On the afternoon of the third day of the Summer Special Training Class, Tang Yu slipped away from his group discussion and went to the mountain lodge library to look for reference materials. Their project was progressing smoothly—too smoothly.
Horikita Suzune provided a rigorous theoretical framework, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka contributed ingenious data analysis, and Tang Yu handled the integration and polishing. Each of them had a clear role, and they had almost no disagreements. This unusual harmony made Tang Yu feel a little uneasy.
The mountain lodge library was much smaller than the school's, but its collection was carefully curated. As Tang Yu searched for the books he needed in the political science section, he suddenly heard a faint sob from deep between the shelves.
The sound vanished at once, as if it had been an illusion, but Tang Yu's Emotion Perception picked up a powerful emotional fluctuation—a tangle of fear, shame, and loneliness.
He lightened his steps and walked around two rows of shelves. In a corner untouched by sunlight, he found Karuizawa Kei. Class D's so-called "queen" was curled up in a seat by the window. Her golden hair had lost its usual shine, her eyes were red, and she clutched a crumpled note in her hand.
Karuizawa sensed someone approaching and jerked her head up, instantly putting on her usual haughty expression. "What are you looking at? Haven't you ever seen—" Her voice cut off when she realized it was Tang Yu.
"Sorry to bother you." Tang Yu took half a step back, making as if to leave.
"Wait!" Karuizawa suddenly called out to him, her voice edged with a hint of panic he had never heard from her before. "You... you can't tell anyone you saw me like this."
Tang Yu activated Emotion Perception. Karuizawa's Emotion Cloud showed a curious mixture: a pink defensive posture on the surface, deep gray fear at the core, and, buried deepest of all, a thread of blue longing for help.
[High-quality emotion source detected] [Suggestion: Deep interaction may yield rare Emotion Points]
"Of course." Tang Yu sat down across from her as naturally as he could, pretending not to notice the tear tracks on her face. "I'm just here to find a book."
Karuizawa quickly wiped her eyes and tried to compose herself. "What book? Maybe I know where it is."
Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion, by Robert Cialdini." Tang Yu made up a title on the spot.
"The psychology section, third row of shelves," Karuizawa answered instinctively, then frowned. "Wait, aren't you working on that project about power structures? That book has nothing to do with it."
Tang Yu gave her a faint smile. "I was testing how you were doing. Looks like your cognitive abilities are fine. It's just your emotions that are falling apart."
Karuizawa's face instantly turned pale. "You... don't act like you know everything!" Her voice trembled. It sounded less like anger than the panic of someone afraid of being seen through.
Tang Yu didn't press his advantage. Instead, he changed the subject. "Are people from Class C giving you trouble again?"
Karuizawa's fingers tightened abruptly around the note. "How did you kno—" She stopped short, realizing she had let something slip.
"I'm guessing." Tang Yu pointed to the note in her hand. "Ryuen's style: crude, direct threats. What does it say? 'We know your secret'? Or 'Do what we say if you don't want it exposed'?"
Karuizawa's pupils contracted sharply, and she trembled like a startled fawn. In that moment, Tang Yu's Emotion Perception picked up an unprecedented, high-quality emotional fluctuation—pure, undisguised fear.
[Deep fear from Karuizawa Kei +800] [Current Emotion Points: 41500/50000]
"Don't be nervous." Tang Yu lowered his voice. "I'm not your enemy. In fact, I might be able to help you."
Karuizawa watched him warily. "Why? What do you want?"
"An exchange of information," Tang Yu replied frankly. "Tell me what Class C is up to, and I'll help you take care of this problem."
"You can't fix it." Karuizawa gave a bitter smile. "No one can. This is... this is my own problem."
Tang Yu activated Emotional Link and briefly entered Karuizawa's emotional world. Countless fragments of memory flooded in: bullying in middle school, the persona she had adopted after transferring schools, her fear of her secret being exposed... The strongest image was that of a blurry male figure, who seemed to be making some sort of threat.
Once the link was broken, Tang Yu already had an idea. "Something from middle school?"
Karuizawa froze as if struck by lightning. "You... how much do you know?"
"Not much, but enough to help you," Tang Yu said calmly. "How about this? I'll show you I mean it. Tell me who's following you, and I'll take care of the problem right now."
Karuizawa hesitated for a moment, then finally said in a low voice, "Two boys from Class C. They're just outside the library... Ryuen sent them to keep an eye on me."
Tang Yu nodded and got up, heading for the window. Through the glass, he spotted two Class C students skulking in the courtyard, glancing toward the library every so often.
"Give me five minutes." Tang Yu straightened his collar. "Then go fix yourself up in the restroom. We'll meet in the west corridor."
Before Karuizawa could respond, Tang Yu had already strode out of the library. As soon as he stepped outside, he activated Emotion Mirror and stored the fear he had just sensed from Karuizawa.
When the two boys from Class C saw Tang Yu come out alone, they exchanged a glance and followed him. Tang Yu deliberately headed behind a thicket of bushes in a blind spot of the security cameras, giving them the "perfect" chance to ambush him.
"Hey, Transfer Student." One of them blocked Tang Yu's way. "I hear you're pretty close with Karuizawa from Class D."
Tang Yu pretended to be nervous. "I just happened to run into her... What's it to you?"
"Don't play dumb!" The other boy stepped closer. "Ryuen told us no one's allowed to get involved in Karuizawa's business. So if you know what's good for you—"
Just as he reached out to shove Tang Yu, Tang Yu activated Emotion Mirror and sent the stored fear back at them, amplified. The boys' faces suddenly changed. They staggered backward as if they had seen something terrifying.
"No... stay away!" one of them shrieked, waving his hands wildly at empty air. "I'm sorry! I won't do it again!"
His companion reacted even more dramatically. He collapsed onto the ground, a wet patch spreading across his trousers. "Let me go... Please, let me go..."
Tang Yu watched calmly. The ability was more powerful than he had expected. The two boys hadn't just felt Karuizawa's fear; they had projected it onto whatever they feared most.
[Emotion Mirror effect exceeded expectations] [Ability proficiency +20%] [Fear from Class C boys +500] [Current Emotion Points: 42200/50000]
Five minutes later, when Karuizawa came to the west corridor as agreed, she saw two boys from Class C fleeing in the distance and Tang Yu leaning against the wall.
"What... did you do to them?" Karuizawa asked in disbelief.
"We just talked," Tang Yu said casually. "They promised not to bother you again."
Karuizawa's eyes widened further. "Impossible! Ryuen's people never—"
"Different circumstances call for different measures," Tang Yu interrupted. "Now it's your turn. I need to know everything Class C has been up to lately, especially anything targeting Class D."
Karuizawa bit her lip. "Can you really protect me? Not just from Class C, but from... the other things too?"
"As long as your information is valuable." Tang Yu looked her in the eye. "I keep my word."
Karuizawa took a deep breath, as if she had made up her mind. "Ryuen plans to launch an all-out attack on Class D after summer vacation. He's bribed several people in our class, including... including Kushida Kikyo."
Tang Yu raised an eyebrow at this. He had already suspected Kushida's two-faced nature, but her direct collusion with Class C was new information.
"What's the plan?"
"I don't know the details." Karuizawa shook her head. "But I heard they're going to use some kind of 'dark history' to bring down a few key people, including Horikita Suzune and Hirata Yosuke."
Tang Yu nodded. "That's enough. In return, your secret will stay safe forever. And if anyone threatens you, you can come to me anytime."
Karuizawa's expression relaxed, and a long-missing trace of relief appeared in her eyes. "Why are you helping me? Is it really just for the information?"
"Partly," Tang Yu answered honestly. "Also, I admire your survival strategy. Pretending to be strong takes its own kind of wisdom."
The words seemed to touch something deep inside Karuizawa. Her eyes grew damp again, but this time she didn't immediately hide it. "...Thank you."
[Sincere gratitude from Karuizawa Kei +600] [Emotion Points exceeded 45000!] ["Emotion Weaving" ability unlocked] [You can combine multiple emotions to create entirely new emotional states]
Tang Yu's eyes lit up at this new ability. He could now do more than reflect or influence emotions; he could create entirely new combinations of emotion, with incalculable strategic value.
"Keep our conversation secret," Tang Yu reminded her at last. "As far as everyone else is concerned, we're still just ordinary classmates."
Karuizawa had already recovered her "queen" persona. She tossed her long hair. "Of course. I don't want people getting the wrong idea about me and the Transfer Student having some special relationship." But there was less pretense in her eyes now, and more sincerity.
They returned to the main building one after the other. Just as Tang Yu was about to turn toward the project room, his Emotion Perception suddenly picked up a familiar fluctuation—calm as water, unfathomable in depth. He turned sharply and saw Ayanokoji Kiyotaka standing in the shadows of the second-floor corridor. How long had he been watching?
Their eyes met. In a rare gesture, Ayanokoji nodded at him first, then disappeared silently into the shadows.
[Deep interest from Ayanokoji Kiyotaka +500] [Current Emotion Points: 43300/50000]
This unexpected development left Tang Yu deep in thought. How much had Ayanokoji seen? What would he think of Tang Yu's involvement with Karuizawa? More importantly, how would this affect the subtle relationship between them?
Back in the project room, Horikita Suzune had already organized most of the materials. She looked up at Tang Yu. "Did you find the book you needed?"
"I found something useful," Tang Yu replied meaningfully, noticing that Horikita's Emotion Cloud had taken on an unusual shade of orange—satisfaction with the project's progress.
Ayanokoji appeared silently in the doorway a moment later. His gray-white eyes swept over Tang Yu, but he didn't mention what he had just seen. Tang Yu knew, though, that the encounter had already been recorded in Ayanokoji's unfathomable Mind Palace.
At the group presentation that evening, their project received Horikita Manabu's assessment: "Thorough, but lacking innovation." It was still the highest score among all the groups. Miyabi Nagumo applauded from the side, a faint shadow lurking beneath his smile.
At dinner, Karuizawa Kei returned to her little group of girls, chatting and laughing as if her breakdown that afternoon had never happened. But Tang Yu noticed her glancing his way now and then, a new light in her eyes.
[Karuizawa Kei Affection: 70 (Dependence)] [New information source: Class C movements] [Special achievement unlocked: "Shadow Alliance"]
As night fell, Tang Yu stood by his dormitory window, reflecting on what he had gained that day. His unexpected encounter with Karuizawa had brought him high-quality Emotion Points and crucial information, as well as unlocked a powerful new ability.
More importantly, he had established a secret foothold within Class D, which would make his future plans far easier.
In the distant woods, a blurry figure stood motionless, seemingly watching every move at the mountain lodge. Tang Yu activated Night Vision and managed to make out the slender silhouette. Was it Kiriyama Ikiteru? Or another member of the School Board?
Whoever it was, the game had already moved to a new level. And Tang Yu was steadily turning from a pawn into a player.
[Special warning: Multiple surveillance networks detected] [Suggestion: Use new abilities with caution] [Next-stage goal: 50000 points to unlock "Emotion Field" ability]
The system prompt glimmered in the darkness. Tang Yu drew the curtains and prepared for the challenges of the next day. At this mountain lodge, where everyone was scheming, everyone had a secret—and secrets were the most powerful weapons of all.
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