Chapter 23

I'd been to the school library before, but I was too lazy to make a habit of studying there every evening. Once I'd finished the exercises and mastered the material in the textbooks, I didn't push myself any further. After all, one of the school's most important roles was to teach us how to learn, so that when we entered society as blank slates, we'd know how to pick up new skills. And that was exactly why my ranking near the top of Class C wasn't a good thing. If a guy like me could coast on the class's reputation, then we'd be in trouble if the other classes had any true geniuses who could breeze through practice problems and derive formulas on the spot. So I decided to do a little reconnaissance and get an early sense of the other classes' strengths. Setting aside the elusive monster Sakayanagi Arisu, Honami Ichinose was easy to find, since she was always at the center of Class B. See? I didn't know her, but that busy girl with long, golden-pink hair who never seemed to stop moving had to be Honami Ichinose. Of course, I couldn't make it too obvious that I was there to investigate. Class C and Class B were rivals, after all. I'd heard that, like our class, Class B had quite a few guys from the sports clubs, and I didn't want a bunch of hulking dudes throwing me out. Fortunately, I had a reason to visit Class B, just like Sakayanagi did: I knew someone there. Tetsuya Hamaguchi was an old middle school classmate of mine, a black-haired, meek little guy. He was cautious and organized, and since our personalities were similar, we got along pretty well. Maybe capable people all thought alike. He'd applied to this high school too, and gotten in. With the helpful girls from Class B pointing the way, I soon found my old classmate. "Tetsuya, I had no idea you were at this school too. Why didn't you come find me?" Calling him by his first name brought us closer. Between old classmates, that kind of familiar greeting didn't seem strange; if anything, it brought back fond memories. "Minya? I'd heard you were here too, but I never had time to meet up." Hamaguchi led me to the edge of Class B so our conversation wouldn't disturb the others studying. "You've got it way easier than I do! You got placed in such a united class, while ours is still a complete mess..." I handed him a drink I'd gone out of my way to buy and spoke casually. "Thanks. I just got lucky, that's all. It's all thanks to Ichinose." Hamaguchi shook his head as he took the drink. He knew he wasn't as capable as I was. "The well-endowed girl? I heard she's also the top student in the year. She must be impressive..." I teased him. "She's not your type, so don't get any weird ideas about our class leader," Hamaguchi warned me, knowing I was a lecher. Hey, hey! How would you know what my type is? I don't remember ever telling you in detail! That was a pretty surprising thing to learn. "Heh, of course not... But you're really turning against your own class already? Did she win you over that fast, or have you got some shady little plan of your own?" "Cut it out. I'll introduce you to her in a bit, then you'll see. Ichinose really is a wonderful, kind girl." "Is that so? I feel like all of Class B is sick with lovesickness—unrequited love, at that. Did you hand over your points for her to manage too?" "That's just like you. You even know about that... Does everyone in Class C know?" Hamaguchi didn't seem to be planning to hide it from me. "Not many people know, but I'm part of Class C's leadership. What do you think?" "We weren't planning to hide it for long anyway. As you can see, Class B is just that united." Unity won't put food on the table, and it doesn't get you girls either! "You've got that right. I envy you guys!" I said, though I didn't mean it, putting on a tone of heartfelt envy. "So, who's leading Class C? I've heard some rumors..." Hamaguchi wasn't a pushover; he was trying to get information out of me in return. But I'd expected that. "Rumors, huh? Ha! Then just assume they're all true." I decided to keep him guessing. If I laid it on too thick, he might not believe me. "Forget it. As our future rival, you've got every reason not to tell me." "Tetsuya, you don't really think you're qualified to be my rival, do you?" I smiled and patted him on the shoulder. "Of course not. But this is a class battle, isn't it?" "That's right. It's a class battle..." I echoed his words. "Class C is led by Ryuen Kakeru, a man who'll crush Class B. In exchange for giving you that information, remember to introduce me to a few pretty girls! We don't kill prisoners in our class." "Minya, you really are..." Hamaguchi gave me a helpless smile. He'd gotten the information he wanted, but my remark wasn't exactly pleasant to hear. "What? Don't you trust my judgment?" "I wouldn't dare. I just mean that it's still anyone's game." A sore loser, clinging to his pride. He wasn't like this before, was he? "Hahahaha! If you want to surrender, come find me anytime. You're an old friend and classmate, after all!" I continued, only half joking. "Quit messing around. Come on, I'll introduce you to Ichinose." Hamaguchi didn't take my nonsense to heart and dutifully followed through on our exchange of favors. "Let me introduce you. This is my middle school classmate, Minya Kitazawa, the young master of a wealthy family." Knowing what I was like, Hamaguchi joked around as he introduced me. "And this is our Class B leader, Honami Ichinose, the top scorer on the entrance exam." "Don't listen to him..." I was always polite to women, especially someone as obviously outstanding as Ichinose. "I'm Minya Kitazawa from Class 1-C. It's nice to meet you." "I'm Honami Ichinose. It's nice to meet you too. I heard all about Kitazawa from Kaneda and the others at our get-together last time. I'm glad we finally got to meet." Ichinose seemed warm and easygoing with everyone. Even though we'd just met, she looked me up and down without the slightest reserve, as if to say, I'm curious about you. "I really did have some personal matters to take care of last time. I'm sorry about that. Seeing really is believing—Ichinose, you're every bit as impressive as they say! You've got the class running like clockwork, and the attendance at your study sessions is so high. I bet even Katsuragi from Class A would feel outdone." "Oh, not at all. Katsuragi is very impressive too. Class A doesn't hold particularly large study sessions; they just have more students with good grades." Ichinose modestly waved a hand. Well, obviously... I'm praising you, so just accept it! What's with all the modesty? If that was the kind of person she was, I'd have to try a different approach. "But Class B is no slouch either, right? Tetsuya's doing well, for one, and the fact that he comes to these sessions says a lot. Your study sessions must have something special about them! Could I stay and observe?" "Of course! Kitazawa, you're Hamaguchi's friend, so you're my friend too!" Ichinose replied instantly. "Well, the exam's coming up soon. Ichinose, go take care of what you need to. Don't worry about me." "All right. If you need anything, just let me know. Don't be shy!" All right! I knew it. People like Ichinose always tried to save face and ended up making things harder for themselves.