"Senpaku, I am Sakamoto. What brings you here?"

"Looks like you've had a fruitful week?"

Long Yuanxiang chuckled, his body leaving the wall and leaning slightly forward, exuding an overwhelming sense of oppression.

"Miss Sakayanagi, do you still need to speak to me in such a condescending tone?"

The curve of his lips deepened, and his eyes held an undisguised provocation.

"Don't you know what kind of mess Class A has become? That Sakamoto is already riding roughshod over you, isn't he?"

Sakayanagi Arisu's fingers tightened for a moment as she gripped her cane.

Long Yuan's words were full of contempt and schadenfreude.

"That's why we need the information you've gathered, Ryuen-kun."

"It seems you did indeed acquire something... that made you so smug?"

"Overconfident?"

Long Yuan shook his head as if he had heard a joke.

"I'm just stating the facts. However..."

He changed the subject, lowering his voice slightly.

"I did find something interesting about that Sakamoto guy."

"Oh? I'd like to hear the details."

Did you know that Sakamoto has been working part-time at a coffee shop recently?

Longyuan gets straight to the point.

Sakayanagi Arisu smiled dismissively:

"Ha, of course you'd know. Most of the first-year students have seen his 'dashing' figure there."

Ryuen ignored Sakayanagi's disdain, shrugged, and continued:

"He 'bought' that job with personal points. As for his purpose... it's not quite clear, but maybe he wanted to figure out the rules of this school again?"

Sakayanagi Arisu's expression remained unchanged:

“Ryuen-kun, this information… doesn’t seem that important. I believe anyone with a brain can deduce it.”

"Okay, then I'll tell you something you probably wouldn't have guessed."

He leaned forward again, lowering his voice even further.

"That Sakamoto guy, it seems his sights aren't just on Class A anymore. He's already built up his own network in other classes."

Sakayanagi Arisu's eyes narrowed slightly.

Sakamoto...had someone planted in another class? That's unlikely.

Given his solitary nature and seemingly disdainful attitude towards interpersonal relationships, it's impossible for him to have taken such action.

But Longyuan must have some basis for saying that.

"Oh?"

"So, who is the person he planted in Class C?"

Long Yuanxiang's eyes held a hint of mockery:

“WU can inform you.”

He said firmly,

"There's a spy in Class C. That's an internal matter for Class C, and it's none of your business as someone from Class A to know."

Long Yuan's smug and deliberately tantalizing attitude stirred up anger within her.

A chilling light almost overflowed from the depths of her eyes.

"Humph."

Ryuen seemed to enjoy Sakayanagi's suppressed anger; he chuckled and slowly added:

"Don't rush, Miss Sakayanagi. I haven't finished yet."

He paused, his gaze settling on Sakayanagi.

"Sakamoto also trained subordinates to act on his behalf in Class A."

"who is it?"

Sakayanagi Arisu's voice suddenly turned icy.

Ryuen Sho's smile instantly turned ferocious. He stared into Sakayanagi Arisu's eyes and uttered that name, word by word, with perfect clarity:

"Masumi Kamuro."

"That purple-haired girl who followed him around like a shadow all day and stared at him in the coffee shop... she's probably Sakamoto's dog by now."

First Year Enrollment: Chapter 042: Sakamoto After School

With a smug smile that said "I have it all under control," Long Yuanxiang turned around and left the dimly lit corridor without looking back.

The footsteps faded into the distance, leaving only Sakayanagi Arisu standing alone in the same spot.

The corridor returned to silence.

The cold anger on Sakayanagi Arisu's face did not last long.

She lowered her eyes slightly, concealing the turbulent emotions within them.

Masumi Kamuro?

Sakamoto's dog?

This accusation is outrageous.

It also perfectly matches the lowbrow tastes of Longyuan.

Sakayanagi Arisu took a deep breath, forcing herself to pull herself out of the feeling of being provoked.

His brain began to work at lightning speed, calmly re-examining all the information that Longyuan had brought.

The surface information: buying the right to work at a coffee shop with points.

Indeed, as she said, anyone with a modicum of intelligence can deduce or observe that it has limited value.

Was there a spy planted by Sakamoto in Class C?

Long Yuan refused to give his name and took a hard line.

There are two possibilities: one is that it is true, and Longyuan needs to clean house;

Secondly, Longyuan deliberately created suspense, using vague information to whet her appetite and increase his own bargaining power.

And finally, and most importantly—Kamuro Masumi was Sakamoto's subordinate in Class A.

This intelligence...

Sakayanagi Arisu's fingers unconsciously rubbed the smooth handle of her cane.

She recalled what she witnessed at the convenience store at the beginning of the school year:

Kamuro Masumi attempted to steal, but Sakamoto caught her red-handed and rescued her in an almost magical way.

That matter could indeed constitute a "handle" or an "opportunity".

If Sakamoto uses this to blackmail him, or if Kamuro is driven by gratitude or fear, he might indeed be manipulated by Sakamoto.

but,

unreasonable.

Sakayanagi Arisu's eyebrows furrowed slightly.

She has been observing coldly for the past week.

Sakamoto is indeed a prime example of someone who works alone.

He is never short of attention and people trying to get close to him, but he always maintains an invisible sense of distance.

His elegance and kindness are merely a facade; at his core lies an unfathomable loneliness.

Would someone like that bother to "cultivate" a seemingly ordinary "subordinate" like Masumi Kamuro?

What is the purpose?

more importantly,

Ryuen Sho.

Sakayanagi Arisu recalled Ryuen's smug, provocative, and even slightly malicious expression from just moments before.

This guy is definitely not a good person.

Sakayanagi completely underestimated him.

His ability to integrate Class C within a week demonstrates a level of cunning and skill far beyond that of ordinary students.

The information he provided, especially this kind of "bombshell news" that could cause an earthquake within Class A, must be highly questionable in terms of its authenticity.

He was likely using her to test or even attack Sakamoto, thereby profiting for Class C from the internal strife within Class A.

Truth mixed with falsehood, falsehood mixed with truth.

That's the most brilliant lie.

Longyuan doesn't need to confirm that the information is 100% true.

He only needed to throw out a sufficiently shocking and intriguing "possibility" to sow the seeds of suspicion between her and Sakamoto.

Whether or not the seed will germinate, as long as she takes action, Longyuan will have succeeded.

He proved that Sakamoto was not invincible and successfully muddied the waters.

"Ah……"

Sakayanagi Arisu chuckled self-deprecatingly:

"Did I make a wrong move...?"

She was almost swayed by Long Yuan's crude provocations and flawed intelligence.

It seems that the pressure from Sakamoto has indeed made her lose her composure.

During the afternoon classes, Sakayanagi Arisu appeared to be listening attentively, but her mind was already wandering far away.

Her gaze would occasionally sweep seemingly unintentionally over Sakamoto by the window and Kamuro Masumi not far away.

Sakamoto remained as calm and composed as ever, listening to the lecture, taking notes, and occasionally answering the teacher's questions.

Her posture was elegant and composed, as if she had everything under control.

Kamuro Masumi kept her head down most of the time, her purple hair falling down and obscuring her profile, making it impossible to see her expression.

But she seemed a little distracted?

My fingertips sometimes curl up unconsciously, as if I'm feeling uneasy or hesitant about something.

These subtle actions were magnified infinitely in Sakayanagi Arisu's eyes.

Is it because of a guilty conscience?

Or something else?

The school bell finally rang, signaling the end of the day's classes.

The atmosphere in the classroom instantly became lively.

The students began packing their bags and discussing their plans for the evening.

Sakamoto's movements were as fluid as ever.

He closed the book, neatly put it into his bag, then stood up, his movements swift and precise, as if he had calculated it perfectly, ready to leave.

Sakayanagi Arisu also stood up at almost the same time.

She decided to stop worrying about whether the information from Longyuan was true or false.

Instead of guessing, she decided to make direct contact. She wanted to talk to Sakamoto herself and test the waters in her own way.