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

"Oh? Shimizu-kun is here too?" Koenji suddenly turned his gaze to Shimizu Akira, who was standing to the side. He casually put the small mirror back on the table and turned to face the two of them with an elegant posture.

Before Kikyo Kushida could react, she heard Koenji announce in an operatic tone, "Speak your request, I grant it."

"Huh?" Kushida's eyes widened, and he almost dropped his phone.

She glanced at Akira Shimizu instinctively, only to find that he also had a puzzled expression on his face.

Koenji continued, seemingly oblivious to his own words, "After all—this gentleman not only offered me his seat but also reported those blind interviewers for me, didn't he?"

Upon hearing this, Kushida glanced at Shimizu Akira in surprise, but ultimately handed over his phone in silence, and the two exchanged contact information.

At this moment, Akira Shimizu was overwhelmed with an indescribable sense of speechlessness.

—Who told you he gave up his seat for you? There's a limit to narcissism.

Wait, how did the other party know that he reported the information?

Chapter 22: 022 Senior: Trust me, this is a school where strength reigns supreme.

"A few more upperclasswomen have asked me out for coffee?"

"Then, I'll take my leave now."

Koenji gently stroked his bangs, uttered the words in a languid tone, and then gracefully turned to leave the classroom.

Before stepping out the door, he suddenly stopped, his gaze sweeping meaningfully over Kikyo Kushida before finally settling on Akira Shimizu.

"My 'favor' goes far beyond simply exchanging contact information."

"Stay tuned, Shimizu-kun! Hahahaha!"

Before he could finish speaking, Koenji's tall figure had already disappeared into the classroom, leaving behind only a stunned silence.

Koenji Rokusuke was always flamboyant, and his words, spoken in a deliberately raised voice, along with his hearty and infectious laughter, unsurprisingly reached the ears of the students around him.

"What nonsense is that guy spouting?"

"What 'favor'? It's all nonsense."

"But that guy's surprisingly popular with the senior students! Maybe she'll introduce him to a girlfriend!"

Akira Shimizu never expected that Rokusuke Koenji, with his narcissistic personality, would be so popular with the upperclassmen from other classes.

However, whether it was giving up his seat or reporting the incident, it was just a casual act on his part, but he never expected that the other party would interpret it as some kind of special treatment.

In their words, it was a beautiful misunderstanding.

(Being thought about by a man as a way of "repaying a debt of gratitude"... it's really not a happy thing to think about.)

......

The stadium was bustling with people, with about a hundred students gathered in twos and threes in various parts of the venue.

Judging from their uniforms, most of them are first-year students who have not yet joined any clubs.

Akira Shimizu found a long table with promotional materials on it at the entrance.

He strolled forward and pulled one out from the neatly arranged booklets.

Turning the pages, introductions to various student clubs come into view:

[Judo Club] - Top 8 in the National Championships for three consecutive years

[Baseball Club] - Last year's Koshien preliminary round semi-finalists

[Archery Club] - Contains active youth national team athletes

Each page is accompanied by photos of club activities, showing senior students in professional gear, all wearing gleaming medals on their chests.

(These clubs are already at the level of a prospective national team, aren't they?)

His original plan to join a club and earn school points through his performance was completely shattered after seeing the contestants' profiles.

The judo ground techniques demonstration, the baseball swing posture, the perfect archery shot—every photo showcases a professional level of skill.

(As a complete novice, it's highly unlikely I could keep up with this level of training...)

The senior students took turns introducing their clubs on stage, and basically each club would say something to welcome newcomers.

However, Akira Shimizu felt that these seniors were probably after the funding. Generally speaking, the more members a club has, the more funding it should receive.

Freshmen without relevant experience will only be used as errand boys even if they join a club.

"Hey! You over there!" a loud shout came from the stage, "Want to come up and try your hand at boxing?"

Akira Shimizu then came to his senses and noticed that the muscular senior on the stage was waving at him.

Seriously, a Japanese high school has a boxing club? Aren't they afraid of damaging the students' bodies so they can't attend classes?

All eyes of the freshmen on the field turned to him, making him the center of attention.

"Me...?" Shimizu Akira pointed to himself, and after receiving an affirmative answer, he nodded. "Okay, but I have absolutely no experience with boxing."

"Haha! Everyone has a first time!" The senior's hearty laughter echoed in the gymnasium.

Under the warm greeting of the other party, Akira Shimizu slowly walked onto the stage.

The senior student casually tossed him a pair of red boxing gloves, the leather surface still showing signs of use.

"Want to try punching me like that?" The senior student adopted a defensive stance, his strong arms crossed in front of his chest, but he made no attempt to wear protective gear.

As Akira Shimizu awkwardly fastened his boxing glove straps, he asked, "Is this really okay? What if I don't wear protective gear..."

"Relax, relax!" The senior waved his hand dismissively, "Consider it a special service for the freshmen! Come on! Don't be shy!"

Akira Shimizu took a deep breath, and his gaze suddenly became focused.

He slightly lowered his shoulders, took a half step forward with his left foot, and his right fist shot out like an arrow released from a bow—

"boom!"

Akira Shimizu's straight punch landed on his senior's crossed arms, and the muscular senior was forced to stagger back several steps by the heavy blow.

"Cough...!" The senior groaned, and a deep red fist mark appeared on his bronze arm at a visible speed.

His eyes widened in disbelief, beads of sweat forming on his forehead: "This strength... Are you kidding me... Are this year's freshmen monsters?"

Before he could finish speaking, his right arm, which he was using to block, suddenly began to tremble uncontrollably.

Like muscle memory, he made the instinctive reaction of a professional boxer in pain—quickly pulling his arm back to his waist.

This subtle yet professional gesture caused a stir among the knowledgeable students watching, though most of the students below the stage were just jeering.

Laughter erupted from the audience, and several students whistled and jeered, "How much did the senior get paid for this performance?"

They're really going all out to recruit new employees!

"Didn't the other side never train in boxing at all?"

The senior scratched his head, revealing a slightly embarrassed but hearty smile: "Haha, did you get caught?"

But when he turned to Shimizu Akira, his eyes were unusually serious: "However, junior, the weight of your punch is undeniable."

The senior student flexed his still slightly numb arm. "You exercise regularly, right?"

Before Shimizu Akira could answer, his senior warmly put his arm around his shoulder: "How about considering joining the boxing club? You can use all the imported gym equipment."

"Oh, right! I forgot to ask, freshman, which class are you in? What's your name? You probably haven't joined any other clubs yet, right?"

"Akira Shimizu from Class D, Grade 1, hasn't joined any clubs yet."

"Ah... for the new students in Class D... I'll give you... 5000 points... no, I'll give you 10,000 points as a subsidy each month!"

"There's a subsidy? But starting boxing now... isn't it too late?"

"Not too late, not too late. The essence of martial arts is a contest of physical abilities. Your foundation is so solid that even without understanding the techniques, you can still deliver a powerful punch that makes your opponent kneel."

"Trust me!" The senior student suddenly leaned closer, his voice extremely low. "New students don't understand the ways of this school." He paused meaningfully. "This is a school that believes in the supremacy of force..."

Akira Shimizu was taken aback by what he heard.

He clearly remembered that the student council president had declared "meritocracy" at the opening ceremony.

Chapter 23: 023 Shimizu Akira: I'm going to start boxing.

Just as the senior was about to speak.

"My turn."

The man who had been standing silently on the stage for a long time suddenly spoke up.

Upon recognizing the person who had arrived, the senior student's expression visibly froze.

"Chairman Horikita."

He immediately bowed respectfully, his tone filled with awe.

"Freshmen, please come with me. Next, it will be the student council president's turn to speak."

Upon hearing this, Akira Shimizu followed the head of the boxing club as he slowly walked down from the stage.

He turned around abruptly and was startled to realize that the person in front of him was none other than Horikita Manabu, the student council president who had given a speech at yesterday's entrance ceremony.

He is also the older brother of his deskmate, Horikita Suzune.

"Senior, you seem to be quite afraid of that student council president."

"Shimizu-kun, you don't know this! In this school, the student council's power is limitless. If you offend President Horikita..."

"Phew—" The senior breathed a sigh of relief, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead with lingering fear. "Luckily, the president was lenient, otherwise I would have almost crossed the line."

"Anyway, I have high hopes for you, junior." A senior member of the boxing club patted Shimizu Akira on the shoulder, his eyes gleaming with admiration. "This points bonus is a unique benefit; no one else gets it." He lowered his voice and added mysteriously, "If it weren't for your special circumstances and exceptional talent..."

Then, the senior walked towards the boxing club's recruitment area, turning back before saying, "If you're interested, you're welcome to join the boxing club anytime, even next month."

Before he finished speaking, he had already taken a seat at the recruitment booth not far away, looking confident as if he was certain that Shimizu Akira would come.

Akira Shimizu nodded at him.

This senior is quite interesting; he generously gives a monthly stipend of 10,000 points just because he's a student in Class D.

Could it be that the opponent's confident demeanor suggests they've calculated that Shimizu Akira will inevitably face a points crisis next month?

The student council president began by introducing the student council's overview and announcing the recruitment plan.

"Currently, we are recruiting prospective members," he said calmly. "A more rigorous formal selection process will follow."

The president's gaze, sweeping across the room from behind his glasses, emphasized, "We do not welcome those with naive illusions, and we will not tolerate any stain on their reputation."

Upon hearing this, Akira Shimizu understood the implication all too clearly: only the elites from Class A and Class B were likely qualified to enter the student council.

As they were leaving, a familiar figure came into view—Horikita Suzune was staring motionlessly at her older brother.

However, the student council president only glanced at her briefly before quickly looking away.

There seems to be a sad, thick barrier between these brother and sister.

......

It's Friday already.

The intelligence updates these past few days have consisted mostly of worthless, trivial information. For example:

[Akito Miyake joins the Kyudo Club]

[Kanji Ike desperately wants to find love during his high school years]

[Ken Sudo's entrance exam results: Intelligence - E | Academic Ability - E | Physical Ability - A | Judgment - D+ | Teamwork - D]

These are all trivial personal matters that do nothing to help the current situation.

Intelligence is ultimately just intelligence.

Akira Shimizu understood this perfectly—he never expected that the daily updates of intelligence would be immediately useful.

After all, this is just the beginning, and there are still three whole years of high school ahead.

Intelligence is merely an auxiliary tool that adds icing on the cake.

It's worth mentioning that he officially joined the boxing club on Wednesday.

Every day after school, without fail, Akira Shimizu trains for two hours at the boxing club.

As promised, the minister transferred 10,000 points on the very day the minister joined the ministry.

The first week of training was somewhat unexpected—there were no expected ring matches, and they didn't even get to touch the punching bag or have their hands strapped to their wrists.

Instead, there was tedious basic training: