Kaoru Mitoma returned to the classroom and had just sat down when Kamuro Masumi kicked his calf.
"What do you want to say?"
"Feels like you went out to do something."
"Just went to the restroom."
"Tch, not like I'm suspecting you."
If you're not suspecting me, can you stop looking at me like that?
But it wasn't entirely Kamuro Masumi fault. After all, her task was to follow Kaoru Mitoma, yet he had refused her earlier. So, it was only natural for her to be suspicious.
Kamuro Masumi seemed bored, as if searching for a topic to talk about.
"Hey, when is the student council going to deal with that?"
"Deal with what?" Sometimes, Kaoru Mitoma really couldn't understand what she was talking about.
"Wasn't there someone from Class B who stole something in the library?" Kamuro Masumi found it quite baffling. No matter what, stealing in a place like the library would surely get you caught.
"It should be fine now." Kaoru Mitoma looked at her with a half-smile. "You're not feeling empathetic, are you?"
"Who would feel empathetic? It's none of my business. I'm just a bit surprised." Kamuro Masumi pouted.
Kaoru Mitoma was used to her stubbornness and changed the subject.
"The exam is next week. How are you feeling?"
"I usually can't understand the teacher's derivations in class, but now it seems I can." Kamuro Masumi honestly told him.
"If the difficulty is similar to the last test, I might really improve by twenty or thirty points. Thanks to you this month."
"It's not because of me. It just shows you're not dumb, just lacking a more efficient way of studying." Kaoru Mitoma shook his head. Being placed in Class A by the school, she couldn't be a fool. At the very least, she must have some exceptional qualities.
Kamuro Masumi turned her face to the side to avoid letting him see anything.
After all, she was rarely praised, and if he saw her expression, he would probably get smug.
Kaoru Mitoma looked ahead at Sakayanagi Arisu. The midterms were approaching, and the semester was quietly halfway through. What exactly was she thinking?
If she had no plans, Kaoru Mitoma would have to take the initiative to bother her. But for now, he would wait patiently. He pondered over the days to come as time slowly passed.
....
After school in the afternoon, Horikita Manabu informed him that Class C had withdrawn their accusation against Amikura Mako, stating it was a misunderstanding.
After communication, the misunderstanding had been resolved. Not only that, but Class B also demanded a cleanup of the school anonymous forum, not allowing anyone to slander a student reputation without cause.
With the student council clarification, the school public opinion quickly reversed, and the earlier sarcastic remarks vanished entirely.
However, no matter how harmonious things seemed on the surface, for the parties involved, it might be a psychological shadow they would never forget.
Perhaps to show off or to express his satisfaction with Kaoru Mitoma, Ryuen deliberately sent him a few messages.
"Heh, I didn't expect you to actually get Ichinose to come to us. I'm curious about what you said to her."
"Just told the truth."
"Hmph, Mitoma, I've already done my research. Class B can't come up with five million in cash, and they haven't borrowed money from anyone. It's strange."
"I wouldn't lend them money either."
"Why so eager to distance yourself? But never mind, even if you don't say it, I'll get the truth out of you. Such a boring trick."
For some reason, Ryuen seemed to have lost interest in him, casually throwing out one last sentence.
"Just wait in Class A, Mitoma. Cherish the little time you have left."
Kaoru Mitoma put away his phone. No matter how arrogant Ryuen was, he couldn't threaten Class A for now.
...
At a little past six in the morning, the dormitory doorbell rang several times as usual.
Kaoru Mitoma opened the door and, as expected, Horikita Suzune was standing there, holding a bento box in her hand.
"Seventeenth."
The girl voice was cool and detached. This kind of exchange between them had been going on in secret for two weeks now. She would deliver a lunchbox in the morning and come back in the evening to retrieve the empty box.
Back and forth, Horikita Suzune had managed to repay nearly a thousand personal points through her lunchbox efforts.
However, even when added up, the debt she had repaid so far didn't even amount to ten thousand personal points. And with about four months left until the second semester, Horikita Suzune would need to repay at least a hundred thousand personal points each month.
For an ordinary person, this might have been enough to make them give up, but there was still a stubborn glint in her eyes, refusing to admit defeat.
"How's the list from last time coming along?" Kaoru Mitoma wasn't in a hurry to take the lunchbox from her. He was just two or three wishes away from completing a ten-wish streak.
Horikita Suzune expression stiffened, though she maintained a calm and composed demeanor on the surface.
"Let's not talk about that disgusting topic for a few more days. I still have to tutor a few idiots."
Just by looking at her expression, Kaoru Mitoma didn't need to guess what she was thinking. She had probably been exposed to a whole new world and finally understood what the items on the list truly meant—far more perverse and vile than she had imagined.
The fact that she hadn't run away immediately was already a testament to her resilience.
"So, what you're saying is that you'd rather spend time tutoring a few idiots than repay your debt?" Kaoru Mitoma said with a faint, almost eerie tone.
Horikita Suzune was momentarily stunned, then retorted with irritation.
"If it weren't for you, why would I have to tutor those fools every day?"
Speaking of this, she grew even angrier. She had thought that Sudou Ken and the others were just a bit slow, with no foundation to build on, but it turned out that their homeroom teacher, Chabashira Sae, was even more of a headache!
Just yesterday, their homeroom teacher had informed them that the school had changed the exam scope, rendering most of their previous study materials useless. And to make matters worse, the midterm exams were only three or four days away.
What was even more outrageous was that the other classes had received the notice earlier!
Horikita Suzune had almost flipped the table in frustration, but fortunately, she had good self-control and managed to suppress her anger.
Instead of complaining endlessly, it was better to work overtime and cram all the new exam material into her head in the last few days!
"Take the lunchbox already!" Horikita Suzune shoved the lunchbox into his hands. She still had to get to the classroom early to prepare today study tasks for Sudou Ken and the others, and she didn't want to waste any more time arguing with him.
However, she expected Kaoru Mitoma to say something as he usually did, but instead, he was inexplicably staring at something behind her.
Horikita Suzune felt puzzled and turned to look as well, only to see a girl standing in the corridor not far away, holding what seemed to be a lunchbox in her hands.
The girl was staring directly at them, and for some reason, Horikita Suzune felt a chill run down her spine.
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