Ichinose Honami's Mind Explodes

After thoroughly intimidating Karuizawa Kei, Wu Qiao did not linger, turning and heading straight for the faculty office.

The transaction with Hoshinomiya Chie went smoothly to the point of absurdity. This Class B homeroom teacher, who appeared carefree on the surface but harbored deep-seated resentment over past failures, saw a brilliant light ignite in her eyes the moment Wu Qiao proposed his plan to "drive Class D's class points to zero by next month."

To Hoshinomiya Chie, Class D deserved to remain at the bottom as Class D; it was the ultimate revenge against that woman, Chabashira Sae.

Being able to set the unprecedented record of reducing Class D's points to zero since the school's founding was a form of vengeance she couldn't possibly refuse.

Thirty thousand private points were transferred to Wu Qiao's terminal as a deposit without a moment's hesitation, and she readily offered a staggering reward of 2.7 million points upon completion.

Of course, the price of the deal was that if Wu Qiao's plan failed, he would have to pay her double in compensation. However, for Wu Qiao, who held an absolute advantage in information, this was no risk at all.

Having concluded the deal, Wu Qiao walked out of the tea room in high spirits. No sooner had he stepped out than he spotted Karuizawa Kei huddled in the corner of the hallway, trembling like a frightened rabbit, too terrified to move.

Wu Qiao approached with a relaxed gait, grabbed her wrist, and pulled her into an empty stairwell. Karuizawa Kei turned pale with fright and instinctively tried to retreat, only to be held firmly in place by Wu Qiao.

"Don't be nervous. I'm not going to eat you," Wu Qiao said while pulling out Karuizawa Kei's terminal, having her unlock it before operating it with practiced ease.

A second later, Karuizawa Kei's terminal vibrated. She looked down, her pupils constricting sharply; a full 150,000 private points had appeared in her account balance.

"This..." Karuizawa Kei looked up abruptly, her face filled with disbelief.

"This is hush money." Wu Qiao retracted the terminal and looked down at her, his tone returning to its previous calm and indifference. "Cooperate with my plan, and I won't let Class D be destroyed. Those few class points are just chips to me, not the goal."

He paused, a warning chill flashing in his eyes. "But if you dare to do anything behind my back, or leak even half a word about today, don't blame me for being ruthless. You should be very clear by now that I know far more than you can imagine."

Karuizawa Kei gripped her terminal tightly, feeling the reality of those 150,000 points while recalling the terrifying pressure Wu Qiao had exerted when he pinpointed her scars earlier. She gritted her teeth, finally lowering her head, her voice as faint as a mosquito's hum. "I... understand."

Wu Qiao nodded in satisfaction, released her, and turned to leave. Watching the boy's retreating back, Karuizawa Kei leaned against the cold wall and let out a long, shaky breath.

Karuizawa Kei didn't know what Wu Qiao was planning, but she knew clearly that from this moment on, she was completely shackled to the chariot of this unfathomable boy.

Ichinose Honami sat in the Class B classroom, her fingertips unconsciously tracing the cold edge of her terminal, her heart filled with deep regret. She truly shouldn't have rushed to approach Wu Qiao just because of the intelligence from a single simulation.

In her expectations, Wu Qiao should have been like the record in the simulation—a lazy but scholarly, kind-hearted person.

But the result... reality had slapped her hard across the face.

Just moments ago, her terminal received an encrypted file from Wu Qiao. With a trembling heart, Ichinose opened it to find an audio recording, so she quickly put on her headphones and pressed play.

A faint static hiss came through the earpiece, followed immediately by Hoshinomiya Chie's signature voice—the one that usually carried a lazy, playful tone—now sounding crystal clear: "Drive Class D's points to zero. Thirty thousand private points as a deposit, and another 2.7 million once it's done next month. If you fail, you owe me double. Wu Qiao, you should know very well that to me, Class D deserves to stay at the bottom."

Then came Wu Qiao's voice, calm and without a ripple: "Deal. Next month, Class D's points will be completely wiped out."

Ichinose gasped, her fingers trembling as she removed the headphones.

Good grief, could the total loss of Class D's points in the simulation have been orchestrated by Wu Qiao himself?

She had naively thought that Wu Qiao was forced to "blacken" a year later due to the malicious targeting by Nagumo Miyabi and the school, turning into that cold-blooded "tyrant."

But looking at it now, this wasn't a "blackening" at all. This guy had been a hidden mastermind from the very beginning!

The so-called "laziness" and "just wanting to coast through" were likely just to lower everyone's guard. A year later, he wasn't dropping the act; he was simply finally too lazy to keep pretending!

Gah!

Ichinose let out a desperate wail in her heart, collapsing limply onto her desk.

Of course, it wasn't just Wu Qiao whose image had collapsed. When Hoshinomiya Chie walked into the Class B classroom as usual with a smile, greeting everyone in that kind, amiable tone, Ichinose looked at that familiar face with a complex mix of emotions.

So, this teacher who seemed to have no sense of propriety and always encouraged everyone to be united and loving was actually willing to make such a deal with a student just to suppress Chabashira-sensei's Class D!

Hoshinomiya Chie seemed to sense something, her gaze sweeping over Ichinose. Ichinose hurriedly lowered her head to pretend she was reading, her heart filled with things she couldn't say, not even daring to breathe loudly.

Ichinose Honami suddenly felt that her decision to approach Wu Qiao to "prevent the world from being destroyed" might have been the very thing that pushed her into the deepest pit of fire.

The afternoon club recruitment and student council fair were in full swing in the gymnasium. Ichinose Honami, who should have been active as the core of Class B, was currently hiding in a corner like a deserter.

She had long known she wouldn't get into the student council, and she had no desire to jump into the problematic pit that was Nagumo Miyabi, so she decisively chose to give up. She would just treat the afternoon as a holiday and enjoy some rare leisure.

However, that leisure didn't last long before her terminal vibrated again. Ichinose Honami looked down to see another message from Wu Qiao.

He was inviting her to a buffet at a restaurant in the school's Commercial Street, even thoughtfully sharing his real-time location.

Looking at the blinking red dot on the screen, Ichinose Honami let out a long sigh. She couldn't hide, and she couldn't run. Since she was already dragged into the center of this vortex, she might as well go and see what this guy was up to.

Upon arriving at the destination, Ichinose Honami pushed open the glass door of the restaurant and immediately spotted the two people sitting by the window.

To her surprise, Ayanokoji Kiyoha was there too. The girl from Class D was holding an exquisite plate piled high with all sorts of food—from sashimi to desserts, pasta to fried chicken, it had everything.

But strangely, there was only a tiny portion of each. She was tasting them in small bites with a fork, her expression focused, as if she weren't eating, but conducting a rigorous "taste test."

Wu Qiao, on the other hand, was a completely different story. Several empty plates were already stacked on the table in front of him, and he was holding a freshly grilled steak, eating whatever he felt like with a bold, hearty demeanor, using anything he could grab to fill his stomach.

"Yo, Ichinose, over here." Wu Qiao saw Ichinose at the door and waved his fork casually.

Ichinose Honami steeled herself and walked over. Just as she was about to greet him, Wu Qiao stood up naturally, walked to the front desk to pay for her entry fee, and then greeted her as if nothing were wrong: "Come on, sit down. The desserts here are said to be quite good. There aren't many, so if you're slow, they'll be gone."

Watching Wu Qiao's familiar attitude, as if they were old friends of many years, Ichinose Honami felt a wave of helplessness.

This guy—he was clearly a ruthless character capable of plotting to wipe out Class D's points behind the scenes, yet he could act so nonchalant on the surface.

She pulled out a chair and sat opposite Wu Qiao, her gaze sweeping over Ayanokoji Kiyoha, who was eating quietly, and asked tentatively, "Wu-kun, you're treating me today—it shouldn't just be for a simple buffet, right?"

Wu Qiao took a bite of his steak and smiled vaguely. "Smart. But let's eat first. Even if the sky falls, you have to fill your stomach first, don't you think?"