Shimizu Akira slowly closed his fingers. When he'd gripped Yamauchi's wrist, he'd only used at most thirty percent of his strength.
There was always more than one way to solve a problem.
Theoretically, it was either brute force or strategy.
In this society that champions civilization, people always advocate for winning with wisdom.
But sometimes, force is indeed the most direct solution—especially when your opponent simply doesn't understand reason.
Shimizu Akira was never a conventional person, so this time he simply used force to resolve the trouble.
"Solving problems with violence? That's truly the act of a barbarian."
A familiar voice came from behind him, the crisp sound of a cane tapping the ground approaching from afar.
Sakayanagi Arisu had appeared beside him at some point, a hint of teasing playing on her lips.
"Sakayanagi-san, are you spying on me again?" Shimizu Akira glanced at her sideways. "It seems you're even more obsessive than I thought. If I were to date you, you'd probably install surveillance software on my phone, wouldn't you? Typical stalker behavior."
The term "stalker" caused Sakayanagi Arisu's expression to stiffen, which was rare for her.
She had indeed been secretly observing this boy since the entrance ceremony—especially after witnessing that subtle confrontation between him and a male classmate.
"Tell me your name." She suddenly looked directly into his eyes, her tone brooking no refusal.
"Shimizu Akira." Shimizu Akira replied carelessly. "I have things to do, sorry. No time to play games with you."
Although she had silver hair that he quite admired, at the moment he truly wasn't in the mood to deal with such a troublesome person.
"Let's make a bet." Sakayanagi Arisu's cane tapped lightly on the ground. "Let's bet on when Kamuro Masumi will make her move."
Shimizu Akira was about to refuse, but she suddenly held up five slender fingers.
"Fifty thousand points as the stake." The silver-haired girl's lips curved into a confident smile. "Are you interested now?"
"I see." Shimizu Akira looked at her with a half-smile. "You finally understand my reason for refusing."
"Of course." Sakayanagi Arisu nodded slightly. "You have no interest in things that don't involve profit, right?"
During the entrance ceremony just now, she'd been pondering this question.
It wasn't until a few minutes ago that she suddenly realized she'd made a rookie mistake—this bet held no appeal for him.
So she decisively put up half of her current points. Fifty thousand points, converted to Japanese yen, was only fifty thousand yen, which was merely pocket money for a young lady from the Sakayanagi family. Moreover, in this special school, she was confident that with her intelligence, earning back those points would be as easy as pie.
Shimizu Akira tapped his arm with his fingertips, deep in thought.
Earning fifty thousand points on the first day of school seemed pretty good.
"Too little?" Sakayanagi Arisu saw him hesitate to answer and tapped her cane lightly on the ground.
"What are the rules?" Shimizu Akira finally spoke.
"It's simple." Her lips curved into a cunning arc. "We each predict the timing of Kamuro Masumi's theft. Whoever accurately predicts that she'll make her move within one minute and is the first to say it correctly wins. The prediction must be at least twenty seconds in advance, and it's forbidden to predict at the moment she's about to act."
Her cane traced an elegant arc in the air. "If a prediction fails, the next time you must wait for the other person to speak first before continuing."
Shimizu Akira raised an eyebrow at that. "You're really treating someone else's theft as an entertainment show, aren't you?"
Sakayanagi Arisu chuckled. "Isn't this more interesting? Turning a boring daily routine into a game of strategy." She tilted her head. "What, Shimizu-san, has your sense of justice suddenly flared up?"
Shimizu Akira's words were on the tip of his tongue when his phone suddenly vibrated in his pocket.
He pulled out his phone, and the screen displayed his homeroom teacher Chabashira Sae's name.
"Wait a moment." He made a 'pause' gesture to Sakayanagi Arisu. "I need to reply to a message."
The silver-haired girl gracefully twirled her cane, making a 'please go ahead' gesture.
Chabashira Sae: Where are you now? Come to the office for a moment.
Shimizu Akira quickly typed on the screen:
Shimizu Akira: Urgent? Could it be that the reward for "that matter" has arrived?
The other party replied almost instantly:
Chabashira Sae: You're clever. We'll discuss the details when we meet.
Shimizu Akira glanced at Sakayanagi Arisu, who was patiently waiting beside him, and continued to reply:
Shimizu Akira: I can't get away right now. By the way, can you really buy anything with points in this school?
Chabashira Sae: As long as it doesn't violate school rules. Why, is there something specific you want to buy?
Shimizu Akira: Yes, there is. How about this? I'll offer ten thousand points, and you run an errand for me, Chabashira-sensei?
There was a pause of a few seconds on the other end of the phone, and then a message arrived:
Chabashira Sae: Interesting. First, tell me what exactly you want to buy.
A few minutes later.
The two of them tacitly made their way to the convenience store, once again hiding behind that familiar corner shelf.
Not long after, Kamuro Masumi's figure indeed appeared between the shelves.
She first pretended to browse a few notebooks, then her steps unconsciously drifted toward the adult alcohol section.
"The target is alcohol, then." Shimizu Akira lowered his voice. "Indeed, minors can't buy that."
"That's why she has to steal it." Sakayanagi Arisu softly agreed, then suddenly pulled out a beautifully wrapped candy from her pocket. "Shimizu-san, would you like to try it? I brought it from home, and it tastes very good."
Her slender fingers deftly peeled open the wrapper, offering the candy to him.
Shimizu Akira narrowed his eyes. "Sakayanagi-san, are you trying to use candy to shut me up so you can make your prediction first?"
"Oh my, you really hurt my feelings." The silver-haired girl showed a wounded expression, but the amusement in her eyes betrayed her.
"I'll take your word for it." Shimizu Akira finally accepted the candy and put it in his mouth, but as he bent down, he casually picked up the wrapper from the floor.
"Don't litter."
Sakayanagi Arisu twirled her cane nonchalantly. "What does it matter? Someone will always clean it up. Otherwise, what do convenience stores hire these clerks for!"
Shimizu Akira looked at her deeply.
Sakayanagi Arisu's disdain for ordinary people was practically ingrained. She didn't even bother to hide it.
However, the candy in his mouth was indeed sweet, so it seemed this young lady was honest about her snack preferences.
'I'll make her pay for this arrogance later.'
"Shimizu-san," Sakayanagi Arisu suddenly lowered her voice, "I'll offer another fifty thousand points to buy the priority to speak first this time. Only I can speak first. How about it?"
Her cane tapped lightly on the ground, and the silver-haired girl's eyes sparkled with determination.
Shimizu Akira almost choked on the candy. "You can even trade for that? And spend fifty thousand points? Aren't you afraid of losing everything?"
She tilted her head, a triumphant smile on her face. "After all, in this school, points can buy 'anything.'"
Sakayanagi Arisu chuckled, twirling her cane. "If I lose even with this advantage, I might as well live off free meals this month."
When Sakayanagi Arisu said this, it was more like a joke.
But Shimizu Akira didn't smile at all. He just looked at her with an almost pitying gaze.
'What a poor child.'
He thought to himself.
'This proud young lady probably doesn't know that she's about to hand over all her possessions on the first day of school.'