I have a life simulator.

"Just know what's right for you."

Seeing Kitagawa Ryo's nonchalant demeanor, Horikita Manabu stopped asking questions and instead brought up the topic he had brought up countless times to Kitagawa Ryo:

"The student council will be recruiting another batch of members after the sports festival in October. This will be the last time before the new students enroll next April. Kitagawa, are you really not planning to join the student council?"

Horikita Manabu's tone was quite sincere, and he had made his meaning clear: if Kitagawa Ryo decided to join now, he could still genuinely lend a final hand. After all, by next April, he would have already graduated from the school, and there would be no way to help him anymore.

"Liang doesn't need to join the student council."

To Horikita Manabu's surprise, it wasn't Kitagawa Ryo who spoke first, but Horikita Suzune, her tone firm. She stubbornly met her brother's gaze and repeated herself:

"It's not necessary."

"……I see."

Looking at his younger sister's expression, Horikita also felt a bit conflicted.

Perhaps humans are just such awkward creatures. In the past, when Rinne kept imitating him and got stuck in her own narrow-minded ways, he never hesitated to criticize his sister with words or actions.

But now, seeing Lingyin wanting to take responsibility and move forward alone, he can't help but want to find a reliable support for his sister that she can rely on when necessary.

"Then I wish you all the best in this sports festival."

Horikita finished his coffee in one gulp, then casually added another suggestion:

"Isn't there a mixed-gender three-legged race at this sports festival? I feel like you and Suzune get along well, and your heights aren't too different either, so it should be a good result."

"Yeah, I think it's a good idea too. I'll give it a try with Lingyin later."

After casually agreeing, Kitagawa Ryo chatted with Horikita Manabu for a while, then said goodbye to Horikita Suzune, planning to go to the nearby playground to practice according to his earlier suggestion.

Even without Horikita's suggestion, Kitagawa Ryo would have basically chosen Suzune as his partner for the mixed three-legged race. Although Ichika's physical abilities were indeed better, the somewhat hopeless height difference between them would undoubtedly cause their center of gravity to shift, making it somewhat unsuitable.

Perhaps due to the approaching sports festival, the playground, which usually has few students except for the sports club, has become much busier these past two days. While Suzune went to the equipment room to get the leg straps, Kitagawa Ryo also walked to the edge of the track and could easily see many of his classmates exercising separately.

A moment later, Horikita Suzune, having obtained the rope, hurriedly ran back and squatted down next to Kitagawa Ryo. Just as she was about to tie the rope, she suddenly looked up:

"Your shoelaces are loose, let me tie them for you."

Before Kitagawa Ryo could react, Horikita Suzune's hand had already deftly untied the shoelace on his right sneaker. The subtle touch of her slender fingertips on his ankle and the instant relief he felt after the shoelace was untied gave Kitagawa Ryo a strange pleasure that shot straight from his spine to his brain. He couldn't help but squat down and stare intently at Horikita Suzune's profile, which was so close to his face.

"Does Lingyin know the secret to increasing the speed of a three-legged race?"

"Huh? What is that?"

Horikita Suzune lowered her head slightly, put her hands through the loops of the already knotted shoelaces, pulled them apart to the left and right to tighten them, and then began to tie the two people's legs. Her bangs and two strands of hair by her ears naturally hung down because of her posture, and the ends of her hair floated gently in front of Kitagawa Ryo's eyes with the wind.

"You see, for a three-legged race to start, it definitely requires tacit understanding between the two people, and then there's bound to be physical contact and friction between them..."

Kitagawa Ryo tilted his head slightly and walked around to Horikita Suzune's ear from the side:

"Therefore, a couple is the most suitable match, Rin."

As he spoke, he moved forward a little more.

The knot on their legs stopped halfway through.

Their lips connected even before their heartbeats.

Chapter 274: Physical and Mental Health is Essential for a Successful Relationship (5k)

It was another morning. After finishing their daily morning practice with Arisu Sakayanagi, a routine they'd maintained since returning to school after summer vacation, Kitagawa Ryo took out his phone, glanced at the data on the app, and said to Arisu, whose legs were a little weak, with a hint of encouragement:

"Compared to the first two times, Arisu's average pace has improved a lot. The exercise is effective, and my body is starting to get used to it."

"Hoo... um."

Sakayanagi Arisu stood beside her, bent over and supporting her knees. Having just finished, she was too weak to answer, only managing a weak nod. She tried to regulate her breathing, and after a while, straightened up, savoring the satisfied feeling of soreness and relief that came with exercise.

"I feel like my sleep quality has improved during this period."

"Yes, and Arisu's appetite has also increased significantly recently."

"If this continues, maybe he can go through a second growth spurt and grow a few centimeters taller?"

Listening to Kitagawa Ryo's increasingly absurd words, which sounded like he was coaxing a child, Sakayanagi Arisu rolled her eyes at him with a bit of amusement. Compared to the mysterious and fragile aura she used to have, composed of silver-white hair and a pale face, her complexion was now noticeably rosier and healthier.

As always, I went back to my room to shower and change. As soon as I came out of the bathroom, I saw a delicious breakfast that had been prepared. It was a routine that I had become familiar with over time, but it made every day of Sakayanagi Arisu feel exceptionally vibrant and full of anticipation.

“I met with Horikita, a senior from Class 3-A, yesterday.”

Kitagawa Ryo picked up his bowl, took a sip of the millet porridge, and casually chatted with Sakayanagi Arisu about their recent daily lives.

"And Horikita-kun too, right?"

“Lingyin was invited by her brother; I didn’t know that before I went.”

Faced with the exceptionally perceptive Sakayanagi Arisu, Kitagawa Ryo could only offer a somewhat helpless explanation:

"Isn't Arisu working in the student council lately? Then you should know what kind of senior our student council president is. He's probably doing a little favors for Suzune and his sister."

As she spoke, Kitagawa Ryo briefly recounted what Horikita Suzune had said yesterday about how the sports festival would be conducted if she were in charge.

"It sounds like Katsuragi from Class D would do it. Strategically, there's nothing wrong with it, but in actual execution, it will probably be thrown into chaos by all sorts of random variables, and he might end up in a complete mess."

Faced with Sakayanagi Arisu's flippant comment, Kitagawa Ryo simply smiled, picked up a shrimp dumpling, dipped it in chili sauce, and put it in his mouth:

"That's why we asked Arisu to oversee the process and to address any issues that arise during implementation."

To be honest, Suzune and Kitagawa Ryo have always been left to their own devices, allowing them to think and grow freely. This is also why they let Suzune join the student council to learn to see things from different perspectives. After all, their mock exam only taught her some experience and lessons in dealing with people. In many other aspects, Suzune still retains many of her old ways of thinking.

Of course, this is also one of the reasons why Ryo Kitagawa finds Suzune so cute.

"I've been spending most of my time with the upperclassmen these past few days. As for things related to this year's students, Arisu will have to investigate them herself."

"Liang really knows how to avoid suspicion."

Upon hearing Kitagawa Ryo's statement, Sakayanagi Arisu merely pursed her lips.

Unlike the previous situation on the deserted island where the three classes were able to form an alliance, the current situation in the first year has objectively eliminated the possibility of Classes A and B cooperating again. Especially after Kitagawa Ryo cleverly stepped out of the communication affairs of this year, Sakayanagi Arisu already understood that this time they were serious.

"But that's perfect, we're only fifty-one class points behind Class A. If Liang doesn't care, we can just try to bring them back to square one."

Listening to Sakayanagi Arisu's confident speech, Kitagawa Ryo naturally recalled the current class points of the four classes: Class A of Grade 1 had 601 points, Class B of Grade 1 had 550 points, Class C of Grade 1 had 322 points, and Class D of Grade 1 had 248 points.

Since the gap between classes A and B is quite small, as Sakayanagi Arisu said, even with the low amount of rewards and punishments involved in this sports festival, there is indeed a possibility of changes in class rankings.

Thinking about the class points, Kitagawa Ryo unconsciously recalled the chaotic scene a few days ago, on the first of this month, when the students in his class received 55,000 individual points from the school and their cries of despair. However, he could understand it, since this was the first time Class B had seen a return on their investment from the school since last semester.

Although it wasn't as many as the 100,000 personal points they received the first time, it was still a much-needed relief for the students in Class B who had been struggling financially for a whole semester.

Seeing that Kitagawa Ryo remained silent, Sakayanagi Arisu took this as tacit agreement and continued with great interest:

"Just like how Class D's current strength doesn't match the name Class D, Class A can't really be considered a true Class A either. In fact, it's more like they just won by default after the special exam on the deserted island."

"Class A's overall strength is actually just mediocre. As for the athletic ability that will be tested in this sports festival, the only boys in their class who can stand out are Shibata and Kanzaki. The girls are about the same. Karuizawa might not even be as good as Horikita, let alone someone like Ichika."

"Just a reminder to Arisu, just like the last special exam on the deserted island, our biggest problem this time is still the total number of students in Class B."

Kitagawa Ryo swallowed the heart-shaped fried egg he had specially made in his mouth and casually mentioned the number of students to Sakayanagi Arisu. Compared to the thirty-nine students in the other three classes, the thirty-four students in Class B were indeed a bit few. It could be said that they had been holding them back since the special exam on the deserted island, and this was the 'breakthrough' that had been hindering them until now.

Although Kitagawa Ryo always felt that there were advantages to having fewer people, he thought that students like Yamauchi Haruki and Ike Kanji would only ruin the class atmosphere if they stayed in the class, and might even drag the class down in various special exams.

Even so, Kitagawa Ryo and Sakayanagi Arisu still had to consider the fact that the class's total number of students was not dominant when making decisions, especially in this sports festival where everyone had to participate in events.

Even considering only the most basic situation, one can immediately think of two problems: "fewer people and less combat power in team events such as pole vaulting and horseback riding" and "fewer people in total means that each student has to participate in more events, and their physical condition may not be optimistic".

"Then we can only play to our strengths and avoid our weaknesses."

"Anyway, the other classes all have their own problems."

Sakayanagi Arisu seemed to have already thought of a solution, and quite easily finished the last bit of porridge in her bowl, wiping her mouth with a tissue:

"Class D is busy looking for the mole. They can't rest easy until they find him."

"Class C is having internal strife. Although I don't know if it's a drama orchestrated by Ryuen, Shiina, and Ryo, quite a few students in the class have already believed it to be true and their attention has been completely diverted."

"Not to mention Class A, they chose that kind of team formation to protect the weaker students in the special exam on the deserted island. They'll probably have to hold back again at this sports festival."

After giving a brief review of the remaining three classes in the grade and finishing breakfast, Sakayanagi Arisu, resting her chin on her hand with interest, asked Kitagawa Ryo:

"How's it going on your end? What's the situation there?"

"It's nothing much. I just had a few interactions with the senior student Kiryuin that you mentioned last time, and we made a bet with each other."

Kitagawa Ryo made himself a larger portion than Arisu had, but he still kept track of the time and ate a little faster.

"He was a great senior colleague who gave me a lot of inspiration."

"And incidentally, give Nagumo a piece of his mind."

Upon hearing Kitagawa Ryo mention Nagumo's name, Sakayanagi Arisu nodded in agreement:

"That's very good."

It seems she also doesn't have a good impression of Nan Yunya.

"But then, the one being roasted over the fire will become Vice President Kiriyama."

Sakayanagi Arisu then said this.

"No matter what, Kiryuin-senpai is a second-year student in Class B. If she really leads Class B to victory over Class A in the Sports Festival, or even if she only disrupts Nagumo's plans, I guess many people will think it was Kiriyama's instruction and direction."

"After all, Kiriyama hasn't revealed that he's from Nagumo's faction yet, something that even Horikita-senpai doesn't seem to have realized."

After chatting for a while about Nagumo Masaru and the student council, Sakayanagi Arisu seemed to remember something and casually asked:

"Has Ryo been contacting upperclassmen lately? Has he gone to see that Asahina-senpai again? She's Nagumo's childhood friend."

"No, does Arisu expect me to get information from Asahina-senpai? We're not that close yet."

"Who knows? After all, didn't someone even have Ying being fostered by someone else? I don't even know when you met her."

As the saying goes, once you tell a lie, you have to tell many more to cover it up. Because he didn't want to reveal Hotaru's true situation and experiences, Kitagawa Ryo directly pushed the question of who took care of Hotaru during their summer vacation when they went out of school to take the special exam on the deserted island onto Asahina Nazuna. As a result, it seems that this made Sakayanagi Arisu more concerned about when the two of them actually met.

“It’s not like what Arisu thought at all. Just like you said, I only decided to do this because I noticed that Asahina-senpai was Nagumo’s childhood friend. But after getting to know her, I found out that she is also a good senior.”

Seemingly to strengthen the persuasiveness of his statement, Kitagawa Ryo added earnestly:

"Arisu knows perfectly well that I've never been particularly interested in older women."

"...If we really count all those parts of his life that were cut short, he was a genuine younger man."

Sakayanagi Arisu made a subtle remark, but didn't intend to press the matter further, glancing at the time displayed on the clock hanging on the wall:

"Class is about to start, let's get ready to go."

"it is good."

-------------------------------------

Inside the gym at Beech Tree Shopping Center after school.

With the help of her wealth, Karuizawa Kei, now a top member, is jogging in her own private space, while Kitagawa Ryo sits lazily on a yoga mat next to her, idly tossing and catching a yoga ball.

Ever since witnessing Amasawa Ichika's physical prowess on the deserted island, Karuizawa Megumi has been thinking about getting fit. So, upon returning to school, she immediately followed Kitagawa Ryo's instructions and got a gym membership at the Keyaki Shopping Center.

Unlike Arisu Sakayanagi, who aimed for better health, Megumi Karuizawa clearly wanted to go further. After all, with years of stage experience, her physical condition was definitely among the best of her peers; otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to survive for so long as a solo group on a deserted island.

Having seemingly completed her workout goal for the day, Karuizawa Megumi turned off the running treadmill, took a breath, and sat down next to Kitagawa Ryo, taking the towel he offered and wiping the fine beads of sweat from her forehead.

Just as she put down the towel, a bottle of mineral water with the cap already loosened was handed to her. After taking small sips at a steady pace, Karuizawa Kei breathed a sigh of relief and leaned back on Kitagawa Ryo's lap, stretching her limbs comfortably.

"I saw Ryo and Suzune practicing three-legged race on the playground yesterday. Ahh—it brings back so many memories."

For Karuizawa Megumi, the three-legged race, or rather, that simulated sports festival, was indeed an unforgettable memory. Moreover, her partner that time, and Kitagawa Ryo's current partner, are both Horikita Suzune, which made her unable to help but remark with such emotion:

"Back then, Rin was nothing like she is now. She didn't care about her partner's feelings at all, and she didn't know how to cooperate. I was almost being dragged along by her back then."

"To be honest, I'd really like to see what the current Rin was like in that timeline—the one who was so clever on the deserted island, the one who ran amok at the sports festival..."

"In that case, we should let Hui see for herself what you've done to Fanbo."

"Um, let's just forget about it and let it go. I can imagine it anyway."

After exchanging a few lighthearted jokes, Karuizawa Kei started talking about her class's plans for the upcoming sports festival, looking a bit troubled:

"It's basically the same as the special exam on the deserted island last time. We're thinking of arranging for someone to help those students who didn't do well and fell to the bottom ten, who might fail their written exam and have to drop out. Although I think it would be better to let them work harder during this time."

"There's no way around it. After all, you're in Class A now. Before experiencing a defeat and setback, everyone will inevitably continue to use the old tactics."

"So, does Liang mean we should lose this time?"

"This isn't something the two of us can decide, but I really want to cool down Hoshinomiya, your class's homeroom teacher. She's been too active lately, and Chabashira is almost going crazy because of her."

At this point, Kitagawa Ryo couldn't help but recall the scene where he had just finished school and was heading back to his dorm to put his things down when he ran into Chabashira Sae on the way.

Perhaps it was a school assignment, or perhaps it was his own wish, but Chabashira Sae recently took on the extracurricular duty of watering the green area in front of the dormitory. This resulted in him running into the other person every time he returned to the dormitory.