The Self-Introductions Were Almost Over

That utterly unhumble, outrageously arrogant self-introduction was like a stone thrown into a still pond.

The classroom fell silent for several seconds. You could have heard a pin drop.

Quite a few people looked astonished, their eyes widening as if they suspected they'd misheard;

some furrowed their brows, clearly displeased;

and others couldn't help lowering their heads, shoulders twitching as they tried to stifle their laughter.

But Rokusuke Koenji himself paid no attention to these reactions. Once he finished speaking, he held his head high and puffed out his chest, then strode back to his seat with all the confidence of a peacock displaying its feathers.

Watching the two of them, Lin Mu understood.

They were typical characters from Japanese school stories: one was aloof and taciturn, with a mysterious background—or perhaps he was simply like that by nature—and the other was narcissistic and flamboyant, with unknown abilities but overflowing confidence.

(Naruto, Sasuke.)

They were far more distinctive than the cookie-cutter introductions that had come before, and unforgettable at a glance.

But that was all. Lin Mu turned his gaze away.

As long as these two "colorful characters" didn't go out of their way to disturb his life, he didn't care how aloof or narcissistic they were.

He was just an ordinary (fake) student who wanted to coast through life in peace.

As more and more students went up to introduce themselves, it soon became the back rows' turn.

"Next student..." Yosuke Hirata's gentle gaze fell on the area where Lin Mu was sitting.

The eyes around him, especially those of the girls, immediately focused on him.

It couldn't be helped. Lin Mu had the looks and presence to draw attention: short white hair, a handsome, sharply defined face, and a tall, straight figure.

On top of that, ever since entering the classroom, he'd kept up that contrasting look: languid and aloof, with a lollipop in his mouth.

Quite a few classmates—especially the girls—had already been paying secret attention to him for a while.

Now, their anticipation was practically at its peak.

Lin Mu let out an almost inaudible sigh, knowing there was no way around it.

He stood up unhurriedly, his movements a little languid and dragging.

The lemon-flavored lollipop, now reduced to a stub, was still in his mouth, its plastic stick swaying lightly against his lips as he moved.

(He was chewing on the plastic stick.)

He strolled over to the lectern. He didn't stand rigidly straight like some of the others, nor did he make any effort to attract attention.

He simply stood there casually, then swept his gaze across the class.

His expression was calm and unreadable, like a breeze skimming over a lake, never lingering.

"Linmu Fujimiya."

His voice was clear and cool, like a mountain stream, but his tone carried an unmistakable, undisguised languor and perfunctoriness.

"I don't have anything in particular that I like, and I'm pretty ordinary."

He paused, seeming to think he ought to add something, but too lazy to make anything up. So he simply told the truth. "For the next three years, I just want to coast along in peace and graduate without a hitch."

When he finished, he didn't even add a token "Nice to meet you." He simply turned around and walked back to his seat in the back at the same unhurried pace.

The whole thing took no more than fifteen seconds, making it one of the shortest self-introductions ever. He hadn't even bothered with an unnecessary expression.

The classroom fell briefly silent, then immediately filled with hushed whispers.

Most of the girls looked plainly disappointed and regretful, the light in their eyes dimming. Many of them thought to themselves:

"Aw... That's it? I thought I'd get to know him a little better..."

"Nothing he likes? An ordinary personality? That sounds so perfunctory..."

"Coasting through life... He's so handsome, but he has no ambition?"

"I wanted to find a chance to talk to him, but now I don't even know what to say..."

"Aw, what a shame. He's so good-looking..."

A few bolder, more outgoing girls couldn't help leaning over to whisper to their friends.

They murmured things like, "I really want to get to know Lin Mu," "Even just chatting would be nice," and "He seems so hard to approach."

Some of the boys, meanwhile, wore undisguised looks of disdain. Their gazes followed Lin Mu's back with a hint of resentment and contempt as they silently grumbled:

"Tch, so what if he's handsome? That self-introduction was so perfunctory. What's he acting so cool for?"

"Maybe he's got nothing going for him except his face. He's deliberately putting on a cold act and showing off."

"He actually dared to say that he was going to coast through life in front of the whole class. What a joke. He's obviously the type who thinks he can draw attention with his looks, but has no ambition whatsoever."

All those whispers, overt or covert, the different meanings behind the glances directed his way, and the faint emotional undercurrents in the air—

With his keen senses, Lin Mu could read some of it from people's expressions, tones, and body language without even activating Telepathy.

But he didn't care in the slightest.

The girls' disappointment and the boys' disdain alike failed to stir even the slightest ripple in his heart.

He'd never planned to win anyone over, nor had he planned to form a deep connection with anyone.

In fact, he thought his blunt, almost "self-defeating" introduction had worked surprisingly well.

It should successfully discourage most people who might approach him out of "curiosity" or because of his "looks," hoping to strike up a conversation.

That would save him plenty of trouble in the future. It was exactly the result he wanted.

Back at his seat in the rear, Lin Mu slumped into the chair like a puddle of mud. He casually fished another lollipop from his pocket, this one grape-flavored, tore off the wrapper, and popped it into his mouth.

The rich, sweet-and-sour fruit flavor burst across his mouth, spreading from his taste buds to his nerves and dispelling the last traces of irritation caused by the noise and the forced "performance."

Much better...

The girls on either side of him had remained almost frozen ever since the self-introductions began.

The pink-haired girl on his right—whose voice had been so faint during her introduction that it was barely audible, and who had nearly buried her head in her chest—seemed to be named Airi Sakura.

She was still huddled like an ostrich, both hands gripping the skirt resting on her knees. The pale nape of her neck was faintly red, and she hadn't dared to look up at him once. Her presence was so faint she seemed about to dissolve into the air.

For someone so painfully shy and bashful, Lin Mu found her kind of... amusing?

Or perhaps she'd be the easiest person to get along with? Someone like her clearly wouldn't go out of her way to create any social pressure.

The aloof black-haired girl on his left had only stated her name coldly when she went up—"Suzune Horikita"—then said, "There's nothing in particular I want to say," and left.

She still had that same unapproachable look, radiating an oppressive "don't bother me" aura. Her posture was so straight it looked ruler-measured, and she gazed straight ahead as if Lin Mu sitting beside her were nothing more than irrelevant air.

Good. With the candy in his mouth, Lin Mu savored the sweetness and the calm it brought.