Better to Play Games

Kiyotaka Kiyotaka hadn't realized how serious the situation was. He'd barely taken a bite when Suzune Horikita, sitting across from him, spoke up.

"There's no time to waste. I want you to hear me out."

"Hm?"

The food that had just reached his mouth suddenly didn't taste so good. How could anyone act like this?

Didn't she have any sense of boundaries? She'd said she was treating him, but was this what the meal was really for? There really was no such thing as a free lunch.

As the saying went, when you ate someone's food, you were beholden to them. It was a basic principle, but it still felt a little strange. He wasn't exactly uncomfortable, since he didn't usually feel that way.

He glanced to his left, but there was no one else. Then he looked to his right and called for help.

"Beihai..."

He only got one word out before he was interrupted.

"Nope. Not listening. I've already finished eating. Talking during a meal is unhealthy and rude."

Beihai stood up and left. You want to drag me into this? What are you thinking? Go ahead and keep jumping back and forth on your own.

Kiyotaka Kiyotaka could only watch helplessly as Beihai's back grew smaller in the distance.

"You two are close?"

There wasn't anything for him to hide, nor was it something that needed to be kept secret.

"He's my brother."

Suzune Horikita's expression didn't change. She didn't think Beihai had any particular talent. He was utterly ordinary. If Kiyotaka Kiyotaka hadn't been recommended by that teacher, if he hadn't had some ability, controlled his score, and been able to help her get into Class A, she wouldn't have bothered coming here.

There was nothing noteworthy about Beihai. If they were just friends, then perhaps Kiyotaka Kiyotaka himself was also friends with people like Haruki Yamauchi.

So there was no solid evidence or basis for concluding that Beihai was capable.

Of course, the main thing was—

"Beihai, I remember he came in last in the class on that test. You sure know how to make friends."

"That was just an accident."

In the end, Suzune Horikita finally revealed her true intentions.

"I'm not interested in all that, but we can't afford to make even one mistake on this month's test. Chiwa, Yamauchi, Xuteng, and that Beihai guy are all dragging us down..."

After they finished talking, she left her phone number and email address on the table.

Kiyotaka Kiyotaka's mind didn't work like a normal person's. He didn't feel like he'd been tricked or pressured. Instead, he picked up the slip of paper.

He thought that this might be the first girl's contact information he'd gotten since entering the school. He wasn't especially happy about it, but he should save it properly anyway.

It was already May, and the carefree days of April were gone. Afternoon classes had returned to normal.

The teachers weren't going to tolerate the students fooling around anymore. They needed to establish some authority.

Now they were especially likely to make an example of someone. D was the worst class in the school, after all. If the teachers didn't do something, these students might actually punch them in the face.

There was no need to doubt it. There were always a few Jiahaos in class who wanted to show off their strength. Picking fights with the teacher made them feel cool, and a whole class full of Jiahaos was even worse.

Just thinking about it made life difficult for the class teacher.

Beihai finally got to enjoy a normal lesson. There was no more bedlam. Even if everyone was just pretending to pay attention, the class was quiet enough for him to focus.

Back in April, the whole class had been running wild, so he'd had to go along with the atmosphere. Now he didn't have to. The only thing he missed was teasing the adorable Sakura.

When the bell rang, he packed up and got ready to leave.

"Beihai, wait. Don't go yet. I have something to talk to you about."

Kiyotaka Kiyotaka moved quickly, afraid Beihai might escape. As for the other three, he didn't care about them.

"There's something I need to discuss with you."

By the time Beihai turned around, Airisu Sakura had already left. Great. Now he couldn't walk back to the dorm with his little group again.

If they ran into someone with no sense of boundaries along the way, it would be a pain if they got held up.

So he slowed his steps.

"What do you need? Hurry up and say it."

Kiyotaka Kiyotaka didn't waste time. He told him everything that had happened at lunch.

She wanted to start a study group, giving extra lessons to the students who were doing poorly. Of course, it wasn't his idea; it was Horikita's.

"Sorry, I don't need that. If you don't believe me, you can take a look at these test papers."

Beihai refused without hesitation. His test papers were filled out, and all it would take was one glance to understand. He had no need for extra lessons.

That left the other person with no reason to keep dragging him into this.

"Okay, then. By the way, are you free tonight? I got a new game disc recently."

"Sorry, I might not be free tonight. Maybe another time.

Things aren't like they used to be. If I stay up late, I won't be able to get up, and the consequences could be serious."

Beihai refused without even thinking. His usual excuses were always just right, with no flaws to pick at. He could maintain the relationship without offending anyone.

There was truth to the saying: make lots of friends and few enemies. Unless it was necessary, Beihai wouldn't let a relationship become strained or turn sour.

Normal people would find his refusals perfectly reasonable, and Kiyotaka Kiyotaka did too. After all, April, when they could fool around as much as they liked, was over. Now it was May, and the teachers were ready to make an example of someone.

Any students who still wanted to bounce around wildly were bound to have a hard time. As for those who could act up whenever they wanted, unless they had the ability to stand out, they had to be like the two of them.

Kiyotaka Kiyotaka went to look for the other three targets, but every one of them refused. With no other choice, he lay on his dorm bed for a while before calling Kikyo Kushida.

After a month of settling in, Kikyo Kushida had become just as good at making friends as Honami Ichinose.

If Honami Ichinose was Class B's angel, then Kikyo Kushida was Class D's angel. A saintly figure like her could handle three goblins with ease.

By chance, this also let Beihai off the hook completely. He'd already shown that if he hadn't fallen asleep that time, he wouldn't have scored so poorly. So he was spared this round of trouble.

For some inexplicable reason, Kiyotaka Kiyotaka was the only one caught up in a whirlwind of activity.

He couldn't understand it. In terms of talent and disguising himself, he and Beihai were evenly matched, so why did he keep failing?

He'd interacted with so many people in such a short time. School life wasn't supposed to be like this. He might as well play games with Beihai.