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Sakayanagi suddenly stood up and walked over to Kamuro's side, observing her.
Although Kamuro was playing on her phone, it was obvious—she was unconsciously shaking her leg, clearly in a very pleasant mood.
'She seems to be in a good mood.'
Just last night, she'd mentioned to Kamuro the matter of "Shimizu Akira using you as a bet," and at that time, she was clearly furious. How had she recovered in just one day?
Although Sakayanagi didn't know exactly what happened between the two, she could guess the general idea—Shimizu had simply used some methods to thoroughly appease her.
'That person's intelligence and emotional intelligence are both top-notch. Not inferior to mine in the slightest.'
Her judgment of Shimizu in this way was, to some extent, precisely because he'd once defeated her.
'So Kamuro's feelings for Shimizu-kun aren't as indifferent as she pretended yesterday.'
Sakayanagi naturally came to this conclusion.
Now that she thought about it, if the two didn't know each other at all, would Kamuro have been so angry yesterday?
Last month, Shimizu had personally told her that Kamuro was his friend.
'Strange... I feel a bit angry. Shimizu-kun hasn't even admitted that I'm his friend yet.'
So far, the only person she'd heard Shimizu personally acknowledge as a friend was Kamuro.
Given Shimizu's nature, he was never casual about making friends.
Those he acknowledged were probably friends with whom he could confide and who would genuinely lend a hand in times of trouble.
'What did Kamuro do to make him treat her so differently?'
Jealousy? Perhaps there was indeed a hint of it.
Sakayanagi frankly admitted this emotion. After all, he was an opponent she acknowledged.
But right now, these petty romantic thoughts shouldn't occupy her mind.
She gently closed her eyelids, and when she opened them again, her eyes were clear.
Different people required different strategies.
For those who value profit, entice them with profit. For those who value righteousness, move them with righteousness. For the obtuse, subdue them with force. For those who cherish their reputation, threaten them with their good name.
She'd already thought of the best way to win over Kamuro.
"Kamuro-san... hello." She, as always, repeated what she'd said yesterday.
"I don't want to talk to you, get away from me!" Despite Kamuro often showing disdain towards Shimizu, she was always too lazy to talk to people she genuinely disliked—after all, when you truly dislike someone, you don't even want to speak to them.
What truly disgusted her from the bottom of her heart was Sakayanagi.
She wasn't a brainless idiot. The other person's words last night were clearly meant to stir up trouble.
Moreover, on the very first day of school, it was Sakayanagi who'd actively suggested using her as a bet.
In such a situation, if she could still feel even a shred of goodwill towards that person, it would truly be a miracle.
"I want to talk to you about Shimizu-kun from Class D." Sakayanagi maintained her elegant smile, ignoring Kamuro's hostility.
"Sakayanagi Arisu!" Kamuro suddenly slammed the table and stood up. "Do you really think I can't see through your tricks?"
"Oh, don't be so quick to get angry." Sakayanagi gently shook her head. "This time, I'm not going to speak ill of Shimizu-kun. It's about... his future joining Class A."
Kamuro's pupils suddenly constricted. "You said... what?"
"Katsuragi-kun should have mentioned it during Monday's class meeting, right?" Sakayanagi said unhurriedly. "Class A will select talents from other classes. Someone like Shimizu-kun, who can defeat me, is naturally the best candidate." She paused meaningfully. "Kamuro-san must think so too, right? And would also really like Shimizu-kun to join Class A."
She spoke these words sincerely. In her heart, Shimizu indeed possessed such strength.
"...It's rare to hear something sensible from you." Kamuro snorted, but she couldn't help but admit it.
"So..." A hint of cunning flashed in Sakayanagi's eyes. "How about Kamuro-san becoming my helper from now on? I promise, once the class accumulates twenty million points, I will 'buy' Shimizu-kun over immediately." She deliberately emphasized the word "buy."
Sakayanagi was confident of victory. In her opinion, with Kamuro's intellect, it was impossible for her to see through the trap behind this proposal.
However—
"Hmph!" Kamuro suddenly let out a cold laugh. "Sakayanagi Arisu, do you take me for a three-year-old? How long will it take to accumulate twenty million? Besides..."
"You never intended to genuinely let Shimizu Akira join Class A, did you? In your eyes, he's just an opponent to be defeated. Who would fall for such a clumsy lie?"
She crossed her arms, looking down at Sakayanagi. "You want to get something for nothing? At least show some decent sincerity!"
'When did this woman become so difficult?'
'Could it be... Shimizu's influence?'
A hint of surprise flashed in Sakayanagi's eyes, but she quickly regained her composure.
Her tone suddenly shifted. "You can tell Shimizu-kun all the class information I just mentioned. If he reveals it to the Class D leadership, it will surely boost his prestige in Class D, right? Perhaps... even some classmates in Class A will look at him differently, which will also more or less increase Shimizu-kun's chances of joining Class A."
"You..." Kamuro frowned tightly. "Didn't you say you wanted to cooperate with Class D? Is simply announcing the news enough?"
"Cooperating with Shimizu-kun personally is not the same as cooperating with the entire Class D, you know~ Besides! It's just Class D, a defective class, what's there to be afraid of?" Sakayanagi chuckled softly.
Kamuro pursed her lips and remained silent for a moment, tapping her phone case unconsciously twice with her fingertips. Then she suddenly gave Sakayanagi a glare. "You wait until I ask him. What if that guy is like you and has already analyzed this thoroughly? Wouldn't I be at a huge loss?"
Sakayanagi couldn't help but twitch her mouth at these words—this woman's mind worked fast.
Now that she thought about it, she actually also felt that Shimizu had probably already guessed the truth.
"Then what if you turn around and tell Shimizu Akira about this?" She leaned forward slightly, her tone carrying a hint of probing.
"I'm not that kind of person! It's fine if I ask him in front of you, right?" Kamuro said, pulling out her phone and quickly swiping her finger across the screen to send Shimizu a message questioning the special exam.
The light from the phone screen reflected on both their faces. Sakayanagi looked at the other person's thumb hovering over the send button, and suddenly found the scene somewhat absurd.
Not long after, the screen suddenly lit up, and Shimizu's reply popped up—the two leaned in to look, and the few messages he sent were exactly the same as Sakayanagi's earlier analysis.
Kamuro scoffed, looking at her with disdain. "See? He knew the secret of the exam papers on the second day! A day faster than you! In other words, you have no leverage now."
"Go away, go away! There's no free lunch here." Kamuro waved her hand impatiently.
Sakayanagi suddenly felt a sense of things being turned upside down—how could things have come to this?
In her estimation, dealing with Kamuro should have been an easy task, but now, after trying one method after another, she remained completely unmoved.
"I'll give you points! I'll hire you to help me with this, alright?" At this point, she could only resort to her last method, her voice betraying a hint of imperceptible tension.
Kamuro raised an eyebrow and scoffed. "Now that you mention it, you seemed to have received a two hundred thousand-point reward just now? Oh, and how much did you bet when you gambled with that guy last time?"
"Fifty thousand."
"Transfer thirty thousand points to me right now." Kamuro took a half-step forward, chin slightly raised. "I'll help you this one time. But that's it. Don't come asking me for favors again."
"..." Sakayanagi stared at Kamuro's confident expression, and a surge of anger flared up in her heart.
'What is wrong with this woman! She wants thirty thousand points from me, yet she'll only help once!'
'Is she, like Shimizu Akira, completely obsessed with points? Am I just going to let you bully me?!'