Follow-up to the Chairman's Confrontation, Chance Encounter

"You don't trust me either, do you, Qiuyue? I could tell the moment you walked in."

Chairman Yanagibayashi sat down and continued:

"Your hands were both in your pockets when you came in, but I only pointed out the side with your phone, hoping you'd lower your guard and state your purpose. After all, I wanted to know why a student would come directly to me, the chairman, and what they wanted. As for whether you were recording or not, what does it matter?"

"Besides, when I told you to take out your phone, you acted decisively enough, as if you guessed I'd suspect you were recording. To be honest, that double-recording trick of yours would fool most people—good move."

Qiuyue Qi let out a breath, unclasped his folded hands, sat up straight, and looked seriously at the chairman.

"I'm truly sorry. Since we haven't signed any contract, the homeroom teacher and students won't know, and they can't check either."

"So I can't explain where this thing came from—I just wanted a little insurance for myself. Please forgive me, Chairman."

Chairman Yanagibayashi calmly took a sip of tea, smiled, and waved his hand. "It's fine. A student this sharp should make me, as chairman, happy. So, is there anything else you want to say?"

Qiuyue Qi was momentarily stunned.

The chairman continued: "When I told you to put away the recorder earlier, you didn't turn it off and leave—you set it on the table. That means you still have a request."

"As expected, I can't hide anything from you. Then I'll just state my request directly. I need..."

Chairman Yanagibayashi interrupted with a smile.

"Not recording this time?"

"No need. I trust you, Chairman. After all, I've been completely seen through. I need a drone that can fly 100 kilometers, with a camera." (100 kilometers is an exaggeration for the plot—don't mind it.)

I think I acted pretty well.

"Oh? Already wanting something like this on the second day of school? I won't ask about your purpose. The price is 1 million PR."

"Thank you, Chairman. For now, just knowing the price is enough. I can't afford it yet, but I'll come back to buy it."

"I figured as much. I look forward to meeting you again, Qiuyue."

"Then, I still have plans with a friend, so I'll take my leave, Chairman."

Male dormitory, Room 415.

Qiuyue Qi tossed his bag onto the floor and flopped onto the bed in a starfish pose.

"Phew, that old geezer's pretty sharp, but that's all he's got. I'll spend a good chunk later and grab a nice meal—worth the trip to the chairman's office."

Qiuyue Qi opened his phone, glanced at the remaining 96,500 personal points, smiled, and sat up.

He picked up his bag, unzipped it, and took out the clothes, hat, and mask inside. At the very bottom lay a voice recorder.

Qiuyue Qi picked up the recorder, paused the recording, opened a drawer, and placed it inside. Then he opened another drawer, where a pair of earphones faced another recorder.

Next, he took off his school blazer and removed something stuck to the inside.

"Even if that old geezer finds the one in the bag, I've got a fourth layer of preparation—a bug stuck to my blazer, and earphones in the room aimed at the recorder."

"Old geezer, no matter how clever you are, you'd never guess this move. Hehehe."

Qiuyue Qi let out a laugh like an elder of the Soul Hall.

"Alright, the plan's in its early stages. Now I'll go spend some cash. My goal is 20 million PR, but I won't shortchange myself."

"First, pack up, then go out for a feast. Where should I go?"

Qiuyue turned into a foodie, scrolling through one restaurant after another on his phone. After careful selection, he chose one.

At the restaurant, he ordered several dishes at once. He knew he couldn't finish them all, but he ignored the waiter's protests and let the food come.

In others' eyes, Qiuyue looked like a nouveau riche.

"Huh? Qiuyue, what a coincidence! Are you eating here alone?"

Qiuyue, interrupted mid-bite, looked at the person calling him. It was a beautiful girl with dazzling golden-blonde short hair that brushed her cheeks, swaying gently with her movements and radiating charm.

Its length stopped just below her shoulders—neither too long and messy nor too short to lose feminine grace. The hairstyle made her look lively, and she exuded a sunny aura.

...Kushida? She remembered my name from the self-introduction?

Knowing her, she'd definitely come talk to me, say she wants to be friends, and try to be liked by everyone. She's really a flawed piece, huh. This must be what they mean by "pink on the outside, black on the inside."

Whatever, I'll just pretend I don't recognize her.

"...Who are you?"

"I'm Kushida Kikyo, silly! Didn't I introduce myself in class? I remember your introduction, Qiuyue."

"Ah, sorry, I don't really recall you. So? Is there something, classmate? I'm still eating right now."

Kushida's eyes twitched slightly. Her inner darkness was probably ranting at Qiuyue.

"Ahaha... Since you don't remember, I can introduce myself again! I'm Kushida Kikyo. Got it? You can't call me 'classmate' anymore, okay?"

Kushida laughed it off, patted her chest, and reintroduced herself. Then she wagged her index finger in front of Qiuyue, signaling he couldn't mess up again.

"...Oh. Then, Kushida, do you want to eat? Or are you here with someone else? If you're with others, don't keep them waiting too long. I'm just about full anyway—I ordered a bit too much."

"No, no need. I'm here with Karuizawa and the others. Qiuyue..."

"Kushida, what are you doing over there? Come on, everyone's ready!"

From the direction where Kushida had called out, a group of high school girls were looking toward Qiuyue, all their gazes fixed on him. Clearly, they all wanted to know who Kushida was talking to.

"Sorry, Qiuyue-kun, I have to go now. They're calling for me."

"Go ahead. This was just a chance encounter anyway. There's nothing between us, so no need to apologize."

"Mm, Qiuyue-kun, next time let's have a proper chat alone, just the two of us."

Kushida said this, waved, and jogged off to join the group of girls.

...No, who wants to chat with you? Ugh... troublesome. Better try to avoid her as much as possible.

Qiuyue sighed as he picked up a post-meal dessert from the table and popped it into his mouth.

"Mmm—not bad, this is good. The meal here was average, just so-so, but this dessert is worth coming back for."

"Full and satisfied, time to head back and watch some anime and read light novels. A perfect life every day."

After eating his fill, Qiuyue stretched lazily, muttered this to himself, and walked toward the dormitory building.