Soon, Sunday arrived.
For once, Wu Qiao didn't lock himself in his room to lose himself in dull studying. He'd invited Kushida Kikyo and Karuizawa Kei out, planning to pull off something big—taking Class A for a ride.
When the two heard Wu Qiao's outrageous plan at their agreed meeting place, Kushida and Karuizawa exchanged bewildered looks, disbelief written all over their faces.
Wu Qiao actually planned to approach a Class A student and stage a fake beating, playing the victim so he could use the opportunity to extort a hefty sum of Personal Points.
Karuizawa couldn't help frowning, her voice tinged with worry and confusion. "Wu-kun, is this really necessary? You're going to deliberately get beaten up just for those Personal Points? If the act goes wrong and they see through it, you'll end up worse off than before."
"Relax. It won't go wrong." Wu Qiao smiled confidently, a glint of assurance in his eyes. "And it's not just about Personal Points. If we handle this right, we can also make Class A's Class Points drop significantly. Once Class A and Class B are neck and neck in Class Points, they'll pay even closer attention to what B is doing. That'll make things a lot more interesting."
At that, the hesitation on Kushida's face gradually gave way to seriousness. She thought for a moment, quickly catching the deeper meaning behind Wu Qiao's words, then asked, "So, Wu-kun, what do you need us to do? You didn't go out of your way to call us here just to tell us about this, did you?"
"Of course not." Wu Qiao gave Kushida an approving look and nodded. "For this act to be convincing, I can't pull it off alone. You'll need to find a way to draw away anyone loitering nearby and give me the perfect opportunity. Then, after I go down, you'll need to bring students from other classes to the scene as quickly as possible to serve as witnesses. Remember, they have to be from other classes. That'll make their testimony more convincing."
He paused, then laid out the schedule. "We'll start on Tuesday. I'll let you know the exact location and signal two hours beforehand. Just be ready."
Karuizawa still thought the plan was a little crazy, but seeing how sure of himself Wu Qiao looked, she bit her lip and finally nodded. "All right, I understand. If I can help, I'll do my best."
Kushida put on her trademark perfect smile. This time, though, there was a hint of curious anticipation in it. "Don't worry, Wu-kun. Finding people and stirring up rumors are my specialties. I'll make sure the Class A victim won't have a leg to stand on."
Looking at the two girls before him, each with her own thoughts but both willing to cooperate, Wu Qiao nodded to himself. His pieces were in place. Now all that remained was to wait for next week's show to begin.
Getting ahead took more than burying yourself in your studies. Every now and then, you had to learn to use the rules to give those lofty people a little shock.
The Path of Mystery was founded on fabrication and deception. It sounded as if all it could do was fool people, but when paired with the Path of Elation, the resulting chemistry was remarkably effective for provoking others.
Wu Qiao's method for gaining experience on the Path of Mystery was a little absurd. All he had to do was earnestly explain to people that "he'd lived in Japan ever since he could remember," and he could reliably gain experience. After all, as someone who'd crossed over from another world, it was essentially a lie—one that ordinary people simply couldn't expose.
Of course, Wu Qiao had recently learned plenty of similar verbal tricks. He just felt that the way he spoke was starting to sound more and more like Kyubey from Puella Magi Madoka Magica: seemingly sincere, yet subtly manipulative.
That afternoon, at the library of Advanced Nurturing High School,
Shiina Hiyori, the library's ever-present NPC, was quietly reading in a corner. When Wu Qiao showed up empty-handed for once, she instinctively lowered her book.
They'd known each other for quite a while, yet they'd exchanged fewer than twenty words in total.
The first time she'd spoken to him was when she saw him studying and wondered if he might need help with math. But after discovering that the problems on his scratch paper were far beyond the curriculum, Shiina Hiyori had never again thought of offering.
Later, he'd even accurately pointed out that she was good at recommending books, which had surprised her.
It wasn't strange that he'd noticed she loved reading, but how had he figured out that she was good at recommending books, too? She was curious, but her reserved nature kept her from asking.
Today, though, the atmosphere was clearly different. Even when he came to the library before, he'd always sat far away from her. He'd never sat down right across from her like this.
Settling into his seat, Wu Qiao pressed his hands together and spoke earnestly. "Could you recommend some books for me, Shiina? Preferably something relaxing. My brain's been running nonstop, and I'm about to burn out. Also, please don't recommend one of your favorite mystery novels. I really don't want to think right now."
Shiina Hiyori blinked, studying Wu Qiao's slightly tired face as she considered his request. Rather than answer right away, she stood and made her way to another shelf with practiced ease. Before long, she returned with a collection of essays whose cover had a fresh, soothing feel to it, and gently placed it in front of him.
"How about this one?" Shiina Hiyori's voice was soft, with a gentle warmth to it. "It's not a mystery novel, and there's no complicated plot. It just records little stories from ordinary daily life, so it's easy to read."
Wu Qiao picked up the book and flipped through it. Just as she'd said, its pages had a peaceful, reassuring quality. He smiled and nodded. "Sounds great. Your recommendations are as reliable as ever, Shiina. Thanks—I'll borrow this one."
As Wu Qiao turned to leave with the book, Shiina Hiyori called out to him almost without thinking. "Um... Wu-kun."
Wu Qiao stopped and turned back, looking a little surprised. "Hm? Is something wrong?"
Shiina Hiyori absently rubbed the edge of a page with her fingers, as if trying to work up the nerve to ask. At last, she spoke softly. "Have you... run into some trouble lately? You seem much more tense than the last time I saw you."
Wu Qiao froze for a moment, then smiled. There was something hard to read in it, something Kyubey-like. "I wouldn't exactly call it trouble. I'm just trying out a new approach. Sometimes, if you want to reach your goal, you have to try different things, don't you, Shiina?"
Shiina Hiyori tilted her head slightly. She didn't quite understand what he meant, but she sensed that the boy in front of her was plotting something. She didn't press him further, only nodded gently. "If there's anything you need help with... I mean, if it has to do with books or reference materials, you can come to me."
"Okay. Thanks in advance, then." Wu Qiao waved and walked out of the library.
Watching him leave, Shiina Hiyori sat back down, but she couldn't focus on her book anymore. She couldn't shake the feeling that the strange aura around Wu Qiao had grown even stronger.