In fact, after the information is refreshed, they always want to attack me!

Long Yuan turned to her senior again, revealing a chillingly gentle smile: "How about this, let's each take a step back. I understand your difficulties..."

His voice suddenly lowered, taking on a seductive tone, "Just tell me who that man who scares you is, and then give me a few key pieces of information, and I'll transfer 50,000 points to you. A fair deal, isn't it?"

The senior's gaze was shifty.

After a long silence of half a minute, he finally spoke: "...It's Vice President Nagumo. Class A enjoys the best teachers, while the other classes can only slink away and graduate! All four classes are rivals!" He suddenly realized he had let something slip and quickly covered his mouth, "Um, that's all I can say! Then, what about my 50,000 points?!"

Long Yuanxiang suddenly revealed a mocking smile, slowly adjusting his cuffs: "Who said I was going to give you 50,000 points?"

He tilted his head, feigning confusion as he looked at Ishizaki. "Ishizaki, did I say something like that?"

Ishizaki immediately understood and burst into laughter, "Hahaha, senpai, you must be hallucinating!"

"You...you guys!" The senior was so angry that he was trembling all over, and his finger pointing at Longyuan was shaking.

Long Yuan's smile vanished, his eyes turning dangerous: "Get out of here while I'm still in a good mood! Based on these few fragmented pieces of information... I'm already being merciful by not making you vomit up what you've eaten."

The senior student opened his mouth, wanting to argue, but after seeing Long Yuan's sinister gaze, he suddenly shivered and eventually slunk away from the cafeteria.

Watching his senior hastily flee, Ishizaki scratched his head: "Ryuen, didn't we already get this information from some 'kind person' on the second day of school?"

Ryuen gave a disdainful smirk: "After all, he's just a piece of trash from Class D in the second year. This is the best they can squeeze out of him." He tapped his fingers lightly on the table, then suddenly changed the subject: "Any progress on the Vice President Nan Yun that I asked you to investigate?"

Ishizaki's expression immediately turned serious. "All we know is her full name is Nagumo Masaru. But..." he lowered his voice, "Every time we ask the second-year students, their faces turn extremely ugly as soon as we mention this name. So we can't get any other information from them besides her name."

Ryuen narrowed his eyes, gazing thoughtfully out the cafeteria window: "To be able to silence the entire second-year class... seems like a very interesting opponent. But challenging the second-year class now is too early... Let's figure out the rules and crush the other classes first."

(What kind of hidden rules are running in this school?)

In fact, from the very first day he stepped into the school, Long Yuan keenly sensed something was amiss.

Whether it was the school rule that "points can buy everything" or the meaningful hints from his homeroom teacher, Kazuma Sakagami, he was convinced that the school was deliberately concealing crucial information.

However, after several days of investigation, he only pieced together fragments of the truth from the timid senior students: the school did indeed divide classes according to ability, and the four classes were competitors—that was all.

Under the iron fist of Vice President Nagumo, the second-year students completely blocked all information; and when he tried to contact the senior students of Class D in the third year, he was immediately warned by a student council member who suddenly appeared.

The entire senior class seemed to be shrouded in an invisible net, and everyone remained silent about the truth.

...

Ryuen Sho led Ishizaki Daichi through the cafeteria with great strides. Just as they were about to step out the door, his peripheral vision suddenly caught a striking glimpse of silver-white—

At a table by the window, a silver-haired girl holding an exquisite cane is elegantly eating the food on her plate.

As if sensing his gaze, the girl slowly raised her eyelids, her eyes locking onto him precisely through the noisy crowd.

Their eyes met in mid-air. The girl's lips curled up slightly, revealing a half-smile, like a chess player examining a disobedient piece.

"Ryuen? What's wrong?" Ishizaki looked in the direction he was looking, puzzled.

"...It's nothing." Long Yuan withdrew his gaze, his voice carrying a dangerous calm.

That condescending gaze should have been his specialty, a tool he used to scrutinize his prey.

Now, however, the girl with the cane returned the favor exactly as it was, even with an even greater arrogance.

(Are those self-proclaimed elites from Class A? Ha, if I punched a girl like that, she'd probably cry for a long time.)

Chapter 51: 051 A Guessing Game from Sakayanagi Arisu

"That person is Ryuen Sho, the leader of Class C, Shimizu-kun." Sakayanagi Arisu gracefully withdrew her gaze, a meaningful smile playing on her lips, and explained to her companion sitting opposite her.

Akira Shimizu then snapped out of his thoughts, his gaze thoughtfully following the disappearing figure.

It turns out that the imposing boy was the rumored leader of Class C.

"Do you think... he's qualified to be our opponent?" Sakayanagi Arisu gently poked a bright green leaf with her silver fork, frowned slightly, and put it into her mouth, her movements revealing an innate air of nobility.

"That's your opinion. I've never considered anyone an opponent."

"I see. So you consider everyone trash? How arrogant, Shimizu-kun."

"Cough..." Shimizu Akira choked on those words and almost spat out the noodles in his mouth.

He looked up helplessly at the girl opposite him—how exactly did this Sakayanagi-san distort her original meaning?

He was simply stating facts, so how did it get interpreted as such an arrogant statement?

"Hehe...just kidding." Sakayanagi Arisu covered her mouth and chuckled, her laughter ringing out like silver bells. "Of course I understand what you really mean."

Akira Shimizu didn't respond, but continued to focus on enjoying his lunch.

On Wednesday morning, all three pieces of intelligence that popped up were junk, so he decided to try his luck at the cafeteria.

Surprisingly, I ran into Sakayanagi Arisu, who was dining alone, here.

This strategist from Class A was actually enjoying a free meal. He had intended to take the opportunity to ask the other party how to obtain information about the S system, but he ended up witnessing a well-planned show orchestrated by Class C.

"Speaking of which," Shimizu Akira put down his chopsticks, "how did Sakayanagi-san obtain that crucial information through what special channels?"

"On the first day of school, a kind person told me all the information." Arisu Sakayanagi had a mysterious smile on her lips. "Shimizu-kun, you only have three chances to ask questions. My answers will only be 'yes,' 'no,' and 'irrelevant.'"

Akira Shimizu frowned slightly. These clever people are always obsessed with this kind of riddle game, packaging things that could be explained directly into obscure puzzles.

But he still decided to cooperate with the game, since intelligence itself has that kind of value.

After a brief moment of thought, he raised the first crucial question: "Does the other party's act of revealing information violate current school regulations?"

"No." Sakayanagi Arisu smiled slightly, as if appreciating his reasoning process.

This answer immediately narrows the scope to four most likely responses: freshmen who have just enrolled, alumni who have already graduated, former faculty members, and those who dropped out of school before completing their studies.

Even if these four types of people reveal information, strictly speaking, it does not constitute a violation of school rules.

Akira Shimizu hesitated for a moment, then his sharp gaze locked onto her expression: "Did this person... graduate successfully from this school?"

Sakayanagi Arisu paused for a rare moment, then slowly nodded: "...Yes."

This question eliminates three possible answers in one go.

"I see." Shimizu Akira's eyes suddenly cleared. "On the first day of school, you met a graduating senior who returned to campus for an event, and obtained a complete intelligence network about the school from them?"

"Absolutely right." Sakayanagi Arisu clapped her hands lightly with pleasure, her voice as clear as a silver bell. "Because they are alumni, they are neither bound by current school rules nor faculty members, and more importantly—they all successfully completed their studies." She leaned forward slightly and added, "These seniors often know more about the school's...unspoken rules than current teachers."

"Utilizing the information channels of graduates... this approach is indeed unexpected." Akira Shimizu unconsciously revealed an expression of admiration.

As expected of Sakayanagi Arisu.

He had never considered this angle of intelligence gathering.

"Heh...didn't expect that, did you?" Sakayanagi Arisu keenly caught the fleeting admiration in his eyes, two shallow dimples appearing on her cheeks, her tone tinged with undisguised smugness. "So, how did Shimizu-kun obtain this information?"

"Me?" Shimizu Akira shrugged. "I just bought it from a second-year upperclassman for a few points."

"It seems my methods have prevailed this time." Sakayanagi Arisu elegantly sipped her miso soup. "Shimizu-kun has completely lost to me this time."

"Who's challenging you to a contest..." Shimizu Akira glanced at him, then lowered his head to continue eating his noodles. "Fine, if you think you've won, then you've won."

"However..." Shimizu Akira suddenly looked up, "I'm curious, why would that senior be willing to reveal such important information? What did you offer in exchange? After all, he's already a prospective university student; he couldn't possibly give it to you for free!"

Sakayanagi Arisu's fingers, which were holding the spoon, paused almost imperceptibly.

This subtle change did not escape the keen observation of Shimizu Akira.

—It seems we've touched on some sensitive topic.

Could it have been a monetary transaction? Or perhaps...

But Akira Shimizu didn't press the matter further, and simply continued to enjoy the food in front of him as if nothing had happened.

Sakayanagi Arisu asked, seemingly casually, "Speaking of which, Shimizu-san seems to be quite close to Kamuro-san from our class."

"Yes," Shimizu Akira replied without looking up, "she's a very easy person to get along with, and her personality is just my type."

"Oh?" Sakayanagi Arisu raised an eyebrow slightly. "Kamuro-san always seems so cold. Besides..." Her voice lowered a few decibels, "We've both seen her like that at the convenience store. Shimizu-san's criteria for choosing friends are really... unique."

As he finished the last bite of noodles, Shimizu Akira stood up to leave. "It's just right for me. Nobody's perfect; everyone has flaws."

Sakayanagi Arisu watched his departing figure silently, her thoughts drifting back to the afternoon of the first day of school—

"Why should I tell you information? What's in it for me? Points? Ha... I'm not a student anymore! That stuff only works in school! Once you're out in the real world, it's no different from numbers." The senior waved his hand impatiently, an expensive watch peeking out from his suit sleeve. "Pay? Save it, little sister. I graduated from Class A, my family's rich, and I'm about to go to Tokyo University..."

"However... you said you're the chairman's daughter? Chairman Sakayanagi has indeed poured all his resources into Class A. Fine! For your father's sake, I'll tell you everything I know!"

"It tastes awful..." She glanced at the remaining free ingredients and muttered, pursing her lips.

If she hadn't seen Shimizu Akira at noon today, she wouldn't have deliberately ordered this vegetable set meal to try and gain sympathy. As it stands, it seems to have had no effect whatsoever.

Chapter 52: 052 Karuizawa Megumi: I won't pay the class fees! I'm going to pay tribute to Shimizu Akira.

Long Yuanxiang exudes the kind of aggressive aura typical of a gangster, making him seem unlike a high school student, and the farce that just happened in the cafeteria was the best proof of that.

Although I couldn't hear the specific content of the conversation, the rough action of grabbing his collar and the undisguised cursing were exactly the behavior of a thug.

The whole performance felt to him like a meticulously designed double act—one playing the good cop, the other the bad cop.

He speculated that Longyuan might have tried to extract crucial information from senior students in other classes, but judging from the way the other party left in a sorry state, he had clearly been thwarted.

"It's time to make a move..."

He decided to sell information about the S system to the people in Class C.

But to be on the safe side, he decided to test the waters with a smaller one first.

The most urgent thing right now is to get Longyuan's contact information.

Fortunately, he met Ichinose Honami, who has excellent interpersonal skills, on the second day of school.

Akira Shimizu's fingers tapped lightly on the phone screen as he sent a carefully crafted friend request using the fake account "Yuki."

The other party accepted the friend request almost instantly—that's how Ichinose Honami did it.

Yueqing: I'm a student from another class. I'd like to buy some information from you.

Honami Ichinose: Eh? Who are you, classmate? But I probably don't have any valuable information... You can just ask me anything, okay?

Akira Shimizu chuckled softly; Honami Ichinose remained as gentle and kind as ever.

He deliberately paused for a few seconds before continuing to type:

Yueqing: I need Long Yuanxiang's contact information from Class C. Could you help me get in touch with him?

Honami Ichinose: Ryuen-kun... I don't have his direct contact information, but I know some people in Class C! Just a moment~

In less than five minutes, a contact recommendation popped up. The efficiency surprised even Akira Shimizu.

Honami Ichinose: This is Ryuen-kun! But... what do you need him for?

Yueqing: Thank you, I've transferred the 2000 points as a thank you gift to you.

Honami Ichinose: Ah! Don't be so polite! It was just a small favor...

Shimizu Akira ignored the other party's refusal and instead threw out the real bait:

Yueqing: By the way! Are you interested in the truth about the S system and class assignments, Ichinose-san? You must have noticed these past few days that the school is deliberately hiding something, right?

Honami Ichinose: ...What do you mean? What are you trying to say, sir?

Yueqing: I have complete intelligence that is enough to change your class's situation. The price is 100 million points.

After sending the message, Shui Ming casually tossed his phone aside, not caring at all about how the other party would react.

He casually added Ryuen Sho as a friend and forwarded his conversation with Ichinose Honami verbatim to her.

The chat interface fell silent for a moment, and the two messages disappeared without a trace.

However, Akira Shimizu wasn't in a hurry.

This kind of game that requires patience is something he has always excelled at.

Just as he was about to put down his phone, the screen suddenly lit up repeatedly.

Messages from homeroom teacher Chabashira Sae kept popping up, piling up like a small mountain on the lock screen.

Chabashira Sae: As you suggested, I called those two people to the office at noon.

Chabashira Sae: The class fund collection is progressing as planned, and the two of us will decide on the class monitor for this month based on the number of people who contribute to the fund collection.

Akira Shimizu raised an eyebrow slightly, his fingertip hovering above the screen for a moment.

The plan I casually mentioned last night was executed so meticulously by the homeroom teacher—even though he didn't remember ever asking for detailed reports.

He thought for a moment, then typed two lines in the dialog box:

Akira Shimizu: Teacher Chabashira should handle it according to his own judgment.

Akira Shimizu: You don't need to specifically inform me of these kinds of routine matters.