Points Received

Shiraishi Makoto had already learned the latest developments from Kushida Kikyo.

Over the past few days, Yamauchi Haruki had been questioned by his "good friends," so he changed his story, claiming, "Kushida was the one who moved on because I didn't respond to her."

Faced with Grandpa Yamauchi's bizarre maneuver, Kushida Kikyo was so furious she nearly went to kick the railing again. However, Shiraishi Makoto had already prepared a response.

"We can tell Ichinose now. Someone in Class D has been spreading rumors that Kushida likes him, but Kushida herself wasn't in a position to address it publicly. So she asked me to play along with her and make it look like we were close during this time. That way, the rumor would collapse on its own," Shiraishi Makoto explained.

"Something like that actually happened?" Ichinose Honami was utterly shocked. She found it hard to imagine something so vile happening at school.

"Please make sure to keep this confidential, Ichinose. And please tell everyone this as well: Kushida and I aren't dating. She owes our Class A over two hundred thousand points and has been troubled by it, so she often comes to discuss the repayment deadline with me." Shiraishi Makoto had complete faith in Class A's great angel.

Ichinose Honami smiled and agreed. "No problem. I'll let everyone know."

At the same time, Kushida Kikyo also began using the explanation Shiraishi Makoto had drafted.

"It isn't what everyone thinks. I just owe Class A over two hundred thousand points and haven't been able to pay it back, so I've been feeling a little anxious. Shiraishi is indeed very kind, though. He's never once pressured me to repay the debt, so I can understand why everyone misunderstood."

"But I'm not planning to date right now. If I ever truly find someone I like, I'll definitely tell everyone and accept your blessings."

With just a few words, she deftly dispelled two layers of rumors. She explained why she had been frequently meeting with Shiraishi Makoto while also silently slapping down Yamauchi Haruki's self-importance.

Yamauchi could still make up lies such as, "Kushida is just too shy," or, "She doesn't want to announce it because she wants to protect me," but anyone with a functioning brain could see the truth.

"I can only buy three." Inoue approached Shiraishi Makoto and submitted a trade request.

Third-Year Class D had so few points? Shiraishi Makoto was somewhat surprised.

As though he had read something in Shiraishi Makoto's eyes, Inoue explained, "This was everyone's decision after discussing it. The remaining Class Funds still need to cover all kinds of situations over the next two semesters, so we can't spare more points for now."

"But this is a one-time deal. Once the school catches on, there may not be another opportunity like this," Shiraishi Makoto reminded him.

"I understand that, of course." Inoue gave a bitter smile. "But this is our final year. We don't want any student's hard work to go to waste."

If they exchanged all their Private Points for cash, Third-Year Class D would truly become fish on a chopping block, at the mercy of whoever wished to carve them up. They would have no ability to withstand risks at all.

Third Year students were not the only ones who might attack their class. If Nagumo Miyabi from Second Year discovered such an opportunity, he could very well seize it, launch an attack, and further coerce them into signing an unequal contract.

"All right." Shiraishi Makoto had indeed overlooked that point, and he understood Inoue's concerns.

Because the transaction amount was enormous and the two sides did not trust each other to that extent, Shiraishi Makoto asked his homeroom teacher to serve as a witness and oversee the signing of the contract.

Faced with this unusual situation, Hoshinomiya Chie was unusually quiet. She merely frowned throughout the process, seemingly lost in thought.

Once the payment had safely arrived, Shiraishi Makoto handed 2.55 million Private Points to Kouenji, keeping his own fifteen percent.

"Beautiful Brother really is generous." Easily receiving 450,000 Private Points put Shiraishi Makoto in a much better mood.

After completing the transaction with Third-Year Class D, the students of Third-Year Class C soon came looking for Shiraishi Makoto as well.

Since the trades were initiated at the beginning of the month, everyone still had a relatively ample supply of points. Third-Year Class C gathered four million points and bought four personally signed photos from Shiraishi Makoto.

Still, the students of both classes would likely become regular customers of the mountain vegetable set meals this month.

Another six hundred thousand arrived. Shiraishi Makoto counted his available points: the school had issued 303,000 over three months, Hoshinomiya's commission had paid 300,000, and he had received 950,000 from Beautiful Brother. However, he had spent more than 60,000 on living expenses over the past two months, another 40,000 on a camera, 50,000 on practice tests for Kushida Kikyo, and 20,000 supporting Class D. That left him with a balance of over 1.37 million.

Naturally, a transaction involving such a large number of points could not be concealed from the school. What surprised Shiraishi Makoto, however, was that no teacher came to speak with him.

"Good afternoon, Classmate Sakayanagi." Gently pushing open the door to the chess room, Shiraishi Makoto saw Sakayanagi Arisu seated beside the chessboard. "It's been a while."

"Good afternoon, Shiraishi." Sakayanagi Arisu, whose legs were not fully functional, merely gave a slight nod. Her tone carried a hint of teasing. "Isn't that because you've recently been getting all lovey-dovey with other girls and forgot about a mere background character like me?"

"It's not that exaggerated." Shiraishi Makoto scratched his head and smiled awkwardly.

"Do you know how to play chess?" Sakayanagi Arisu did not pursue the topic further. Pointing to the seat opposite her, she invited Shiraishi Makoto to sit down.

"I studied it for a year, but I'm only at a beginner's level." Shiraishi Makoto took the seat across from her.

"That's fine. Play a game with me. You go first." Sakayanagi Arisu did not mind.

After they made two moves on the board, Sakayanagi Arisu slowly spoke. "The school already knows about you selling personally signed photos."

"So?" Shiraishi Makoto asked. He did not know how the school would react.

"To be honest, the school can't do anything." Sakayanagi Arisu captured one of Shiraishi Makoto's pieces and smiled. "You chose your method well, Shiraishi."

The rules surrounding Pachinko were not unsolvable. On the contrary, there were a hundred ways in Japan to throw the organizers into prison under similar rules. The underlying reason it could operate in Japan was that people higher up were benefiting from it too.

The same was true of Shiraishi Makoto's personally signed photo transactions. Kouenji Rokusuke could not purchase points because that rule had existed before he enrolled. But as long as he used a method that did not violate the rules, the school would not interfere with Kouenji.

That was because Kouenji Rokusuke had entered the school due to cooperation between the Kouenji Conglomerate and Onijima, the current prime minister, while Advanced Nurturing High School had always been supported by the Onijima Faction within the ruling Citizens Party.

"You flatter me. I just thought that having more friends could never be a bad thing when surviving at this school." Having understood the school's stance, Shiraishi Makoto breathed a sigh of relief.

This also meant that when Third Year graduated, he would receive another enormous sum of points. Kouenji had said so himself: a few million would probably be enough for one school year. If upperclassmen were willing to sell their points, he would not mind buying them all.