The girl stared at Saiki's back, her eyes filled with confusion.
Normally, no matter where she went, she would attract the attention of others, who would involuntarily let out an "Oh!" sound.
But this person didn't?
Not only did he not let out an "Oh," but he even completely ignored her and walked right past her.
[What's wrong with this guy?]
"Kokomi! Over here!"
At that moment, a girl with short brown hair who had been sitting at a table waved at the girl named Teruhashi Kokomi.
"Sorry! I got a bit lost!"
Teruhashi Kokomi's face immediately lit up with a smile, radiating an angelic glow as she walked over to her classmates.
However, she couldn't help but remain curious about the boy who had just ignored her.
Meanwhile, Saiki had left the classroom. He now had an hour of free time and naturally wanted to grab something to eat.
His goal was very clear.
He headed straight in a certain direction, which led him to the classroom of Class 2-D.
"Saiki-kun, you're here!"
Upon seeing Saiki's arrival, Ichinose Honami's face lit up with a smile, and she quickly stepped forward, speaking enthusiastically.
"How's everything going here?"
"The kids love it, but the adults don't seem as interested. It's hard to say if we'll reach our sales target."
Although Ichinose Honami said this, her expression didn't show any signs of worry.
For her, enjoying the cultural festival was more important than anything else.
"I'd like to order some food."
Saiki said.
The last time he visited Ichinose Honami's shop, he had tried their Class D desserts, and they were indeed delicious.
"Sure!"
Ichinose Honami quickly prepared several special desserts for Saiki. But just as Saiki was about to pay, Ichinose stopped him.
"No need, Saiki-kun! This one's on me! You gave us some really valuable advice last time!"
Ichinose Honami said with a smile.
"Last time... I didn't say anything."
Saiki felt a bit helpless.
It wasn't that he didn't want to offer advice.
It was just that their desserts were really good last time, and Saiki couldn't find anything to criticize.
"The way you happily ate the desserts was the best advice!"
Ichinose Honami stared intently at Saiki.
[Especially for me.]
'Yare yare, this is a bit embarrassing.'
Saiki turned his head and looked inside Ichinose Honami's shop. Although there were some customers, it wasn't crowded, and as Ichinose had said, most of the customers were families with children.
There was nothing wrong with their desserts, but the biggest issue was that their decor and branding were too child-friendly, which attracted kids but didn't appeal much to adults.
This gave Saiki an idea.
"How about this? Let's have our classes collaborate."
Saiki said.
"Huh?"
"Although our café also sells desserts, the variety is nowhere near yours. So, how about you share some of your menu items with us, and we'll handle the orders for you. What do you think?"
"Sure!"
Upon hearing Saiki's suggestion, Ichinose Honami nodded vigorously without hesitation.
"But you'll probably take a cut, right?"
"No need. If we successfully handle the orders, it'll help keep customers here. They'll naturally order coffee or other drinks, so it's a win-win for us."
Saiki explained.
"Hold on a second!"
Ichinose Honami immediately relayed Saiki's proposal to her classmates to get their opinions.
"Of course, we support you, Ichinose!"
"After all, it's Saiki-kun's suggestion~ We should definitely listen!"
"It sounds like a great idea!"
Soon, Ichinose Honami returned with a positive response.
"Alright, I've already messaged my classmates."
Saiki said while holding his phone.
"You can just send the menu over, and I'll arrange for a classmate to help with the orders..."
Just as Saiki was speaking, his phone buzzed with a message from someone.
"Well, I have something to take care of, so I'll head out now. I've already talked to my class."
"Okay, thank you so much, Saiki-kun! Let me pack some cake for you!"
Ichinose Honami quickly packed some cake for Saiki, even adding a few extra pastries.
Soon, Saiki arrived at the outskirts of the special teaching building, where a familiar figure was waiting for him.
"Saiki-senpai!"
It was Amasawa Ichika, her face wearing a mischievous smile as she stared intently at Saiki.
"What do you need?"
Saiki got straight to the point.
"I just wanted to see you, Saiki-senpai!"
Amasawa Ichika said with a smile.
Saiki looked at her, and his telepathy told him that the girl wasn't lying.
Originally, Amasawa Ichika was a student from the White Room, but she had been labeled a traitor and failure by the White Room and left at this school.
"If there's nothing else, then I'll..."
"Wait, senpai, I have a few questions for you."
"Go ahead."
"What did you do to Yagami-kun?"
Saiki looked at Amasawa Ichika, who was eager to know the answer. After a moment of silence, he replied,
"He attacked me. I just defended myself."
"That's true. Going against orders and attacking you, Yagami-kun got what he deserved."
Amasawa Ichika sighed.
Earlier, Amasawa Ichika had sensed that Yagami Takuya was planning to attack Saiki and tried to stop him—but instead, she almost got beaten up by Yagami.
Yagami Takuya had been too eager to prove himself, completely losing control, which led to his tragic end.
"This morning, Acting Chairman Tsukishiro came to see me."
Amasawa Ichika's expression gradually turned serious.
"He told me the White Room has been disbanded. Was that your doing?"
"I don't have that kind of power. After all, I can't even leave the school."
Saiki replied.
Of course, Saiki knew about the White Room's disbandment.
Because he was the one who had caused it.
Last night, before going to bed, Saiki had specifically taken care of this matter.
Originally, Saiki hadn't wanted to deal with the White Room—
But he had realized that their actions had completely crossed his bottom line.
So, Saiki had made a few adjustments.
By now, Ayanokoji Atsuomi should have been arrested by the police.
"Really?"
Hearing Saiki's answer, Amasawa Ichika found it hard to believe.
But regardless, the disappearance of the White Room was good news for her.
Although she had been abandoned by the White Room on the surface, Amasawa Ichika knew very well that if she were labeled a traitor, she would face retaliation from the White Room.
Once she graduated and left the school, her life would be pretty much over.
After the uninhabited island exam, Amasawa Ichika had been ready to give up and enjoy her last three years of school.
But with the White Room gone, Amasawa Ichika now had the freedom to choose her future.
"Acting Chairman Tsukishiro is probably about to leave the school. He asked me to pass this message on to Ayanokoji-senpai, so I'll leave it to you, Saiki-senpai!"
Amasawa Ichika shook her head, then changed the subject, her familiar smile returning.
"But I have to say, I heard you're running a maid café, Saiki-senpai~ How naughty!"
"I'm leaving."
Saiki felt a bit helpless and turned to leave.
"Saiki-senpai, it must have been you, right? Even if you deny it, I know it was you. Only you could have done it."
Watching Saiki's retreating figure, Amasawa Ichika's face showed a sly smile.
About half an hour later, Saiki returned to his classroom.
Although he had only been gone for an hour, he could tell that Aiura Mikoto, who had been covering for him, was completely exhausted, so he prepared to take over.
But the moment he stepped into the café, he was met with a confusing scene.
"Five strawberry cakes and six chocolate sundaes? Got it, leave it to me!"
The voice belonged to none other than Ichinose Honami!
If Saiki had only heard the voice, he might have thought he had walked into the wrong shop.
But right now, Ichinose Honami was wearing a pink maid outfit, rushing past him.
"Huh?"
Saiki stared at Ichinose Honami, his mind blank.
He had already agreed on a collaboration between their classes, so how had it come to this?
"Saiki-kun, you're back! Sorry, I need to go deliver these cakes first!"
Ichinose Honami quickly greeted Saiki before rushing off in the direction of her class.
'What's going on?'
Saiki immediately used his telepathy to ask Aiura Mikoto what had happened.
Aiura Mikoto then explained the situation to Saiki.
Shortly after Saiki and Ichinose Honami had agreed to collaborate, Ichinose had personally brought the menu over, and Aiura Mikoto had been in charge of handling the orders.
Since it was a collaboration involving order delegation, someone had to be responsible for picking up and delivering the orders.
Ichinose had taken on this role herself, feeling that she owed Saiki a big favor and wanting to repay him as much as possible.
Aiura Mikoto happened to have a few spare maid outfits, so she gave one to Ichinose Honami, who gladly accepted it and immediately got to work.
'...'
Saiki was speechless.
It was indeed a collaboration between their classes, as he had suggested.
But why did it feel like they had bought Ichinose Honami over?
Just then, Horikita Suzune walked over and patted Saiki on the shoulder:
"Impressive, Saiki."
"?"
Saiki was momentarily confused.
"You actually convinced Ichinose to wear our class's maid outfit and work here. Although her class will definitely get more orders, Ichinose running around the school delivering orders will definitely attract a lot of attention."
A beautiful girl in a maid outfit running around the school... This was something straight out of an anime.
"This is like free advertising for us. You even thought of this step. Impressive, Saiki."
Horikita Suzune's tone was full of praise.
Saiki, however, didn't know how to respond.
Soon, Ichinose Honami returned with a bunch of desserts and quickly delivered them to the waiting customers.
The customers were full of praise, and Ichinose Honami's face lit up with a smile.
Although the process was a bit strange, Class D's income would see a significant increase, which was a fact.
For now, this would have to do...
Saiki thought to himself—
But just then, another figure appeared at the entrance of the café.
Ryuen Kakeru.
"Why is Ryuen here?"
"Is he here to cause trouble?"
"Damn it, we need to do something!"
Seeing Ryuen Kakeru's arrival, the Class A students immediately grew tense.
They knew exactly what kind of person Ryuen Kakeru was.
Moreover, Ryuen's Class C was running a traditional kimono café, which, in a way, made them competitors.
They were sure Ryuen had come to cause trouble.
But after entering the café, Ryuen Kakeru walked straight over to Horikita Suzune and Saiki.
"Ryuen, shouldn't you be managing your own class? What are you doing here?"
Horikita Suzune questioned him, her expression serious.
"None of your business. I'm here to see Saiki."
Ryuen Kakeru initially wore his usual carefree smile, but upon seeing Saiki, his smile gradually faded.
"Saiki, let's make a deal."
Although Ryuen Kakeru tried to maintain his usual intimidating demeanor, his voice wavered slightly when facing Saiki.
"What?"
Saiki immediately asked.
"After the cultural festival ends, you'll pay me a certain amount of personal points—and in return, I'll lend you two students from my class for the remaining time."
As Ryuen Kakeru spoke—
Shiina Hiyori and Ibuki Mio, both wearing kimonos, walked in.