any of the subject teachers scolded a single student for being late or slacking off.

Even more absurdly, they didn't even ask where the absent students had gone. It was as if, in their eyes, the classes weren't meant for the students at all.

The teachers' indifference only fueled the students' desire to ignore the lessons. Consequently, they chatted, slept, and some even pulled out game consoles to play right in front of the teachers.

It was truly hard to imagine that the educational environment of the legendary Advanced Nurturing Middle School would look like this.

"This is truly an unprovoked disaster."

Katsuya Shinjo muttered to himself.

After yesterday's investigation and analysis, although it hadn't been confirmed yet, he had roughly concluded that next month's personal points would likely be tied to the students' daily performance—what one might call their ability.

Although he didn't know if other people's behavior would affect his own, he certainly had to assume the worst-case scenario.

Soon, the day's classes came to an end.

Just as Katsuya Shinjo was planning to go fulfill his enrollment wish, a girl blocked his path.

"Shinjo-kun, are your grades very good?"

"Ah, it's Kushida-san. How could you tell that my grades are good?"

The person who had approached him was none other than Kikyo Kushida, and Katsuya Shinjo still had a deep impression of her.

Hearing him say her name, Kikyo Kushida instantly put on a happy and sweet smile, which made her already cute face look even more captivating.

"Shinjo-kun remembers me! I'm so happy!"

At the same time, most of the people in the classroom stopped what they were doing and turned to look in the direction of Kikyo Kushida and Katsuya Shinjo.

Of course, Katsuya didn't think he was the one attracting all the attention.

In other words, in just one day, had this Kikyo Kushida already become a core figure in the class?

She really is something...

"After all, a girl as cute and gentle as you is always going to leave a lasting impression."

"Hahaha, you're too kind, Shinjo-kun. Actually, I noticed today that you were listening to the lectures very seriously, so I was wondering if you were good at studying."

So you weren't listening to the lecture at all, were you?! Otherwise, why would you have the energy to pay attention to a student sitting in the back row?

After all that, you're also one of the main culprits causing my living expenses to shrink... though, naturally, I can't say those words to her face.

"Actually, it's quite the opposite. My grades aren't excellent; at best, they're just at a passing level. Because I don't understand the material, I hope to work even harder!"

As he said this, Katsuya wore an expression of promising future potential.

I don't know if some keyword triggered a switch in Kikyo Kushida, but her smile widened even further, and she raised her small fist and waved it twice:

"So Shinjo-kun is such a hardworking boy! I think you'll definitely achieve better grades. If you have time, could you invite me to hold a study session together?"

"Of course, no problem!"

"It's a promise then~ People who break their word have to swallow a thousand needles~"

With that, Kikyo Kushida ran off with a laugh.

Although it was a bit inexplicable, doing something like this seemed to fit her persona of someone who likes making friends, so Katsuya Shinjo didn't think much of it.

Just then, two boys with their arms around each other's shoulders patted him on the back and said in a sleazy tone:

"Hey, little Kushida is cute, isn't she?"

The arrivals were the league-retiree and the girlfriend-seeker, Haruki Yamauchi and Kanji Ike.

"Indeed."

Although these two had managed to make most of their classmates avoid them after just one day due to their off-putting behavior, Katsuya still gave them the bare minimum of respect.

Besides, Kikyo Kushida was indeed a cute girl.

"I told you! It's impossible for anyone in this world to say 'no' to little Kushida!"

"She's cute, has a gentle personality, and most importantly... her figure is also super hot~"

The two chatted back and forth with crude jokes, not bothering to control their volume. This caused the girls nearby to frown deeply again, and they quickly grabbed their bags and fled the classroom.

Katsuya Shinjo tilted his head. He didn't really want to have too much contact with these two idiots, otherwise, it would definitely have a negative impact on his reputation.

Moreover, he really didn't have the time today to listen to their boring jokes, so while the idiot duo was still distracted, he quietly slipped out.

Because he had already made travel plans, Katsuya, having just walked out of the school building, headed straight for his destination—the largest dessert shop, Cloud!

I don't know when it started, but Katsuya Shinjo, who often had to work overtime and go on business trips, had developed the good habit of eating sweets!

Besides, when he bought his headphones yesterday, he received a flyer from the dessert shop stating that the "Branch Cake," which was only sold one day a month, would soon be on the shelves. If you love sweets, don't miss it!

Although Katsuya told himself countless times in his heart that this was just a gimmick!

This was probably what they called hunger marketing—deliberately making something seem rare to stimulate the consumer's desire to take advantage of a deal.

If it were truly that delicious, wouldn't the shop have it on the menu every single day?

But... what if?

You can only get scammed once, but if you miss this chance, you might have to wait another month!

Yet, reality is often cruel.

"I'm sorry, the last Branch Cake was just sold to that student over there. If you want to try it, remember to come back on this day next month."

The shop assistant's apologetic tone sounded so grating; no matter how noisy the surroundings were, and no matter how the assistant called out to him, Shinjo's ears were filled only with the words "sold out."

"Sold... out... hehehe..."

"Um... if you really want to eat it no matter what... that gentleman is currently inside drinking coffee, so you... do you want to try..."

Seeing the light fade from Shinjo's eyes, the shop assistant couldn't bear it, and while complaining internally, she pointed him toward a final glimmer of hope.

"Really? Thank you!"

Instantly revived, Shinjo followed the direction of her finger to the innermost private room, where a yellow-haired boy was lounging on the sofa with his legs crossed, whistling at him.