This Happened in the Very First Class? (Continued)

"..."

Sae Chabashira didn't answer right away. She was silent for a few seconds, then nodded.

"Fine, I'll agree. Twenty thousand points a month, and the additional conditions stay the same."

"Okay."

Before long, Sae Chabashira and Keima Katsuragi had finalized the terms of their deal. They could use the transfer record's memo to keep proof of the agreement.

"From now on, playing games won't get me in trouble, right?"

Keima Katsuragi asked one final time.

"Yes, but only the act of 'playing games.'"

For Keima Katsuragi, being able to play games freely for the time being was the most important thing.

As for the terms of the deal, he didn't care.

After all, whether he could really make it to Class A was meaningless to him.

The worst that could happen was that he'd have to pay back some points later.

He had plenty of time to make other arrangements in the meantime—

He could save up points and at least improve Elsie's academic ability.

He might even find a chance to change the terms of the deal again.

For Keima Katsuragi, even the worst-case scenario of this deal was just a temporary stopgap.

"Oh my! Isn't that Sae? What are you two talking about?"

Just then, a gentle voice rang out from nearby.

Chie Hoshinomiya.

She wore a warm smile as she glanced at Sae Chabashira, then turned to Keima Katsuragi.

"Oh, you're Katsuragi from Class D, right? I'm the homeroom teacher of Class B. What are you talking about with your teacher, Chabashira? She and I have known each other for more than ten years! We were classmates, and now we're colleagues!"

Chie Hoshinomiya spoke as if she and Sae Chabashira were very close.

"That's none of your business, and our conversation is over."

Sae Chabashira only glanced at Chie Hoshinomiya before turning and walking away.

"Oh, what a shame. I thought you might be talking about something interesting, like romance! School has only just started, but teenagers are bound to be eager to fall in love, aren't they?"

Chie Hoshinomiya smiled at Sae Chabashira's retreating back, then turned her attention to Keima Katsuragi again.

"Katsuragi, are you interested in romance?"

"Not in the slightest."

The moment Chie Hoshinomiya turned her head, Keima Katsuragi had already taken out his handheld console and started playing a game.

"I hear you really like games, Katsuragi! If you were willing to join Class B, I'd let you play games as much as you wanted!"

"Really?"

"At this school, you can transfer classes by spending twenty million points."

"Then never mind."

"But if you wanted to join Class B, our students might even be willing to cover some of the cost for you."

"I'm not planning on it for now."

"Oh, that's too bad. But if there's ever anything you need to talk about, you can come to me! I'm the school counselor! And I'm very close to your homeroom teacher—we're best friends!"

"Is that so? But you look a little angry with Teacher Chabashira."

Keima Katsuragi spoke slowly, his eyes never leaving the screen.

Volume One: Chapter 25: Teacher Hoshinomiya, Are You Angry?

Hearing Keima Katsuragi's words, Chie Hoshinomiya froze for a moment, and the smile on her face instantly faltered.

She hadn't expected Keima Katsuragi to say that—but he wasn't wrong.

Deep down, Chie Hoshinomiya had always hated Sae Chabashira.

She had once been a Class D student, and a classmate of Sae Chabashira.

Chie Hoshinomiya believed that failing to graduate as a Class A student had been entirely Sae Chabashira's fault.

Even though she'd graduated ten years ago, she still hadn't let it go.

But Chie Hoshinomiya hid her true feelings very well. She rarely let anyone see that side of her.

And yet...

Had the student in front of her seen through her?

No, impossible.

Chie Hoshinomiya quickly composed herself, leaving almost no trace of her reaction.

"Why would you say that, Katsuragi?"

"Just a feeling."

"Hahaha, that's not it at all, Katsuragi. Teacher Chabashira and I get along very well."

"Oh."

Keima Katsuragi didn't say anything more. He just kept playing his game.

Before, it had only been a feeling.

At least in games, the more someone deliberately acted close to another person, the more suspicious it was.

The brief change in Chie Hoshinomiya's expression just now proved it, too.

Unlike Sae Chabashira's almost defeatist attitude, Chie Hoshinomiya's words had seemed somewhat persuasive. She'd even let slip details about transferring classes.

But—

Keima Katsuragi didn't care.

"I'll be going now, Sensei."

"Okay. I look forward to working with you in the future, Katsuragi."

As she watched Keima Katsuragi walk away, Chie Hoshinomiya's smile vanished in an instant. Her expression turned so cold she seemed like a different person.

The bell rang for class once more. Keima Katsuragi continued playing games in class, as if nothing around him had anything to do with him.

Yosuke Hirata noticed Keima Katsuragi's behavior and felt a little concerned.

Even after learning the rules of the S-System, Katsuragi is still playing games? That's bound to cost us Class Points.

But if it weren't for Katsuragi, we probably wouldn't have noticed this at all. Our Class Points would've been completely wiped out by the end of the month... The loss would've been even greater then.

Yosuke Hirata thought it over for a while and decided to turn a blind eye to Keima Katsuragi's behavior for the time being.

Kushida Kikyo, meanwhile, watched the blackboard with intense focus, looking every bit the attentive student.

But during the break just before, Kushida Kikyo had done something.

She'd told students from the other classes about the rules of the S-System.

Over the past few days, Kushida Kikyo had made friends with many students from other classes.

Class D had learned about the S-System ahead of time, which should have been an advantage for them.

Kushida Kikyo chose to pass the information along in order to throw that advantage away—

With this information, she could grow closer to the friends she'd just made.

And that wasn't all.

The worse things got for Class D, the more miserable Suzune Horikita would be.

Kushida Kikyo had seen the look of frustration on Suzune Horikita's face when Sae Chabashira had mocked the class.

Such a proud person, stuck in the worst class—Suzune Horikita must be having a hard time.

Kushida Kikyo swore she would make the one person who might know about her past disappear from this school for good.

Meanwhile, in a corner of the classroom, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka kept a close eye on Keima Katsuragi.

During English class, Katsuragi caught Mashima's attention and used a question-and-answer exchange to prove his earlier guess about the school rules.

That caught Hirata's attention, so he went to ask him about it. Then he used Hirata's words to get Teacher Chabashira to reveal the actual rules.

Was this all a chain reaction brought about by coincidence, or had he calculated all of it in advance?

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka thought quickly.

But he was becoming increasingly certain that there was something unusual about Keima Katsuragi.

Could he be another creation of the White Room, produced after Ayanokoji Kiyotaka had left?

No, Keima Katsuragi's behavior was completely different from that of a White Room student.

Did he come from another institution?

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was beginning to feel curious.

When the final bell rang, the day's classes finally came to an end.

"Sakura, want to go to the supermarket?"

Keima Katsuragi turned toward Airi Sakura, though his eyes remained on the handheld console in his hands.

He'd promised earlier to go shopping with Airi Sakura after school. To prevent an "accident," he'd sent Elsie away ahead of time.

After all, if that oddball Elsie were there, Airi Sakura would probably faint on the spot.

"I..."

Airi Sakura lowered her head and glanced at the Student Terminal in her hands, feeling conflicted.

The teacher had said earlier that students wouldn't necessarily receive a hundred thousand points every month; the number of points they got was directly related to their Class Points.

Their Class Points had already been reduced quite a bit. They were bound to receive fewer points later.

But Airi Sakura really wanted to buy a camera. Taking selfies was the only hobby she had.

She'd done the math. If all she bought was a camera, she should have enough points.

But Airi Sakura wasn't sure if she'd need points for something else later.

After hearing the teacher explain the school rules, anyone would feel uneasy. The excitement of receiving points on the first day had long since faded.

"Sakura, are you worried about your points?"

Keima Katsuragi asked, as if he'd read Airi Sakura's mind.

"Yeah..."

Airi Sakura nodded.

"Don't worry. Prices at this school are generally much lower than outside. A camera should cost no more than forty thousand points, and what you have left will be more than enough for your daily expenses. Assuming we don't lose a lot of points later, we should still have over sixty thousand next month."

Keima Katsuragi spoke as he watched the screen.

"It's worth giving something up for the things you love. After all, they're priceless."

"Yeah..."

Looking at the handheld console in Keima Katsuragi's hands, Airi Sakura finally nodded. She had made up her mind.

"Katsuragi... let's go."

On the other side of the classroom, Elsie was slumped over her desk as if her soul had left her body.

"Exams? There'll be more exams later? And if I fail, I'll get expelled? Aaaaaah, what am I going to do?!"

Volume One: Chapter 26: Sakayanagi Arisu's Curiosity

Before long, Keima Katsuragi and Airi Sakura arrived at the school supermarket.