The Student Council President's office was spacious and bright, with every facility you could ask for. It even seemed a little extravagant.
Behind the desk was a huge floor-to-ceiling window. Not only did it let in plenty of light, it also offered a view of the campus and the many students walking through the corridors.
No wonder that second-year student at the opening ceremony had been so eager to become Student Council President.
With facilities this lavish, it would be hard to believe anyone who humbly claimed that the office didn't hold much power.
The president's real name was Manabu Horikita. I glanced at the nameplate in the center of his desk.
"You're the first new student to visit. What can I do for you?"
Manabu Horikita leaned back in his chair, looking through the documents in his hand as he asked me.
"Can I call you Horikita-senpai?"
"Of course. I am your senpai, after all."
"I've heard that at this school, there's nothing you can't buy with Personal Points. Could I buy the documents you have there, Horikita-senpai?"
Manabu Horikita moved the documents in front of him aside and picked up a pen, twirling it in his hand.
"At this school, you can use points to buy anything you need."
Manabu Horikita adjusted his glasses.
"If you want these documents, you'll need to prepare two million Personal Points to pay for them."
"If you're ready, we can make the deal right now."
I didn't look at the documents on the desk. I simply gazed calmly at Manabu Horikita.
He didn't rush me to make a decision. He just met my eyes in silence.
"Deal."
After holding his gaze for a while, I smiled.
I pretended to search for my student card, then frowned at Secretary Tachibana, who had been standing behind Manabu Horikita the whole time.
"Give me an account to pay from."
Secretary Tachibana stood there at a loss, glancing at Manabu Horikita for help.
I heard the pen Manabu Horikita had been twirling strike the desktop with a crisp click.
"Thank you for your business."
I looked up at the screen Manabu Horikita had handed me. It showed the number of Personal Points I had to pay.
Five million...
"Prices change in real time. You have the right to use your points to make a purchase, and I have the right to decide on behalf of the Student Council whether the price I've set for this information is reasonable."
Manabu Horikita's change of heart had been exactly what I expected. After all, if these documents weren't important, he wouldn't have gone out of his way to approach Secretary Tachibana.
If he didn't care so much about what they contained, he wouldn't be in such a hurry to sell them.
I'd only been pretending to have that many Personal Points.
Still, the idea that points could buy anything had been proven true, at least for now.
He could keep raising the price until I couldn't afford to buy the documents, but that depended on me not knowing what kind of value they held.
Everything had a price from the moment it came into existence.
I'd only wanted to test the waters...
"Sorry, I can't afford that price for now. I won't keep you any longer, Horikita-senpai."
As I spoke, I started to get up and leave.
I'd go buy some daily necessities instead.
Just as I put my hand on the doorknob, ready to leave, Manabu Horikita's voice suddenly came from behind me.
"You're in Class 1-B, aren't you? I think I recognize you."
Me?
This was our first time meeting properly. It would be a bit far-fetched to say he'd noticed me at the new student ceremony that morning.
I didn't stop on my way out, but replied as I went.
"Class 1-B. Hajime Kashima."
"I have some information you can afford. Would you like to hear about it?"
Hm?
I turned around and saw Manabu Horikita rise from his seat and walk over to me with a document in hand.
"All you have to do is pay the remaining points you have."
I stared at the words on the document envelope, momentarily stunned.
Manabu Horikita held out a hand.
Three, two...
"Fine."
This was the one time I couldn't afford to hesitate.
I promptly paid all my remaining points, then took the documents and skimmed through them.
It seemed like a pretty decent haul.
I took the bag Secretary Tachibana handed me and put the documents inside.
"Sorry for the trouble. If there's nothing else, I'll be going."
I waved, opened the door, and left.
That was an unexpected bonus for the day.
What should I do now? I'd planned to take a look around the supermarket.
I didn't have any decorations in mind for my room, but I still needed to buy at least the bare necessities.
After deciding, I checked the route to the shops.
That unexpected bonus had put a spring in my step.
But as I walked, I suddenly realized...
...I was out of money.
Since Personal Points were something like digital currency, they hadn't felt much like money to me.
They'd seemed like meaningless points, or just a string of numbers.
Only when I really thought about it did I realize how much I'd spent.
In cash, it would've been a thick stack of bills.
So what was I supposed to do now? I couldn't just go without shopping.
I'd be in trouble if I didn't have any daily necessities.
Going out feeling fresh and clean made all the difference—not just in how other people saw me, but in how I felt about myself.
How should I put it? It was like a ritual to mark the beginning of a new day.
It wasn't as if I needed to spend time carefully styling myself every single day.
But just feeling fresh and clean was enough to make both me and others feel comfortable.
I picked up my pace.
I hoped I'd still run into someone I knew at the mall.
As I'd expected... most students had gone shopping for daily necessities in groups after lunch.
If I was going to run into anyone, maybe there'd be a lot of students at Zelkova Shopping Center, which had been mentioned in the orientation materials.
I'd walked around the entire floor of the mall without running into more than a few students.
I was even less likely to find anyone upstairs.
I really had come too late.
I was about to leave and headed straight for the checkout counter.
Then I noticed a pile of miscellaneous items in the corner, with a sign that read "Free Supplies."
When I went closer, I saw that they were all daily necessities that would expire in less than two months.
Well, I had to accept some consequences for my choices.
There was a little dust on the packaging, but it was all intact.
I couldn't quite put my feelings into words. If I let embarrassment get to me and refused help because I thought accepting it was shameful, even in this situation...
I'd say anyone who couldn't accept it was the one who needed to reflect on themselves.
They ought to think about how they'd ended up in this situation. Had they planned their spending sensibly? Had they taken on expenses beyond their means for some reason, only to regret it afterward?
Based on my own judgment, the information was worth far more than the points I'd had to pay for it.
So even in my current situation, I didn't think there was anything wrong with this.
Of course, forgive me for lecturing myself, but I just thought it could be especially interesting to reflect on things like this from time to time.
I tried to keep myself thinking—to analyze things and form my own understanding of the world.
Maybe that was how confidence was built. Because I knew myself better than anyone, I believed in myself more than anyone else.
"..."
Footsteps behind me interrupted my wandering thoughts.
"Hajima-kun... what are you doing?"
Ichinose tilted her head, seeming a little curious about why I was standing there.
"Oh, I'm shopping."
I waved the toothbrush in my hand.
"Huh? Shopping... here?"
"Of course. This is a shopping center, isn't it?"
"I've heard you say that you should plan how you use your Personal Points carefully, but I think buying something better that lasts longer is also a good choice."
She took the toothbrush from my hand, examined it closely, then tossed it back onto the pile.
"...Come with me~"
Ichinose hooked her arm around mine and led me straight to the specialty shops on the second floor.
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