Glancing at the time on his terminal, Uesugi Hara saw it was four thirty. He looked toward the cafeteria. It was obviously too early to head over now, and waiting around in his dorm sounded like a hassle. He might as well pick up some braised pork rice at the convenience store and heat it up for dinner later.
Having made up his mind, he turned to Sakayanagi Arisu beside him. "Miss Arisu, I'll take my leave here. I'm going to buy some braised pork rice for dinner."
"Go right ahead, Uesugi. I should get back to my dorm and take care of a few things, too." Sakayanagi Arisu lightly tapped the ground with her cane. As she turned, her skirt swayed with her steps. "See you tomorrow."
Only after her figure disappeared into the shadow of the cherry trees did Uesugi Hara click his tongue to himself. As expected, she was bored and using him to pass the time. Still, at least he'd gotten away from that seemingly harmless but actually troublesome little girl.
The braised pork rice from the convenience store was still steaming when he carried it back to his dorm. He took a shower first, washing away the thin sheen of sweat. When the steam had cleared, he sat at his desk and stared into space. What should he do next?
The power struggle in his class would probably begin in a few days. Should he get involved? Which side should he take? The Katsuragi Faction had a fairly solid foundation early on, but in the original story, Sakayanagi's schemes eventually left the faction divided. If he joined, maybe his knowledge of the plot would let him balance the two sides' strength. But Sakayanagi would never back down easily, and their endless infighting would only give the other classes an opening.
If he sided with Sakayanagi, the Katsuragi Faction wouldn't be a threat. But for now, most of the class still leaned toward Katsuragi Kohei, so confronting him head-on was out of the question. Stabbing him in the back? If the class lost Class Points, he'd lose personal points too. Absolutely not.
He gave a self-mocking smile. He wasn't cut out to be a leader in the first place. Charging into battle or coming up with a plan was one thing, but directing the whole show? No thanks.
He decided to put that matter aside for now and think about something else: could he somehow poach Ayanokoji's "tools"? As for Karuizawa Kei, using her secret to keep her in line might make her a decent early-game asset. Kushida Kikyo could be useful, too. He'd have to spend more time in places with few people around. Surely Ayanokoji wasn't the only one who could catch her letting her guard down. Uesugi Hara figured that if Ayanokoji could press her handprint, so could he. As the saying went, if the enemy could come to us, we could go to them. As for Ichinose Honami, getting her to betray her class would be difficult, but perhaps he could use her to deal with someone else. He just didn't want to offend Miyabi Nagumo, who controlled the second-years, so he'd leave that for later. As for the Black Room Trio, he could use the pool incident to get Kushida to make a move and take them in as "slaves," turning the Black Room Trio into the Slave Trio. Simple and efficient.
"Horikita Suzune?" He scoffed. "She's not even as useful as the Black Room Trio. At least they've got something to hold over them. What does she have? A nasty temper and a sour face. Only Ayanokoji could put up with her." Thinking of how she'd put Ayanokoji through the wringer in the original story, Uesugi Hara suddenly felt that the guy's tolerance was on par with Mouri Kogoro's neck.
If he wanted to live comfortably, he absolutely couldn't let his points run low.
He also had to figure out how to save up more. But that shouldn't be too hard for him right now. With his abilities, the students at this school were no match for him. And with his rather gloomy face, he could surely fleece a few upperclassmen without trouble.
As he let his mind wander, his stomach gave a timely growl. He patted his forehead. Why was he thinking so much? Establishing himself in Class A, saving up points, finding useful tools... None of it had to happen right away.
Food came first. He'd deal with dinner before anything else.
The aroma of the reheated braised pork rice filled the room. The sauce-coated rice went down, and his earlier worries seemed to fade a little. But after dinner, he got bored again. He scrolled through the games on his terminal, but none of them appealed to him. Just as he was about to close it, he spotted a familiar icon: that fair 5v5 competitive game from his previous life. It was available here, too!
"Heh. Time to show these otherworldly natives what a transmigrator can do." He eagerly tapped into the game and noticed the interface said "campus network only," but that wasn't a problem.
Half an hour later, a stifled growl rang out in the dorm:
"Clear the minions, man! Are you reviewing the troops or what?"
"Is the mid-laner brain-dead? Don't you know how to help out?"
"Why are you running off so fast during a team fight? In a hurry to get reincarnated or something?"
Anyone watching would have questioned their own eyes. His gameplay was so bad even a dog would've shaken its head. But Uesugi Hara had clearly grasped the "essence" of the game: instead of improving himself, it was better to insult other people.
"I'm Ryuen Kakeru from Year 1, Class C! If you've got guts, come face me in person! You cowards!" He was so furious he nearly smashed his terminal, but he didn't dare give his real name. He hadn't forgotten all those stories from his previous life about people getting beaten up after meeting offline. If anyone had to suffer, it could only be Ryuen.
After losing several matches in a row, his chest felt tight with frustration. He grabbed his jacket and stormed out. The evening breeze carried the scent of cherry blossoms, finally helping him calm down a little. If he kept playing, he'd probably die of anger before anything else.
The night wind swept cherry blossom petals past his ears, cool and faintly sweet. Most of the frustration the game had stirred up finally dissipated. Uesugi Hara strolled along the path outside the dorm area and turned down a small road toward the sports field. There probably wouldn't be many people around at this hour. It was the perfect place to spend some time in peace.
He kicked a pebble along the roadside, still replaying his gameplay from the match. It wasn't all his teammates' fault. He'd been too eager to steal kills and completely messed up the minion waves. But admitting that would be embarrassing. It felt much better to curse out his teammates.
As he headed toward the sports field, the terminal in his pocket vibrated. It was a game friend request with the message: "I was the mage just now. Want a one-on-one in the computer room tomorrow afternoon?"
Uesugi Hara raised an eyebrow, replied, "Idiot, get lost," and then promptly uninstalled the game.
The grass by the edge of the track was still damp. He sat down and casually plucked a blade of grass, placing it between his lips. A few lights still glowed in the distant school building, probably where students were staying late to study. The sound of pen nibs scratching across paper drifted on the breeze, as light as feathers.
As he sat there daydreaming, he suddenly heard footsteps on the track. They weren't the slow, dragging steps of someone out for a stroll, but a steady, powerful rhythm. He looked up. Under the dim streetlights, a figure in sportswear jogged along at an even pace. The lines of his profile stood out in the light and shadow. It was Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.
The other boy seemed not to notice him on the grass and continued running at the same steady pace, his jacket lifting and falling in the wind. Uesugi Hara watched his back for a while and suddenly found it a little amusing. The guy always acted as if nothing mattered to him, yet somehow he was always calculating everything behind the scenes.
"He's got more stamina than I expected," he muttered. Then he remembered the "poaching plan" he'd been mulling over. He'd have to think carefully about how to snatch Ayanokoji's tools.
As he was thinking, Ayanokoji finished a lap. When he passed the grass, he slowed for a moment and finally glanced over. There was no surprise or curiosity in his expression. He looked at Uesugi Hara for half a second, as if he were an ordinary rock, then looked away.
"This guy..." Uesugi Hara clicked his tongue. He was just about to say something, but the other boy had already turned and continued running. His footsteps soon melted back into the night.
Uesugi Hara pursed his lips and spat out the blade of grass. Whatever. There was no point trying to get a rise out of someone like that. He'd think about something else instead—like getting to the convenience store earlier tomorrow, or he might be stuck with whatever ratio of fat and lean meat was left in the braised pork rice. Or he could find time to stake out the rooftop behind the school building. He might run into Kushida Kikyo there.
The scent of cherry blossoms in the wind faded, and the dorm area's warning bell for lights-out sounded in the distance. Uesugi Hara stood up, brushed the grass off his pants, and headed back. His terminal vibrated in his pocket again. This time it wasn't a game message, but a class group notification. Katsuragi Kohei had just sent an announcement saying they'd hold a class meeting before lessons tomorrow.
He tapped the terminal screen with his finger but didn't reply. For some reason, though, his boredom had vanished. Whether it was fighting for power or saving up points, either was better than staying cooped up in his dorm and getting so mad at a game he had a heart attack.