Visiting

Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing High School, cafeteria.

The cafeteria was buzzing with noise. The freshmen, having just finished the entrance ceremony, were excitedly discussing the massive sum of one hundred thousand points deposited into their accounts.

However, amidst this clamor of people revelled in their newfound wealth, an inconspicuous corner seemed strangely out of place.

It was a free-service window, placed somewhat casually at the edge of the shelving units. Large crates were piled high with basic instant noodles, rice balls, and other daily necessities.

Free to take.

Amasawa Reigetsu held Sakayanagi Arisu's hand as they walked past, his gaze lingering on the sign for a moment.

Most of the surrounding students dismissed it with disdain; after all, who would care about these cheap, free supplies when they were sitting on a fortune of one hundred thousand points? Yet, the two of them exchanged a look of mutual understanding—

The existence of this free window was like a silent warning: when points were no longer abundant, or even hit zero, how would a student survive?

"Took them long enough to make us scramble for it."

Amasawa Reigetsu inexplicably thought of a meme from a certain witch game he had played before.

"I actually thought your Sakayanagi family was truly that rich?"

Sakayanagi Arisu gave Amasawa a slightly reproachful look, though she knew he was just joking. After all, Horikita Manabu had already warned everyone during the entrance ceremony—

This place operated on the principle of meritocracy.

"What do you intend to do?"

Sakayanagi Arisu looked into Amasawa Reigetsu's gray eyes.

So beautiful...

"Need you even ask? Eat the most expensive thing, obviously."

"You know full well that's not what I meant... Reigetsu-kun is truly wicked~"

"Such matters are, of course, left to the Princess who leads the class."

"You let go of my hand."

"Oh."

The two held hands again, continuing to stroll through the cafeteria before finding a shop that looked delicious and sitting down.

The fact that "allotted points will be reduced based on merit assessments"—something everyone already knew—would not be allowed to interfere with the two of them flirting.

Having spent an unforgettable time with Sakayanagi, the bond between them seemed to have deepened...

Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing High School, school building.

After finishing lunch, Amasawa Reigetsu parted ways with Sakayanagi Arisu and decided to visit Class D. But since he was passing by Class B and Class C...

Amasawa Reigetsu was curious.

In fact, during their date earlier, she had already told Amasawa Reigetsu the general situation, as how he would act was currently her primary concern.

Class 1-B. The atmosphere here was just as the rumors suggested: lively to a fault.

The students in the classroom sat together, their voices not loud, yet filled with cheerful discussion. Amasawa Reigetsu stood a little further away and glanced inside, his gaze quickly drawn to the girl in front of the podium.

She had long pink hair, bright features, and a warm smile. Just standing there, she seemed to radiate light, her finger resting gently against her lips as she spoke to a classmate nearby.

It seemed she was the leader of Class B...

How should he put it? If he had to rank them from "bottom-tier" to "top-tier," he would probably give her an "NPC" rating. It was just too boring; being a leader must be exhausting, right?

Bidding farewell to Class B, I continued walking down the corridor and soon reached Class C.

Unlike the unity and warmth of Class B, Class C gave off a completely different vibe. As for how it was different?

Class C had its curtains drawn, making it impossible to see inside, but the sounds of fists and feet colliding and muffled groans drifted out from time to time.

The school prohibited violence, but clearly, the leader of Class C knew that if you went on a rampage while sneaking around, it didn't count as violence if no one caught you.

Amasawa Reigetsu: 666.

He'd give this place a "top-tier" rating. Although he felt the levels of Class B and C were about the same, Class C was clearly more interesting.

Continuing forward, he reached Class D.

Amasawa Reigetsu looked at the chaotic Class D and understood. If he had only looked at Classes A, B, and C, it would have been hard to conclude, but seeing this group of people who defied human logic in Class D...

A, B, C, and D were indeed meaningful; this was likely the merit-based evaluation system at work.

Wait, wouldn't Class D's points be ruined next month?

No, wait, Ayanokoji wasn't even in the class. Well, the "in-machine" was also a god-tier player.

But following the principle of fair competition, Class D must have a "hardcore" player. Amasawa Reigetsu scanned the room intently...

The meritocracy classroom was truly too much fun. The "hardcore" players in Class D weren't even half as strong as Katsuragi Kohei; they were all defective products whose flaws were visible at a glance.

Wait, could it be that Ayanokoji was the actual "hardcore" player? And then Ayanokoji discovered that Sakayanagi Narimori saw her as a "hardcore" player, so she started grinding skulls and going all out.

Ayanokoji Kiyoko, you were actually on the third layer! You are truly powerful now!

Just as his gaze inadvertently swept across the crowd, a petite figure suddenly detached from a small group and walked straight toward him.

"Um... excuse me!"

The girl's crisp, melodious voice rang in his ears. Amasawa Reigetsu lowered his eyes slightly, and what came into view was a face with an extremely approachable smile. The girl before him had soft, long brown hair, delicate features, and radiated a sunny aura that made her difficult to refuse.

Fake. It couldn't be any faker.

As a user of mental induction abilities, Amasawa Reigetsu was naturally sensitive to the mental states of others; everything the girl in front of him was currently displaying was nothing but an act—

An interesting woman.

Kushida Kikyo stood in front of Amasawa, her hands clasped in front of her, and blinked, her eyes revealing just the right amount of surprise and curiosity.

"You're Amasawa-kun from Class A, right? I noticed you over there earlier. Your posture and aura are completely different from the other students around you."

Amasawa Reigetsu did not reply immediately, simply watching her quietly, his gray eyes bottomless.

Facing this somewhat cold gaze, the smile on Kushida's face did not stiffen in the slightest; instead, it grew even brighter. She took a proactive half-step forward, closing the distance between them, and said in a lighthearted tone:

"I'm Kushida Kikyo from Class D. Although this might be a bit abrupt, I've always felt that making friends is a wonderful thing. Someone who looks as impressive as you, Amasawa-kun... I'd like to be your friend!"

Her voice carried a sincere excitement, as if she had truly approached him out of pure admiration.

"Kushida-san is very enthusiastic."

"After all, we're all going to be spending three years together," Kushida tilted her head, her fingers gently twirling a lock of her hair in a movement that was both natural and cute.

The corners of Amasawa Reigetsu's mouth curled into a slight arc, which meant—a devious plan was in the making!

Induction activated!

The moment their gazes met, the perfect smile on Kushida Kikyo's face suddenly stiffened, and those bright eyes, which always shimmered with gentleness and approachability, rapidly lost focus in the unguarded eye contact.

Kushida Kikyo's bright eyes seemed to have been drained of all luster, suddenly becoming unfocused and hollow, like a pool of stagnant water without ripples, reflecting no glimmer of emotion.

However, this brief lapse lasted only for an instant—as her eyelashes trembled violently, the mist of confusion was blown away as if by a gale, and her pupils refocused and contracted at an astonishing speed, returning to their original clarity.

"Besides, I always feel like you and I are a bit alike, Amasawa-kun. We're both the type that... tch, are fakes."

Kushida Kikyo's expression suddenly turned dark, and she spat, as if she were disgusted by the Amasawa Reigetsu in front of her.

In reality, that was indeed the case; Amasawa had merely induced a tiny sliver of Kikyo-chan's true nature to surface~

"Eh? What did you just say? Kushida-san, I don't think I heard you clearly."

Amasawa Reigetsu maintained a perfectly kind expression, but seeing the sudden chaos in Kushida Kikyo's demeanor, he was secretly enjoying it inside.

Wait, I can't be a masochist, can I? What is this feeling of pleasure I get when someone insults me?

"W-waaaah! Y-y-you, Amasawa-kun, you misheard me just now! I didn't say anything!" Kushida Kikyo waved her hands vigorously, her lightly made-up face turning beet red.

"So, can we exchange contact information? If you're free after school, would you like to go to a cafe together? It's much happier to find topics to chat about with two people than to just stare blankly by yourself, isn't it?"

Looking at the girl before him who was desperately projecting goodwill to cover up the true nature she had just leaked, Amasawa Reigetsu had already silently filed her under the "pet" category in his mind.

"Since Kushida-san has put it that way," Amasawa Reigetsu took his phone out of his pocket and calmly handed it over, "then I look forward to working with you, Kikyo-chan~"