Classroom of the Elite, I Only Want Your Rewards

Chapter 68: I Shall Swear My Allegiance to You (Bonus 1/5)

Once someone makes a move against Nagumo Miyabi, it naturally draws the attention of certain people, especially the potential rebels in the second year.

This news came as no surprise to Suzuki Toru; after all, Nagumo Miyabi's rule over the grade was built entirely upon his own personal strength.

If he were to suffer failure or setbacks, it would inevitably invite voices of dissent, or even lead to an attempt to usurp the throne.

"Which senior is interested in me?" Suzuki Toru noticed out of the corner of his eye that Tachibana Akane had quietly stood up from the Student Council President's side and was standing obediently to the side.

Noticing Suzuki Toru's gaze, she let out a soft huff and immediately looked away.

Where does this guy hide his snacks?

"You have met him before, Kiriyama from Class 2-A," Horikita Manabu said. "However, he is isolated and lacks support, so he doesn't dare to openly defy Nagumo."

Suzuki Toru recalled the scene from when he was in the second-year building; there was indeed a leader named Kiriyama Ikuta, and the other party was also a member of the Student Council.

"Does the Student Council President seem to know him?"

Judging by Horikita Manabu's demeanor, the relationship between the two didn't seem shallow, otherwise, Horikita Manabu wouldn't know that the other party was interested in him.

"There is a slight connection. I happened to be present when the previous Student Council President interviewed him," Horikita Manabu said, unwilling to discuss the topic further.

"In other words, the Student Council President cultivated a rebel in the second year, and then picked me out from the first year?" Suzuki Toru blinked at him.

Horikita Manabu was silent for a moment. "I have observed the first year. Most students are barely passable. As for the rest, you are particularly impressive in every aspect."

Suzuki Toru was a bit curious about what he meant by "every aspect"—it sounded like a compliment, yet also like it wasn't.

"Since that's the case, I'll meet with senior Kiriyama," Suzuki Toru said. "Where is he right now?"

Regarding this, Horikita Manabu's expression turned strange, and he replied with some helplessness: "Kiriyama is very wary of Nagumo and won't contact you openly. He wants to meet you near the dorms, probably around ten o'clock at night."

Although there are many surveillance cameras in the school, there are fewer around the student dorms, and there are also several hidden spots where one is unlikely to be seen.

Take the conversation between the siblings yesterday, for example; if Horikita Manabu hadn't called him over, almost no one would have noticed the Student Council President lecturing his sister.

Horikita Manabu expected Suzuki Toru to nod and agree, but to his surprise, he only gave a slight nod.

"I'll talk to senior Kiriyama when I have time."

Unlike Kiriyama Ikuta, Suzuki Toru wasn't very interested in him; he was just a guy who liked to hide in the shadows.

Moreover, it was he who needed Suzuki Toru right now, not the other way around.

Horikita Manabu wanted to say more but stopped himself. He knew very well that Suzuki Toru intended to manipulate Kiriyama Ikuta, so he could only keep his mouth shut.

Once he graduated, Kiriyama Ikuta would basically have no one to rely on; the other party would have no choice but to deal with someone like Suzuki Toru.

He could only let Kiriyama Ikuta adapt to Suzuki Toru's style in advance and accept the fate of being manipulated.

"By the way, does the Student Council President know about senior Kiryuin?" Suzuki Toru asked out of the blue.

"I've heard her name, but I don't know much about her," Horikita Manabu frowned. "Why do you suddenly ask about this?"

"I'm a bit interested in this senior." Suzuki Toru wouldn't tell him that he had his eyes on the rewards associated with her.

Tachibana Akane suddenly interjected: "I've heard of this underclassman. Her abilities seem to be very strong, but her personality is particularly terrible."

"Terrible personality?" Suzuki Toru felt puzzled.

"I heard that because a vending machine malfunctioned and got stuck, she kicked it until it exploded," Tachibana Akane told him with conviction. "Moreover, she often does as she pleases and wanders around aimlessly; even her own classmates can't stand her."

"Careful, walls have ears," Suzuki Toru reminded her kindly, as speaking ill of others behind their backs was, after all, not a good habit.

Tachibana Akane puffed up her cheeks and ignored the guy.

"Kiriyama has mentioned her. She should be one of the more capable students in the second year, but she hasn't done anything for her class and often acts alone," Horikita Manabu said, neither expressing disgust nor approval of Kiryuin Fuka's behavior.

It seems he would need to approach Kiryuin Fuka himself.

However, he was a first-year student with no legitimate reason to approach her, and he couldn't just walk into her classroom.

Was he supposed to hope for a chance encounter on the road?

He would just have to wait for Kiriyama Ikuta to deliver himself, and then sell Kiryuin Fuka to him.

Just as Suzuki Toru was plotting a chance encounter, he heard Horikita Manabu say: "Recently, Katsuragi from your class seems to have had contact with Nagumo."

As the Student Council President, he had also arranged for Tachibana Akane to keep an eye on Ichinose Honami and Katsuragi Kohei, so he was quite clear about their movements.

For some reason, Katsuragi Kohei had been frequently contacting Nagumo Miyabi recently, and Tachibana Akane could occasionally see Katsuragi Kohei appearing among the second-year executive team.

In other words, Horikita Manabu was subtly warning Suzuki Toru that his own person might be defecting to Nagumo Miyabi's camp.

"No need to worry about that. It's normal for Katsuragi-kun to have his own ideas."

Suzuki Toru was well aware of this.

Time shifted back to two days ago.

Nagumo Miyabi looked at the bald boy in front of him with amusement; the other party was a first-year newcomer, in the same class as Suzuki Toru.

"Interesting. You say you want to defect to me; can you tell me the reason?"

This newcomer was none other than Katsuragi Kohei.

Facing Nagumo Miyabi's scrutiny, Katsuragi Kohei replied: "President Horikita will soon step down, and the future Student Council President will definitely be you, senior. Rather than trying to build a good relationship with you later, it's better to defect to you in advance."

"That reason doesn't seem sufficient," Nagumo Miyabi said leisurely. "I'm a person who values strength, and you don't meet any of my criteria. Why should I accept your allegiance?"

"To be honest, there are currently two factions in Class A, and I lead one of them. If you, Senior, help me suppress the Sakayanagi Faction and Suzuki, the first-years will also become your assets," Katsuragi Kohei said, bowing his head slightly.

Nagumo Miyabi remained silent for a moment, and Tonegawa, who was beside him, leaned in to whisper a few words into his ear.

After a while, he suddenly chuckled.

"So, Suzuki is your enemy?"

Katsuragi Kohei nodded and explained, "If you don't believe me, Senior, you can ask the students of Class A. Suzuki usually keeps very close to the students of the Sakayanagi Faction."

"No need, I'm willing to believe you, Katsuragi." Nagumo Miyabi's gaze was piercing. How could he possibly believe such a crude excuse? Most likely, this was a spy sent to him by Suzuki Toru.

It was simply overbearing; they didn't take him seriously at all. Did they really think such a spy could deceive him?

Nagumo Miyabi barely suppressed the anger in his heart, maintaining a smile on the surface.

"As long as you can satisfy me, I will naturally help you defeat Suzuki."

Heh, since you sent a spy, he would just pretend to be oblivious and accept the offer, just to see who could outplay whom!

Chapter 69: I'm Very Fast

Just as Nagumo Miyabi had guessed, Katsuragi Kohei was indeed a spy sent to his side by Suzuki Toru.

Generally speaking, many people would simply refuse in such a situation, but there were exceptions.

Nagumo Miyabi felt he had been provoked and mocked. Given his usual arrogant style, he would likely want to return the favor in kind and give Suzuki Toru a resounding slap in the face.

Nothing was more satisfying than swallowing an opponent's move and returning it twofold.

He would play along with the ruse and use Katsuragi Kohei in return.

However, Suzuki Toru didn't have high expectations for Katsuragi Kohei himself.

Rather than waiting for Nagumo Miyabi to make a move in the shadows, it was better to send him a familiar tool, so he would at least know something about what Nagumo Miyabi was thinking.

He wouldn't be caught off guard by Nagumo Miyabi, and only then would he expand his actions based on that foundation.

In reality, Suzuki Toru actually wanted to see Nagumo Miyabi learn from him and send a beautiful spy to his side, like Asahina Nazuna.

However, that was likely impossible to achieve.

What he didn't know was that Asahina Nazuna had gone back and told Nagumo Miyabi about his affairs.

Well, she didn't mention the foot massage; after all, it involved a girl's privacy, and she was a bit shy about it.

Even hearing that Suzuki Toru had helped his childhood friend to the infirmary left Nagumo Miyabi feeling suspicious and uneasy, reminding him of his first meeting with Suzuki Toru.

Damn it, was this guy targeting his childhood friend?

Just thinking about it made Nagumo Miyabi feel restless.

Although Asahina Nazuna seemed easy to approach, the difficulty of winning her over was not low at all.

If even he couldn't win over that woman, let alone a mere underclassman.

But for some reason, he had a bad premonition, which left Nagumo Miyabi in no mood to deal with Suzuki Toru, and he had been following Asahina Nazuna around for the past few days.

After all, she had just been injured and was in need of care.

If Nagumo Miyabi knew that the jade-like feet he hadn't even touched had been touched by an underclassman, he might just have a mental breakdown.

Therefore, Suzuki Toru had been quite relaxed lately.

Just like last time, Suzuki Toru brought Kamuro Masumi to the library to study.

Only this time, he deliberately sat next to Shiina Hiyori, leaving Kamuro Masumi with a face full of black lines.

"Good afternoon, Shiina-san." Suzuki Toru greeted the girl who was reading.

Hearing his voice, Shiina Hiyori looked up, revealing a hint of confusion. Seeing his face, she seemed to remember something, and then a smile slowly bloomed on her face.

"Good afternoon!"

The girl's tone seemed quite joyful. Suzuki Toru sat beside her, and from time to time, he could smell a faint, lingering fragrance—he didn't know what brand of shampoo it was.

"I finished the book you gave me; it was excellent." Suzuki Toru returned the novel to her. "To be honest, this was the first time I've seen a novel of this genre. Whether it's the plot or the writing style, it was stunning."

Just from this first contact, it was easy to deduce that Shiina Hiyori was likely a girl who enjoyed mystery novels.

He could cater slightly to her preferences, as this was the first time Suzuki Toru had seen someone recommend a novel to a stranger they had just met.

Moreover, she seemed to be alone.

Could it be that she didn't have many people to discuss novels with?

"It seems Suzuki-kun liked it. I was worried it might cause you trouble." Shiina Hiyori breathed a sigh of relief, then felt a bit happy—this was the joy of a recommendation.

"This might be a bit presumptuous, but it seems I rarely see you with the other students from your class, Shiina-san."