It’s real!
All of this is real!
Kei Karuizawa was instantly swept into a speechless ecstasy and excitement.
Fortunately, since Maya Satō and the others were busy being delighted that Axel End was treating them, her state didn’t come across as strange.
Only after she calmed down did she belatedly notice that a free item called [System User Manual] had been placed in the most conspicuous spot.
Since it was free, she might as well buy it and take a look—she needed to understand just what this system actually was, anyway.
“Come now, little fat sheep, hop obediently into the bowl.”
Axel End took in every one of Kei Karuizawa’s “off” reactions.
Setting aside Suzune Horikita and Kikyō Kushida, Kei Karuizawa counted as the third little fat sheep he was using to get familiar with the system’s mechanics.
She was also, of the three, the little fat sheep who was comparatively the easiest to bewitch.
“So, ladies, are you planning to eat at the cafeteria, or find a place on the shopping street?”
Axel End took the initiative to start the conversation.
While reading through the system manual, Kei Karuizawa voiced an opinion on behalf of their little group.
“The cafeteria, then.
Even before enrolling, I’d heard how good the Advanced Nurturing High School’s cafeteria is—I’d already been planning to check it out on the first day of school.”
Maya Satō and the others naturally had no objection either.
After all, as students, they’d spend most of their time at school eating in the cafeteria, which was perfectly normal.
Axel End nodded.
The group set off for the cafeteria, laden with bags big and small.
The Advanced Nurturing High School’s cafeteria truly lived up to the reputation of a national school.
Whether in scale, ambiance, or the variety of dishes, it was thoroughly satisfying.
Axel End readily paid for Kei Karuizawa and the others’ meals, and had no intention of shortchanging himself either, ordering a deluxe set straight away.
Just as the group had settled down and were about to eat, a pretty girl suddenly appeared.
“Hello~ May I sit here?”
Kikyō Kushida—a beautiful girl with a pathological craving for validation, who, after her secret was exposed, had once thrown an entire class of teachers and students into suspension-inducing turmoil.
Put simply, she was dangerous.
To Class D, she was undoubtedly a bomb that could go off at any moment.
On a personal level, she was a scheming girl whom one could almost never bring themselves to trust.
And in a certain sense, the heroines of Classroom of the Elite bore a considerable resemblance to those legendary girls over at the neighboring studio’s MyGO and Mujica.
They were all problem children.
So purely from the standpoint of a body-worshipping fan, Axel End did quite like Kikyō Kushida.
On top of that, the girl’s two-faced, contrasting-persona trait actually matched a certain fetish of his—but only when there was a screen between them.
If he really ran into someone like this in real life, Axel End would absolutely steer well clear.
Now, however, with a system on his side, Axel End was no longer afraid of Kikyō Kushida stirring up trouble.
“Kushida-san?
There’s still room, so please, have a seat.”
Kei Karuizawa naturally wouldn’t refuse her a seat, yet inwardly she clicked her tongue.
Because, unlike her own put-on gyaru image, the gentle, cute little-angel image Kikyō Kushida projected was more competitive and more popular than hers.
The saying that “like poles repel” wasn’t without reason.
But if she’d known that this face of Kikyō Kushida’s was also a fabrication…
Then things would get interesting.
“Yeah.
But I’m not intruding on everyone, am I?” Kikyō Kushida said this with her mouth, yet her body had already taken a seat.
A coincidence?
Fake.
Where in this world are there so many coincidences?
More often than not, they’re the result of careful design.
Kikyō Kushida had sought them out on purpose.
[Host: Kikyō Kushida]
[Age: High School Girl]
[Measurements: B: 82 (D) W: 55 H: 83]
[Personal Status: Single, no romantic history, extreme craving for validation, moderately depressed mental state]
[Community of Fate: Axel End]
[Skills Held: None]
[Items Held: None]
[Points Held: 0]
After coming to understand this so-called “Perfect Life System,” Kikyō Kushida made her decision.
To accept this [Gift of Fate].
A conspiracy?
Perhaps.
But in the end she was just an ordinary girl, and since she couldn’t resist, she could only choose to accept.
At the very least, she really could gain tangible benefits.
That alone was enough to make the gamble worth it.
As for why she’d sought out Axel End, that was simple too.
Because, according to the system, the “perfect” in Perfect Life covered every domain—naturally including [Love], or rather [Marriage].
And Axel End was the match the system had screened out for her, designated a [Community of Fate], meaning that in this world only he could share weal and woe with her.
So whether it was to complete more tasks or to understand her destined partner, she had to get a good grasp of just what kind of person Axel End was.
“No, no, not at all.
We’re just very ordinarily eating and chatting—there’s no intruding or not intruding about it.”
Because running two threads at once was as effortless as drinking water for her, she quite naturally chatted with Kei Karuizawa and the others while simultaneously striking up conversation with Axel End.
“Um, End-kun, could we exchange contact info?
While we’re at it, I’ll add you to the class group chat.”
Though Kikyō Kushida had long since stopped daring to hope she’d ever have love, if she could, she wouldn’t resist it either.
But she still wanted to know just what kind of person Axel End was, and for that she naturally needed more contact with him.
“Go ahead and scan me.”
Things inconvenient to refuse, he’d simply accept.
As the instigator of all this, Axel End knew exactly why Kikyō Kushida was being so proactive and warm toward him now.
Barring surprises, it was definitely because of the Subsystem.
A beautiful girl who’d gained benefits and finished conquering herself now wanted even more benefits, so she’d naturally put on a display like this toward him—now that their interests were bound together.
“Earlier on the bus, End-kun helped me out a great deal, so if you ever need help down the line, please be sure to come to me, okay~”
“It was just a small effort.
Besides, we’re all classmates in the same class—we ought to help each other out.”
“Da~me!”
“Even if it really was just a small effort for you, End-kun, it truly was a big help to me, so I’ll definitely remember it well!”
Kikyō Kushida went on speaking while keeping up her cute act.
Though she didn’t believe her charm could make everyone fall for her, few boys her age could withstand her sugar-coated bullets.
Yet Axel End was unaffected.
Was he faking it?
Uncertain—she’d need to keep observing.
“Kushida-san really is beautiful inside and out.
I imagine even after graduation I’ll have a hard time forgetting a good girl like you.”
It wasn’t that Axel End was truly unaffected—of course he liked sweet girls—but Kikyō Kushida’s sweet-girl image was merely a false thing she’d fabricated.
So he took the sugar coating and fired the bullet right back.
In fact, his thinking happened to align with that of certain fellow enthusiasts: Kikyō Kushida’s true face was, if anything, a bit more attractive to him.
She’d be perfect, for instance, for cosplaying a maid—and then showing off the inner layers with a look of utter disgust on her face.
These days it’s really all about that sense of contrast.
“Eh?
End-kun…”
“I’m done eating.
With a guy like me around, you girls probably can’t fully relax, so I’ll head off first.”
Seeing a blush like blooming peach blossoms rise on Kikyō Kushida’s face, how could Axel End fail to tell she was about to launch into another performance?
But for now, he was no seasoned old thespian—he couldn’t play a two-hander scene against Master Kushida.
When the wind blows tight, make a run for it: retreat was the best policy.