Horikita's Setback

"This really is a great idea." Hirata's eyes lit up. He immediately bowed deeply to Kushida. "Then let me thank you on behalf of the whole class, Kushida!"

"You always come through for us at the crucial moment."

"It's nothing. It's only what I should do."

Kushida Kikyo accepted his thanks with a flawless smile.

"After all, we're all members of Class D~"

"That's what happened! So, since I already made that promise, I had no choice but to come ask you for help, Ichinose!"

At a hallway corner.

Kushida Kikyo pressed her palms together in front of Ichinose Honami, wearing a pleading expression, as if she'd truly been working herself to the bone for her classmates.

Seeing this, Ichinose quickly waved her hands, her voice gentle:

"It's okay, Kushida. This is something I wanted to do anyway. Besides... there are a few things about the Reinforcement Suit I don't quite understand, so I wanted to ask Su Wei for help."

"Since our goals don't conflict, why don't we take care of it together later?"

"Really? Thank you so much!"

Kushida Kikyo's face instantly brightened. She wrapped both arms around Ichinose's:

"But it's just like you, Ichinose, to earn enough points for the Reinforcement Suit so quickly! How's the Combat Suit? Is it amazing?"

Faced with the praise, Ichinose Honami didn't show the joy Kushida had expected.

Instead, a fleeting shadow of mixed emotions passed through her eyes.

But she quickly concealed it, not wanting to worry Kushida.

Ichinose Honami's warm smile returned:

"Yeah, it's really powerful!"

"After putting it on, I even feel like I could outrun an Olympic champion."

"An Olympic champion..."

At the comparison, Kushida—who had unconsciously followed Ichinose toward the changing room—couldn't help recalling the inhuman feat Su Wei had performed in the equipment room that day.

She sighed:

"Ichinose, aren't you a little too optimistic about the limits of human ability?"

"I don't think anyone can lift a twenty-kilogram dumbbell with their pinky, or casually jump four or five meters~"

Ichinose stopped in her tracks.

She scratched her cheek, a little embarrassed:

"Ehehe, you think so?"

"I didn't really think about it. I just said it offhand... Maybe I haven't completely gotten used to the change yet."

Chapter 32: Horikita's Setback

Su Wei looked away, pulling his gaze from Kushida Kikyo and Ichinose Honami as they walked off side by side.

Then he turned toward Horikita Suzune, who was stretching beneath the shade of a tree nearby.

The girl wore a dark red tracksuit, its snug cut outlining the toned figure she'd developed through years of exercise.

As she lowered herself into a stretch, her already long legs displayed astonishing flexibility.

If he wanted to, he could use [Spectator] or the x-ray vision he'd developed through the [Superpower Training Box]. The fabric wouldn't obstruct his view at all.

But Su Wei didn't do that.

He hadn't even felt like testing out the [Magic Butt] he'd unlocked that afternoon, which let him link his senses to someone else's butt at will and could lead to even bolder applications.

There was only one reason.

He was long past his Xiao Chunan days. He had no need to get hooked on such cheap tricks. Wasn't doing it in person better than peeking?

"Still..."

Su Wei rubbed his chin, musing to himself:

"Yesterday it was the Magic Glove, and today it's the Magic Butt. Does this thing really go around visiting people?"

"If so, why can't it give me the Dog Talisman..."

There was nothing he could do about it.

For a Chinese person, the temptation of immortality was even greater than that of the Imperial Seal!

It was an urge etched into their DNA. No one could resist it!

And the Dog Talisman came with immortality, too, along with the ability to keep its user in peak condition forever.

Perhaps Su Wei's gaze had been too blatant as he thought, or perhaps he'd been looking somewhere a little too suggestive.

Horikita Suzune paused in the middle of her leg stretch.

Feeling as if Su Wei's gaze could see through everything, she felt prickles all over her skin.

The girl lowered her leg and walked over to Su Wei, her face expressionless and her voice cold:

"What do you mean by that?"

"...What do you mean?"

Su Wei snapped back to his senses. He glanced at the black-haired girl standing before him with an icy expression, then realized what she meant.

He shrugged and said casually:

"Don't get the wrong idea. I wasn't looking at you. I was thinking about something."

"Good."

Horikita Suzune snorted. She folded her arms, putting on an air that kept everyone at a distance:

"Even if you're interested in me, you'd better give up now."

"I'm never going to date anyone, and I certainly won't waste time on something so pointless."

Su Wei fell silent for a moment. Looking at how serious she was, he couldn't help speaking up:

"Horikita."

"Has anyone ever told you... you're a little too full of yourself?"

Horikita Suzune raised an eyebrow, her sharp, phoenix-like eyes narrowing as she prepared to retort.

But for some reason, her thoughts drifted back to the night before.

After the Black Sphere Exam ended, she'd gone to the Black Sphere alone and looked up its evaluation of her.

Even though she knew the Black Sphere had a vicious tongue and had prepared herself for what it might say,

she'd still decided to check, hoping to find clues about the memories missing from the exam and figure out how she'd won.

Then it had managed to break through her defenses.

The Black Sphere had said:

[You must be very proud of yourself right now, thinking your hard work put Class D at the top and feeling pleased with yourself, right?]

[But what would you do if I told you that you were carried... ?]

[Admit it, Horikita. You were just lucky enough to happen to meet the right person.]

If someone had slandered or insulted her in public, Horikita Suzune might have stayed composed, or even looked at them coldly.

But this denial of her abilities, this crushing blow to her very soul, hit her where she was most vulnerable.

She could have comforted herself by saying that Su Wei had only relied on the Reinforcement Suit as a cheat.

But her pride wouldn't let her do that.

She was caught between a rock and a hard place.

Horikita Suzune bit her lip and looked deeply at Su Wei.

Her gaze held both frustration and a spark of fighting spirit.

Next time...

I won't let anyone surpass me again!

Just as the two of them stood there in silence, trying to look cool, and the atmosphere grew increasingly awkward,

on the other side of the field,

Ichinose Honami had already changed into the Combat Suit and walked over with Kushida Kikyo.

Seeing this,

Hirata Yosuke and Amikura Mako each called out to their classmates, saying they had something important to announce.

Unlike the students in Class B, who'd already been prepared by Ichinose's advance warning,

the students in Class D looked completely baffled.

"What's going on? It's free time now. Can't this wait until after class?"

"Yeah, Hirata, why are you being so mysterious?"

Although complaints came one after another, everyone still gathered together, given Hirata Yosuke's standing in the class.

Hirata Yosuke and Ayanokoji Kiyotaka began handing out printed reports to everyone.

The report was detailed. It included an explanation of the Black Sphere's rules, as well as the shocking photos Ayanokoji had taken during the Black Sphere Trial the night before.

Once everyone had finished reading, gasps rose from the crowd one after another.

"Seriously? The school building is haunted?"

"Zombies? Give me a break!"

"Is this why our points changed?"

Seeing that the time was right, Ichinose Honami cleared her throat and stepped forward.

Although she was wearing a tracksuit, the black material peeking from her collar and sleeves had already caught the eye of a few sharp-eyed students.

"I'm sure you've all had a chance to read through it."

Ichinose looked around at everyone:

"I have to say, this isn't false information, nor is it some prank made up to fool you."

"I gathered everyone here so you could understand the changes at school as soon as possible, work together, and decide how to respond."

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

Sudo, the Class D troublemaker, suddenly threw the report in his hand to the ground and shouted:

"Monsters, Black Spheres—who'd believe a childish story like that?"

"Yeah, anyone can talk big. Why should we believe you?"

Faced with their doubts, Ichinose didn't panic.

She didn't rush to argue, but continued:

"Of course, words alone aren't enough."

"So this time, I'm here to prove it to you."

As she spoke, Ichinose glanced at Amikura Mako beside her.

Amikura Mako nodded slightly and pushed a prop basket containing a basketball, dumbbells, and other exercise equipment in front of the group.

Ichinose Honami held out her hand and rolled up her sleeve, revealing the black, skin-tight material covering her palm and wrist.

Under the sunlight, the material had an unusual matte sheen, seeming like metal, yet also like the skin of some kind of creature.

"What I'm wearing beneath my clothes is the Combat Suit I got from the Black Sphere."

"And as for what it can do..."