Hiss...
He popped the tab of the soda can. Perhaps because it had been shaken, the carbonation fizzed aggressively inside.
No matter the time or place, an ice-cold cola was always refreshing.
"Kohei, what do you need?"
Ren looked at Kohei, who had approached him voluntarily.
Logically, they shouldn't have had any reason to interact.
"Ren, can you help me mail a package out?"
Kohei's bald head gleamed under the sunlight. He touched his smooth scalp with a hint of embarrassment.
His sister's birthday was approaching. Kohei had intended to buy a gift from the school's gift shop and mail it to his sister outside.
But rules were rules. At least in front of Kohei, rules were not to be broken.
When Kohei asked if this was possible, the gift shop staff explicitly told him no.
The school had made it very clear from the beginning: under this closed education system, students were not allowed to contact the outside world for three years, let alone mail gifts.
Honest and steady by nature, Kohei couldn't find a loophole. Still holding onto a shred of luck, he had gone from shop to shop.
Reality was cruel. No shop was willing to risk expulsion just to help Kohei mail a birthday gift.
However, as a devoted brother, Kohei didn't give up. He thought of the one person who might be the only one capable of helping him right now—Ren.
Kohei had also accessed that gambling website; he was one of its beneficiaries.
Please don't misunderstand—this didn't mean Kohei participated in high-stakes betting. As an honest man, Kohei only bet a symbolic 10 personal points each time, just to test his luck.
For Kohei, the currency exchange window that allowed converting personal points into Yen was the priority.
Living frugally since the start of school, Kohei opened the bookmarked website the moment the school distributed the monthly personal points. After keeping only enough points for his own living expenses, he converted all the remaining points into Yen and sent the money to his sister.
Since Ren could mail the exchanged Yen directly to the outside world, didn't that mean he also had a way to mail gifts out of the school?
Kohei didn't worry at all that the website might be a scam. It came back to that same point: The guarantee of the Katsuragi and Koenji financial groups outweighed everything else.
Not wanting his gift to be absent from his sister's birthday this year, Kohei chose to seek Ren's help.
"A package?"
Ren tossed the empty cola can accurately into a trash bin nearby. He didn't agree immediately.
"It's just a birthday gift for my sister. Nothing illegal."
"The school doesn't let students contact the outside world, and that includes mailing things."
"I've asked everywhere. They all said no. Please... Ren."
Afraid that Ren might get the wrong idea, Kohei hurriedly explained.
Ren hadn't said he couldn't mail it; he just seemed suspicious of the contents. This gave Kohei a glimmer of hope.
It was indeed his fault for not making it clear what he was mailing. Just saying "package" was too suspicious.
"If you want, come choose and pack it with me."
"Let's put the matter of trust aside for now."
Ren waved his hand. He didn't care whether Kohei would mail other things.
This school meant very little to him. As long as nothing unexpected happened, he didn't care. Whatever happened in the future had nothing to do with him.
A pair of crimson eyes stared at the anxious Kohei. The corners of Ren's mouth curled up slightly.
"Kohei, are you sure you want to make a deal with me?"
"You should know my price won't be low."
Ren needed to make things clear with Kohei first. He didn't like forcing others to work for him. People pushed into it were never useful for long.
"Ren, may I ask what price I need to pay?"
Kohei wasn't a gambler like Suzune Horikita, who would agree to unreasonable demands for the sake of her brother without thinking.
He needed to know the cost, weigh the pros and cons, and then give an answer.
His sister mattered to him, but that didn't mean he would throw everything away. Kohei wouldn't inexplicably sell his soul just to successfully send a birthday gift out of school.
Ren was even more satisfied with Kohei's caution.
"I will pay the 20 million points to transfer you to Class A."
"Once in Class A, you need to help defend the class when Ichinose is too busy to attend to it."
"Also, after graduation, you must work for the companies under my name."
Ren knew about the standout students in each class. Kohei had a steady personality, and the tactics he implemented in Class B were solid. He was the best candidate for defense.
After vacating the Student Council President position, Ichinose would focus most of her energy on the Student Council. The void left in Class A by Ichinose's absence was originally supposed to be filled by Ryuji Kanzaki and Yuki Himeno in Ren's plan.
Now that Kohei had come to him on his own, Ren certainly wouldn't let him go.
If Kohei hadn't happened to enter the school in this batch, he could indeed be considered a decent genius.
Furthermore, regarding the choice of employment after graduating from Class A with the 100% employment rate guarantee, Ren chose to secure this talent in advance.
"Kohei, what is your choice?"
"Deal."
Kohei agreed instantly. These terms hardly counted as a "price" at all.
With Class A supported by Ren, the probability of graduating as Class A was incredibly high. For Kohei, who was currently caught in the vortex of power struggles with Arisu Sakayanagi, this was an unexpected stroke of luck.
Transferring to Class A and helping to defend it was within his duties. Once he became a student of Class A, if he didn't try to defend the throne, would he drag Class A down and let his employment rate slip away?
The same went for working under Ren after graduation. It was a mutually beneficial arrangement.
It was his luck that Ren saw potential in him.
"Mhm. Wrap your sister's gift and come find me."
Glancing at a message on his phone, Ren parted ways with Kohei. He didn't go with Kohei to pick out the gift, nor did he even ask what the gift was.
This trust Ren placed in him actually moved Kohei slightly.
...
[Chat Log]
Ren: Sakayanagi-san, Class B is yours now. I hope you can work hard to lead Class B to Class A.
Arisu Sakayanagi: Katsuragi-kun, Class B has always been mine. But judging by your tone, you poached Kohei-san to Class A?
Ren: It was a consensual agreement.
Arisu Sakayanagi: You really are formidable, Katsuragi-kun.
...
Arriving at the agreed location, Ren couldn't help but smile as he looked at the building in front of him.
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