Those words had contained an enormous amount of information, and his attitude had been outrageously arrogant.
As the only person present who knew little about the academy's rules, Kohei Katsuragi was the one most shaken by the news. He had fallen into utter confusion.
Even Manabu Horikita, the Student Council President, hadn't immediately spoken up to refute or question him. He had only fallen silent... Which meant this was very likely true!
This seemingly laid-back Class D boy had really managed to quietly save up Twenty Million Personal Points in less than two months?!
How had he done it? Fortune-telling? What a joke!
(What a joke, yamero.)
The wariness in Katsuragi's gaze had given way to utter disbelief and deep apprehension.
Just what kind of monsters was Class D hiding?
Manabu Horikita fell silent for a moment.
His gaze, behind his glasses, remained fixed on Lin Mu, as though he were trying to dissect him from head to toe.
That sharp scrutiny lasted several seconds. At last, the ripples in his eyes gradually settled into their usual calm.
But the indifference the Student Council President had shown toward an ordinary student had quietly disappeared from his gaze.
In its place was the formal attention one gave to someone "worth keeping an eye on." After all, his younger sister, Suzune Horikita, was in Class D.
Manabu Horikita merely gave a slight nod and said in a somewhat more formal tone than before, "The academy does indeed have such a rule. Since you know about it, Lin Mu, and you've met the requirements, then... do as you please."
His words were addressed to Lin Mu, but they also served to confirm to Sakayanagi and Katsuragi that the academy really did have such a rule.
Afterward, he seemed to treat Lin Mu as a "harmless observer" and turned his attention back to Sakayanagi Arisu, attempting to resume their interrupted discussion of the "S System."
However, his wording was clearly more cautious and indirect than before, with many key terms replaced by vague euphemisms.
Lin Mu, meanwhile, didn't care at all about their "encrypted conversation."
He was happy to relax in the comfortable sofa, turning his attention back to his hot tea and the lollipop almost finished melting in his mouth. He even closed his eyes to rest.
The hushed discussion that resumed in the office was like soothing white noise to him. It was making him a little sleepy.
Only when the clear bell signaling the end of swimming class rang through the walls did Lin Mu open his eyes as if someone had pressed a button. He stood up briskly.
He stretched, his bones giving a faint crack, then casually waved to the people in the office.
That was his goodbye. Without looking back, he walked straight to the door, opened it, and left.
As for what Manabu Horikita, Sakayanagi Arisu, and Kohei Katsuragi discussed after he left—about him, the "unexpected variable"—he didn't care in the slightest.
It was just a trivial little interruption.
In the days that followed, Lin Mu began showing up in Class D's classroom on time every day. He never missed a class, much to the surprise of some of his classmates.
By now, the carefree, even somewhat unruly atmosphere the class had enjoyed when they first enrolled in April had long since vanished.
The air was thick with anxiety, embarrassment, and even despair.
(No more Private Points. The losers are eating dust.)
The students who had blown through all their points in April, or even spent more than they had, were now in the desperate situation of having no points to use.
The free basic meal plan was bland and unappetizing, while the free daily necessities were crude and shoddy. They couldn't adjust to it after getting used to high-quality goods.
As a result, people could be seen all over the classroom, lowering themselves to ask their classmates for money.
"Hey, could I borrow a thousand points? I'll pay you back as soon as we get our points next month!"
"Please, I'm only five hundred points short of buying a reference book!"
"About the money I borrowed a few days ago... could you give me a few more days? I promise!"
Those with thick skin went around approaching classmates they knew, or barely knew. Those who were more timid could only turn to close friends for help.
The sudden "financial crisis" had made relationships throughout the class subtle and tense.
A few boys who had watched Lin Mu before and figured that, despite keeping to himself, he never seemed short on money—his snacks and belongings were always pretty nice—seized the opportunity to approach him.
"Lin Mu," one boy said, rubbing his hands together with a flattering smile. "Could you... lend me some points to tide me over?
"Not much, just three thousand! I promise I'll pay you back as soon as the class gets points after the midterm exams this month!"
Lin Mu was staring out the window with a lollipop in his mouth. At that, he turned around and looked at the boy's entitled expression. Without a second thought, he replied crisply, "No."
(Don't lend money to people so carelessly. When it's time to pay you back, they might not.)
He grumbled to himself, Come on, why didn't you think about the consequences when you were spending every last point?
We've barely even talked. What kind of relationship do we have that would make me lend you money?
Even if I did lend it to you, with Class D in this state, it's anyone's guess whether we'll get any points after the midterms. And when you'd pay me back is even more uncertain.
That guy's got some nerve.
The boy's expression stiffened. He clearly hadn't expected Lin Mu to refuse so bluntly, and tried to argue.
"We're classmates. We should help each other out. I'll pay you back soon..."
Lin Mu had already turned away with a cold expression, not even bothering to glance at him again. He only tossed out an even colder reply: "I'm broke. No."
The boy had been flatly rejected. His face turned red, then pale, but in the end, he didn't dare keep pestering Lin Mu. He could only leave awkwardly and continue searching for another possible "benefactor."
Scenes like this played out all over the classroom, among both the boys and the girls.
And among the girls, Kikyo Kushida was undoubtedly the one who got "asked" the most.
(Two-faced Prison Sister, a failed man.)
She had always made it her goal to get along with everyone. She was also gentle and kind, and supposedly didn't know how to say no.
(It wasn't that she didn't know how. In truth, it was quite the opposite.)
Faced with requests from her "friends"—the same people she used to go shopping and chat with, now gazing at her expectantly—she simply couldn't bring herself to refuse.
(She talked real nasty about people behind their backs.)
She could only grit her teeth and nod again and again, lending out the points she already didn't have much of. (She'd already spent a lot on socializing, too.)
That was the price of "becoming friends with everyone." When you were "everyone's friend,"
it also meant everyone might feel they had a reason, and a right, to ask things of you.
From his seat in the back, Lin Mu watched Kikyo Kushida surrounded by three or four girls, wearing a forced smile.
She was dealing with A's request while also responding to B's complaints. The sight was almost too painful to watch.
(I couldn't bear to see you suffer, so I turned around and stopped looking at you suffering.)
He simply laid his head down on his desk and decided that what he couldn't see couldn't bother him.
When the bell rang, the people in the classroom began to move around.
Lin Mu took out his phone and hesitated for a moment. Then he opened his chat with Kikyo Kushida and tapped out a message:
"Do you have enough Private Points left?"
The reply came almost instantly.
(Event period: May 1 to May 5)
Before you continue