Ryuuen exuded the unique ruthlessness of a person from society, giving him the impression of not being a high school student, and the farce in the cafeteria just now was the best proof.
Although he couldn't hear the specific dialogue, the rough action of grabbing a collar and the undisguised curses were exactly the behavior of a hooligan.
The whole scene felt like a carefully designed double act—one playing the bad cop, the other the good cop.
He speculated that Ryuuen might have been trying to extract key information from upperclassmen in other classes, but judging by the other party's embarrassed departure, he'd clearly been rebuffed.
"It's time to make a move..."
He decided to sell the S-System information to the people in Class C.
But to be cautious, he decided to test it with a dummy account first.
The most urgent task at hand was to get Ryuuen's contact information.
Fortunately, he'd met Ichinose, who had MAX interpersonal skills, on the second day of school.
Akira's fingers tapped lightly on his phone screen, sending a carefully designed friend request using the disguised account "Tsuki Ao."
The other party almost instantly accepted the friend request—that's how Ichinose was.
{Tsuki Ao: I am a student from another class. I want to buy some information from you.}
{Ichinose Honami: Eh? Who are you, student? But I might not have any valuable information... You can just ask what you want to know, okay?}
Akira couldn't help but chuckle. Ichinose was as gentle and kind as ever.
He deliberately paused for a few seconds before continuing to type:
{Tsuki Ao: I need Ryuuen Kakeru's contact information from Class C. Can you help me get an introduction?}
{Ichinose Honami: Ryuuen-san... Although I don't have his direct contact information, I know students from Class C! Please wait a moment~}
Less than five minutes later, a contact recommendation popped up. The efficiency was somewhat surprising to Akira.
{Ichinose Honami: This is Ryuuen-san! But... student, what do you need him for?}
{Tsuki Ao: Thank you. I've transferred 2,000 points to you as a thank you.}
{Ichinose Honami: Ah! You don't have to be so polite! It's just a small favor...}
Akira ignored her refusal and threw out the real bait:
{Tsuki Ao: By the way! Ichinose-san, are you interested in the truth about the S-System and class divisions? You must have noticed by now that the school authorities are deliberately hiding something, right?}
{Ichinose Honami: ...What do you mean? What are you trying to say, student?}
{Tsuki Ao: I have complete information that can change your class's situation. The price is 1 million points.}
After sending this message, Akira casually tossed his phone aside, not caring in the least about the other party's reaction.
He casually added Ryuuen as a friend and forwarded the entire conversation he just had with Ichinose.
The chat interface fell into a brief silence, the two messages like stones sinking into the sea.
But Akira wasn't in a hurry.
He was always best at this kind of waiting game.
Just as he was about to put down his phone, the screen suddenly lit up repeatedly.
Messages from his homeroom teacher, Chabashira, popped up one after another, piling up on the lock screen.
{Chabashira Sae: As per your suggestion, I've already called those two to the office at noon.}
{Chabashira Sae: The class fee collection is also proceeding as planned. The two people will decide this month's class president based on the number of class fees collected.}
Akira raised an eyebrow slightly, his fingertip hovering above the screen for a moment.
The plan he'd casually mentioned last night, he hadn't expected this homeroom teacher to execute it so meticulously—even though he didn't remember asking for such detailed reports.
He thought for a moment and typed two lines in the dialogue box:
{Shimizu Akira: Chabashira-sensei, please handle it according to your own judgment.}
{Shimizu Akira: There's no need to specifically inform me about these daily affairs.}
"After all, you're the homeroom teacher, aren't you? I'm just a student."
After sending this message, Akira immediately put his phone on silent mode and placed it face down on the desk.
As soon as the dismissal bell rang, Kushida gracefully hopped onto the podium, clasped her hands together, and flashed her signature sweet smile.
"Everyone~" Her voice was clear and pleasant. "Let's consider this class fund collection as a small show of support for me and Hirata-kun! Of course—" She winked playfully. "It's perfectly fine if you don't vote for me, as long as everyone can happily participate!"
A few good-natured jeers came from the back of the classroom, and Kushida bowed slightly.
At the same time, Hirata was leaning by the door. When Kushida finished speaking, he naturally continued, "As Kushida-san said, this is just a normal class activity." He smiled and spread his hands. "No matter who you support, please do so according to your own thoughts. After all—no matter who becomes the class president this month."
He paused. "What we hope for most is for Class D to become a comfortable collective for everyone."
The air in the classroom seemed to be divided into two currents.
After a whole night of careful consideration, coupled with the influence of Hirata and Kushida, the two core figures of the class, and their highly persuasive explanation from yesterday—
The vast majority of students in the class had already accepted the proposal to collect class funds.
After all, it was only a quarter of their personal points, and it was a one-time collection, not something to be handed in every month.
Most students had already pulled out their phones, tapping their fingers on the screen.
Transfer notification sounds rang out one after another—twenty-five thousand points, not a small sum for an average student, but at this moment, it was like some invisible ticket, exchanging for a place in the collective.
Yamauchi and Ike were currently gathered around Kushida, their faces plastered with fawning smiles, dutifully handing over their twenty-five thousand points.
Akira thought that the reason these two guys had so vehemently opposed it yesterday was probably just because they simply disliked Hirata.
However, not everyone bought into it.
Koenji hummed an unknown tune, elegantly twirling his keychain with his slender fingers, and sauntered out of the classroom as if this class meeting had nothing to do with him.
"..." Sudo also followed behind him, leaving the class without looking back.
The same went for Karuizawa's gyaru clique.
She was enthusiastically discussing tonight's karaoke plans with Matsushita, Mori, and others, occasionally bursting into peals of laughter, clearly not taking the class funds seriously at all.
Just as Akira watched thoughtfully, Karuizawa suddenly noticed his gaze.
Her slender fingers trembled slightly, and she grabbed her phone in a bit of a panic, quickly typing on the screen.
"Ding—"
Akira's phone immediately chimed with a notification. He looked down and saw two messages pop up consecutively on the screen:
{Karuizawa Kei: I will absolutely not compromise on the class funds! Shimizu-kun, don't overthink it!}
Immediately followed by another message that came rushing in:
{Karuizawa Kei: ...I will transfer your monthly points on time! You can completely rest assured about that!}
Between the lines, there was a frantic attempt to cover something up, and the exclamation mark at the end was used with particular force, as if to emphasize her resolve through the screen.