A Great Show Was About to Begin

Next, he had to start preparing Sakayanagi Arisu's medicine. But first, he needed money—not much, just 200,000 points.

The medicine for Sakayanagi Arisu wasn't that complicated, and he wasn't planning to enhance her brain.

He'd already decided where to get the 200,000 points. He just had to wait a little longer.

A week later.

Saturday.

As usual, Yagami Shizuka exercised, ate breakfast, and then headed to the library to read.

Being able to lose himself in a sea of books like this was a wonderful feeling.

Especially after his brain had been enhanced.

Classical Chinese texts that had once been difficult to understand now made sense at a glance, and even memorizing them was effortless.

He'd read plenty of books before, and now he could recall their contents.

It was as if he were stuffing knowledge into his brain as fast as he could. He never tired of it.

Shiina Hiyori also loved reading.

She didn't want to disturb him, so she picked a seat nearby and settled down with a detective novel.

She noticed the more than ten books piled on the table in front of Yagami Shizuka, and how quickly he was turning the pages. She was quite surprised.

After finishing another book, Shiina Hiyori asked softly, "You're not planning to read all of those today, are you?"

"Huh!" Yagami Shizuka abruptly looked up. "Sorry, I didn't notice you."

"It's fine. You were really absorbed in your reading," Shiina Hiyori said with a soft laugh.

"Not exactly. I usually stay a little alert even when I'm reading. I just used my Total Concentration ability a moment ago because I wanted to get through the books faster, so I didn't notice you."

He'd been able to use this ability even before, the trick of taking in ten lines at a glance.

He'd learned about these techniques in science books because he'd loved reading ever since elementary school, and he'd started trying to practice them back then.

But they took a lot of brainpower, and he'd have to rest after just a few minutes.

Even in those few minutes, he could skim through a two-hundred-page book.

The most classic example was how he used to fail every test, then read for half an hour the night before midterms and end up first in the class.

That wasn't a boast. It had really happened. When he applied himself, he could learn everything taught in elementary school in a single day.

It couldn't be helped. There were only a few textbooks in elementary school, so they weren't much of a challenge.

Now was different. He felt like he could read for an hour or two without a problem. He didn't even feel especially tired, and he was completely focused.

"Are you planning to finish all of these today? Won't that be too much for your brain?" Shiina Hiyori asked with concern.

"I couldn't do it before, but now..." He grinned and patted his chest. "As long as I eat plenty of high-protein food at lunch, I'll be fine."

"If that's true, your academic ability must be incredible." For the first time, Shiina Hiyori found herself admiring someone.

She didn't think Yagami Shizuka was bragging. They'd known each other for a long time, and she already knew his knowledge wasn't far behind hers. It might even surpass hers.

She had some confidence when discussing detective classics, but when it came to other subjects, she often fell short.

"Not really. I can only rank second in my class at best." Even now, Yagami Shizuka didn't forget to be modest.

"Who's first?"

"Sakayanagi Arisu, the daughter of Chairman Sakayanagi and leader of Class A. She's also my future wife."

"Huh?" Shiina Hiyori was surprised. "You keep saying that. I can't pretend I didn't hear you. Is it true?"

"Of course. It hasn't happened yet, but it will sooner or later."

"Oh?" For some reason, Shiina Hiyori felt a little disappointed.

After what Yagami Shizuka had said, she couldn't bring herself to continue the conversation. They were just fellow book lovers, and she didn't want to pry into his personal life.

Yagami Shizuka went back to reading. He felt that if no one disturbed him, he could keep at it all day.

Not far away.

Some Class D students had taken over a spot and taken out their books to study.

Yagami Shizuka hadn't paid much attention at first, but soon, the students started arguing.

"If you can't even solve a problem like this, I get chills just imagining what your futures will look like." After holding back all morning, Horikita Suzune finally snapped.

Smack!

"Shut up! This has nothing to do with you!" Sudo slapped the table and stood up, looking ready to throw a punch.

His happy reading time had been interrupted, so Yagami Shizuka had no choice but to put down the book in his hands and look in their direction.

Shiina Hiyori was watching them too. "They seem to be studying, but now they're arguing. They might start fighting. Should we go over and try to stop them?"

Yagami Shizuka frowned. It seemed this was the day the exciting scene was about to begin.

"No need. Let them argue. They'll leave soon. They're in a pretty pitiful state, don't you think?"

"Mm." Shiina Hiyori spoke quietly. "Their points have been reduced to zero, and now they're at risk of expulsion. I think those students came here for extra help."

"There's no point in helping them study. Still, if they need help, I could lend a hand," Yagami Shizuka said casually.

"You can help them?" Shiina Hiyori asked curiously.

"Of course. But I'm not going to help for free. If they have enough points to pay, I won't just stand by." Yagami Shizuka had already come up with a plan.

If possible, he wanted to earn some points from Class D. Even if he didn't step in, Ayanokoji would. Better to keep the profit in the family and earn it himself.

"How about this? Sometime tomorrow or within the next week, if Horikita Suzune—the tall girl with the black hair in a ponytail—comes to the library again, tell her I can help. If she's willing to wait, tell her to wait for me."

"Okay!" Shiina Hiyori nodded.

"The moment you set your sights on an unrealistic career like that, you've already become a fool."

The scene in the library continued. Horikita Suzune was still berating Sudo.

One of Sudo's hands had grabbed Horikita Suzune by the collar and lifted her up.

His other hand was clenched into a fist, but Kushida Kikyo was holding him back with all her strength.

"You..." Sudo really wanted to punch her right then and there, but he didn't want to hit a woman.

No matter how harshly Horikita Suzune insulted him, he had his own principles.

Horikita Suzune wouldn't let up. "You should give up on your studies right now... No, you should drop out immediately, all right?

"Then forget about your stupid dream of becoming a professional basketball player and go find a job. You can spend the rest of your life living miserably!"

"Ha! Just what I wanted!" Sudo released Horikita Suzune and turned away in a fit of anger. "I quit. It's only making things hard for me, isn't it?

"I even went out of my way to get permission to skip club activities and come here. What a waste of time."

"That's rich, coming from you. Studying is hard work," Horikita Suzune said, still trying to press the attack.

When Sudo turned around to hit her, Kushida Kikyo grabbed him again.