New Toy? A Cat That Will Hiss?

Over the next few days, Uesugi Hara would hunt for "seniors" flying solo the moment classes ended each afternoon.

Every time he approached, introduced himself, and dangled a wager that wasn't too outrageous, the other party would almost always agree.

Shot put, 100-meter dash, 200-meter dash... high jump, long jump.

Singing, dancing, rap, basketball...

From sports to the arts, he challenged them all like a shopper clearing out shelves.

Two million five hundred and fifty thousand—that was the amount of points he currently possessed.

Unfortunately, the good times didn't last. Several seniors either found that the dirt he'd dug up on them from the forums was inaccurate, or they simply didn't care about the "shame of losing to a first-year" and reported the wagers directly to the Student Council.

Now, Uesugi Hara's reputation among those he'd fleeced was in the gutter. When these people saw him, they would either walk around him or pretend he didn't exist, and the hot-headed ones would even mutter insults under their breath.

Uesugi Hara stood by the corridor window, watching the backs of several third-years who turned away the moment they saw him, and let out a silent sigh. It seemed he had squeezed all the points he could out of these people.

This afternoon, Uesugi Hara didn't bolt out of the classroom the moment school ended like he had the past few days—since the "fleece the sheep" route was dead, he might as well stay in the classroom a while longer.

He was resting his chin on his hand, watching the cherry blossom trees outside, when the voice of Sakayanagi Arisu drifted into his ears, accompanied by a slightly elongated tail end: "I hear Uesugi-kun has been up to something big lately~"

Uesugi Hara turned his head to see Sakayanagi standing by his desk, her white cane leaning diagonally against the edge. Behind her followed Hashimoto Masayoshi and Kamuro Masumi—Kamuro had just caught his glance and immediately glared back, her eyes clearly screaming, "What are you looking at?"

"Wouldn't call it big." Uesugi Hara withdrew his gaze, his tone leisurely. "Though I did hear about a certain little loli who challenged the entire Chess Club and didn't lose a single match. I wonder if Miss Arisu has heard of that?"

The moment the words "little loli" landed, the impatience on Kamuro Masumi's face instantly crumbled; her shoulders gave a secret twitch, as if she were stifling a laugh. Beside her, Hashimoto Masayoshi caught sight of Sakayanagi's face darkening a shade and his heart skipped a beat—this was the perfect chance to step on Uesugi and score points with the Princess!

He immediately stepped forward half a pace, cleared his throat, and retorted: "Uesugi, what kind of way is that to talk! The Princess won through sheer skill, unlike some people who rely on underhanded tricks to win points and are now blacklisted by the seniors."

"Hashimoto." Sakayanagi Arisu's voice cut in abruptly, her fingertips tapping lightly on the handle of her cane. "Have you finished your report?"

Hashimoto's words choked in his throat, and he immediately wilted: "...N-not yet."

"Then why aren't you off writing it?" Sakayanagi Arisu glanced at him, her tone devoid of emotion. "Are you waiting for me to write it for you?"

Hashimoto Masayoshi fell silent instantly, retreating half a pace with a sullen expression, his eyes filled with resentment as he looked at Uesugi Hara. Kamuro Masumi finally couldn't help it and let out a muffled laugh, only stopping when Sakayanagi gave her calf a light tap with her cane.

Only then did Sakayanagi tilt her chin back toward Uesugi Hara, her ice-blue eyes holding a hint of mischief: "The Chess Club is indeed dull, but compared to those who rely on wagers to win points, at least my chessboard doesn't have opponents who 'hold a grudge after losing'."

Uesugi Hara raised an eyebrow: "Still better than someone who, after winning a match, has to make their opponent pretend they 'almost won'—I heard the Chess Club president, for the sake of his face, told everyone you only 'narrowly won'?"

Kamuro Masumi didn't dare laugh this time, merely nudging Hashimoto with her elbow—the two of them bickering was far more interesting than watching Hashimoto suck up to her.

The little loli just smiled politely and brushed the matter aside with a light touch: "Uesugi-kun is certainly skilled at digging up such trivial matters."

As she spoke, she rested her fingertips on her cane and turned her gaze toward the window, as if she had lost interest in the bickering.

"Has Miss Arisu found a new toy?" Uesugi Hara suddenly spoke, though his gaze drifted past Sakayanagi Arisu and landed on Kamuro Masumi—he hadn't forgotten how this one had glared at him earlier, and it was the perfect time to let her taste what it meant to have joy turn to sorrow.

Kamuro Masumi glanced at Sakayanagi's profile, and seeing that she wasn't looking back, she glared viciously at Uesugi Hara, her fingers quietly tightening on the strap of her bag.

Sakayanagi Arisu chuckled, her gaze shifting from the window back to Kamuro Masumi with a look that was half-smile, half-tease: "Kamuro-san is indeed very interesting. Though, rather than a 'toy,' she is more like a cat with its fur standing on end."

"Sakayanagi! You!" Kamuro Masumi instinctively wanted to retort, but the words died in her throat; she could only twist her face to the other side, her earlobes quietly flushing a faint red.

Watching her look of wanting to snap back but not daring to, Uesugi Hara's lips curled imperceptibly as he spoke slowly: "It seems Miss Arisu hasn't quite finished 'training' the kitten yet."

As soon as these words left his mouth, Kamuro Masumi whipped her head around to glare at him, sparks seemingly flying in her eyes—How are you talking, you little brat? Hashimoto Masayoshi frowned as well, just about to open his mouth to condemn Uesugi Hara's rudeness, when he saw Sakayanagi tap her cane against the floor. Her ice-blue eyes turned toward Kamuro, the smile holding a hint of provocation: "Oh? Then would Kamuro-san like to prove that she isn't the type who 'needs training'?"

Kamuro Masumi was choked by the words, her cheeks turning even redder. Finally, she simply buried her head low, refusing to look at the two colluding villains. Watching this "chain reaction," Uesugi Hara felt a smile bloom in his eyes—it seemed teasing these two was even more fun than earning points.

Seeing Kamuro Masumi's ears turning so red they looked ready to drip blood, and even her fingertips trembling slightly, Sakayanagi Arisu knew that if she teased her any further, the girl might explode on the spot. She "lowered the temperature" and turned back to Uesugi Hara.

She rested her fingertips on her cane and gave a slight nod: "Uesugi-kun, I have matters to attend to, so I shall take my leave." Her tone returned to its usual indifference, as if the bickering from moments ago had never occurred.

With that, she didn't look at Kamuro again, merely tapping the girl's calf with her cane: "Let's go."

Kamuro Masumi looked as if she had been granted a pardon; she followed immediately, her pace so fast it looked like she was fleeing. Before leaving, she couldn't help but turn back to glare viciously at Uesugi Hara—she was keeping a tally of this!

Uesugi Hara blinked exaggeratedly, putting his hands in front of his chest in a trembling motion, looking for all the world like he was saying, "I'm so scared."

Hashimoto Masayoshi hurried to keep up with Sakayanagi Arisu. As he passed the doorway, he couldn't help but look back and give Uesugi Hara a thumbs-up, his eyes filled with the admiration of someone thinking, Brother, you really have guts.

Watching the three figures disappear from the classroom doorway, Uesugi Hara finally withdrew his gaze, a faint, lingering smile playing on his lips. This trip hadn't been for "fleecing," but it certainly hadn't been boring.

Time to head back.

PS:

By the way, Kamuro Masumi's seat is to the right of Uesugi Hara (though they don't talk much on a daily basis), and Hashimoto Masayoshi's seat is two rows in front of Uesugi Hara. Guess who is sitting in front of Uesugi Hara.