Eight o'clock at night.
Room 308.
A faint, clean scent filled the air, mixed with an indescribable tension.
Kitagawa Kai sat in a chair beside the desk, looking at the wary girl before him. "Suzune-chan, is this really necessary? I'm not going to eat you."
A man and a woman alone in the same room late at night.
Any girl would be nervous, wouldn't she?
The girl couldn't be bothered to correct the way he addressed her and got straight to the point.
"Just say it. What are your terms?"
"Terms?" Kitagawa Kai repeated, leaning forward slightly.
"Suzune-chan, doesn't the contract make it perfectly clear? Five hundred thousand points. One fixed price."
"You're as profit-driven as ever."
In her eyes, the man before her would do anything for points.
"Don't say things like that," Kitagawa Kai drawled, sounding almost aggrieved. "I'm actually... not interested in points."
As he spoke, he casually swiped his finger across the terminal screen a few times, then turned it toward Horikita Suzune.
Just one glance.
But that glance was enough to make Horikita Suzune's icy blue eyes, usually so cold and composed, widen in shock!
On the screen, the balance under Personal Points clearly showed:
3,368,000
A full three million three hundred and sixty-eight thousand points.
More than 3.3 million.
It was beyond anything that could be described as wealthy.
That figure was almost greater than the total points of an entire class.
A deathly silence fell over the room.
Only the faint glow of the terminal screen illuminated their faces.
One wore a faint smile; the other, a look of shock.
Kitagawa Kai enjoyed watching the vivid changes in her expression, then slowly put away the terminal.
"So, Suzune-chan, what do you have to say?"
"I still stand by my assessment."
Horikita Suzune forced herself to stay calm. "I've already figured out part of the core of it, so your information isn't worth fifty thousand points to me anymore."
"Looks like Suzune has been paying close attention to this school. But this information is worth that price. It's the same for every class; I can't lower it just for you."
"Let's put the price aside for now. How many points can you offer?"
"Seventy-six thousand three hundred points."
"That's all I can offer."
Not seventy thousand, not eighty thousand, but a precise offer down to the last point.
Since enrolling, Horikita Suzune hadn't treated the one hundred thousand points like pocket money to spend as freely as most of her classmates did.
She had never joined in any pointless dinners or entertainment. She rarely even visited the cafeteria. Instead, she went to the supermarket every day to collect the limited free ingredients and quietly prepared all three meals for herself in her dorm.
"Seventy-six thousand three hundred points..." Kitagawa Kai remarked.
"What an interesting number. Looks like you live very frugally, Suzune-chan."
"It's simply a necessary virtue for any normal person."
"Still, given our special relationship," Kitagawa Kai said, watching Horikita's forcedly composed face as he smiled leisurely, a certain meaning seeming to lurk in his smile, "I can offer you two options that are a little... more flexible."
Horikita Suzune forced herself to ignore her irritation and waited for him to continue.
"Option one: the price stays the same, five hundred thousand. If you can't pay it now, that's fine. You can owe me and pay me back over time."
"But on one condition: you have to sign a private repayment contract with strict binding terms. And you'll need to prove to me that you're capable of paying it back."
Owe him for now?
A private contract?
Prove her ability to repay and her worth?
Horikita Suzune's heart sank slightly. This sounded like a trap.
"Then what's option two?"
"Option two: I don't want any of your points. They have no appeal to me."
The girl's pupils contracted almost imperceptibly. What came free was often the most expensive. Horikita Suzune understood that better than anyone.
"Keep your little savings for yourself."
"I heard you're good at making bento. I'm a little surprised you have those homemaking skills."
The abrupt change of topic made Horikita Suzune pause, and her wariness only grew.
"So? That has nothing to do with the deal."
"It does." Kitagawa Kai interrupted her, his smile taking on a different meaning. "Option two is that you make me bento for three months."
"...What?" Horikita Suzune could hardly believe she'd heard him correctly.
Bento?
Three months?
Was he really exchanging key information worth five hundred thousand points for such a simple request?
"It's easy for you," Kitagawa Kai said, seeming to see through her confusion.
"But I like eating. I just don't like thinking about what to eat every day."
"One meal a day. It doesn't need to be complicated; about the same standard as what you make for yourself is fine. Of course, I'll pay for the ingredients. I won't touch your precious points. As for the time... lunchtime, for convenience."
"Are there any other conditions?" Horikita Suzune asked bluntly. She didn't believe it could be this simple.
"Besides that, you can't tell anyone about this information. Of course, we'll still need to sign an official confidentiality contract. That's non-negotiable."
"So, my confused young maiden, which option will you choose?"
Horikita Suzune's thoughts raced.
Option one: stake her future on information of unknown value?
Option two: simply make bento for three months, but tell no one?
She had complete confidence in her ability to follow through and in her own willpower. As long as she had the key information, she could think things through on her own.
"I choose option two."
Horikita Suzune's voice was resolute.
Kitagawa Kai seemed to have expected her answer. As soon as she finished speaking, he took a standard contract out of the drawer.
The contract was signed.
The deal was done.
"Now," Horikita Suzune said, her composure reduced to the calm of someone carrying out an agreement, "the information."
Kitagawa Kai then recited all the information he knew.
Horikita Suzune stood motionless, her fingertips digging deep into her palms.
She understood. She understood everything.
Why the information was worth five hundred thousand points, why Class B was selling it, and why Class C would buy it.
But then, a surge of anger shot up from deep within her, instantly shattering the calm facade she had forced herself to maintain.
"You played me, Kitagawa Kai."
"What good is it if I'm the only one who knows...?"
"Given the bunch of worms in our class, what can I change by myself?"
"Is this what you call valuable? Information that lets me know in advance that Class D is going to suffer a crushing defeat."
Horikita Suzune looked at Kitagawa Kai sitting there calmly, her voice full of sarcasm.
"And then I still have to make you bento for three months? Kitagawa Kai, you've really worked out a sweet deal for yourself!"
Kitagawa Kai didn't show the slightest reaction to her agitation. He even chuckled softly.
"Suzune-chan, even if we take things a step further, suppose you tell those classmates in Class D every single detail tomorrow-"
He deliberately paused, letting her picture the scene.
"Do you think they'll believe you?"
He tilted his head slightly, as if looking at a child who didn't know any better.
"Kid, there's no time left. Your class has already lost too many points."
"Shouldn't you focus on improving yourself instead of trying to save those oddballs in your class?"
"And make some friends along the way. Like me."
"That's also what your brother asked me to do."
Horikita Suzune bit down hard on her lower lip. She neither nodded nor shook her head, only said numbly:
"I'll honor the contract, and I'll bring you the bento. As for everything else..."
She took a deep breath. A faint but undying flame of defiance gathered again in her eyes.
"I'll make my own judgment."