Time passed quickly; in the blink of an eye, half a month was gone.
With the Class C harassment issue resolved, Class A didn't go with Representative Ichinose's plan to rent a classroom for study sessions. Instead, they gathered in the library again.
"Young Master Ren, days without Class C are so boring. Do you think we could try that again?"
The "Attack Helicopter" student—who'd gotten a huge payout just for being teased a few times by someone from Class C—asked Ren Katsuragi in what he clearly thought was a whisper.
At those words, a handful of students nearby perked up. He wasn't the only one thinking it.
It couldn't be helped. Class C paid too well. Everyone had tasted how sweet it was and wanted another bite.
Ren flipped a page without looking up. "Go ahead. When you're ready to challenge Albert from Class C to a samurai duel, remember to call me. I'll come cheer you on."
The Attack Helicopter student pictured Albert's solid build, took two steps back, and shivered.
"Go back to your group and study properly," Ren added. "Stop cooking up stupid ideas."
After shooing him away, Ren finished the book in his hand and glanced at the girl beside him, who was quietly petting the cat.
Hiyori Shiina, happily scratching Mochi under the chin, felt his gaze. She looked up, met his eyes, and asked softly, "Katsuragi-kun, what's wrong?"
"Nothing." Ren didn't know what to say to her.
He had just squeezed Class C dry not long ago; Hiyori's life for the rest of the year was probably going to be tight.
He'd assumed they'd drift apart because of that incident. Who knew this beautiful library NPC—who spawned in the same seat every time—would still sit beside him like nothing had changed?
Hiyori seemed to read his mind and spoke first. "Katsuragi-kun, are you thinking about what happened in the conference room?"
"Mm." Ren nodded.
"Like you said in the gym: winners take what they can, losers deal with the consequences. What happened to the class is class business—but aren't you and I still friends?"
Hiyori took it surprisingly well.
Cause and effect mattered. You couldn't just stare at the outcome and pretend the lead-up didn't exist.
Ryuen picking a fight was the cause. The provocation failing—and the whole class paying for it—was the result.
Since Class C chose Ryuen as their leader, they also chose to shoulder the consequences when he screwed up.
Ren hadn't expected Hiyori to be that level-headed. "Yeah. We're still friends."
Tug… tug…
The hopeless Airi Sakura hadn't joined Class A's study groups. Ren had singled her out for one-on-one tutoring instead.
After grinding through math until her head felt like it was spinning, she looked at Ren with pleading eyes. "Ren…"
There was no helping it.
Friends drift away.Sisters betray you.Only math stays the same.
Because if you don't know it, you just don't know it.
Ren ruffled Airi's hair. He wasn't in the mood to read anymore. He took the ballpoint pen from her and started explaining.
This problem should be done like this… He wrote the formula in the notebook, broke it down step by step, and walked her through it carefully.
Since he needed to show her the work, he leaned in close. Under the open gaze of the library, Airi's head started spinning even harder.
After laying everything out and finishing the solution, Ren asked, "Did you get it?"
Airi's face was bright red from how close he was. She hadn't absorbed a thing, but she still nodded. "Un… understood."
"Then do it once on your own." Ren could tell instantly she was faking it. He put the pen back in her hand.
Airi froze.
Do it again myself? Normally, wouldn't we just move on to the next question?
When she sat there gripping the pen without writing, Ren reached out.
He grabbed Airi's cheeks and squished them—round, flat, then lightly pinched—making her already rosy face even redder.
After he'd had enough fun, Ren held her face and said sternly, "Is there going to be a next time?"
"Nw… nwo mwor." With her cheeks trapped in his hands, Airi pouted, her words coming out muffled.
Ren let go, then waved toward Honami Ichinose, who was teaching people a short distance away. "Honami."
Ichinose fit a saying perfectly: she was always there whenever and wherever she was needed.
Seeing him wave, she walked over, confused. "Ren-kun?"
"Honami, everyone isn't a helpless baby. You need a life too." Ren motioned for her to sit before continuing.
Ichinose knew she worried too much about the class, but that was just who she was. "But…"
"No buts. I'm telling you this clearly: the only true study disaster in this class is Airi. I'm handing her over to you."
Ren teaching Airi was pointless; he decided to deploy Honami instead.
Whenever he taught Airi, she turned tomato-red. Surely she wouldn't do that with Honami, right?
And honestly, Ren wasn't thrilled with how Ichinose handled things.
Wanting to help people? Fine. That's a good thing.
But if you insist on doing everything yourself—until everyone expects to be spoon-fed and carried—Honami, are you raising a bunch of overgrown infants?
Ren decided to give Ichinose something concrete to do.
"If you need help, I can assist too." Hiyori, done petting the cat, joined in, offering calmly.
Ren took Mochi from her and didn't refuse. "Really? That'd be great. I'll leave it to you, Shiina."
And just like that, the study disaster known as Airi Sakura earned the honor of being taught by two top students: Honami Ichinose and Hiyori Shiina.
"Ren…"
Airi clearly imagined what was coming and tried to awaken his conscience.
Ichinose glanced at Hiyori, suspicious. A cat thief? she thought.
Hiyori didn't read that far into it. She'd been petting Ren's cat for ages—helping him out felt only fair.
Ren held Mochi with one hand so the cat wouldn't slip, stood up, and moved Airi into his seat. Then he gestured for Ichinose to take Airi's spot.
He let the two of them close in from both sides, sealing off Airi's last escape.
"Do your best, Airi. You can do it!"
After cheering her on, Ren sat across from the three girls and buried his face in the cat's fur.
----------
The Black Dragon of the Katsuragi Family now has 175 chapters.
Unlock 400+ chapters across 7+ different novels on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/LEYI396