Tsukishima waved a hand. "I'm not particularly bothered by that. A student's job is to study, after all, and I'm busy."
Sakayanagi set down her coffee cup and chuckled. "Spending a fortune on pinhole cameras doesn't sound like something you'd do for the sake of studying."
Tsukishima glanced at Sakayanagi. "As expected of a young lady. Nothing gets past you. But you've got it wrong—I really did buy those things so I could study in peace."
He took a sip of coffee and sighed. "This school is basically a gladiator arena. If I don't want to get hurt, I have to come up with ways to protect myself. You know what Class C's bunch of thugs are like, and Class D is full of all kinds of weirdos."
He glanced at the Long-haired Gloomy Man. "Even you, young lady, have your own guardian. How's someone as frail as me supposed to study if I don't protect myself?"
Sakayanagi lightly tapped her cane against the floor, her smile turning playful. "Tsukishima, you make yourself sound so pitiful. But from what I've heard, you're not quite as... harmless as you seem."
"For example?"
"For example, having Kushida Kikyo from Class D come to your room alone at night. Or telling Ichinose Honami about the school rules in the teachers' office, tempting her into making a deal with you."
Tsukishima gave Sakayanagi a strange look. "Young lady, you sound like some kind of perverted stalker right now. Your classmate who's been digging up all this information must have had a hard time."
Sakayanagi covered her mouth and chuckled. "You do know how to joke, Tsukishima. I'm merely paying a little extra attention to 'interesting people.'"
"Someone who can see through the school's rules in the very first week deserves a closer look... It would be troublesome if you became an obstacle someday."
Tsukishima rolled his eyes. "Young lady, do you hear yourself? Anyone with half a brain could see that something was off about those 100,000 points, couldn't they?"
"Put it together with a little real-world experience, and you'd reach the same conclusion, wouldn't you?"
He paused. "Besides, how could a student from Class D possibly become an obstacle for you, young lady... Oh! So you have ulterior motives!"
Tsukishima perked up. "Someone you're interested in is in Class D? Horikita? No, she's arrogant, conceited, and inflexible. Apart from being related to the student council president, she's got nothing going for her."
"Takara Temple? Handsome Guy is arrogant to the core. He wouldn't suck up to his upperclasswomen with his size and stamina just to borrow points for food. Hmm... Looking at it that way, he must have quite the background. You're probably not interested in him, either."
"The other commoners probably wouldn't catch your eye, so that leaves just one person."
Tsukishima leaned forward and stared into Sakayanagi's eyes.
"The Score-Control Master who gets exactly 50 on every quiz, but barely stands out in class—Kiyotaka Ayanokouji!"
Sakayanagi's expression didn't change in the slightest, but her hand paused abruptly as she held her coffee cup.
Tsukishima knew he'd guessed right. He started thinking about Ayanokouji. "Tch. So it really is him?"
"What could he possibly have done to catch your attention, young lady?"
"Because he controls his scores so precisely? That can't be it. People like that are rare, but they exist."
"Kiyotaka Ayanokouji: Horikita's background character, and a friend of Yamauchi and Ike."
"Hmm, his choice of friends is pretty terrible. Why does Horikita let him follow her around? And why would he be friends with two dumb gorillas?"
"Something's off."
Tsukishima suddenly picked up his now-cold coffee and took a sip. "But what does it matter to me if something's off?"
"Young lady, play whatever games you like. I don't even mind getting caught up in them, as long as you give me something afterward!"
Sakayanagi covered her mouth and chuckled, though her gaze grew more intent. "Heh... You certainly don't beat around the bush, Tsukishima."
"I can give you something, of course. But... you'll have to show me your 'value' first."
Tsukishima shook his head, set down his coffee cup, and grew serious. "I see. Young lady, I think you've misunderstood."
"What I just said was only a habitual joke. You don't have to take it seriously."
Sakayanagi gave a perfectly timed "Oh?" "You don't?"
Tsukishima nodded. "That's right. Don't take it seriously."
"I'm not interested in stirring things up. I just want points."
"With those points, I can buy equipment—the kind that would take me half a year of scrimping and working part-time to afford outside this school."
"I sell a piece of information, and with a few words, the points for a computer are in my account."
"As for you and the others trying to test me..."
"I'll avoid it if I can. If I can't, I'll talk my way through it. The worst that can happen is getting expelled. I checked: even if I'm expelled, the things I buy with points still belong to me."
"If I can get points easily, I'll take them. But I'll pass on points that come from setting traps for people."
"Do you understand?"
Sakayanagi was silent for a moment. The playful look in her eyes gradually gave way to something like understanding. "...I see."
"Tsukishima is a 'pragmatist.'"
She lightly tapped her cane against the floor and stood up. "All right. If that's your decision, I won't force you."
"However..." She glanced back at Tsukishima. "Sometimes, 'manageable risks' are just an illusion."
"In this school, it's not so easy to take only the benefits without inviting trouble."
Tsukishima smiled. "Of course I know. Isn't that why I'm sitting here now? This trouble came from earning points."
"The worst trouble I can get into is still just expulsion. You can listen to what I asked Katsuragi to pass on to you later. Maybe then you'll understand my actions better."
Before you continue