Inside a school restaurant, Tanaka and his friends sat with grave expressions, shooting extremely unfriendly glances toward Suzuki Yu, who was happily chatting with several girls not far away.
Those girls seemed to completely ignore the existence of Tanaka’s group, talking only with Suzuki Yu.
Even when there was a lull in conversation, they eagerly tried to keep the discussion going, just to spend more time talking with him.
If that were all, it wouldn’t be so bad, but what made things even worse was that Suzuki Yu himself seemed to be thoroughly enjoying his conversation with the girls.
Witnessing this, Tanaka’s expression darkened considerably. He leaned forward and said quietly to the friends beside him:
“For the sake of society’s girls’ innocence, I think we ought to seriously consider just taking Suzuki Yu out.”
The others immediately agreed, but at that moment, the conversation between Suzuki Yu and the girls suddenly caught their attention.
“So, Suzuki-kun, is it true that you have a lot of romantic experience?”
“I suppose you could say that. I started dating back in junior high, and had quite a few relationships.” He smiled as he spoke, briefly recounting his experiences.
That wasn’t really a lie—after all, he’d started making deals with people back in junior high.
“Eh~ So where does Shiraishi rank among your girlfriends?”
“Hmm, that’s a secret.” Suzuki Yu didn’t bother to clarify when the girl presumptuously declared Ayaha was his girlfriend. He just wanted to see what else they would say.
“So mysterious? Then, do you know what kind of person Shiraishi Ayaha is at school?”
The lead girl, Ikeda Midori, suddenly shifted the topic, her smile turning even more radiant as if everything said before was just paving the way for this moment.
Suzuki Yu kept smiling, but a wary glint appeared in his gaze as he looked at her:
“I’d like to hear more.”
“She seems like an excellent person, always bright and positive no matter what she does. She’s often liked by teachers and classmates alike, and always has a lot of friends around her.”
Seems like…
Suzuki Yu noticed the barbed edge to her words and guessed she was about to badmouth Ayaha.
“But I know that’s all just an act. She only wants to leave a good impression in front of others. For example, after joining the tennis club, she brings water and towels to the captain every day, calling her ‘senpai’ at every turn—most likely just so the captain will give her extra training.”
“And our school is fully closed off, but she always uses outdoor guidance as an excuse to leave campus. Who knows, maybe she goes out to find guys. Suzuki-kun, you might be just one of those she’s tricked!”
As one of the girls spoke, the others around her laughed as well.
Suzuki Yu said nothing, simply observing the group before him.
Tanaka, on the other hand, looked a little angry as he whispered to his friends:
“All I’m hearing is speculation—this is definitely slander, isn’t it?”
“Just look at them, typical bitches.”
“That Shiraishi Ayaha must be the cute girl who greeted Suzuki in the car, right? That Suzuki guy—he’s just going to sit there and listen? No reaction at all?”
Clearly, as listeners, they were already getting angry.
At this point, the lead girl spoke up again:
“That’s not all. Back when there was a conflict between classmates, Shiraishi only helped the one from a rich family.”
Hearing this, Suzuki Yu looked up and asked:
“Oh? Did something like that really happen?”
“Of course!” Ikeda Midori, seeing she’d hooked him, pressed on,
“There was a girl in our club—she was gloomy and everyone disliked her. But Shiraishi Ayaha insisted on playing the ‘good girl’ and talked to her every day. We kindly advised her not to associate with that kind of person, but she refused!”
“Yeah, that’s right!” another girl jumped in. “Then that gloomy girl lost it and started yelling at us in the cafeteria. Shiraishi Ayaha immediately stood up for her and scolded us, totally humiliating us!”
Ikeda Midori curled her lips into a knowing smile and delivered her verdict:
“We only found out later that the gloomy girl, despite looking like a country bumpkin, had a dad who was a bank director! Shiraishi Ayaha must’ve known long ago and cozied up to her on purpose!”
“So you see, Suzuki-kun,” Ikeda Midori concluded, “she’s that kind of person. Pure on the outside, but always judging people by what she can get out of them. You really can’t let her fool you.”
The more they talked, the more excited they became. Seeing Suzuki Yu remain silent, they assumed he was taking it all to heart. Ikeda Midori, feeling triumphant, flipped her curls and was about to say more to cement her “victory.”
But Suzuki Yu seemed to have run out of patience; his eyes turned icy.
Their words were highly misleading.
“Are you done talking?”
His voice was calm as he stood up and addressed the girls before him:
“I don’t look like an idiot, do I?”
“Eh?” The smug smiles on Ikeda Midori and her friends’ faces froze. They clearly hadn’t expected Suzuki Yu to suddenly change his tone.
“Your story—hmm, let me interpret: basically, all of you ganged up to bully a classmate who wasn’t good at socializing, and then Shiraishi Ayaha decided to help her. That’s what you’re really unhappy about, right?”
“I…”
Ikeda Midori started to explain, but Suzuki Yu didn’t give her the chance. Instead, he turned to his friends with an incredulous look and called out:
“What are you guys still doing over there? Seriously considering picking one of these bitches?”
“Been waiting for you to say that.” The group stood up in unison and walked over to stand by Suzuki Yu.
“Huh? You…” Ikeda Midori was obviously caught off guard by this turn of events. She looked at the boys, then back at Suzuki Yu, and snapped angrily:
“What right do you have to say that to me! Aren’t you scum yourself? You just said it—you’ve had lots of relationships since junior high! You’re only getting close to Shiraishi Ayaha because you want her body!”
But Suzuki Yu couldn’t even be bothered to look at them, striding straight out.
Seeing this, Tanaka and the others hurried after him.
Only after leaving the restaurant did Tanaka Ibuki, still feeling on edge, pat Suzuki Yu’s shoulder and say, mixing admiration and teasing:
“Suzuki, I’ve got to admit, you do have a human side after all.”
“Keep roasting me like that,” Suzuki Yu rubbed the bruise on his arm and shot him a sour look, “and I’ll really mess with your lottery draw.”
“Hey!” Tanaka exaggeratedly stepped back, “I just praised you and you’re already back to your old self?”
“Anyway, I need to get back to work,” Suzuki Yu waved his hand, preparing to slip away, “Let’s call it a day.”
Just as he turned to leave, a hand clamped down hard on his shoulder.
Suzuki Yu turned to see Tanaka and Sato crowding in on either side of him with mischievous grins.
“Suzuki,” Tanaka drew out his words, “you promised us, remember? You still haven’t finished your task.”
“But… those girls from Mingzhi Light just now…” Suzuki Yu tried to squirm away.
“Who are you trying to fool with those bitches?” Sato pushed up his glasses, tone unfriendly. “We’re best friends. You have to get it done today. If Mingzhi Light won’t do, then try the school next door—Higashijo High!”
“…You horny bastards.” Suzuki Yu pressed his forehead in despair.
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