While Kaoru Mitoma was teasing Kamuro Masumi and Sakayanagi Arisu, on the other side, Amasawa Ichika ran into Yagami Takuya.
Of course, it wasn't at the Keyaki Mall but in the dormitory building's café, where she saw Yagami Takuya smiling, with Horikita Suzune and Kushida Kikyo sitting across from him.
Amasawa Ichika couldn't help but freeze for a moment, then watched as the two girls stood up and left, her expression darkening in turn.
Just as Yagami Takuya was about to leave, Amasawa Ichika appeared before him.
"Weren't you planning to be a high school student for a while?"
Amasawa Ichika sat down opposite him. "What's the situation with suddenly contacting Horikita-senpai? Do you know who they're connected to?"
The boy she had spoken to last time was Yagami Takuya.
Both of them were from the White Room, part of the same batch of children after Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, having grown up together and also being rivals.
Seeing her appear, Yagami Takuya flashed a sunny smile—a smile alone that would be enough to make many girls' hearts flutter.
"I think we should avoid meeting each other. If one of us is exposed, it'll quickly make him suspicious of the other."
Now that the school year had just started, the two of them shouldn't get too close
. Once Ayanokoji Kiyotaka became wary, it might become difficult to target him later.
This was the tacit understanding between Yagami Takuya and Amasawa Ichika, neither of them planned to act immediately.
"I don't intend to interfere with your plans."
Amasawa Ichika showed clear warning in her expression. "Horikita-senpai is hard to say, but Kushida-senpai is connected to Kaoru-senpai. If you plan to use her, you'd better be careful."
Yagami Takuya seemed to have heard something laughable.
Amasawa Ichika, who came from the White Room, actually cared about such wild animals? She was being a bit too nervous.
"Kaoru-senpai is a very capable student. I have no intentions toward him."
Yagami Takuya said calmly, feeling no need to explain too much to Amasawa Ichika.
The reason he had approached Kushida Kikyo was simply because Yagami Takuya had reviewed the files of all second-year students.
He knew what kind of past Kushida Kikyo had, and his first thought was that he could use this student to get close to Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.
Besides Kushida Kikyo, there were several other candidates, including Karuizawa Kei.
However, considering popularity, Yagami Takuya didn't choose Karuizawa Kei but instead went for the little angel, Kushida Kikyo.
Seeing Yagami Takuya's dismissive attitude, Amasawa Ichika frowned.
Although she had just made harsh remarks to Kaoru Mitoma, that didn't mean she underestimated him.
Someone who knew about the existence of the White Room and seemed aware of their mission—Kaoru Mitoma was definitely not an ordinary student.
His file was likely fabricated.
To put it bluntly, Amasawa Ichika sensed a faint but palpable danger from him.
The moment he grabbed her, she felt a chilling sensation creep down her spine.
The last person to give her such a feeling was an instructor who had slammed her hard onto the ground, making her believe she might die right there on the training mat.
"I saw it earlier—your conversation didn't seem very pleasant."
Amasawa Ichika suppressed her unease.
She wasn't about to let such a vague intuition make her fear Kaoru.
"Oh, that? Actually, we had quite a pleasant chat. Horikita-senpai wanted me to team up with their group, and I agreed."
Yagami Takuya smiled lightly. "But they seemed suspicious of my identity and tried to test whether I was their junior high schoolmate."
Amasawa Ichika didn't believe him, but she was somewhat surprised.
So, he intended to use the identity of a junior to get close to Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.
"Hah, to be honest, the one who should feel displeased is probably me."
Yagami Takuya sounded as if he were reflecting. "Horikita-senpai is too sharp. If she were more familiar with junior high school relationships, I might have been exposed."
Amasawa Ichika wasn't interested in this.
She stood up and said, "Kaoru-senpai may not have the Hypnosis App, but he gives off a different vibe. You can use Kushida-senpai, but it's best not to go too far."
She repeated these warnings because, relying on their relatively good relationship, Amasawa Ichika felt it was her duty to remind her companion.
However, Yagami Takuya only responded with a faint smile and made no move.
Seeing this, Amasawa Ichika knew he hadn't taken it to heart.
She said nothing more and turned to leave.
Watching her go, Yagami Takuya shook his head.
It was precisely because of this personality of hers that she lagged behind him.
Did she really think she was the only one who could sense the danger in Kaoru?
On the day of the entrance ceremony, Yagami Takuya had already noticed this Student Council president who spoke with such confidence.
Later, when he learned that the Student Council had the authority to access the school's surveillance footage, he grew extremely wary.
Most areas of ANHS were equipped with cameras. If Kaoru wished, he could monitor the entire school at any time.
Moreover, with Kaoru's influence extending across the second and third years, Yagami Takuya suspected that even a random passerby could be one of Kaoru's eyes and ears.
More importantly, he had met Nagumo Miyabi—the former Student Council president who was forced to resign.
Nagumo harbored a deep-seated hatred for Kaoru but, like a mouse hiding in dark corners, didn't dare raise his voice, cautiously inviting Yagami to join him in attacking Kaoru.
Although Nagumo never mentioned Kaoru by name, only expressing interest in the first-year students, Yagami Takuya knew his true aim was to recruit the first-years.
Faced with such circumstances, how could Yagami Takuya possibly underestimate Kaoru?
Of course, things like the Hypnosis App—Yagami didn't believe in them at all.
But if he knew Kaoru was formidable, why had he acted differently earlier?
The answer was obvious.
Kaoru might be formidable, but he was nothing more than a wild animal.
Yagami Takuya, on the other hand, hailed from the White Room—the finest product of his generation.
Thus, Yagami Takuya viewed Kaoru with a critical eye.
Aside from Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, he didn't believe anyone could surpass him.
Moreover, Yagami Takuya noticed that Kaoru Mitoma had one most conspicuous flaw—lechery.
Despite already having a girlfriend like Ichinose Honami, his appetite was far from satisfied.
He was simultaneously dating Kei Karuizawa, Kushida Kikyo, Asahina Nazuna, Tachibana Akane, and several other girls!
If we include those rumored to be involved like Sakayanagi Arisu, Kamuro Masumi, Morishita Ai, and others, the number could very well break into double digits.
Because of this, everyone has given him the nickname "Harem Overlord," suspecting that Kaoruis hiding a Hypnosis App.
Yagami Takuya doesn't believe in the Hypnosis App. He keenly noticed that all these girls share one common trait.
Their relationships with Kaoru developed very suddenly!
Leaving aside Ichinose Honami, even with Kushida Kikyo and Karuizawa Kei, no one to this day knows why they took a liking to Kaoru Mitoma.
No, it's the trigger for [romance].
Pure romance can have many reasons, but being willing to let the other person maintain a harem—that narrows down the possibilities considerably.
Yagami Takuya easily deduced one reason.
Kaoru must have gotten hold of their secrets and is using that to threaten these girls.
Being afraid of Kaoru exposing them and agreeing to his demands on that basis is a common scenario.
The logic is sound, if Yagami Takuya were in his place and there was something to gain, he would resort to the same unscrupulous methods.
Having deduced the [truth], Yagami Takuya lost most of his interest in Kaoru Mitoma.
He couldn't understand the mindset of such a lecherous person, only seeing him as arrogant and conceited.
However, if Kaoru could threaten them, Yagami Takuya thought he could do the same.
Thinking this, a faint smile appeared on Yagami Takuya's face.
It seemed he had a chance to get closer to his idol.
Heh, he really wanted to bury him right away!