"I originally wanted to implement my new system immediately, but unfortunately, I can't do that. A newly appointed Student Council President faces various constraints."
Nagumo Miyabi maintained a smile on his face as he turned to look at Horikita Manabu behind him. The latter's expression remained unchanged.
[Horikita-senpai is still at the school, and there are still his allies in the student council. If I completely dismantle his system now, it might cause some trouble.]
This was what Nagumo Miyabi thought to himself.
"I promise to initiate a great revolution soon. Students with ability will rise to the top, while those without will fall to the bottom. I will turn this school into a true meritocracy. I look forward to your cooperation."
As Nagumo Miyabi finished speaking, the entire auditorium fell silent due to his declaration. However, soon after, almost all the second-year students erupted into cheers of excitement, breaking the silence. It seemed Nagumo Miyabi held a very high status among the second-years.
'But there shouldn't be much interaction between the second-years and us first-years... probably...'
Saiki muttered to himself.
...
After the transition meeting ended, all the students gradually left the venue. Saiki also prepared to return to his dorm.
Just then, someone called out to him from behind.
"Saiki-kun, could you wait a moment?"
Saiki turned around. It was a girl from his class with dark, slightly wavy hair that fell to her shoulders. Her features were delicate, but her sharp eyes gave off the impression that she had a strong personality.
'This person... what's her name again? I think it's Sato Maya...'
Saiki's mind quickly recalled her name.
Sato Maya wasn't someone who lacked presence in the class. On the contrary, she had a very strong presence, similar to Karuizawa Kei. She was also very close to Karuizawa Kei.
During the special exam on the artificial island, Sato Maya and a few other girls had a heated argument with Ike Kanji about whether to buy a second restroom.
Because of this, Saiki and Sato Maya had never interacted much. Sato Maya mostly stayed active within the girls' circle and had a rather poor relationship with the boys in the class.
However, Saiki noticed that Sato Maya had been paying more attention to him recently.
[Saiki, who used to have almost no presence in the class... but after the summer break, I've started to see him in a new light. And his performance during the sports festival was really cool!]
[Now that I finally have a chance to catch Saiki alone, I should take this opportunity to get closer to him.]
'Yare yare, another troublesome person,'
Saiki could clearly hear Sato Maya's thoughts.
'Sato is also the type of girl who easily attracts attention.'
Saiki still wanted to avoid getting too involved with someone like Sato Maya. Dealing with Karuizawa Kei alone had already caused him enough trouble. If Sato Maya got involved, it would only make things worse.
"Is there something you need?"
"Well—how should I put this? Can you spare a moment? There's something I'd like to talk to you about—"
[Saiki probably won't reject my request...]
'Sorry, but I can't let you have your way.'
Saiki thought to himself, then immediately replied,
"Sorry, I have other things to take care of later."
"Huh?!"
Saiki's almost immediate response caught Sato Maya off guard. However, she quickly recovered and continued,
"It's fine, I won't take up too much of your time. Can I just ask a few questions?"
'Yare yare, she's already put it this way. If I reject her again, it might cause some trouble. Sato has a good relationship with the girls in the class. If I end up being isolated by them, it'll definitely lead to more trouble.'
Saiki sighed inwardly. Sato Maya hadn't left him any room to refuse, so he could only nod.
"Alright, let's talk over there."
"Great! First, let me ask you something. Saiki, are you... currently dating anyone?"
Sato Maya followed Saiki to the side and immediately asked, her eyes wide with curiosity.
[I noticed earlier that Karuizawa and Saiki seem very close. I wonder if there's something going on between them... Karuizawa used to seem really interested in Hirata, but after the summer break, she's gotten so close to Saiki.]
"No."
Saiki didn't hesitate and immediately shook his head to deny it.
After all, Karuizawa Kei had a significant influence in the class. Both her looks and figure were quite attractive. Although her personality wasn't particularly likable in others' eyes, many boys in the class and even the grade had a crush on her.
If any baseless rumors started spreading, Saiki would undoubtedly face even more trouble at school.
"Oh—I see... So, can I consider you as someone who's open to dating...?"
Hearing Saiki's response, Sato Maya's face immediately lit up with a smile as she eagerly asked.
However, before Sato Maya could finish her sentence, a familiar voice rang out from the side.
"Sato, Saiki, what are you two doing?"
The voice belonged to Karuizawa Kei.
At this moment, Karuizawa Kei, like a curious little cat, leaned forward and quickly approached Saiki.
"N-Nothing!"
With Karuizawa Kei's sudden appearance, Sato Maya had no choice but to swallow her words. After all, such a conversation wasn't suitable to have in front of another girl.
Especially Karuizawa Kei, who had recently shown some special interest in Saiki.
In fact, all of this was part of Saiki's plan.
He had already used his telepathy to detect Karuizawa Kei's approach and deliberately led Sato Maya to that spot so Karuizawa Kei would run into them, preventing Sato Maya from saying anything strange.
'Yare yare, although Sato seems to just want to get closer to me and hasn't reached the point of confessing, such a direct question is really hard to deal with. Of course, I can't give a positive answer, and I don't want the situation to become too awkward. That's why I had Karuizawa come over to help me avoid this awkwardness.'
Saiki thought to himself. Calling Karuizawa Kei over should save him a lot of trouble.
"I was just thinking that I haven't talked much with Saiki before, so I wanted to exchange contact information or something."
Sato Maya quickly explained, her expression calm.
"Oh, I see."
Karuizawa Kei smiled as she subtly moved closer to Saiki.
"Saiki, are you free tonight? I heard the dessert shop has new items. Want to go try them?"
'Looking at Sato's expression, she's probably trying to hit on Saiki... But... I can't let you have your way.'
'Hey, hey, this has nothing to do with you. Why do you look like you've encountered a rival?'
Saiki inwardly complained.
[They look so close. But Saiki just said he and Karuizawa aren't dating... So, Saiki is definitely Karuizawa's target.]
'Although the new items at the dessert shop are indeed tempting, and I was planning to go there, I absolutely can't agree now. Otherwise, I'll be dragged into the conflict between these two. What a hassle.'
Saiki realized that calling Karuizawa Kei over had only made things more complicated.
"Sorry, I have other plans tonight."
"Eh? Really?"
"Well, Saiki-kun, about what I said earlier, let's exchange contact information. As classmates, it's not good that we haven't had each other's contact info until now. After exchanging numbers, we can help each other with studies if there are any problems."
"Sure."
Since Sato Maya had already put it that way, Saiki could only nod and exchange contact information with her.
Karuizawa Kei, standing nearby, maintained her smile.
'I should leave as soon as possible.'
After finishing the exchange, Saiki quickly left the scene to avoid further complications.
After Saiki left, Karuizawa Kei and Sato Maya's eyes met.
"I didn't expect you to approach Saiki first. It seems like you two haven't interacted much before, right?"
Karuizawa Kei asked.
"Yeah."
Sato Maya nodded, a meaningful smile on her face.
"By the way, I just asked Saiki, and it seems he doesn't have a girlfriend! I noticed him during the sports festival. He looked really cool when he was running!"
"Are you planning to... pursue Saiki?"
"I'm not sure yet, but for now, it wouldn't hurt to develop a closer relationship."
Sato Maya slightly raised her chin, her gaze fixed on Karuizawa Kei's eyes. However, she didn't notice the slight panic in Karuizawa Kei's expression.
"What's so great about Saiki? Hirata's performance isn't bad either. Why don't you consider Hirata?"
"Hirata probably has a lot of girls chasing him. It's too difficult! Besides, I think Saiki is more my type!"
"I don't think you two are a good match..."
"What's wrong? Karuizawa, you seem really concerned... Could it be that you like Saiki?"
"N-No way! That's impossible!"
Hearing this, Karuizawa Kei's face instantly turned red, and she quickly shook her head.
...
Before anyone realized it, over a month had passed.
The atmosphere within Class B had been improving.
After their promotion to Class B during the summer vacation, almost everyone believed that reaching Class A was no longer a distant dream. As a result, everyone was working hard toward that goal.
If the goal seemed unattainable, most people would give up midway—
But if the goal felt within reach, they would be more motivated to achieve it.
In Class B, almost no students were late or left early anymore. During class, fewer people played with their phones or zoned out. The results of the recent exams had also been decent.
Sudo Ken's behavior at school had also improved significantly.
On one hand, Sudo Ken also felt that reaching Class A was a real possibility.
On the other hand, the class had become more united after the sports festival. Sudo Ken's status in the class had risen considerably, and perhaps because of this, his temper had mellowed, and he had become more helpful to those around him.
All these changes were observed by Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.
At this moment, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka sat in his seat in the classroom, quietly observing the entire class.
[Sudo and Horikita have both grown a lot after the sports festival.]
[I originally thought that people needed to be in adversity or even desperate situations to grow, but Saiki's approach is different. He created an extremely comfortable environment for Class B, and in such an environment, he still managed to help those people grow. This is something that wasn't taught in the White Room.]
[But recently, Class D has been making more and more moves. They've been following our class's students—especially Yamauchi. Is all this part of Saiki's plan?]
'Hey, hey, I didn't do anything.'
Hearing Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's thoughts, Saiki felt a bit helpless.
During this time, Saiki had also been quite busy. Almost every day after school, Sato Maya would send him messages, asking about his hobbies and trying to get to know him better.
Saiki, of course, didn't like getting too involved with others, nor did he enjoy chatting much. However, Sato Maya would occasionally bring him sweets in the morning, so Saiki would always respond to her messages.
However, all of this was noticed by Karuizawa Kei, who also started bringing Saiki pudding every day.
Soon, the bell for class rang, and Chabashira Sae entered the room.
She slightly narrowed her eyes, scanning the entire class.
"Everyone seems very focused. This is completely different from the old Class D."