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I hope everyone enjoys.
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"Someone's sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago." ~Warren Buffett
"Who buys a tablet and doesn't get some sort of case or at least a screen protector after buying it?" Ishizaki mocked Ibuki as we walked into the tech store. His tone was laced with amusement, clearly enjoying her predicament.
"Shut up, Ishizaki. I don't want to hear it from an idiot like you," Ibuki snapped back.
"Well…" Albert hummed thoughtfully. "Ishizaki makes a good point. It's usually the first thing you do when you buy something expensive like that."
"Haha, I have to say, I agree," I added. Ibuki's glare shot straight at me, but she didn't say a word. She was probably too focused on getting her tablet repaired to pick a fight over something so trivial.
We approached the front desk, where a new clerk stood behind the counter. She was a woman, likely in her mid-twenties, with long black hair that framed her face. I took note of her immediately—not just because of her looks, but because I was aware that the previous clerk had been fired after the incident involving Airi Sakura. It was interesting to see how quickly the school had filled the vacant position. Then again, it had been a while since the incident. Jobs like these weren't exactly glamorous, but there are always people looking for work.
"Hey, I'm here for a repair," Ibuki said.
I zoned out slightly as the clerk responded, my thoughts lingering on the previous employee. The school had acted swiftly in getting rid of him.
"I see. Do you have your receipt?" the woman asked.
"Yeah, it's right here." Ibuki quickly pulled the crumpled receipt from her pocket and handed it over.
The clerk examined it, her eyes scanning the details. "It looks like you purchased this over a month ago…" she murmured, a hint of regret in her voice. But after another glance at the paper, she smiled. "Ah, but it seems you bought the extended warranty, so any necessary repairs should still be covered free of charge."
"Good. So what do I have to do to get it repaired?" Ibuki asked, folding her arms as if she were ready to get this over with.
"Well, all repairs are done here, but before we can start, we'll need you to fill this out." The clerk slid a clipboard with a document attached across the counter. "It's just some basic information—your name, number, email, an explanation of the problem with the device, and other details so we can run proper tests."
As she explained, she suddenly turned her gaze toward me, Ishizaki, and Albert, having seemingly caught onto the fact that I had been watching her. I remained composed, adjusting my stance slightly before speaking.
"Ah, sorry about that," I said smoothly, rubbing the back of my head as if caught in an awkward moment. "I was just surprised to see you here. The last time I was in this store, the person at the front desk was a guy. He didn't exactly give off the friendliest air, so I couldn't help but notice the change."
The woman's expression softened with understanding. "Ah, don't apologize. And yes, I know who you're talking about. He was my predecessor, but he was fired for harassing some female student, so I guess your instincts about him were right."
"So that was this store's clerk?" I responded, feigning mild surprise. "I heard about that incident, but I had almost forgotten."
She sighed, crossing her arms as a shadow passed over her face. "Yeah, unfortunately, it happened here. But at least he's gone now. It's disgusting that people like him exist, harassing innocent high school students."
Her frustration was evident, and it made sense. She was a woman, after all, and this was Japan—where 'persistence' from certain individuals could sometimes border on harassment. Her reaction was more than understandable. Even though the incident had passed, people didn't just forget things like that.
I studied her for a moment longer before shifting my focus back to Ibuki. Whatever lingering irritation she had toward me earlier was gone—replaced by impatience as she scrawled down her details on the clipboard.
"Didn't you want me to pick up the tablet for you, Ibuki?" I asked casually. She turned her head toward me, locking eyes with me for a brief moment before considering my words.
"It isn't a problem if she puts my information down for pickup, right, miss…?" I trailed off, subtly prompting the store clerk for her name.
"Ah, sorry about that. It's Souta Miyako," she replied with a polite nod. "And no, as long as she's comfortable with it, it isn't a problem."
Ibuki nodded without hesitation and continued filling out the necessary paperwork.
I let my eyes wander around the store as I leaned against the counter. "I'm Light Yagami, by the way. It's understandable you'd forget small details like that. It must be a slow job, after all, right?" I asked, glancing around the nearly empty shop.
The store had the feel of a ghost town. It was probably still one of the most heavily surveilled locations on campus, given the sheer value of the merchandise inside. But that didn't mean much when the items were too expensive for most students. The school already provided smartphones, and dorms had computers for student use, so there weren't many who could justify spending their points here. In fact, there were so few that you could probably name most students who could actually justify a purchase from this store.
"It is usually slow here," Miyako admitted, offering a small smile. "It's both a good and bad thing. It means most of my day is easy, but—"
"The time drags on when there's nothing to do?" I finished for her, cutting in smoothly.
She blinked, slightly caught off guard, before smiling. "Yes, exactly. It can get very boring. And, well… the pay…" She trailed off, probably deciding it wouldn't be professional to openly complain about her wages to customers.
That made sense. It was a low-standing retail job, likely paying close to minimum wage, and on top of that, it was a newly acquired position.
"Well, I've actually been in the market for a laptop recently, so maybe you'll see a bit of business soon," I said, smoothly steering the conversation in another direction.
"Oh, really? Do you have anything in mind?" she asked, her interest piqued.
"Nothing specific. I need it for my student council work. I just know I want something compact, powerful, and quiet," I replied.
"The student council?" Miyako echoed, nodding slightly in understanding. She had probably heard that the student council actually held power at this school, but given that she was new, she likely didn't understand its full extent. After a moment, she hummed to herself, clearly thinking about potential options.
At that moment, Ibuki finished writing down the necessary information on the clipboard, placing it back on the counter with an impatient sigh.
"How about you do me a favor and give it some thought for me? My budget is about 300,000 yen if that helps," I said.
"300,000?" she repeated, clearly a little surprised. But after a brief pause, she nodded. "Okay, will do. I'll have a small list picked out for you by the next time you come," she said with a smile before returning her attention to Ibuki.
"I don't have to fill in the bottom half, right?" Ibuki asked, tapping the form with her pen.
"No, that part will be filled out by the repair technicians," Miyako explained. "They'll document the exact issues with the device and list what they changed there. Yagami will receive the completed form along with the device when he comes to pick it up."
"Thank you so much for your help," I say, giving Miyako one last polite smile before we exit the store.
As we step outside, the atmosphere shifts back to the usual calm of the school's commercial area, students moving about, most too focused on their own business to pay attention to us.
"Ibuki, I wasn't really thinking about it at first, and obviously, you're free to do whatever you want with your money," I begin, keeping my tone neutral. "But I'm curious—why do you own a tablet? I mean, it's expensive, and your phone and the computers in our dorms can basically do the same things."
Ibuki walks in silence for a few seconds as if debating whether to answer. Eventually, she lets out a small sigh and speaks.
"Well, I've told you before—I like watching movies," she says matter-of-factly. "Our dorms are already cramped, and TVs are expensive. If I got a TV, I'd need a DVD player too, which just adds to the cost. Sure, our computers have DVD readers, but watching movies on them feels weird. And having to go out to rent movies all the time? That gets annoying."
She crosses her arms, her pace staying steady as she continues her explanation. "Buying and renting movies on my phone is convenient, but watching on such a small screen is irritating. A tablet doesn't take up as much space as a TV, it's cheaper, and the screen is bigger than my phone's while still being just as convenient for purchasing movies."
I glance at her, mildly impressed. She must have really given this decision plenty of thought before making the purchase.
I would've never expected to be subjected to such a thorough analysis of something as simple as a tablet, but I suppose I brought this upon myself by asking.
"Wow, you really thought this through," I say, offering a smile. "It's good to have things you're passionate about."
"Let's just get to class," Ibuki responded, and so we did.
***
"Finally, it's time for lunch," I said, stretching my arms as I stood up from my seat.
"Wait, we're coming too," a couple of Class B students chimed in, moving to join me.
It had been three days since the start of Class D's so-called "revolution." Progress had been slow, but that was to be expected. Change rarely happened overnight. However, today was a particularly important day. This afternoon, it had been confirmed that all students across every class would be called into the gymnasium to discuss strategy and plans with their respective teams. Even if nothing major was expected to happen, everyone wanted to be in their best condition for the discussions ahead.
On top of that, this movement had essentially been endorsed by me. Class B had taken notice of that, and after the first two days had passed without any crackdown from the school, they became one of the more willing classes to participate in the scheme. When people see a system being exploited without consequences, they're quick to follow.
"Are you guys ready?" I asked as I stood up, glancing at the group around me. Ishizaki, Albert, Ibuki, Hiyori, and a few others nodded as they followed me out of the classroom.
Navigating the hallways of the school took little effort. A few turns here and there, and soon, we arrived at our destination—the nurse's office.
As expected, students were already eating inside. By now, both the cafeteria staff and the nurses had adjusted to the influx of students coming for free meals, and their efficiency had noticeably improved. They had no real choice but to adapt until an official response came from the school.
Today, the turnout was larger than before. Roughly 80 students had gathered, most of them from Class 1-D. A fair number from my own class, 1-B, were here as well, while the rest were from Class 1-C and, interestingly, Class 2-D.
The second-years were, understandably, more cautious about acting recklessly. Unlike the first-years, they had experience in how this school operated, making them hesitant to participate in something that could lead to repercussions. However, since the scheme had been running smoothly so far, their concerns were beginning to fade.
And why wouldn't they? Even if the school decided to intervene, which at this point seemed unlikely, the worst that could happen was a complete shutdown of the fraud. The idea that the school would expel an entire class just because they found a way to game the system and get free lunches? Ridiculous. There was no logical precedent for such extreme action.
"Hey, is that Light Yagami?" a voice murmured from the crowd.
"Isn't he part of the student council?"
"Yeah, he's vice president, right? That means he and Nagumo are on the same level—at least for now."
"I heard he was the inspiration behind this whole lunch scheme."
"Really? Then that means we're probably safe."
Just my presence alone was enough to strengthen this movement. One of the individuals with the power to influence its fate was on their side—of course that would be reassuring.
Well, no point overanalyzing things for now. It was time to eat.
***
Everyone in the school gathered in one place—it was a strange sight. As a first-year, I was used to being around only other first-years, but this was different. This was a schoolwide assessment, not just a competition between class years, so it made sense.
I stood near the front of Class B's group, though not at the very front. As I had told Ryuen before, this sports festival didn't particularly interest me, so he stood ahead of me, taking the lead.
"Now that you're here, we can talk about our plans going into the sports festival," Ichinose said with a smile, directing her words toward Ryuen. However, her gaze flickered toward me more than once.
She seemed somewhat relieved to see me. At the same time, there was a faint awkwardness in her expression—it was only natural given the context of our last conversation.
"Our plans?" Ryuen repeated, raising an eyebrow. "And why exactly do you think you can include me in whatever you're planning?"
"Ah?" Ichinose looked momentarily confused. "Well, I was just thinking… it's a team competition. Wouldn't it be best if everyone worked together?" she suggested.
"It sounds logical, but let's be real here." Ryuen let out a short chuckle. "Class C doesn't trust me, do they? If I suddenly offered to cooperate with you, would you truly believe me? With an opportunity to rise to first place or at least avoid last, do you really think I wouldn't throw Class C into the dirt if it benefited me?" His smirk widened. "No, you wouldn't believe me. And I don't blame you."
Ichinose remained silent as Ryuen continued, his tone harsh but at the same time strangely casual.
"I'm actually doing you a favor here. Think of it as an act of goodwill. This way, you won't have to constantly look over your shoulder, wondering if I'm setting you up for failure. If I ever decide to stab you, I'll do it from the front."
"I see," Ichinose said softly. Her expression remained neutral, but I could tell she was thinking carefully. After a brief pause, she turned her eyes toward me, as if hoping I could leverage my influence over Class B to change Ryuen's stance—or at the very least, convince both classes to work together.
In a way, this was an opportunity. Even if only slightly, it was a chance to grow closer to Ichinose.
"Ryuen," I said evenly, "I don't intend to interfere much in this, but would it really be such a bad idea? The main objective of this assessment is to secure a victory for the White Team. As long as you can do that, the details become less important. I understand that if you saw a major opportunity to profit, you might consider throwing Class C under the bus. But there's no big profit in this exam. If we lose to the Red Team, that's a direct loss of 100 class points. We have to take what we can get."
As I spoke, I noticed subtle shifts among the students in Class B. Some of them physically shuffled away from Ryuen's side toward mine, even if the movement was small. It was inevitable—after all, it wasn't Ryuen who had led them this far. No, it was me. Even if they feared him, they didn't want to see our class lose.
Ryuen frowned, visibly displeased by the reaction. He sighed. "Fine. So be it. Just don't say I didn't warn you, Ichinose."
It was nice making decisions without having to take any responsibility for them.
With that settled, I decided to turn my attention back to Ichinose.
"How have you been feeling?" I asked in a low voice, barely audible over the murmur of conversations in the gymnasium. "You seem… better to me recently."
"Ah, do you think so?" Ichinose tilted her head slightly.
"It's hard to explain. Maybe 'better' isn't the right word." I paused for a moment. "But at the very least, you look at peace."
She blinked, as if caught off guard by my observation, before offering a small smile. "I guess, in a way, I am."
I exhaled slightly, my voice dropping even lower. "I'm sorry if what I said back then sounded cruel. But… it was difficult to see you like that. I'm sure that's a feeling you can understand."
Ichinose's expression softened, a flicker of surprise in her eyes before she smiled again. A genuine one.
"I guess we're the same in that way," she whispered. "We both have things we can't bear to see. And… don't be sorry. I'm actually thankful." She hesitated before continuing, "I cried a lot that night." Her voice was quiet, almost as if admitting it to herself as much as to me.
"But while it hurt to think about what you said," she continued, "it was also comforting in a way. To know that someone, that you, had my back. So… I really hope that never changes."
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Needless to say, this chapter is prepping for the future; I've tried my best to do some slice of life before getting into the next arc; I hope I've succeeded to an extent in doing so. I'm usually on go 24/7, so it's been hard trying to slow everything down to develop characters and introduce new plotlines after the cruise ship exam, but I've enjoyed writing the past couple chapters, I'd love to hear everyone's thoughts.