Classroom of the Elite: I Can Assign Master's Tasks

So she was afraid that doing something like that would make Nangong Cheng think she was a frivolous girl.

That would be bad.

After all, compared with Yosuke Hirata, Karuizawa Kei was already convinced that Nangong Cheng was the better choice for her.

Hirata was certainly outstanding among boys their age, but he was too much of a nice guy. It was hard to say whether he could truly protect her.

Nangong Cheng was different.

In both temperament and ability, Nangong Cheng had figured out the truth about the school in a single day and used it to obtain six million Private Points from Classes A, B, and C. He had even gotten someone as difficult to approach as Horikita Suzune to speak up for him.

That said plenty about his capabilities.

Even if it wasn't an overwhelming advantage, he could definitely protect her better than Yosuke Hirata—though with the system, she no longer needed anyone else's protection.

Her thoughts wandered back to Nangong Cheng's promise that morning. He had said he would message her with a Stress-Relief Method.

So why hadn't his message come yet?

Just then, Sato Maya called her name again.

"Kei, did you hear?"

"Hm? About what?"

Kei's wandering mind snapped back.

But Karuizawa Kei still responded to Sato Maya somewhat absentmindedly, wondering if she should find an excuse to spend more time with Nangong Cheng.

After all, even if she could rely on the system, her Points ultimately came from Nangong Cheng.

Perhaps today's task was her chance...

"It's Class C. Apparently, some ruthless guy got the whole class into a brawl and beat everyone who opposed him into submission."

What was that supposed to mean?

Don't tell me something so scary!

Karuizawa Kei jolted at the news, her attention suddenly razor-sharp.

"Seriously?"

"Check the forum. A lot of Class C students are complaining there and asking the school to do something."

Karuizawa Kei logged onto the forum at once.

The words Tyrant of Class C jumped out at her.

The man's sinister, vicious face seemed to trigger her trauma. She even felt a phantom ache in her lower abdomen.

"Has the school responded?"

"Even if it encourages competition between classes, it can't allow students to use violence, can it?"

Karuizawa Kei scrolled through the comments as she joined the conversation.

But her heart sank.

She had the feeling the school wasn't entirely opposed to violence. As long as Ryuuen kept it from going too far and no one obtained solid evidence of his attacks...

The school would probably turn a blind eye.

"No. Everything on the forum is just the students' side of the story. Without solid evidence, it's hard for the school to step in," Matsushita Chiaki said.

Karuizawa Kei's expression gradually hardened.

In that case, she had to earn the maximum Points from today's task.

Over the past few days, she had spent all her free time studying the system. Naturally, she had found plenty of useful things in the System Shop.

The Gene-Enhancement Potion and Advanced Combat Mastery, for example, were obviously practical at a glance.

In short, once she had enough Points to redeem what she needed, she wouldn't have to live in fear anymore.

"Karuizawa..."

An unfamiliar voice suddenly cut into their conversation.

Karuizawa Kei looked over and was surprised to see Horikita Suzune calling her.

"There's something I'd like to discuss with you alone. If you have time after lunch, I'll wait for you at the Café."

"...Okay. Got it."

Karuizawa Kei didn't refuse.

Everyone now recognized Horikita Suzune as one of the people closest to Nangong Cheng. This might give Kei a way into their little group, the most influential one in Class D.

Sakura Airi was part of it too, but she was so timid that talking to her was a struggle.

Kei couldn't let this opportunity slip by.

"Then please accept my friend request. See you in a bit."

Horikita Suzune nodded, left her with those words, and promptly carried her tray away.

"Wait, wait. Was that really Horikita Suzune?"

Sato Maya's voice rose theatrically, her face full of disbelief.

Matsushita Chiaki merely smiled without saying anything.

"Isn't it good that she's changed? Or would you rather deal with an unfriendly Horikita all the time?"

"Well, no... I'm just not used to it."

Karuizawa Kei smiled and shook her head, quietly steering the conversation elsewhere.

After lunch, the three of them parted ways.

Kei took out her phone and accepted the friend request. Horikita Suzune immediately sent her location to show that she was still there.

Karuizawa Kei hurried over.

"Horikita, sorry for the wait."

Seated at a table, Horikita Suzune stirred her coffee with a spoon. She nodded and glanced at the empty seat across from her.

"Please, sit."

Karuizawa Kei sat down, holding her skirt in place.

She touched the coffee cup in front of her. It was still warm.

"What did you want to talk to me about, Horikita?"

"I want to know what stress-relief method Nangong Cheng mentioned to you and Kushida this morning."

Horikita Suzune had always been direct. Since Karuizawa Kei had asked, she gave her a straight answer.

"Oh, so that's what this is about..."

Karuizawa Kei looked thoughtful, then smiled helplessly.

"I'd like to tell you, Horikita, but Nangong hasn't—"

Bzz! Bzz!

Her phone's vibration cut her off.

Kei gave Horikita Suzune an apologetic look, took out her phone, and glanced at it. Her eyes lit up.

"It's a message from Nangong."

"He says it's hard to explain in words, so he found a video that shows it more clearly."

"Let's watch it together."

A High-Quality Stress-Relief Method: Fighting Cortisol with Dopamine

At that moment...

Neither Karuizawa Kei nor Horikita Suzune realized how serious things were about to get.

Karuizawa Kei least of all.

Since Nangong Cheng had assigned her a related task, she should have guessed there was something wrong with this Stress-Relief Method. At the very least, it wasn't likely to be the respectable method she had imagined.

But Ryuen Kakeru's violence had put her under immense pressure to earn Points, leaving her too eager for results.

She overlooked something she should have noticed.

And so, disaster struck.

The moment she opened the video, a strange, suggestive chorus of "mm, ah, oh" rang out from her phone, drawing the attention of the café's modest but sizable crowd.

"!!!"

Karuizawa Kei's face instantly turned scarlet.

She mashed the volume button as though she wanted to weld her finger to it, frantically turning the sound off.

"...Now I understand why he said this Stress-Relief Method wasn't suitable for me."

Thanks to her past experiences, Horikita Suzune kept her composure a little better than Karuizawa Kei.

Even so, her face turned red.

She couldn't help it. After making such a mortifying scene in public, even she couldn't remain unfazed.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

Compared with Horikita Suzune's relatively calm reaction, Karuizawa Kei sprang to her feet in a panic and bowed repeatedly, apologizing to the students and staff in the Café, and even to Horikita Suzune.

At this point, Horikita Suzune had to stand up and say something too.

"This was a tasteless prank by a boy in our class, but I'm truly sorry we disturbed everyone."

"His name is Nangong Cheng. I think most of you know him. If you're upset, I hope you'll take it up with him directly rather than blame the two victims."

With that, Horikita Suzune pulled Karuizawa Kei out of the Café.

Of course, the coffee had already been paid for.

A breeze swept past.

Karuizawa Kei's mind cleared a little.

"I'm sorry. This was all my fault..."

"It wasn't your fault. Nangong Cheng is just that kind of person. If anything, I should have warned you."

Horikita Suzune shook her head.

The moment Nangong Cheng had said, "At least, it isn't suitable for you right now," she should have realized he was up to something.

Karuizawa Kei was a victim too. Horikita Suzune wasn't going to take it out on her.

"Next time, I'll make sure we're somewhere completely private. That should prevent anything like this from happening again."

"As for that Stress-Relief Method..."

Horikita Suzune paused.

To be honest, she hadn't expected Nangong Cheng to send a girl that kind of video.

Never mind the damage to his reputation. What on earth had been going through his head when he decided to do that?

"I know what I'm doing!"

Karuizawa Kei hurriedly took over the conversation.

Horikita Suzune didn't know about her situation, and Kei couldn't tell her about the system. All she could do was brush it off vaguely.

"More importantly, Horikita, I hope this won't affect your mood or your relationship with Nangong..."

Horikita Suzune shook her head.

Her mood was fine. At most, she was a little speechless. Her nerves weren't that fragile.

But her impression of Nangong Cheng...

That was hard to put into words.

Still, having read plenty of classics and other books, she understood that a person's character and abilities were two entirely separate things.