At noon, in the school cafeteria.
Hikigaya ordered a deluxe steak meal along with an energy drink to replenish electrolytes.
The reason he ate this well wasn't because he wanted to indulge himself, but because he believed it was necessary to meet the body's nutritional needs after exercise.
"Ah~ Hikigaya, didn't you have dinner with Horikita today?"
So this was why she'd been following him after class—Kushida Kikyo.
"As for Horikita, she should be bringing her own lunch," he replied flatly. "If you're looking for her, Kushida, you can probably find her in the classroom."
"Hehe~"
Kushida giggled and took the seat across from him, blinking playfully. "You don't mind if I sit here, right, Hikigaya?"
If I say I mind, will you leave? You've already sat down and then asked.
"The cafeteria's a public space. Anyone can sit wherever they want."
"Haha~ Hikigaya, your sense of humor is something else."
Really? So I do have a sense of humor.
"The steak's good," he commented.
"..."
Why aren't you laughing?
Hikigaya silently picked up a piece of marinated beef with his fork, put it in his mouth, and started chewing.
Kushida glanced at her plate — just boiled broccoli and a poached egg — and suddenly lost her appetite.
"You're eating really well today," she said.
"Yeah."
"..."
And that's it? Just 'yeah'?
Shouldn't a normal boy ask, 'Want to try some?'
Even if she refused politely, it would have kept the conversation going.
Do you even know how to talk to people?
Hikigaya genuinely didn't understand her thought process. To him, Kushida seemed to be intentionally testing him.
He decided to stay quiet until he could figure out what she was really after.
(￣～￣) Chew chew chew…
Kushida forced down a few bites of rice, but it tasted like chewing wax. Eventually, she put down her chopsticks and pretended to be full, as if she simply had a small appetite.
"By the way, Hikigaya… are you sure it's okay to be spending like that?"
Hikigaya raised an eyebrow, mildly surprised.
Looks like not everyone in Class D is hopeless after all.
Kushida must've realized that the school's system of distributing 100,000 points per month wasn't as simple as it looked—and she'd started controlling her spending.
"Is there a problem?" he asked casually. "We'll just get more points next month."
He acted as if he had no idea what she was implying.
That dead-fish look really sells the fool act…
Kushida's social skills were impressive. Within four days of entering Advanced Nurturing High School, she'd already become well-known among first-years and even managed to make small connections with upperclassmen.
Although the school had forbidden seniors from leaking information, Kushida still managed to gather fragments of intel here and there.
"Ah—nothing, never mind." She glanced down at her phone, then smiled apologetically. "Sorry, Hikigaya. Shinohara and the others are looking for me. I'll have to go."
I never asked you to stay in the first place.
Keeping up that cheerful facade every day… doesn't it get exhausting?
Sooner or later, it's going to crack.
As Hikigaya watched Kushida walk away, he couldn't help but notice her steps looked a little heavier than usual.
But that was her choice. It wasn't his place to say anything.
***
During lunch break, Hikigaya spent time in the library.
After afternoon classes, it was time for "club activities."
For someone who had been part of the "Go-Home Club" for all three years of middle school, this was uncharted territory.
"Huh?"
It felt like someone was following me.
Through the reflection in a hallway window, he caught sight of red twin-tails peeking from around a corner.
Sakura Airi… Why is she tailing me?
Never mind. Don't get self-conscious.
Turning at the next corner, Hikigaya quickened his pace and managed to shake off his little stalker.
***
Martial Arts Club.
"Welcome, Hikigaya," the club's captain, Muto, greeted warmly.
"Good afternoon, Captain," Hikigaya replied politely.
"Don't be so stiff—just call me Muto."
"Yes, Muto-senpai."
"Hah, still too formal… whatever, let's start training."
Seeing that Hikigaya wouldn't change his tone, Muto dropped it.
Over time, Hikigaya's school life fell into a steady rhythm:
Classroom. Martial Arts Club. Dormitory. Repeat.
It's worth mentioning that he still had that same recurring dream every night… though that's a topic best left untouched.
Before he knew it, almost a month had passed since the start of school.
Ever since Hikigaya sold information about the S-System, Classes A through C had been unusually restrained—careful not to trigger any violations during the "Behavioral Test."
Class D, however, was the same as ever: students arriving late, sleeping in class, littering, and even breaking a classroom camera while playing ball indoors.
At this rate, Hikigaya half-expected their class points to go negative.
Not that he cared.
After all, he'd already earned 3 million points from selling intel, plus another 1.5 million from President Horikita.
Even if Class D scored zero for the next three years, his personal life wouldn't be affected in the slightest.
***
May 1st.
Hikigaya got up early, as usual, and went to the track for morning exercise.
Along the way, he ran into Ibuki Mio, who had since recovered.
"Hey, Hikigaya. Did you get your personal points from the school?"
"Yeah, got them."
"Mine's 81,000. What about you?"
"Zero."
"You—wait, what?" Ibuki froze for a second, then scowled. "Don't just drop that on me out of nowhere!"
Her expression shifted several times before she seemed to make up her mind about something. "Ahem. Fine then… from now on, I'll just call you by your first name—"
"It's too early for that." Hikigaya cut her off flatly.
"Huh?"
Ibuki blinked, then realized what he meant, her face turning red.
"You idiot, say what you mean next time!" she snapped.
"But seriously, zero points? You're not joking, right?"
Her embarrassment gave way to shock.
If personal points were linked to class points, that meant Class D's score had hit rock bottom—literally zero.
"Well, no use dwelling on it. Let's grab breakfast," Hikigaya said calmly, as if this outcome had been fully expected.
At least the S-System doesn't allow negative points. Otherwise, that'd be annoying.
"You're way too calm about this…" Ibuki muttered, glancing at him with something like admiration. "Heh-heh no wonder you're the 'Rookie King' of the Martial Arts Club. Impressive composure."
"Rookie King? Please don't call me that. It sounds like a bad shounen manga title."
Hikigaya sighed, facepalming.
Since joining the club a month ago, his combat skills had improved dramatically—enough that he could even go toe-to-toe with some second-year seniors.
***
Did my best to piece together the dialogue between hikiguya and ibuki…not too terrible lol