Chapter 26

They readily agreed. They weren't exactly the studious type, after all. Quite a few people also looked my way after Ryuen kept bringing me up, so I could only shrug helplessly and pretend there was nothing I could do.

"The girls who haven't been assigned specific tasks, along with the remaining boys, should do their best to get high scores. I got Sakagami-sensei to give me everyone's entrance exam scores. If you score lower than that, you'd better be ready to face my wrath! Of course, I'm a reasonable guy. Anyone who does well will get to join our class celebration. My treat! That's all."

Your treat, paid for with our Class Points, right? Sure thing, Ryuen! You really don't mind spending other people's money!

After Ryuen finished speaking, he leapt down from the lectern and left without looking back. Yamada followed close behind, leaving the C Class students in disarray.

"Ibuki, are you okay?" I turned around first to check on Ibuki, who was sitting behind me.

But Ibuki clearly hadn't gotten over her anger at being shoved to the ground. Instead, she shoved me. Luckily, Kaneda reacted quickly and caught me, or I would've ended up making close contact with the C Class floor too. Ibuki glared at me, grabbed her bag, and left without showing any interest in joining the discussion.

"Ugh... What a mess! Kitazawa, I told you ages ago that you should lead us! And now look... How are we supposed to get out of this mess?"

Nishino asked from beside me.

"I'm reporting him to the school! Someone like Ryuen should be expelled!"

Before I could say anything, Nomura, the one who'd been hit, spoke up.

"Everyone, calm down. There's nothing to gain by reporting this to the school. We'd only lose Class Points, wouldn't we?" Kaneda advised him. "Besides, it wasn't Ryuen who hit you, but Yamada, one of his lackeys. If the school punishes Yamada, Ryuen will definitely take revenge on you."

"So we're just supposed to let him keep throwing his weight around?" Nomura asked bitterly.

"For now, we don't have much choice. Besides, there's nothing wrong with the strategy Ryuen laid out. Our focus should be on the exam, not infighting. Right, Minya?" Kaneda said, playing along nicely.

"Yeah. Let's see whether Ryuen can actually do what he claims. We've got three whole years of high school ahead of us. If he keeps causing trouble everywhere, the school will eventually set its sights on him. Then we can bring him down fair and square."

"But... aren't we in danger if we let a delinquent lead us?" Manabe asked.

"Probably not. Ryuen made it quite clear that he wants to lead us to Class A. As long as we don't oppose him, we should be fine, right? Everyone, be careful not to rile him up to his face. If you have any concerns, you can come talk to me. I'll do my best to work things out with him. How does that sound?"

I brought out the speech I'd planned in advance. This way, I'd have a legitimate reason to talk with Ryuen.

"You'll talk to him for us? At this point, I suppose we have no choice... But won't that put you in danger, Kitazawa?" Nishino seemed genuinely worried about me. I was going to be a man burdened with many sins in the future, wasn't I?

"It's fine. My strong suit is talking my way through things. Ryuen may be a thug, but he's still human. If I appeal to his interests, we'll find a way to communicate. There's no need to be afraid. Let's just treat what happened today as an accident. Nomura, why don't you come with me to the infirmary in a bit?"

"We're counting on you, Kitazawa!"

By standing up to Ryuen's pressure, I earned the goodwill and trust of most of the class. Of course, not from people like Shiina, who sat in her seat, staring into space without saying a word.

Seriously, how could she be so calm? People had been fighting right in front of her! At least show some reaction! Girls these days really are something...

Anyway, the turmoil in the class finally settled down, and C Class at last had a leader in name. Maybe it was because we were high school students, after all. Everyone recovered from their brief shock and slipped back into their routine. For ordinary people, it made little difference who led the class. It wasn't them, so all they had to do was go with the flow.

That's right. Humans are "social animals"—or, to put it more nicely, they're naturally inclined to live in groups. The herd mentality is perfectly normal. Ryuen's hard to deal with? That's Kitazawa and the others' problem. What does it have to do with me?

That was exactly the effect I wanted. Like the tycoons in America, I'd control public opinion and influence those in power, while never showing my face on the front lines. I'd never be the one stuck taking the fall. That was the life philosophy of a lowly study companion like me.

Well, speaking of it, being a study companion really suited me... It didn't matter how well I studied; I was only there to keep someone company. Or rather, if the companion stole the spotlight, that would be a serious problem, wouldn't it?

That was what C Class would be like in the future. Even if Ryuen got expelled, there'd still be Ibuki, Kaneda, Shiina, Ishizaki, and plenty of other substitutes ready to step up one after another. I refused to believe that all those sacrifices wouldn't clear my path to Class A. If they didn't, then I must've been getting targeted.

Huh? Did I just say "sacrifices"? You must've heard wrong. How could harmless, weak little me possibly...?

Book One: First Steps into the Spotlight — 15. The Best Way to Preserve a Friendship Is Not to Betray Your Friend

The best way to preserve a friendship is not to betray your friend. —Theophrastus

"Minya, Kushida from D Class wants to see you this weekend."

This time, Kaneda had learned his lesson and simply acted as a messenger, without letting his own feelings show.

"What a troublesome person! She's held a grudge against me ever since what happened last time..." I scratched my head, troubled. Honestly, I didn't want anything to do with a social butterfly like her. She'd be a pain whether she was my friend or my enemy. She reminded me of those awful people from middle school.

"A grudge? That was just a little thing, wasn't it?"

"Of course, Satoru. You have to understand that women aren't nearly as broad-minded as they seem. Even Ichinose remembers that so-called little incident. Kushida definitely will too."

"Want me to turn her down?" Kaneda asked.

"No. Please, make sure you accept."

Last time I turned her down, she exposed the fact that I had a huge number of Class Points. What would she make up about me if I rejected her again? I just wanted to be an ordinary high school student in peace! It wasn't my fault I had money! Koenji was to blame, okay? Without Koenji, the ticking time bomb who could cause trouble at any moment, why would I have exchanged for so many points?

"Okay."

Kaneda looked at me like he had no idea what was going on.

So, with Kaneda's help, Kushida and I arranged to meet at a café called Palette. Honestly, the place had terrible taste... The coffee was only good enough to fool poor students like these. After taking a couple of sips of the coffee I'd ordered, I sat on a chair outside the café and started daydreaming.

Fortunately, Kushida wasn't too late. She appeared before me in casual clothes, clearly dressed up for the occasion, and immediately drew people's eyes.

"Sorry, Kitazawa. Have you been waiting long?"

With an apology like that, hands pressed together, it was hard to feel annoyed.

"I haven't been waiting long... Waiter, please bring this young lady a cappuccino!" I gallantly ordered for her. Whether she drank it or not was up to her. What did I care? It was nice enough to have someone treat her...

"Thanks! Kitazawa is just as generous as the rumors say!"