14 - Hikigaya Hachiman Smelled Evil
Suzui Ryota looked toward the voice and, upon seeing the person, instinctively swallowed.
"That person is Sumeragi Itsuki, a first-year student who was the only one chosen by the student council early on."
"Her family is one of Japan's top toy manufacturers."
"Please, do not mess with her. Gambling with her is very dangerous. It's said that her poker skills have never been defeated!"
Jabami Yumeko, unfazed, clapped her hands together excitedly. "Really? Never defeated?! And she's a member of the student council, so that means she's even more formidable than Saotome-san?"
What on earth...
Suzui Ryota, giving up on his struggle, weakly said, "Well, it's said that she entered the student council by submitting a large fortune, since her family is extremely wealthy. But that's just a rumor. Many people have underestimated her and challenged her, only to lose everything."
"I really want to face her in a match."
As Jabami Yumeko immersed herself in gambling fantasies, the scheming Hikigaya Hachiman began his calculations.
Sumeragi Itsuki...
Hikigaya Hachiman's eyes glinted. He had heard of the Sumeragi family and had investigated their conglomerate.
No, perhaps the order is reversed. He had investigated the Sumeragi conglomerate and then learned about Sumeragi Itsuki.
The reason Hikigaya Hachiman had investigated the Sumeragi conglomerate was that it controlled resources he valued. Not only are they one of the top toy manufacturers in Japan, but their brand also has a presence in large nationwide supermarket chains, selling a variety of products, with toys being just one of them. The most important part, however, was the books they sold—the very ones Hikigaya Hachiman was most interested in.
If he could secure their resources, it would greatly benefit his career as a novelist. Hikigaya narrowed his eyes.
Sumeragi Itsuki, a stepping stone that could bring him fame and wealth. From any angle, she was far more valuable than defeating Saotome Mary.
If he were outside of this school, trying to access the Sumeragi family's resources as a bestselling author would be nearly impossible. However, within this school...
Hikigaya Hachiman smiled subtly.
All he needed to do was defeat her.
A network of interests began to connect in Hikigaya's mind. This made him curious about Momobami Kirari. He had researched the Hyakkaou Academy and found no useful information through formal channels, nor had he been able to access the student council's data.
Therefore, the family of the student council president who could make someone like Sumeragi Itsuki, a super-rich second-generation heir, submit to her rules, must be even more extraordinary than he had imagined.
Of course, whether gambling to seize the resources of student families would work, he would have to test it himself.
Where there is a will, there is a way.
As Sumeragi Itsuki walked out of the private room where her gambling match had ended on the second floor, she leaned on the handrail and walked down the stairs toward Hikigaya Hachiman and Jabami Yumeko.
"Jabami-san, Hikigaya-san, nice to meet you. I'm Sumeragi Itsuki. I look forward to working with you."
Suzui Ryota, sitting opposite the two, was naturally ignored.
However, he didn't realize his ignored state and became the intermediary for the two: "Wh-What... why so suddenly?" He stood up, walking behind Yumeko and Hikigaya like a servant.
"You two have already become the focus of our first-year group~"
"You surprised everyone on your first day by defeating Saotome-san so thoroughly, it was truly shocking~"
Sumeragi Itsuki's petite frame, with a simple hairband on her head, gave no impression of being a super-rich second-generation heir or a poker expert who had never been defeated.
Nevertheless, Hikigaya Hachiman still sensed the malice radiating from her. His brow furrowed as he instinctively felt repelled and disgusted by her.
Once he realized he was experiencing such emotions, he began to pay more attention to Sumeragi Itsuki. Years of human observation had given Hikigaya Hachiman a keen intuition.
Anyone who made him feel this way on the first meeting must be hiding some secret.
Either she was a smiling tiger, pretending to be harmless, or she was deeply twisted and corrupt, exuding the scent of pure evil to the point that even a refined egoist like him could not tolerate it.
So, would Sumeragi Itsuki be the former or the latter?
'I need more information,' Hikigaya Hachiman thought, putting away his attitude of seeing Sumeragi Itsuki as prey and gearing up to face her with full focus.
Yumeko seemed to sense something about Sumeragi Itsuki as well.
The flush on her face quickly faded, transforming into a composed, aristocratic demeanor as she faced her.
"Actually, I have some confidence in gambling myself."
"It would be interesting to compete with you two~"
"Please, let's have a match!" Her words hit Yumeko's weak point, and the aloof expression on her face immediately disappeared, replaced by a friendly attitude as if Sumeragi Itsuki were her best friend.
"This is how it should be."
Heh—
Sumeragi Itsuki revealed a meaningful smile, and Hikigaya suddenly realized that something was off.
It was clear that she was not gambling just for the sake of gambling, like Yumeko. Instead, she saw gambling as a tool to exploit others, much like Hikigaya himself.
But so far, he hadn't been able to figure out what exactly she intended to seize from him and Yumeko.
Sumeragi Itsuki turned to Hikigaya Hachiman: "Well... and what about you, Hikigaya-san?"
"Fine."
Hikigaya Hachiman replied calmly, preparing himself for a situation where one must enter the tiger's den to catch the tiger cub. His dead-fish eyes became serious, ready to observe every move she made.
"Great!"
Sumeragi Itsuki clapped her hands excitedly. "Let's go to the second floor then, I have a private room there. It's very comfortable."
.
.
.
The classroom of the first-year class.
As usual, during break time, groups of students gathered in threes and fours, playing cards and rolling dice.
Only Saotome Mary remained, as if detached from the world, sitting alone in the center of the classroom. Her eyes had completely lost their shine, and only mechanical murmurs could be heard from her lips:
"Why... why... why..."
"Why did it turn out like this... I... I... why..."
Perhaps it was because Saotome was too obedient, that the girls who bullied her simply treated her like a footstool for a while before leaving her alone. A toy that had lost the ability to resist didn't need to be destroyed intentionally. After all, it could be crushed anytime when they were in a bad mood.
"Hey! Street cat, I spilled my coffee, come lick it up!"
A new bully appeared. Having lost a card game, she was in a bad mood and poured the coffee onto her own little boots in front of everyone. She looked at Saotome Mary with a mocking face, enjoying the sight of her trembling figure.
"Remember, lick it, not wipe it~"
She shook her boot.
Tch—
Saotome trembled as she stood up from her seat, walking towards her with a blank expression.
It didn't matter anymore. None of it mattered. Even if she dropped out, she would still bear the debt. She had to endure whatever torment they threw at her. Until the Debt Exchange Conference. By then, none of these people would be left!
Saotome buried her anger deep inside, trying to make herself behave like a soulless doll, hoping these people would soon end their torment.
She crouched down.
Stuck out her soft pink tongue.
Just as things were about to reach a breaking point...
The pleasant sound of an announcement echoed in her ears—
"Some exciting news, the student council's Sumeragi is about to start a gambling game! Her opponents are our class's Hikigaya Hachiman and Jabami Yumeko!"
The class immediately erupted into chaos, with everyone rushing toward the cafeteria, leaving Saotome behind.
Her amber eyes regained their spark, and she murmured, "A gamble with Sumeragi Itsuki? That woman's game..."
Remembering how she had lost to Hikigaya Hachiman and his disturbingly sharp observation skills, she chuckled softly, picked up a rag, and began wiping the floor on her own.