Astonishing Change

The dormitory was exceptionally quiet at night, and Uesugi Hara did not pay much mind to the words Sakayanagi Arisu had spoken during the day.

After all, it was not the first or second time Kushida Kikyo had come to find him; being seen by others was a common occurrence.

Yet, a sliver of doubt lingered in his mind: what exactly did Sakayanagi mean by "inviting disaster upon yourself"?

Did she know some inside information about Kushida, or had Kushida's recent actions been so conspicuous that they prompted her to specifically point that out?

Just as he was debating whether to send a message to ask Kushida, a "knock-knock-knock" suddenly sounded at the door.

Uesugi Hara got up to open the door, and standing outside was none other than Kushida Kikyo.

It saved him the trouble of sending a message; since she was here, he could ask her clearly in person.

"Good evening, Uesugi-kun." Kushida greeted him with a smile, familiarly bypassing him to enter the room. The expression on her face was no different from usual, as if the events of a few days ago had never happened.

Uesugi Hara didn't think much of it; he closed the door and turned to pour her a glass of water. "Haven't seen you in a few days. What wind blew you here today?"

"Actually, it's nothing major," Kushida Kikyo said, taking the glass. Feeling the slight chill of the cup against her fingertips, she spoke in a light tone, "I just sold that test paper to other classes earlier, and I wanted to hear your thoughts on it."

"Is that so? Sold it to Class B and Class C, huh? Hmm, how much did you sell it for?" Uesugi Hara was somewhat curious.

"Not much, just five hundred thousand points per class." Kushida Kikyo held the glass, her tone as relaxed as if she were discussing something trivial, her eyes curved into crescents, showing no sign of anything amiss.

???

"How much?! Five hundred thousand points per class?" Uesugi Hara frowned sharply, his tone filled with disbelief. "They actually agreed to that?"

"I just used a little bit of rhetoric," Kushida Kikyo shook the glass in her hand, explaining nonchalantly. "For example, I told them that every other class had this test paper, and if they were the only ones without it, wouldn't they be left behind in the gap..."

She suddenly changed the subject, pouting slightly with a hint of feigned reproach. "I originally wanted to include Class A as well, but since you were there, you caused me to lose out on four hundred and ninety thousand points for nothing."

After hearing this, Uesugi Hara's mouth twitched violently. He secretly mused to himself: in that case, his own "embezzlement" of thirty thousand points back then could be considered a model of professional integrity.

He recalled how he had spent his first week exerting every ounce of effort just to scrape together over two million points. Looking at the person before him, who had easily pocketed one million just by wagging her tongue, the sense of disparity washed over him, making him click his tongue in secret—the efficiency of making money was simply incomparable.

"You didn't go to conduct the transactions with them yourself, did you?" Uesugi Hara looked up at her, his tone carrying a hint of confirmation.

"That goes without saying," Kushida Kikyo lifted her chin, as if stating something perfectly obvious. "I'm not that stupid. I just spent a little money to hire some upperclassmen to do it for me."

Watching the smug little expression on Kushida Kikyo's face, Uesugi Hara was filled with confusion.

How could this person have changed so much?

In the original story, the Kushida Kikyo who sold class information to Ryuen always handled the transactions personally, bold to the point of recklessness.

Yet, the version of her before him possessed a shrewdness inconsistent with her age, knowing even to hire upperclassmen to handle the transactions to keep herself completely clean.

Could it be that the point-earning plan had opened up her meridians? This speed of growth was truly astonishing...

"Impressive, I admire you." Uesugi Hara gave her a thumbs-up. If it had been him handling the transaction, he never would have thought of selling it for such an exaggerated figure as five hundred thousand.

He suddenly thought of Ayanokouji—the test paper the other party had bought for fifteen thousand points had been resold by Kushida Kikyo for a high price of one million. If Ayanokouji knew about this price difference, he wondered if it would cause any change to his poker face.

"Hehe, it's just average!" Kushida Kikyo laughed until her eyes curved like crescent moons. While she was humble in her words, the pride in her tone could not be hidden, and her fingertips tapped the side of the glass with a touch of excitement.

Looking at Kushida Kikyo's appearance, Uesugi Hara had to admit that this woman truly had some ability.

Despite the childish pride still hanging on her face, her methods were already shockingly slick. The ease with which she carried herself was nothing like the busty-but-brainless, easy-to-get woman from the original story.

Uesugi Hara suddenly remembered something that would suit her well, so he said, "Wait for me." He turned toward the nearby drawer, rummaged through the back for a moment, and pulled out a Terminal—yes, it was indeed a Terminal.

Uesugi Hara handed the Terminal to Kushida Kikyo, his tone flat. "Maybe this thing will be useful to you. It's unregistered."

He had specifically obtained it from Mashima Tomoya after earning enough points in his first week. He had intended to keep it for a suitable time, but it had never come in handy. Now, it seemed to suit her path perfectly.

"It cost me two hundred thousand points to get my hands on it back then; consider it a bargain for you." He paused and added, "In the future, if there are any matters where it's inconvenient for you to show your face, use this in conjunction with your network to conduct transactions. It will save you a lot of trouble."

Kushida Kikyo took the Terminal, her fingertips tracing the cold casing, and her eyes brightened. "Unregistered? This is truly a timely gift." She looked up at Uesugi Hara, her smile carrying a bit more sincerity. "Thanks, Uesugi-kun. This is a huge help."

Uesugi Hara shrugged without responding. He knew clearly that once this Terminal was in Kushida's hands, it would never sit idle as it had with him—given her nature, she would likely figure out a dozen ways to use it in the blink of an eye.

"Speaking of which, why have you changed so much?" Uesugi Hara looked at her and finally asked the question that had been circling in his mind for a long time.

Kushida Kikyo tilted her head at his words, her fingertips still gently stroking the edge of the Terminal, her tone as light as a breeze brushing over water. "Perhaps... I am no longer obsessed with that matter from the past."

Her gaze drifted slightly toward the window. The night crept into the room, casting faint shadows on her face. In that light, airy sentence, there hid a sense of relief that was hard to define, or perhaps something even deeper.

"Is that so? Then congratulations." Uesugi Hara pulled at the corner of his mouth, though he mused inwardly—this answer was truly unexpected.

He had expected to hear some more concrete reason, or the bright, cheerful explanation she usually wore on her face, but he hadn't anticipated such a melancholic remark.

The Kushida Kikyo before him seemed to have quietly drifted away from the girl in his memories who always wore a perfect smile.

"Is Uesugi-kun concerned about me?" Kushida Kikyo adjusted quickly, her face once again blooming with her usual bright smile, her eyes curving into beautiful crescents. Her tone carried a hint of cunning probing, as if that melancholic sentence from just a moment ago had been a fleeting illusion.

Uesugi Hara raised an eyebrow, responding noncommittally. "Just asking out of curiosity."

He turned and leaned against the desk, watching Kushida Kikyo fiddle with the Terminal. The faint glow of the screen reflected on her face, flickering in and out.

"But speaking of which," he changed the subject, "since you have this thing, you must be more careful in your future actions. Mashima might be reliable, but if this Terminal falls into the hands of others, the trouble won't be small."

Kushida Kikyo looked up, smiling with certainty. "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing. But Uesugi-kun, being so thoughtful all of a sudden, could it be..." She drew out her tone, deliberately leaning half a step closer, "that you have other ideas about me?"

Uesugi Hara stepped back half a step to create distance, a helpless smile tugging at his lips. "Don't overthink it; I just don't want to be dragged into trouble because of you one day."

"Eh—how cold." Kushida Kikyo let her face fall dramatically, only to recover her smile in an instant, tucking the Terminal into her pocket. "Alright, I won't tease you anymore. It's getting late, I should head back."

She walked to the door, her hand resting on the knob, and looked back. "By the way, Uesugi-kun, I'll remember this favor. If there's anything you need me for in the future, just ask."

As her voice faded, she gently pulled the door shut, the sound of her footsteps receding down the hallway.

Uesugi Hara stared at the closed door, his fingertips tapping unconsciously against the tabletop.

No longer obsessed with the past?

He picked up the water glass on the desk; the glass was already ice-cold.

Although Kushida Kikyo had changed, wasn't it a bit black-hearted to resell a test paper that cost 1,500 points for 500,000 points?

It seemed the title of Black-Hearted Angel would never leave Kushida Kikyo.