A week slipped by, and though his sideline was bringing in more money, he was still a long way from his goal.
He needed a better way to build wealth, and one idea that kept circling his mind was selling goods in the underworld. But for that, he would first need to find a broker he could trust.
Unfortunately, it was easier said than done, since most of the people he knew in his past life were still students themselves.
He adjusted his blue tie and smoothed down his white polo shirt. Black pants completed the standard school uniform attire—nothing flashy, nothing that would draw attention.
The walk to Chiyoda High School took fifteen minutes.
In the distance, students were already moving in groups through the green gate.
Daniel stepped through the entrance, greeted by the steady flow of students in brown uniforms.
They moved across the courtyard in groups, their voices filling the air as the boring gray school building stood in the background.
Nobody looked his way.
'It feels strange being back here. I almost feel like a criminal,'
He kept his head low as he slipped past clusters of girls laughing and striking playful poses to get more views.
They called it the Age of Narcissism, when everyone broadcast their lives online in search of validation.
'I'm already exhausted, and class hasn't even started yet.'
As he walked down the hallway, nobody paid him any attention. That wasn't surprising—he often disappeared for weeks, sometimes longer.
Even so, he always managed to scrape by thanks to his high IQ.
Sliding the classroom door open, he drew a few glances before everyone returned to their own business.
A girl with neatly tied pink hair glanced at him over the backrest of her chair.
"Hey, Daniel. Glad you're okay now." She gave him a half smile, but it quickly faded. "But… you should probably get out of that seat."
"Why?"
Samantha leaned closer, lowering her voice so only he could hear. "Because someone else sits there now. Trust me, you don't want to make a scene with him."
Just before he could answer, the door slammed open. A guy with waxed, artificial blond hair and an earring in his left ear strolled in, flanked by three of the class bullies.
"Who the hell are you? And why are you in my seat?" the blond guy snarled.
Memories rushed back to him.
James — the transfer student. He had once made a name for himself as a taekwondo champion, winning two years in a row, until the title was stripped after he hospitalized several students at his old school.
But that wasn't why he remembered him. It was because of what this person did—or what he was going to do in the future.
"Hey. I asked you a question? Are you fucking deaf?"
Standing up, Daniel forced himself to stay cool headed.
"Shut your mouth. Every word out of you makes me want to throw up."
His rude comment shocked everyone. It was so out of character for the quiet guy to snap like that.
"Please don't fight!" Samantha stood up, but it was too late.
James launched a high kick, aiming for an instant knockdown.
To their shock, Daniel backed away just in time, avoiding the blow.
James went for another roundhouse kick, only for it to missed .
Was this really a fight between their frail classmate and the class boss?
"You fucker!" James, unable to bear the humiliation, lashed out.
"The teacher is here!" a student shouted, and the confrontation came to an abrupt end.
"You're lucky this time. I'll deal with you after school!" James gritted his teeth and stormed out, followed by his lackeys.
Daniel wasn't a fighter himself, but that didn't mean an ordinary human could stand against him.
'Should I kill him now?'
"Ahemmm." The teacher cleared his throat which snapped him from his thoughts.
"Open your books. Today we'll be tackling calculus—specifically derivatives and integrals—so pay close attention. Problems like these will be on the finals."
Chairs creaked as pages flipped in unison. The teacher's eyes landed on Daniel, and he threw out a very difficult question intentionally.
He walked up to the blackboard and picked up the chalk. While the teacher was still finishing the question, Daniel's hand moved across the board, laying out each step casually.
The solution was finished so quickly that his classmates stared in disbelief, almost convinced someone must have been feeding him the answers in real time.
Even the teacher was in awe. He knew Daniel was smart, but not this smart.
Little did they know, such problem was child's play for a magic engineer with a Ph.D
"Is my answer correct?"
"Yes… yes," the teacher managed to stutter.
Sitting down, he gazed out the window and sighed. Coming back here already felt like a mistake.
His thoughts were broken when the door opened and a silver-haired girl rushed in, panting.
Her long braid caught the light as it swung to the side, and her bright blue eyes made her stand out instantly.
"I'm sorry I'm late—"
Before she could finish, the whole classroom erupted in cheers.
"Oh my god, it's Alissa! What's she doing in our school?"
"No way! Why would she be here?"
"I literally have her poster in my room!"
"She's the number one singer in the country right now!"
"I can't believe I'm breathing the same air as her…"
"Someone pinch me, quick!"
Chairs squeaked as half the class leaned forward, phones already out, trying to snap a picture.
Others whispered so loudly it might as well have been shouting. The ordinary classroom felt like it had turned into a concert hall.