"Oh, I didn't expect to run into you here, Sakayanagi."
Shikime Natsu's gaze fell upon the girl. She was walking with a cane, looking like she was struggling a bit. Sigh... Her body is in such bad shape, yet she still comes out to cause trouble.
I really don't get it.
"Yes, what a coincidence."
Fake.
It seems she was waiting for me all along. Shikime Natsu chuckled lightly. With this skill, he was like a tiger with wings, especially when facing this girl who might backstab him at any moment. No, that wasn't right. This girl would even walk right up to him to announce she was backstabbing him.
Her personality is truly awful.
"What are you planning to do to solve the class's current predicament?"
Sakayanagi Arisu looked at Shikime Natsu with an expression that said, "I'm very curious."
"Naturally, I can't tell you something like that, lest you ruin my fun."
Shikime Natsu chuckled lightly, nonchalantly averting his gaze from Sakayanagi Arisu.
"I find it hard to believe that Shikime-kun could come up with a solution in just one night."
Sakayanagi Arisu's tone was slightly teasing. Her cane tapped the ground with a regular rhythm as she walked, making a soft sound.
A clumsy attempt at provocation.
Although Shikime Natsu was a bit of a narcissist, this kind of goading had no effect on him whatsoever.
"You guessed it."
Shikime Natsu couldn't be bothered with Sakayanagi Arisu's thoughts, but... this girl was definitely a handful.
Seeing Shikime Natsu's absentminded reply, Sakayanagi Arisu's delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly, her thoughts unreadable.
But soon, her brow smoothed out, and a smile returned to her face. An opponent like this was interesting enough.
"I'm looking forward to your response, Shikime-kun."
Sakayanagi Arisu's gaze fell on Shikime Natsu, who was just ahead of her. This guy really was a bit interesting. Even though she had done so much to harm the class's interests, he was still matching her pace, keeping himself level with her as they walked.
Is it... has he been conquered by my cuteness?
Sakayanagi Arisu was quite confident in her abilities and her appearance, confident she wouldn't lose to anyone.
Shikime Natsu sighed internally. As expected, triggering a CG wasn't that simple.
...
"Shikime-san, have you thought of a solution?"
Totsuka Yahiko asked anxiously. He was tempted to buy the information from the teacher directly and sell it to the other classes. After all, if another class implemented this strategy first, wouldn't they lose out on profits?
"Totsuka, sometimes, you can't rush things. The more you rush, the farther your goal gets."
Shikime Natsu replied with perfect calm.
"But...."
Totsuka Yahiko sighed, the anxiety on his face not yet gone.
"Relax."
Shikime Natsu waved his hand dismissively. This guy was a bit too eager; that kind of mentality wouldn't do.
"Okay, I trust you, Shikime-san."
Seeing Shikime Natsu's confident and composed look, Totsuka Yahiko gritted his teeth and agreed.
"Have you really thought of a way?"
Kamuro Masumi lowered her voice and spoke to Shikime Natsu.
"It's after class, you don't have to whisper. Or do you prefer this sneaky feeling?"
Shikime Natsu gave Kamuro Masumi an expression that said, "I understand."
"You're asking for it!"
Kamuro Masumi flared up with indignant embarrassment, her purple eyes glaring viciously at the incredibly flippant guy before her.
They were talking about serious business right now.
"Alright, alright, there's something I need to ask of you."
The smile on Shikime Natsu's face remained unchanged.
"What is it?"
Hearing he had a favor to ask, Kamuro Masumi looked at Shikime Natsu.
"After school today, keep an eye on Sakayanagi Arisu. If she goes to the Keyaki Mall, report to me immediately."
This message was sent to Kamuro Masumi's phone. After all, no matter how quietly they spoke, there was always a chance someone nearby could overhear.
Shikime Natsu wasn't sure if there were any other backstabbers in this class, so he had to be as careful as possible.
"I understand."
Kamuro Masumi glanced at the message she received on her phone and nodded.
"Oh, and don't let her recruit you."
Shikime Natsu added, looking at Kamuro Masumi's foolish expression.
"I won't!"
She, Kamuro Masumi, had her own principles, okay?
Since she had agreed to help Shikime Natsu, she naturally wouldn't be easily recruited by someone else.
What on earth was going on in this guy's head?
Kamuro Masumi looked at Shikime Natsu, feeling rather speechless.
"That's good."
Shikime Natsu smiled and nodded.
During the morning classes, basically everyone in Class A was paying close attention. There was almost no talking or playing on phones.
Even Sakayanagi Arisu didn't deliberately cause trouble, which brought Shikime Natsu some relief.
As long as he could wait until after school, he could continue to work toward his goal.
"It's finally lunchtime. I'm starving. Come to think of it, I didn't even eat breakfast this morning."
Shikime Natsu recalled his morning. First, he ran into Kushida Kikyou and chatted with her the whole way, then seamlessly transitioned to Sakayanagi Arisu, which meant he never got a chance to buy any breakfast.
"Masumi, want to get lunch together?"
Shikime Natsu quite naturally invited his good deskmate to eat with him.
"No."
Kamuro Masumi looked at Shikime Natsu, embarrassed and angry. Did he have to speak so loudly, as if he were afraid others wouldn't hear?
"Is that so? What a shame."
Shikime Natsu sighed softly.
"Shikime-san, are you going to eat? If you don't mind, I'll join you. Oh, and Katsuragi is planning to come along too. We can talk while we're at it."
Totsuka Yahiko said enthusiastically.
"If you don't mind, count me in."
Hashimoto Masayoshi came over as well.
Of all people!
I was supposed to eat with a beautiful girl, so what's with eating with a bunch of guys?
If it came down to it, he wouldn't even mind eating with Sakayanagi Arisu.
"Let's go, let's go."
But apparently, his lunch plans for the day could only be with these three guys.
Fine, I'll just use it as a chance to observe these guys and get a feel for their personalities.
Shikime Natsu calmed down, though his feelings were still quite complicated.
His gaze fell resentfully on Kamuro Masumi. If Kamuro Masumi had agreed, he wouldn't have to be in this situation.
In response, Kamuro Masumi just snorted coldly and stopped looking at Shikime Natsu.
"Well then... let's go."
Shikime Natsu nodded and headed to the cafeteria with the group.
On their way, Shikime Natsu noticed a figure between two vending machines, squatting there... eating alone?
___
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