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

Horikita Suzune immediately frowned and coldly retorted, "Enjoying it? Don't misunderstand, it's just that we happened to be in the same class and sitting next to each other, so it's just necessary interaction."

At this moment, Akira Shimizu finally clearly realized a fatal flaw in Suzune Horikita—her almost obsessive social anxiety had seriously affected her judgment.

(I see...)

Horikita Suzune certainly possesses exceptional intelligence, but her practice of completely isolating herself in her own world has prevented her from even establishing the most basic campus intelligence network.

Just like now, her understanding of the class assignment system is still limited to the most superficial "random allocation," and this judgment is entirely based on her isolated speculation.

(He's only spoken to me in the last two days...no wonder.)

Akira Shimizu couldn't help but recall how he had managed to extract the truth about the class assignment rules from the homeroom teacher.

No matter how intelligent a person is, it is impossible to obtain all the key information in complete isolation.

Horikita Suzune is like an isolated island. Although the island is rich in resources, it is gradually falling into difficulties due to its severance of contact with the mainland.

Akira Shimizu shook his head slightly, his tone calm yet undeniable: "You guessed wrong; it wasn't random."

"What do you have—" Horikita Suzune instinctively retorted, but stopped abruptly when she saw the other person's expression.

There was no mockery in those eyes, only the certainty of stating the facts.

She suddenly realized that the person in front of her had no motive to deceive her at all.

Silence spread between the two.

Akira Shimizu watched Horikita deep in thought. He admired the girl's beauty and stubbornness, but information was never a free lunch.

"If you really can't figure it out, you can buy it from me for a few points." Shimizu Akira leaned forward slightly, lowering his voice to a volume only the two of them could hear. "I can give you a 20% discount, guaranteeing it's great value for money."

"No need!" Horikita Suzune replied almost reflexively, her voice filled with unwavering resolve. "I can figure it out myself."

This proud female classmate had absolute confidence in her intelligence.

This kind of intelligence usually requires extensive social connections to obtain clues, but given Horikita's unapproachable personality...

Akira Shimizu couldn't help but imagine the scene of her trying to get information from her seniors—her cold attitude alone was enough to make people want to stay away.

If social means are prohibited, even he himself would find it difficult to think of other ways to access the hidden rules.

...

The morning classes started as scheduled.

Akira Shimizu opened the brand-new textbook and gently touched the pages with his fingertips.

Although my grades were pretty good in my previous life, the Japanese education system is a completely different story.

Mathematics and English are alright, since formulas and grammar are similar.

But when the Mandarin teacher began explaining classical grammar, his brows furrowed involuntarily.

"In this passage from 'The Pillow Book,' Sei Shonagon employs special rhetorical devices..."

The teacher's voice on the podium gradually faded into the background noise.

As Shimizu Akira stared at the dense annotations in his textbook, he felt as if every Chinese character was dancing before his eyes.

He subconsciously rubbed his temples, a subtle movement that did not escape the notice of his neighbor.

"Heh~"

(Am I being laughed at?)

......

As soon as the lunch break bell rang, the classroom immediately erupted in excitement.

"Want to go to the cafeteria together?" A handsome young man stood in the middle of the aisle, smiling as he extended an invitation.

Akira Shimizu immediately recognized that it was Yosuke Hirata, a key figure in Class D—information that Kanji Ike had personally told him yesterday.

"Great! Hirata-kun, let's go together!" Several boys immediately responded enthusiastically.

(Speaking of which, there's also a group of gyaru girls in the class, led by Kei Karuizawa, who's quite eye-catching.)

Akira Shimizu searched his mind for fragments of memory, his gaze unconsciously sweeping to the other side of the classroom.

Chapter 17: 017 In the end, Karuizawa Megumi gave up on Hirata Yosuke.

"Okay, okay~"

Accompanied by a light yet pleasant voice, a girl with a brown ponytail gracefully rose from her seat and naturally blended into the group.

She has a delicate, doll-like face, but what's most striking is her unique honey-colored skin—as if she'd just returned from a vacation in Hawaii, or as if she were born with the scent of sunshine.

Karuizawa Kei, a key member of the D-class gyaru group.

She casually tossed her hair, the hem of her uniform skirt swaying gently with her steps, exuding a flamboyant yet sweet aura.

(Was that tanned skin intentionally achieved?)

However, Shimizu Akira's gaze fell on his third intelligence report.

[Information 3: First-year student Kei Karuizawa from Class D is looking for a "fake boyfriend" to act as her protector.]

(Wait... Could it be that Karuizawa Megumi has taken a liking to Hirata-kun?)

Akira Shimizu suddenly realized something, his gaze shifting back and forth between the two of them.

Thinking about it this way, it makes perfect sense—in every class just now, Hirata actively raised his hand to answer questions, demonstrating his exceptional knowledge.

(She's practically an all-rounder...)

From appearance to ability, he is impeccable. Hirata Yosuke is like the perfect male protagonist who stepped out of a school manga - handsome appearance, excellent grades, gentle personality. Even after Shimizu Akira left yesterday, it was he who took the initiative to stand up and organize the self-introduction session.

The Hexagonal Warrior, Yosuke Hirata!

(No wonder even the leader of the Spice Girls group looks at him differently)

(However, Karuizawa Megumi's motives do not seem to be pure.)

To be honest, he really couldn't understand the logic behind this intelligence.

In the classroom environment, sexy girl groups have always been considered "version T0" alongside delinquents.

These people should be thankful they don't bully others, why do they need to seek protection?

(Unless... Karuizawa Megumi has gotten into some kind of trouble?)

(But that's none of my business.)

Although he was unsure of how his classmates perceived him, Akira Shimizu was quite certain that, based on his current performance in class, he was just an ordinary student.

......

(Akira Shimizu... is definitely not an ordinary student.)

As Karuizawa Kei flipped her hair, she glanced at Shimizu Akira in the corner of the classroom once more.

She quickly looked away, a flippant smile on her lips, and continued discussing lunch options with Hirata Yosuke.

"I heard the ramen set meal at the cafeteria is pretty good." Her voice was light and cheerful.

In fact, since the start of school yesterday, this boy named Shimizu has caught her attention.

While everyone else was busy making new friends, he was the only one who chased after them out of the classroom and stopped their homeroom teacher, Chabashira Sae.

(Tea Pillar Teacher's attitude towards him... is rather intriguing.)

Karuizawa Megumi's thoughts drifted back to the entrance ceremony held yesterday morning.

She clearly remembered that before Shimizu Akira was late, there was actually another boy who rushed into the line in a panic—teacher Chabashira just glanced at him coldly and didn't even bother to scold him.

But when Akira Shimizu arrived just in time, everything changed.

Chabashira Sae's attitude towards him wasn't harsh; it even carried a hint of barely perceptible compromise.

Even more unusually, she gestured for Shimizu Akira to stand at the very front of the line—a prominent position that should have belonged to the class representative or a top student.

(Disliking someone means ignoring them completely, but paying special attention to them often implies more complex reasons.)

Karuizawa Kei's academic performance and athletic ability may be at an average level, but when it comes to "interpersonal communication," because she suffered a great loss due to her embarrassing past in junior high school, she tends to observe more carefully when talking to others.

If she didn't do that, she was even worried that she would completely lose the "sex symbol" label.

In general, Shimizu Akira was already on the same level as Hirata Yosuke in his eyes.

"Karuizawa-san? Are you listening?" Hirata's gentle voice pulled her back to reality.

"Oh, sorry." She blinked. "I was just thinking about something."

"By the way, if a conflict occurs between classmates, and one of them is someone you know, Hirata-kun, how would you handle it?" Karuizawa Megumi casually brought up this topic.

"Well..." Hirata thought for a moment, then smiled gently. "I'll handle this fairly. After all, we're all classmates, and I won't favor anyone."

"As expected of Hirata-kun, he's so fair," the boy next to him immediately chimed in.

"Yes, that's very kind indeed," Karuizawa Megumi replied with a light laugh.

But a ripple stirred within her heart.

Is he a nice guy who doesn't take sides with anyone?

This answer made her feel inexplicably disappointed.

While Hirata's impartial personality is indeed perfect, given her character, she would prefer her friends to stand by her side in crucial moments.

In a romantic relationship, she also hopes that her future boyfriend will be a "selfish" person.

What she longs for is exclusive tenderness, something that makes her feel unique and special.

Because Karuizawa Kei is essentially a girl who lacks a sense of security.

(Sure enough... we should have had that guy named Shimizu Akira play the role of the "fake boyfriend"?)

(But if I choose Hirata-kun...)

Given his kind-hearted nature, if he knew about her experiences in junior high school, he would definitely agree to play her "fake boyfriend" without hesitation, right?

After all, he's the kind of person who would unconditionally protect others.

but--

(If it were Akira Shimizu...)

Her throat tightened slightly, and a sense of uncertain anxiety spread through her chest.

(Would he really be willing?)

Ultimately, they were just ordinary classmates, not even friends, because they had never spoken a word to each other.

Even if she laid bare her weaknesses and vulnerabilities before him, why should he bear such trouble for her sake? Sympathy? Pity? Or something else...?

(He wouldn't care at all?)

Suddenly, the image of Shimizu Akira decisively attacking Yamauchi Haruki flashed through his mind—his unwavering demeanor stood in stark contrast to Hirata Yosuke's perpetually gentle and restrained appearance.

(If it were him...)

She could almost picture the scene: if she and Hirata Yosuke were to have a "fake relationship," and one day they actually got into a conflict with other classmates, and Hirata still had that perfect smile on his face and said, "Everyone should get along well"—just imagining it made her chest tighten.

(This kind of central air conditioning-like gentleness... I guess I'll pass!)

Karuizawa Kei took a deep breath.

(It's decided—)

(Choose Akira Shimizu.)

Karuizawa suddenly realized an even more practical problem.

(So, is there something about me that attracts him?)

Chapter 18: 018 The beer was brought back again? / An unexpected encounter with Honami Ichinose

Today's lunch is the signature tonkotsu ramen in bone broth.

Akira Shimizu has always loved Japanese ramen, especially the rich broth paired with chewy thin noodles.

The restaurant specially added tender fish cakes and bright green spinach as side dishes. The bright green spinach leaves were faintly visible in the rich soup, making it very tempting to look at.

Just as Shimizu Akira was about to start eating, an uninvited guest sat down opposite him.

"I don't want it, here you go," the purple-haired girl suddenly said.

Masumi Kamuro was pushing a bulging plastic bag in front of him.