Probing Hoshinomiya Chie

Among all the First Year students, there was no one Ryuuen didn't know, yet everyone knew Ryuuen. He was infamous.

It wasn't surprising that Ryuuen knew Hoshinomiya Chie. After all, she was a beautiful teacher with the same hair color as him. It was only natural to pay her some attention occasionally; perhaps he could find a weakness in her that would help him crush Class B.

Although Ryuuen was reading, he was constantly observing Hoshinomiya Chie's movements. She wasn't there to read; like him, she had aimlessly picked up a book. Even though Hoshinomiya Chie's eyes were fixed on the book, she wasn't turning pages, and her gaze lacked the focus of someone reading—it was quite unfocused.

She's anxious, Ryuuen concluded.

In the entire school, the only people this teacher cared about, besides Class B, were Chabashira. Since no Special Exam had started yet, Class B could be ruled out, meaning it was a problem concerning Chabashira.

When Hoshinomiya Chie walked in, she tried her best to appear calm, but her tense leg muscles told Ryuuen that she had been jogging. This meant she likely stumbled into this room while trying to hide from someone, and that person was most probably Chabashira.

Chabashira was nearby!

At this time, Chabashira should have approached Ayanokoji. Due to pressure from Ayanokoji's father, Ayanokoji would have to demonstrate his worth in this exam.

Since Hoshinomiya Chie wasn't there to read, Ryuuen saw no need to watch her pretend. "Teacher Hoshinomiya, you don't seem to enjoy reading. How about we discuss the situation in Class B?"

"Trying to get information out of me, Ryuuen-kun? There's no way I'd tell you. Besides, aren't you the one who doesn't like reading? Your eyes haven't left me since I walked in." Hoshinomiya Chie flipped her book face down on the table, crossed her legs, and scrutinized Ryuuen, trying her best to look serious.

Ryuuen smiled and gently closed his book. "Whether I like reading or not, I don't know, but I certainly like beautiful women. They say beauty can be found in books, but when there's beauty right in front of me, why would I need to look in a book?"

Hoshinomiya Chie cupped her face in her hands, feigning shyness. "Beauty, you say? Ryuuen, you should really focus your attention on girls your own age. My heart already belongs to someone."

Ryuuen sneered. Her heart belongs to someone? To whom? Chabashira? What's so fun about that?

On the surface, Ryuuen looked regretful. "That's a shame. I'm actually more interested in Ichinose Honami, but since Teacher Hoshinomiya doesn't want to discuss Class B with me, I guess I'll have to investigate it myself."

Hoshinomiya Chie frowned. "I know Ichinose is a good girl and highly regarded by the boys, but Ichinose isn't suitable for you. Besides, aren't you pursuing Horikita Suzune? Being unfaithful isn't right, Ryuuen-kun."

"Oh, how does Teacher know I'm pursuing Horikita?" This was Ryuuen's lie, just a test for Hoshinomiya Chie.

"Haha, the whole year knows about it! It's not strange for me to know."

It seemed flawless, but Ryuuen noticed a problem: Why was this rumor about him pursuing Horikita circulating throughout the year? Why hadn't Horikita Suzune clarified it to Class D, and instead seemed quite pleased with the rumor?

Some girls liked to show off that excellent boys were pursuing them to satisfy their vanity, but Horikita Suzune was clearly not that type of person. Someone must be fanning the flames behind the scenes. Who could it be?

"Horikita Suzune is a good girl. If you pursue her wholeheartedly, you'll surely win her heart." Hoshinomiya Chie saw Ryuuen in thought and, thinking he was still eyeing Ichinose Honami, spoke up again to remind him.

It seemed Hoshinomiya Chie didn't want Ryuuen to pursue Ichinose Honami.

"But, Teacher, my heart is broken into many pieces, and each piece has fallen for a different person." Ryuuen raised an eyebrow. Hoshinomiya Chie's lips were too tight; Ryuuen couldn't get any useful information out of her.

What a scoundrel, what a shameless thing to say. Hoshinomiya Chie mentally stamped Ryuuen as a scoundrel, making it even more impossible for her to let him get close to Ichinose Honami.

"Then you truly have universal love."

Hoshinomiya Chie intended to leave, but Ryuuen, who hadn't gotten any useful information, was still a bit annoyed, so he decided to tease Hoshinomiya Chie.

"Yes, just now, a piece of my heart was branded with Teacher Hoshinomiya's mark. What should I do, Teacher Hoshinomiya?"

"Teasing your teacher will result in losing academic points, you know." Hoshinomiya Chie looked displeased.

"It's fine, it's just a few points. If I can win the teacher's heart, losing more points wouldn't matter."

"Hmph, smooth talker, not a single true word. Ryuuen, you should try your sweet talk on younger girls. I, your teacher, am not interested in chatting with you. I'm leaving."

Her small leather shoes clicked on the wooden floor.

"How heartless, Teacher Hoshinomiya. Then I'll just have to go find Teacher Chabashira. I think Teacher Chabashira is quite pretty too."

Hoshinomiya Chie stopped, turned, and stared at Ryuuen. "You know quite a lot, but this won't threaten me."

"How could I threaten my teacher? I'm a law-abiding student. I'm just kindly reminding Teacher Hoshinomiya not to waste her time; beauty fades with age."

Hoshinomiya Chie left, leaving Ryuuen alone again. He had offended Hoshinomiya Chie this time, but Ryuuen wasn't afraid of her. Offending her was bound to happen sooner or later. Whether he targeted Chabashira in Class D or Ichinose Honami in Class B in the future, she would resent him. So why bother maintaining a brief and boring friendly teacher-student relationship now?

In Japan, where class oppression was severe, one of Ryuuen's favorite things to do was defy authority.

The books in the room could be borrowed. Ryuuen picked up a few books related to "Outdoor Survival Guide" and took them with him.

On the ship, Ryuuen shared a room with Ishizaki and Kaneda. Both were quite loyal to Ryuuen, so they had no complaints about being told not to return to the dorm before eight o'clock.

Ryuuen didn't need excuses to send them away; this was the benefit of tyrannical rule—the ruled simply had to obey.

At this moment, besides Ryuuen, there was one other person in the room: Ibuki Mio.

The only girl who had always been dissatisfied with Ryuuen's rule was Ibuki.

"What do you want, you jerk!" Ibuki was always ill-tempered when she saw Ryuuen.

"Do you want a beating?" Ryuuen didn't tolerate her either.

"Then come on, let's see who beats who!" Ibuki challenged arrogantly.

Ryuuen didn't understand her behavior—pure stubbornness, the foolishness of knowingly heading into danger.

"I have something I need you to do." Ryuuen got straight to the point.

"No!" Ibuki's answer was quick and decisive.

"You're refusing before I even say what it is. I didn't bring you here to refuse me."

This kid just needed a beating; a good smack would fix her. Of course, Ryuuen didn't hit her hard; he still needed her for the upcoming exam. He merely tied her up with a bedsheet and gagged her with a handkerchief (the handkerchief he had taken from Hiyori earlier). "Alright, now listen to me."

When Ibuki left, she had many red marks from the bedsheet, some even purplish.

Ryuuen, meanwhile, was frowning at the handkerchief in the room, damp with Ibuki's saliva. "I should have made her wash the handkerchief before she left."

Shortly after Ibuki left, another guest appeared in the room: Katsuragi Kohhei from Class A.