[The taste of this dish… is really amazing!]
Amasawa Ichika was inwardly amazed, completely surprised by how skilled "Saiki" was at cooking. Although it couldn't be compared to a top-tier chef, in her mind, this dish definitely scored at least an 80.
While Amasawa Ichika was enjoying her meal, Saiki Kurumi kept smiling and asking her a series of questions.
"How do you feel about school so far?"
"Have you made any new friends?"
"What do your family members do?"
These questions caught Amasawa Ichika off guard, making her feel like she was being interrogated by a curious parent.
[This feeling… is really strange.]
'Your feeling isn't wrong.'
From a distance, Saiki, who was observing the situation in the room with his clairvoyance, could only sigh.
Although what was happening now was completely beyond his expectations, overall, he had successfully managed to handle the situation.
"School just started, so I'm not very familiar with it yet. I'll have to trouble you, senpai, to introduce me to the school."
"As for friends… I'm not very close with the other students in my class yet."
"My family… they're kind of like teachers."
Amasawa Ichika, not knowing much about Saiki's background, had no choice but to answer the questions one by one.
"If you have any problems, you can come to… me. Also, make sure to make more friends at school! And you look quite slim. Although girls care a lot about their figures, you mustn't skip meals!"
Saiki Kurumi said with a smile, completely treating Amasawa Ichika like an ordinary student.
"I… I understand."
Amasawa Ichika could only nod. This kind of conversation wasn't something she had been taught in the White Room.
Soon, the Tom Yum in front of her was completely finished. Amasawa Ichika put down her chopsticks and said to Saiki Kurumi:
"I'm done. Senpai's cooking completely exceeded my expectations…"
"Are you full? If not, I can make a little more for you!"
"I'm full, I'm full! Thank you so much!"
Amasawa Ichika wasn't lying. The portion of Tom Yum she had just eaten was definitely not small.
"I'm very satisfied with senpai's skills. Senpai is definitely my favorite type."
Amasawa Ichika deliberately used ambiguous language to test Saiki's reaction.
'Kids these days!'
When Saiki Kurumi heard Amasawa Ichika's words, her face lit up with a bright smile.
[This girl seems to get along really well with Kusuo!]
'Not at all.'
Saiki immediately conveyed his thoughts to his mother, but Saiki Kurumi seemed to completely ignore him.
"Thank you so much for your hospitality, senpai. I'll agree to partner with Sudo-senpai. Please don't worry!"
"You've worked hard for this exam! If you're willing, you can come over for meals every day!"
Saiki Kurumi naturally wouldn't miss the chance to help her son get closer to his classmates.
'???'
The words came out so quickly that Saiki didn't even have a chance to stop her.
"Really? Can I?"
A hint of anticipation appeared in Amasawa Ichika's eyes.
"Of course!"
"Senpai made such a delicious meal for me today. Let me help you clean up the kitchen."
"No need to trouble yourself. You're a guest!"
"No, no, this is what I should do."
Amasawa Ichika walked into the kitchen and started cleaning. In no time, the entire kitchen was spotless, as good as new, to the point where it was impeccable.
"In that case, I'll be counting on your guidance in the future, senpai!"
Amasawa Ichika said to Saiki Kurumi, then left the room.
After confirming that Amasawa Ichika had left and hadn't left any listening devices behind, Saiki teleported back into the room. Saiki Kurumi immediately approached him and eagerly said:
"Kusuo, that girl is really nice! And she's very efficient too! She cleaned the kitchen so thoroughly! If you need me to cook in the future, make sure to call me! But I think you should also cook for others yourself!"
'Thanks for your hard work.'
After briefly chatting with Saiki Kurumi, Saiki immediately teleported her back home.
Although Amasawa Ichika's intentions weren't pure—she wasn't an ordinary student—Saiki naturally wouldn't tell Saiki Kurumi about her true identity to avoid worrying her.
The only hope was that Amasawa Ichika wouldn't actually come to him for meals in the future.
Just then, Saiki's phone suddenly rang. The caller was Horikita Suzune.
"How did things go with Amasawa?"
Horikita Suzune asked anxiously. This was what she was calling to ask about.
"There shouldn't be any problems now."
Saiki said,
"Amasawa said she'll go find Sudo to apply for a partnership later."
"Good."
Horikita Suzune nodded, but she also felt a little curious about Saiki's cooking skills.
"Thanks for your hard work."
…
The next day, life at school continued as usual.
Horikita Suzune came up with several plans to interact with the other first-year classes.
For now, Class D was the least desirable option, not only because their grades as a D class weren't great, but also because Hosen Kazuomi's arrogant attitude and the class's strategies meant they weren't a suitable choice.
"For now, Classes A, B, and C are all relatively suitable options. Although our class's average ability is lower, our personal points are still an advantage. But this also depends on both sides being on equal footing."
Horikita Suzune said to the others in the class.
Among the 12 students with D grades, Sudo Ken already had a suitable partner, which reduced a lot of trouble for Class A.
"But the strategy we need to come up with is…"
Just then, a student from the class quickly walked up to Horikita Suzune:
"Horikita-san, there's a student outside looking for you."
"Looking for me? Who?"
Horikita Suzune was a little confused. She didn't know who would come specifically to find her.
"It seems to be a first-year student. I don't know them either. I think they're the representative of Class B."
"Class B… Alright, I'll go now."
Horikita Suzune stood up from her seat.
'Yare yare, this probably has nothing to do with me.'
Just as Saiki was thinking this, Horikita Suzune turned her gaze directly to him.
"Saiki-kun, aren't you coming along?"
"Didn't they only call you?"
"As a member of the class, I think you should come with us to see what's going on."
"Hmm… fine."
Saiki had no choice but to follow them.
"You must be Horikita-senpai, right?"
It was a handsome boy who looked full of energy, radiating vitality.
"Yes, I remember you…"
Horikita Suzune had seen him on the OAA system. After returning to her dorm yesterday, she had carefully reviewed the OAA system, looking for students who could be useful to her. One of the people who left the deepest impression on her was the boy in front of her.
Yagami Takuya.
"Hello, senpai. I'm Yagami Takuya, the representative of Class B. I wanted to talk to you about partnering for this exam."
Yagami Takuya said with a smile,
"We want to collaborate as classes. Our class has quite a few students who are lacking academically, so if we can work together, it should benefit both sides."
"Hmm, what you're saying makes sense."
Horikita Suzune nodded.
Meanwhile, Saiki's gaze remained fixed on Yagami Takuya, because he could hear the other's thoughts.
[So this is the class Ayanokoji Kiyotaka is in? How interesting.]
[I've always been looking forward to facing off against Ayanokoji-senpai. After all, we fifth-generation White Room students were all taught about you~]
[Everyone says senpai is a masterpiece, and no matter how hard I try, I can't compare to you. Is that really true? I want to prove it—although I've been ordered to bring you back, if I kill you, then I'll be the only outstanding one left, right?]
Yagami Takuya's thoughts were loud and clear in Saiki's ears.
'Yare yare, this guy is the real trouble.'
Saiki narrowed his eyes slightly.
The second assassin from the White Room had just appeared before Saiki.
And compared to Amasawa Ichika, whom he had encountered earlier, this guy's approach was even more aggressive.
Although the White Room had nothing to do with Saiki, and he hadn't planned to interfere at first—if Yagami Takuya really intended to act on his thoughts, then Saiki wouldn't just stand by and watch.
After all, this was definitely crossing the line.
[So this is Saiki? The higher-ups said not to have too much contact with him.]
'Here we go again.'
[This only makes me more interested. Saiki, just who are you to make the White Room so wary of you?]
'Yare yare… are all you White Room people this rebellious? Can't you just follow orders properly?'
[Could it be that Saiki is an even more special existence than Ayanokoji? I'm getting more and more curious. Maybe I can prove that I'm the most outstanding one.]
While discussing class collaboration with Horikita Suzune, Yagami Takuya subtly glanced into the distance.
[But my target today isn't you… it's to find a tool I can use.]
Just then, Kushida Kikyo and a few other girls from the class walked out of the classroom, chatting and laughing. When Yagami Takuya saw them, he immediately stepped forward.
"Hey… aren't you Kushida-senpai?"
"Huh?"
Hearing his call, Kushida Kikyo quickly turned her gaze to him, a hint of confusion in her eyes. She had never seen him before.
"Who are you?"
"It's me, senpai. Don't you remember? But it's understandable if you don't. It's been a year since we last met… I'm Yagami Takuya!"
After thinking for a moment, Kushida Kikyo's face lit up with realization.
"Yagami… Ah! Oh, you're that Yagami-kun!"
[If someone knows me but I can't remember their name, it'll really hurt my image.]
[But who is this guy? I shouldn't have had any contact with first-year students yet, and he said it's been a long time… Could it be that he and I went to the same school?!]
[Wait, wait, wait?! If he's from the same school as me, then doesn't that mean he might know about my past?!]
A cold feeling suddenly rose in Kushida Kikyo's heart.
Anyone from her old school was a threat, because they might know about her past.
[Just as I thought, Kushida Kikyo. I'm from the White Room. How could I have gone to the same school as you?]
[But I know everything about you. You can't deny what I'm saying, because you have no way to prove I'm lying.]
[I know all about you. Horikita Suzune also went to the same school as you. If it were you, you'd do everything to make Horikita Suzune drop out—but she's still here, which means someone helped her… Was it you, Saiki-senpai? But no matter what, Kushida Kikyo can become a useful tool for me.]
Yagami Takuya thought this while smiling brightly at Kushida Kikyo.
"Yes, it's that Yagami. It's been a long time!"
"So Yagami-kun is also at this school? What a coincidence!"
Kushida Kikyo continued to play along.
"I never expected to see Kushida-senpai here again."
"You know each other?"
Horikita Suzune was a little confused. She didn't know much about Yagami Takuya.
But she didn't think too much about it. After all, during middle school, Horikita Suzune couldn't even remember all the students in her grade. To her, everyone else was just insignificant.
"We've met before."
Yagami Takuya said with a smile.
[Just watch. What's going to happen in this school in the future?]