In the corridor, Hikaru Naruse and Ai Morishita walked side by side along the path toward the Class A classroom.
As he walked, Hikaru Naruse spoke up.
“Morishita-san, how much do you know about Sakayanagi-san and Katsuragi-san’s current plans of action?”
Ai Morishita tilted her head and glanced at him before answering.
“They’ve both already started moving.
Neither of them was in the classroom during the breaks.”
“The school is huge, and according to the students supervising them… it seems they’ve already gotten some results.”
“That’s certainly something to look forward to.”
Hikaru Naruse smiled and nodded.
“Although…”
Ai Morishita paused.
“I heard that both Katsuragi-san and Sakayanagi-san have already settled on a direction.
They plan to use their free time at noon to go find upperclassmen and probe them for information.”
“Oh?”
Hikaru Naruse’s eyebrows twitched slightly.
Going to the upperclassmen to gather intelligence—that really was a decent line of thinking.
After all, they had already endured at least a year of “hardship,” so their familiarity with the school rules was surely greater than that of the new students.
The key question was: how could they get the upperclassmen to talk?
Those upperclassmen certainly understood the value of information.
Wanting to purchase the highly valuable hidden rules wasn’t something that could be settled over a single meal—it would definitely require some haggling.
On another note, the island nation’s hierarchical culture was also a factor worth considering.
The relationship between a [senpai] and a [kouhai] was extremely delicate.
Lower-year students were expected to maintain a basic level of respect and distance toward their upperclassmen.
Rashly striking up a conversation, or worse, presumptuously asking questions, would in many cases be regarded as rude behavior.
Especially since today was only the first day of the term, there was almost no interaction whatsoever between the first-year freshmen and the second- and third-year seniors.
Under such circumstances, a first-year freshman suddenly running up to a stranger from the upper years to strike up a conversation—and asking sensitive questions about school rules, no less—was, on a social level, a very difficult thing to pull off.
Even knowing the plot of the original work, Hikaru Naruse understood that this was no simple matter.
“The idea itself is fine, but there are a lot of problems to overcome.”
Naruse paused briefly, then shifted the topic.
“I just wonder how Sakayanagi-san and Katsuragi-san plan to go about it.”
Ai Morishita didn’t respond right away, merely glancing at him with a hint of curiosity.
“In terms of feasibility there really will be difficulties, but a group of people in the class have already prepared to accompany Katsuragi-san to carry it out.
They think that having more people will give them more confidence.”
“A whole crowd marching off to chat up the upperclassmen?”
Hikaru Naruse thought about it and decided the mental image looked a bit like triad thugs heading out on business, which made him unable to hold back a chuckle.
Ai Morishita didn’t know what he was laughing at, so she simply asked again.
“So what about you, Naruse-san?”
“Me?”
“What do you plan to do?”
Hikaru Naruse thought for a moment, then answered.
“Since the two of them already have plans, I’ll just follow along with Katsuragi’s group and supervise together with everyone.”
“Hm?”
Ai Morishita’s footsteps suddenly halted.
Then she turned her head, and a sharp gaze shot straight at Naruse.
“Naruse-san… didn’t you just agree to act together with me?”
“?”
Hikaru Naruse was momentarily stunned.
Just now he had only said it offhandedly—that he could act together with Ai Morishita.
In his view, she shouldn’t have cared much about that sort of thing.
Could it be that, in her eyes, this counted as a promise between the two of us?
Hikaru Naruse silently reached that conclusion in his heart, and a gentle smile appeared on his face.
“Uh, then what are you planning to do?”
“I’ve already promised Sakayanagi-san that I’d go supervise her at noon.”
“That works.”
Naruse had no particular opinion about whom to supervise—either way, he’d get to understand the students in the class.
“Then let’s go together.”
Ai Morishita gave a slight nod and said nothing more.
The next two class periods proceeded smoothly.
He had to admit, Koudo Ikusei really did have a knack for selecting students and sorting them into classes.
Of the forty students in Class A, hardly anyone let their attention wander during the lessons.
Even though everyone still didn’t know the school’s hidden rules, no point-deduction behavior would be triggered for now.
When the two periods ended, the lunch break arrived, and the classroom once again grew noisy.
Because the real show was about to begin.
Hikaru Naruse sat in his own seat, his gaze sweeping calmly and inconspicuously across the entire classroom.
The first to act was Kohei Katsuragi.
The bald man rose from the very back row, and several boys immediately gathered around him—the most animated among them, naturally, being Yahiko Totsuka.
“Everyone.”
Kohei Katsuragi swept his gaze around the classroom and spoke with great earnestness.
“I know that among those present, some of you may still have doubts about my abilities.
That’s perfectly normal—after all, we only met today, and trust isn’t something that can be built in a single day.”
He paused briefly, then weighted his tone.
“But I hope you can understand one thing: I’m doing all of this not for myself, but for every single one of us in Class A.
If there are any classmates who don’t trust me, you’re welcome to come along and supervise.
I’ll prove my sincerity and ability through concrete action.”
These words were spoken with resounding force, carrying real weight.
The classroom fell silent for a moment, and then a low murmur of discussion rose up.
Hikaru Naruse noticed that quite a few students, after hearing Kohei Katsuragi’s words, wore expressions of approval on their faces.
This was precisely where Kohei Katsuragi’s charm lay.
He wasn’t a man skilled at manipulating people’s hearts.
His way of winning them over was very simple—sincerity.
Kohei Katsuragi said nothing further.
He merely gave a slight nod, then left the classroom together with Yahiko Totsuka and seven or eight other boys.
After Katsuragi and his group departed, a crisp tapping sound of a cane touching the floor came from the front of the classroom.
“Tap, tap, tap.”
Arisu Sakayanagi, propping herself up with that silver cane, slowly walked up to the podium.
Once she stood firm, she swept her purple eyes across the remaining students in the classroom, and a faint smile curved at the corners of her lips.
“Since Katsuragi-san has already set out, then it’s about time I acted as well.”
Sakayanagi’s voice was soft and pleasant, carrying an ethereal quality that, paired with her silver-haired appearance, made her seem like a fairy.
“Any classmates who’d like to supervise me, please come along too.”
With that, the girl leaned on her cane and unhurriedly strolled toward the classroom door.
A few students followed after her.
Six girls and three boys—among them, one person who caught Hikaru Naruse’s attention.
Masayoshi Hashimoto.
In the original work, Masayoshi Hashimoto was a rather crucial figure within Class A.
He was someone highly skilled at socializing and gathering all sorts of information.
Though he came across as flippant on the surface, all of his actions were aimed at ensuring he could graduate smoothly with the status of a Class A student.
In other words, he was a person with the same goal as Naruse.
At the start of the original story, Hashimoto supported Sakayanagi, but later he discovered that Sakayanagi didn’t care about the collective interests of Class A, and so he broke with her in anger.
A person like that, regardless of his original intentions, was still someone worth trying to win over.
Hikaru Naruse silently affixed a label to him in his mind, then withdrew his gaze.
On the other side, Ai Morishita had already risen from her seat.
She cast a glance in Hikaru Naruse’s direction, and in those purple eyes was a trace of silent urging.
Wait a minute… in the original work, was she really this proactive a person?
Hikaru Naruse felt a little puzzled, but he still nodded toward her and stood up.
The two of them, one ahead of the other, followed behind Sakayanagi’s group and walked out of the classroom.
Although Koudo Ikusei was not a normal high school, its daily schedule was the same as that of an ordinary high school.
The three morning periods ended at just past 11:00, and there were only two periods in the afternoon.
If there were no club activities, students could return to the dorms by three-thirty.
Both Kohei Katsuragi and Arisu Sakayanagi had thought of seeking out upperclassmen to gather information, but the two of them had different points of emphasis.
Kohei Katsuragi’s claim was that he had already arranged to meet with a second-year senpai and would go see him at noon.
Sakayanagi’s plan, meanwhile, was to head to the cafeteria at this time, hoping to find upperclassmen there.
This artificial island served only three grades of students, and the school cafeteria occupied a vast area.
Dozens of four-seat tables were arranged in the hall, capable of seating at least a hundred people dining at once.
Arisu Sakayanagi paused briefly at the cafeteria entrance, her purple eyes sweeping over every corner of the hall.
Then, leaning on her cane, she strolled unhurriedly into the hall and came to a stop beside a table near the center.
The other students followed one after another, finding places to sit or stand around her.
Hikaru Naruse noticed that there were already quite a few students in the cafeteria at this moment.
Most were first-year freshmen, sitting in twos and threes at their respective tables, chatting as they ate.
But there were also some upperclassmen wearing uniforms of the same color yet with differently colored ties, scattered about in various corners.
After Arisu Sakayanagi sat down beside the table, it seemed she had known all along that Naruse had come along too, so she spoke up.
“Naruse-san.”
“What is it?”
Hikaru Naruse turned his head back, his gaze falling upon Arisu Sakayanagi’s face.
He saw a smile playing on that exquisite little face of hers.
She sat there quietly, her cane leaning against the back of her chair, her hands folded together on the tabletop.
“I’d like to ask you for a favor.”
“Hm?”
Hearing this, Naruse asked in return.
“You want my help?
That doesn’t seem to align with the principle of fair competition, does it?”
“It’s exactly as you say.”
Arisu Sakayanagi knew that everyone was watching her at this moment, yet she still explained without any hurry.
“Although everyone is now supervising the competition between Katsuragi-san and myself, and for the sake of fairness the other classmates indeed cannot lend a hand—but… there’s a precondition here.”
The girl’s tone was as though she were stating the most natural of truths.
“My legs aren’t very convenient, and this, I imagine, Naruse-san can understand.”
“On the other hand,” she paused slightly, then added, “a class leader can’t possibly take on everything all by herself.
Appropriate division of labor and cooperation are the fundamental principles of how a team operates.”
“I only hope that Naruse-san will go and call one person over for me.
All the rest I will handle myself.
A request like that shouldn’t be considered excessive, should it?”
These words were watertight, without a single loophole.
They were both reasonable and cleverly leveraged her own physical disadvantage to win sympathy.
Just as Hikaru Naruse was about to respond, the other students beside him spoke up first.
“If Naruse-san isn’t willing, I can go too.”
“That’s right, Sakayanagi-san’s legs aren’t convenient.
Any of us could handle calling someone over.”
“Yeah, no need to trouble Naruse-san.”
Everyone was very enthusiastic, but Hikaru Naruse realized this was a test on Sakayanagi’s part.
Although calling an upperclassman over was a very simple thing, how one called them offered a great deal of room for maneuvering.
“In that case, fine.
But Sakayanagi-san…”
Hikaru Naruse smiled, then looked straight at the girl’s pretty face.
“If I bring him over for you, wouldn’t that mean you owe me a favor?”
“Of course.”
Arisu Sakayanagi didn’t hesitate in the slightest, nodding with a smile.
“Good then.”
Arisu Sakayanagi thought for a moment, then raised her hand and pointed in a direction.
“I’ll choose… that male senpai over there.
Naruse-san, please go and invite him over for me.”
Hikaru Naruse looked in the direction her finger indicated.
At a window seat deep in the cafeteria, a boy wearing an upperclassman’s uniform sat there alone.
Before him was placed the most basic mountain-vegetable set meal, which didn’t look very appetizing, and the boy was eating quite slowly.
A student from one of the lower-ranked classes?
Hikaru Naruse, who knew the rules, made that judgment in his heart, then said gently.
“Everyone, please be patient.
I’ll be right back.”
Hikaru Naruse didn’t care about the sense of distance between senpai and kouhai in the island nation’s society.
He believed only in ‘the master is whoever is most capable’ and the law of the jungle.
If someone could easily earn respect simply for having been born earlier, then that would be rather underestimating people.
Soon, he arrived at the table of that upperclassman boy.
“You’re a second-year student, aren’t you, senpai?
Let me introduce myself—I’m a first-year freshman from Class A.
I’m Hikaru Naruse.”
“?”
The upperclassman boy seemed a bit puzzled by Hikaru Naruse’s familiarity and forwardness, but he still nodded.
“Hello.”
“Senpai, would you like to chat with a pretty girl?
Right over there… she has something she wants with you.”
Naruse pointed toward Arisu Sakayanagi over there.
“?”
The upperclassman boy glanced at Arisu Sakayanagi, his expression somewhat puzzled.
“What does she want with me?”
Naruse gave a playful smile.
“Senpai, as a guy, chances to be sought out by a pretty girl of her own accord are quite rare.”
Although Sakayanagi had a wicked personality, her looks were quite good—calling her a pretty girl was no exaggeration.
“Or could it be you’re not willing?”
“…”