Let Us Perish Together!

"Is there something you need?"

"Can't I come to bother you if there's nothing in particular?"

Seeing the number 40 floating above her head, Toru Hasegawa felt absolutely nothing inside.

If one were to mistake this for tsundere behavior, they would be gravely mistaken; she simply viewed him as a convenient tool.

Toru Hasegawa understood this point perfectly well.

"I'm joking." Seeing Toru Hasegawa's expressionless face, Sakayanagi Arisu didn't feel the slightest bit embarrassed, instead saying directly, "I would like to ask you to help me investigate information on other classes, with Class D as the priority, of course."

"Is it because of Ayanokoji?"

"That's right. I do love dealing with smart people."

Sakayanagi Arisu said with a light chuckle.

Although Ayanokoji was a rival meant for her alone, if he had already been discovered by someone else, there was no harm in making good use of the situation.

Toru Hasegawa sighed helplessly; if he could, he didn't want to continue being her lackey...

Wait, hold on! It seemed he didn't have to be her lackey at all!

Yesterday, he had done it for the sake of private points... though it seemed it started with just a meal... never mind, let's just say it was for the private points. As for this morning, he had only helped because he was considerate of her physical inconvenience.

In other words, he could absolutely refuse this errand.

Thinking of this, Toru Hasegawa spoke decisively:

"Sorry, but I'm actually quite busy."

"Are you planning to join a club?"

"A club?"

Toru Hasegawa was puzzled. Was it already time to join clubs?

It seemed the upperclassman had indeed mentioned today yesterday...

"It seems you didn't hear it. There was an announcement at noon; the school will hold a club orientation at the First Gymnasium starting at five this afternoon," Sakayanagi Arisu explained with great patience.

"So that's how it is. I was in the restroom at the time, so I didn't hear it."

Toru Hasegawa scratched his head. If not for Sakayanagi Arisu's reminder, he might have actually missed it.

"So, are you going to join a club?"

Sakayanagi Arisu naturally pushed the topic further, showing no signs of awkwardness at all.

"Let me think... if there's a gaming club, I think I'll apply."

"There might just be one." Sakayanagi Arisu sat in Toru Hasegawa's seat with the composure of a veteran. "But even if you join a club, that doesn't mean you won't have time to help me."

"Don't you know? Boys are creatures who love playing games. I plan to buy a computer today and devote most of my free time to it from now on."

Toru Hasegawa found a suitable excuse.

Through the short life he lived in his previous existence, he had already figured it out.

Rather than hesitating between studying and playing and ending up miserable, it was better to dive into them wholeheartedly.

Study hard when it's time to study, and play hard when it's time to play; never think about studying while playing games.

This was the life philosophy he had realized!

So, strictly speaking, this wasn't really an excuse.

"..."

Sakayanagi Arisu felt a bit speechless, as she could tell from his facial expressions and eyes that everything Toru Hasegawa had just said was true.

However, such a useful, smart, and... completely indifferent tool who had no designs on her was hard to come by.

Thinking of this, a smile returned to Sakayanagi Arisu's face, but Toru Hasegawa couldn't feel happy at all.

Because just now, the number above her head had risen from 40 to 45.

The more he refused, the higher her favorability went?

I don't want this kind of thing!!!

And Sakayanagi Arisu had already decided to use her trump card. So, he doesn't eat soft, he prefers hard, does he?

"Hasegawa-kun, you wouldn't want to be the reason the class fails in the competition, would you?"

Hearing the words that reached his ears, Toru Hasegawa's mouth twitched violently.

Isn't this a bit...

Regardless of anything else, for a girl to say such a thing to a boy was just too strange!

And to actually use the class's overall situation to pressure him—damn it!

Was he the type of person who would bow to the pressure of the class?

I'm very sorry, but he was exactly that kind of person.

Toru Hasegawa already wanted to slide into a kowtow at the speed of light, but in the end, he still wanted to put up a struggle.

"Actually, I have a candidate here who would be more suitable for you."

Taking a deep breath, Toru Hasegawa said in a low voice.

Let him cling to this last straw of hope!

"Oh? Tell me about it."

Sakayanagi Arisu's eyes lit up; she was very interested in this so-called "more suitable candidate" that Toru Hasegawa mentioned.

"You'll understand once you see this."

Toru Hasegawa took out his phone, switched the screen to the photo gallery, opened the only photo there, and held it in front of Sakayanagi Arisu.

"This is..."

Seeing that the silver-haired girl's attention was completely captured by the photo, Toru Hasegawa breathed a sigh of relief.

Better you than me, Kamuro Masumi; rest in peace!

"This is something I happened to discover while buying lunch today. As long as you make good use of this photo, I'm sure you could get her to do all sorts of things, right? Of course, spying on Class D would be a piece of cake."

"But you should be a little nicer to her. I get the feeling she's the type who isn't very good at communicating with others, so it would be great if she could improve while with you."

Him staying with Sakayanagi Arisu all the time?

Toru Hasegawa couldn't accept that. Men and women should keep their distance, and there were many things he wouldn't be able to get involved in.

Besides, the difficulty of "clearing" this girl was clearly very high. After all, this wasn't a hentai manga; there was no way a girl in love would just switch her affections so easily.

Furthermore, who told Kamuro Masumi to tease him in the first place? If it weren't for that incident, he would never have been targeted by Sakayanagi Arisu, a girl who lacked emotional depth yet was obsessed with romance!

So, this was also his own little act of revenge~

Even though he had said those things to himself in his heart, Toru Hasegawa still understood that his actions were by no means righteous.

If he had the chance, he would make it up to her properly.

"Isn't this great? This way, you can focus entirely on spying on Class D, and as for Kamuro-san... leave Class B and Class C to her."

"...Are you a devil?"

Sakayanagi Arisu's words made Toru Hasegawa involuntarily raise his voice, immediately attracting the attention of those around them.

"I am discussing class affairs with Hasegawa-kun; he is a very suitable candidate."

With just that one sentence, Sakayanagi Arisu had them all cheering in approval.

"As expected of Sakayanagi!"

"Her Highness truly has an eye for talent!"

He would just temporarily ignore the strange vocabulary contained in certain phrases. Toru Hasegawa licked his somewhat dry lips:

"Do you really have to do this?"

"I am becoming increasingly interested in the value you hold."

Indeed, seeing the number above the other person's head rise from 45 to 50 again, Toru Hasegawa understood that she was serious.

However...

"I have already recorded our entire conversation just now."

Toru Hasegawa, who had already retrieved his phone, displayed the recording interface to Sakayanagi Arisu. The numbers shown on the screen confirmed what he had said.

"If you don't want your classmates to know what kind of person you really are, please let me go."

"Hehe—" Sakayanagi Arisu didn't seem surprised at all to see that Toru Hasegawa's phone was recording. "Do I need to remind you? You just betrayed your own classmate, you know~"

"For someone like you who uses the class's momentum to pressure others, I have already prepared myself for mutual destruction."

Toru Hasegawa said as much.