She Wanted to Reel Me In?

With this prompt, he could learn anything about this world, anywhere and anytime—including what was going to happen next.

Not only that, it could also provide the best possible solutions.

As he wondered whether he should go find Sakayanagi Arisu, blue text appeared once more.

[Are you feeling lost after just arriving in this world? Don't worry. I'll answer anything you want to know.]

[1. You might think Sakayanagi Arisu is searching for the rules of this school and trying to win. She's the one who set things in motion, and she has the most information.

But in reality, she's somewhere drinking coffee and enjoying the turmoil at this school. She isn't taking any action.

If you thought about it carefully, it would make sense. She didn't want to rule a troublesome class full of problems. It would be exhausting, so she'd let someone else take charge for her at first.

In this class-wide struggle, she held all the initiative and would also win a great deal of support.

Her plan was to bury all the geniuses. You could choose to cooperate with her, but Class A would suffer several crushing defeats during the first year.]

[2. This school was full of geniuses. Even the strongest class, Class A, still had many hidden talents.

You could seek out these geniuses and make them your allies.

When you leave the dorm, Morishita Ai will have been waiting for you on a bench downstairs for quite some time. She's been watching you for a while. Even if she misses this chance, she'll find another way to arrange a chance encounter.]

[3. Go to the convenience store in Keyaki Shopping Mall before 2:50 p.m. and find Kiryuin Fuka. Nobody knows the rules of this school better than she does. Choosing this option will unlock further prompts.]

When he left his room, Yagami Shizuka saw Morishita Ai sleeping on the bench downstairs, just as expected.

It was only 12:30 now, so there was no conflict with the time he had to go to the convenience store.

He could choose either of the last two options.

Still, he was curious.

"What does she want with me?"

"Is she trying to reel me in?"

After washing his face, Yagami Shizuka left the dorm without giving it much thought.

The dormitory complex was huge, with thirteen floors. The first floor had a reception hall where all sorts of goods were sold, and every floor had wireless internet.

The girls lived on the upper six floors, and the boys on the lower six.

Yagami Shizuka lived in room 201 on the second floor, so it was convenient for him to go downstairs.

If he wanted to avoid Morishita Ai, he could take the stairs on the other side instead of the elevator.

But he had no intention of doing that. There was no need.

If she wanted to bump into him, then she could.

Yagami Shizuka passed the bench as if nothing were amiss. Just as he was about to walk past, a loud female voice came from behind him. "Huh? Where am I? Excuse me, could you wait a moment?"

Morishita Ai took a few quick steps and came up in front of Yagami Shizuka. "Sorry, I think I'm lost. Could I ask you for directions?"

Yagami Shizuka stopped and looked at the girl in front of him. She had purplish-blue hair tied into two cute ponytails.

[Image: Ai]

She was beautiful.

More accurately, there were almost no unattractive girls at this school.

All kinds of delicate, dazzling flowers bloomed here, making it hard to tell which was the fairest.

There was nothing to read in her seemingly innocent violet eyes, but her lively, carefree gaze held a hint of mischief.

That only made her seem more extraordinary.

When Yagami Shizuka stayed silent for a long time, Morishita Ai added, "Do you know where the dorm is?"

Yagami Shizuka blinked and glanced at the dorm. Was she laying it on a little too thick? The dorm was right in front of her.

Were girls really this bad at picking up guys these days?

Worried she might play dumb again, he pointed toward the building. "This is the dorm. Go to the reception hall on the first floor to register and apply for a room card."

"Huh?" Morishita Ai looked back in surprise, as if she'd just realized. But she had a reason for not going over to register.

"Boys and girls live in the same building? Isn't that a little... I-I saw a lot of boys going upstairs, so I thought this wasn't the dorm."

That was a good enough excuse to cover for herself.

She wasn't the only one. Quite a few girls stopped short when they got here, unable to believe this was the dorm.

"Oh! You need a room card to get in, and everyone has their own room," Yagami Shizuka explained. "There are cameras in the elevators too, so you don't need to worry about boys doing anything to girls."

"Oh!" Morishita Ai nodded as if she'd suddenly understood. Hearing that everyone had their own room made her heart flutter for a moment.

"By the way, what's your name? Thanks for giving me directions." Only then did she look clear-eyed and casually state her real purpose in coming.

She'd gone to so much effort to play dumb that Yagami Shizuka could only play along and give her his name. "Yagami Shizuka."

"Oh!" Morishita Ai pointed at Yagami Shizuka, eyes wide. "I remember now! You're the bold guy who had the guts to confess to Chairman Sakayanagi's daughter as soon as you got here, right in front of the whole class."

Bold guy? What kind of thing was that to call someone?

Could that end up being my nickname?

Her surprise didn't look fake. If he hadn't known her intentions from the prompt, she might really have fooled him.

"You're so brave!" Morishita Ai said, clenching her fist in praise.

"My name's Morishita Ai. You might not remember me, but I'm in Class A too. I sit at the very back, in the last seat. Nice to meet you."

After introducing herself, she pointed at the bench behind them, seemingly unwilling to be impolite. "Let's sit for a bit. Tell me about your confession to Sakayanagi! Was it love at first sight?"

At her insistent invitation, Yagami Shizuka went over to the bench but didn't sit down.

Morishita Ai patted the bench and looked at him with bright violet eyes. "Sit down! Don't be shy. Where'd the courage you had when you confessed to Sakayanagi go?"

"Just tell me what you want. Why did you come looking for me?" Yagami Shizuka asked bluntly.

"Of course I want to hear why you confessed to Sakayanagi. Can you tell me? Do you really like her?"

Standing was awkward, so Yagami Shizuka sat down. They left a wide space between them.

Morishita Ai narrowed her eyes slightly and scooted closer. "You're sitting so far away. Don't tell me you're still a..."

Yagami Shizuka didn't answer. He waited quietly for her to move closer.

Even with their bodies pressed close together and the lingering scent of hair products and shampoo on her, his heart didn't beat any faster. He felt no embarrassment at all.

"You don't need to know why I confessed to Arisu. I really do like her," he said flatly.

"Why don't I believe you?" Morishita Ai raised an eyebrow. "You've got some nerve, daring to confess to Sakayanagi in front of the whole class on the first day."

Yagami Shizuka understood now. Everything she'd done had been a test. Judging by his expressions, she'd concluded that his confession couldn't have been an ordinary one.