Suzune, Spend the Afternoon with Me!

"Suzune, are you free this afternoon? How about coming with me?"

Since he'd spent some time fooling around with Kikyo the previous night, Ju Ji didn't wake up until almost noon. Fortunately, Kikyo wasn't a real demon and hadn't made him stay up until the next day. She'd let him rest at three in the morning.

The online game they'd played on their handheld consoles had been pretty fun. It was called Sword Art Online, or something like that. But unlike the novel he'd read before, it wasn't a full-dive game with no logout button. It was just an ordinary online game. Still, the gameplay was interesting, and quite a few people in their class seemed to play it. He'd play again when he had time.

"Ju Ji, over here... So the friend you mentioned really was Horikita? Why didn't you just say so?"

"No, at the time, I wasn't sure if she'd come."

They'd agreed to meet at the café inside the school. Ju Ji had run into Suzune on the way there. He hadn't expected her to agree to such a pointless outing, either.

Could it be that she was trying to change and make friends on her own? A beauty like her would surely make friends in no time.

"Ju Ji, Horikita, let me introduce you. This is Ichinose from Class B. And this is Horikita. I've always wanted to get along with her, but I never managed to. Thanks to Ju Ji, I finally got her to come this time."

"To think there was someone with enough charm to turn down little Kikyo. How interesting. So this cute boy is the dear friend you told me about, little Kikyo? It's a pleasure to finally meet you."

The girl sitting beside Kikyo was the nominal leader of Class B. She had pinkish-gold hair and was every bit as beautiful as Horikita. She looked strong, but from what Ju Ji knew, she had a vulnerable side, too. She seemed to have some dark history, though he'd forgotten the details.

Ichinose and Kikyo were both social butterflies, so there was no downside to getting on their good side. Perhaps he could learn about the other classes from them. That was exactly the sort of thing Ju Ji was lacking. Without information from the outside, any strategy was just guesswork.

"Nice to meet you, Ichinose. I hope we get along."

"So where are we going to have fun... You haven't thought about it at all, have you?"

Unlike Ju Ji, who had a specific reason for wanting to get along with Ichinose, Suzune got straight to the point.

"Well, since we're already at the café, let's order something first. I'll have a latte. What would you all like?"

"Sure! I'll have a cappuccino!"

"I'll have a latte, too, with extra sugar."

"I don't mind. I'll just have whatever Ju Ji's having."

Usually, whoever suggested ordering first was paying. Although there were three ladies present, Ju Ji would normally have been the one to treat them. But that wasn't his style, and he wasn't going to do it. Little Kikyo would just have to make the sacrifice.

But Suzune didn't seem to have her mind on having fun at all. Did she even realize they were on an outing? If she wasn't going to enjoy herself, then what was the point? What had she come here for?

"By the way, congratulations on making it to Class C. You two were the ones who led the way this time, weren't you, little Ju Ji and little Suzune? What are your plans from here? Oh, and if you don't mind, you can call me Honami."

As expected of Ichinose, she immediately tried to draw them closer by suggesting they use nicknames. Was this the afterglow of being popular? It was still too embarrassing, though, so Ju Ji would have to decline.

"I'll pass, Ichinose. As for our next goal, I suppose it's to make it to Class A. I'm sure everyone at this school has the same idea."

As expected of Suzune. She'd refused that perfect opportunity to get closer to Ichinose without the slightest hesitation. Ichinose had even attracted a girl from her own class who confessed to her in the original story. That was how terrifying her charm was.

"What about you, little Ju Ji?"

"Please spare me the nicknames, Ichinose. It's a bit much to call a girl by one out of the blue. As for my goal, it's pretty much the same as Suzune's: I want to make it to Class A. But if I could make more friends along the way, that would be nice, too."

Since he'd said out loud that he wanted to make more friends, friendly Ichinose would probably help him. Then perhaps he could milk Friendship Points from Class B students, or even students across the whole year. After all, the more Friendship Points, the better.

"You want to make more friends? Then I might be able to help. In that case, how about an alliance between our classes? Making it to Class A isn't something we can accomplish overnight. If our classes helped each other, we could avoid a lot of unexpected problems. Besides, I don't want to be enemies with little Kikyo. What do you think?"

"An alliance? That sounds like a good idea. What do you think, Ju Ji?"

"It might work. But we're not actually the leaders of our class, so we'll have to ask everyone in Class C for their opinion. Still, I'm very much in favor of an alliance. I'll get back to you as soon as we have an answer. In the meantime, let's exchange contact information."

"Of course. This isn't something you can decide right away. Contact me as soon as you've made up your minds. Also, Ryuen, the former leader of Class C, is not someone to underestimate. He may make a move soon, so you'd better be careful."

Ichinose seemed strangely confident that the two classes would form an alliance. She was already treating them like allies and had even shared important information with them. In the original story, Ryuen had been thoroughly crushed by Ayanokoji. But that was only because Ayanokoji was too strong. For Ju Ji, he really was a difficult opponent.

Ju Ji had expected Ryuen to make a move soon. It was almost strange that he hadn't acted yet. Perhaps he'd still been getting his class in order. But since Ichinose had such definite information, she must have planted a spy in Class C. No, for her, it might be more accurate to call them a friend.

The phones provided by the school had infrared, so exchanging contact information took only a moment. Ju Ji's contacts had finally reached six people. Truly cause for celebration.

The moment Ichinose opened her phone, Ju Ji clearly saw the huge number of points on it. As expected, the Private Points of the entire class had already been pooled with her. Her ability to inspire trust was genuinely frightening. He wondered if Kikyo and Ichinose were similar types. They could both win people's trust with ease, which was why they'd made so many friends so quickly.

"Thanks for the warning. I'll be careful. But if you hear anything else, tell me right away."

In the original story, the two classes had already formed an alliance, so getting them to cooperate now shouldn't be too difficult. Ju Ji therefore accepted Ichinose's help without hesitation...