The three leaders of the Third Year knew full well that Shiraishi Makoto and Kouenji Rokusuke had done it deliberately.
Even so, under the current regulations, the school had no way to hold the two of them accountable.
The second step of the transaction would take place off campus. By then, the Third Years would have graduated, and the school would no longer have the authority to interfere.
Shiraishi Makoto had also chosen Shizuku's exclusive autographed photos as the item of exchange because he wanted to avoid risks. Exclusively signed items did have commercial value, and their prices were extremely unstable. There were plenty of cases on the market where they had sold for exorbitant sums. The buyers could simply claim to be Shizuku's fans and say that purchasing the exclusive signed photos was either fan behavior or an investment.
Shiraishi Makoto had gone to see Sakura Airi the previous evening and gotten twenty signed photos from her. In his view, given the Third Years' determination and purchasing power, twenty million points was probably the upper limit of what they could trade for.
"I'm interested now, but I need to go back and discuss it with my classmates." Inoue of Class D was the first to speak.
As the class with the lowest chance of advancing to Class A, he had long considered giving up the competition. Yet if Class D no longer aimed for Class A, their lives at this school would lose their meaning. Their lingering unwillingness to accept defeat was what kept the class moving forward.
Now that there was a way to cut their losses, converting Private Points into cash might not be a bad option. They truly needed to start planning for life after graduation as well.
"Then let's exchange contact information." Shiraishi Makoto took out his phone and added Inoue as a contact.
Seeing Inoue take action, Yamashita from Class C was tempted as well and added Shiraishi Makoto's contact information.
"You're impressive." Sato of Class B looked at Shiraishi Makoto with an exceptionally serious expression.
After Shiraishi Makoto's maneuver, the fighting spirit and competitive drive of Classes C and D in the Third Year would take a massive hit, only further cementing Class A's dominance. However, as the leader of Class B, the class closest to Class A, he could not be the first to let his guard down.
"I have no idea what you're talking about, senpai." Shiraishi Makoto merely kept smiling.
"Even if we might not buy them, I'm interested in you. Let's exchange contact information." Sato sighed as he spoke.
"Sure."
After the discussion ended, Shiraishi Makoto glanced at Kouenji Rokusuke, who was still savoring his coffee. Without going over to speak to him, he left the café alone.
When school ended that afternoon, Shiraishi Makoto did not leave with the rest of his class or go to the Student Council office. Instead, he went alone to the Special Building.
The Special Building held a unique position within Advanced Nurturing High School. First, most of its classrooms were used to teach certain specialized subjects, such as home economics and physics experiments. Second, it had noticeably fewer security cameras than places like the main school building and dormitories.
There were no club activity rooms here, and it was quite far away as well. Once school ended, hardly anyone could be seen around. That was why Shiraishi Makoto did not come here often. In the original story, Ryuen Kakeru had also planned his scheme to frame Sudo Ken in the Special Building.
"Shiraishi, sorry to keep you waiting." Soon after, a figure emerged from the stairwell and spotted Shiraishi Makoto leaning against the wall, playing on his phone.
"Good afternoon, Sakura. I haven't been waiting long." Shiraishi Makoto stepped forward and helped Sakura Airi carry her duffel bag. Since he knew she had to return to the dormitory to get some things before coming over, he had deliberately slowed his pace.
"But... is it really okay with the Student Council?" Sakura Airi remembered that Shiraishi Makoto had Student Council work. This should have been the time for him to report for duty.
"It's fine. I'm responsible for checking the equipment here this week, so I can take a look while I'm passing through." Shiraishi Makoto took out a large ring of keys from his bag and showed it to her.
"Then I'll be relying on you, Shiraishi... about the photoshoot..." Hearing that, Sakura Airi breathed a sigh of relief before speaking softly.
"I promised you. It's your payment for the deal." Shiraishi Makoto lightly waved his hand.
Shiraishi Makoto had originally intended to spend several tens of thousands of points to buy Sakura Airi's exclusive signed photos, but she had rejected the proposal and asked him to accompany her for another photoshoot instead.
Naturally, Shiraishi Makoto could not refuse the invitation. The two of them agreed to come to the Special Building, where few people ever visited, and take photos in different styles.
For Sakura Airi, the main restriction on her photography was her lack of Private Points, despite the many classrooms here with vastly different styles. If she had matching outfits, she could easily take photos in styles such as "scholar," "laboratory researcher," or "girl next door." However, since she lacked the points to buy suitable clothes, she could only change back into the school uniform from last time.
There was a reason they had given up the more leisurely weekend and specifically chosen to rush through the shoot on a weekday. Shiraishi Makoto had taken the photos from last time to use as "exclusive" content, and Sakura Airi had even deleted the originals, so naturally she had not posted them online.
She had not posted any updates as Shizuku for quite some time. Seeing her fans' eager expectations in the comments, Sakura Airi had taken the initiative to ask Shiraishi Makoto to make time to help her shoot new photos.
The two moved through one empty classroom after another, using the different sets and lighting to constantly adjust their angles and poses, taking photo after photo in a variety of styles.
An hour passed in a flash. The shoot concluded smoothly, and they had accumulated enough finished photos.
"Oh, right. I told you last time that if they were willing to investigate, it would be easy for them to find out that you're Shizuku." Shiraishi Makoto handed the camera to Sakura Airi and reminded her once more.
Shiraishi Makoto would not even need to hand the photos over to the Third Years. As long as they gave it some thought, they could figure out that Shizuku was a student at the school, then compare hair colors and make the guess.
"I-I'm fine. I'll be prepared." Sakura Airi still looked somewhat panicked, but she spoke softly nonetheless.
Shiraishi Makoto had considered this possibility before taking the photos, but he did not think it was a bad thing.
In Shiraishi Makoto's eyes, Sakura Airi was a little like a female version of Sudo Ken.
As long as Sudo Ken kept his studies from falling behind, he should devote all his attention to basketball. Sakura Airi, likewise, should properly pursue her idol career after ensuring her basic studies and daily life were in order.
The problem now was that Sakura Airi could not ensure even the basics of daily life. She had serious flaws in interpersonal communication, which was why she had been assigned to Class D.
Because she was afraid of strangers, she would not take the initiative to speak with others. As a result, others would not speak with her either, trapping her in a vicious cycle of isolation.
However, from Shiraishi Makoto's interactions with Sakura Airi, as well as the direction of the original story, it was clear that Sakura Airi was not completely incapable of communicating. She simply lacked the ability to take that first step, and she had no one to help her take it.
So Shiraishi Makoto felt that this was a very good opportunity: to gradually reveal that she was Shizuku while helping her grow accustomed to interacting with others.
However, to prevent any other unforeseen developments along the way, Shiraishi Makoto decided to ask someone else to help look after Sakura Airi.
Before you continue