[Character: Watanabe Tetsu]
[Intelligence: 7]
[Charm: 10] [Smile: Gentle Charm]
[Stamina: 3]
[Items: Detector ×1 (2/3), Intelligence Half-Price Voucher]
[Skills: Eidetic Memory, Free Combat (Master Level)]
[Points: 79,000]
[Money: ¥1,105,652]
[Check-ins: Tamamo Konomi · 24 days]
Watanabe Tetsu lay sprawled on the mat, staring blankly at the pale blue translucent window above. The check-in for Yuki Miki had ended.
He had used a charm half-price voucher and 5,000 points to exchange for the skill Smile: Gentle, and 100,000 points for the master-level Free Combat. Master-level skills for next month were already out of reach, and so was charm.
According to the Appendix, once intelligence, charm, or stamina reached ten points, every additional point required double the points to upgrade. Charm was already at ten; reaching eleven would cost 100,000 points. From now on, unless he got a one-tenth discount voucher, Watanabe Tetsu decided he wouldn't spend points on charm again—he was already at human maximum!
By the same rules, his normal appearance rating was nine, but when he smiled, it hit ten—almost equivalent to having a "Love-at-First-Sight" skill. Being a decent guy, he didn't dare smile casually at anyone.
Thanks to the half-price voucher, intelligence could still be upgraded with 50,000 points per point, but the direction had to be carefully considered.
After lying there for a while, Watanabe Tetsu struggled to his feet, every inch of his body screaming in pain. There was no choice but to let his injuries heal naturally; healing medicine or the hospital would only cause complications, and the school infirmary was out of the question.
He gathered the basketball, soccer ball, shot put, and pole from the floor, grabbed his school jacket, slid the gym equipment room door closed, and slowly headed back to the club building.
The way there hadn't been easy, but returning was even harder. Just thinking about climbing to the fifth floor made Watanabe Tetsu want to skip class.
At a vending machine on the first floor, he bought lemon tea for Seino Rin and a bottle of iced cola for himself. Pressing the cola against the side of his face that had been punched, he used the cold to minimize the swelling.
"Watanabe?" a familiar voice called from behind.
"Inspector Koizumi?"
Holding a stack of lesson plans, Koizumi Aona peeked around the corner.
"I just bought some drinks; I'll go back and continue studying," Watanabe Tetsu replied, hurrying up the stairs, not wanting her to see his bruised, swollen face.
But as he took the first two steps, his legs trembled uncontrollably. His almost flawless face—only slightly swollen—nearly collided with the steps.
"Watanabe!"
Koizumi Aona rushed over, holding her lesson plans with one arm while using the other to support him. She wasn't short, but being a woman and only able to use one hand, she had to leverage her body to lift him. Watanabe Tetsu felt just how soft her body was.
"You okay?" she asked.
"I'm fine. I just slipped," he replied.
"Be careful walking… but what happened to your face?"
"Inspector, what shampoo do you use? It smells amazing," he teased.
Aona glared at him, scolding, "Answer my question!"
"I got into a fight."
"A fight?"
"Yeah," Watanabe Tetsu nodded. "I got punched, but I won, so I'm fine. Inspector Koizumi, can we keep this from the school?"
"What happened exactly? Does it have anything to do with you being late recently?"
Women's intuition was terrifying.
"Late?" Watanabe Tetsu pretended to be stunned, then shook his head. "Nothing to do with that."
He quickly came up with a story.
"A guy sent a love letter through a girl who likes him. I ignored the girl, so he came looking for revenge. What could I do? So many girls like me—I can't respond to all of them, right?"
"Really?"
"Tomorrow, I'll hand you the unopened letters," Watanabe Tetsu promised.
Aona believed him—he didn't look like he was lying. Seeing her expression soften, he seized the opportunity:
"Inspector, let's just forget this. It's not a big deal, and it's already over. If the school or parents find out, it'll affect my tests, and that girl would be embarrassed."
"We can't just let it slide!"
Aona's stern face made Watanabe Tetsu groan. Then she said, "Come with me to the infirmary!"
"If I go, you won't report this to the school?"
"We'll see, based on your future behavior."
"Inspector Koizumi, you're my favorite!"
Aona smiled beautifully, helping Watanabe Tetsu toward the infirmary. The hallways were quiet; occasional laughter from the activity classrooms hinted that not everyone was studying.
These guys have no idea how much smarter I am or how much harder I work than them. There's a reason I, Watanabe, am destined to be remarkable! He felt proud after just having fought.
"You fought when you were young too?" Aona said suddenly.
"Inspector, don't joke. We're close enough—no need to fabricate stories to get closer," Watanabe Tetsu replied, feeling the double meaning as he sensed the softness of her body.
Aona laughed. "Why would I lie?"
"Really fought?"
"Of course. Back at the private school, I pinned someone against the wall and beat them."
"Whoa!" Watanabe Tetsu was genuinely surprised. "And… the outcome?"
Aona, looking delicate and refined, had no connection to violence.
"Well… let's just say, I unexpectedly had a talent for fighting," she said proudly.
Watanabe Tetsu looked at her with admiration. "No wonder, Inspector Koizumi. I'm talented at fighting too."
"Stop flapping your mouth!" Aona scolded, then laughed again. "Sometimes students fight over trivial things. Normally it wouldn't matter, but my involvement can make it awkward. I won't blame you this time."
"Why did you fight? Was it about a love letter too? Did some girl confess to you and her friend came after you?"
"There are no 'hot girls'! My private school was in a small town—hot girls only exist on TV there."
"Then why fight?"
Aona paused, puzzled, whispering, "Some people in town were annoying, but not enough to fight… Who did I fight? And why?"
"Uh-oh, teacher… your memory's already failing at this age?"
Aona rolled her eyes at him, but even by the time they reached the infirmary, she still couldn't recall who she had fought or why.
Because of the students' peculiarities, private school infirmaries usually had female doctors—and Kamikawa Private School was no exception. Regarding appearance, figure, and attire, nothing about this doctor was out of place in a campus anime scene.
According to information from Kunii Osamu, confirmed by Watanabe Tetsu: it was true. Very true.
"Misaki," Aona greeted.
Miyazaki Misaki, in a white coat, looked up. "Aona, what is it?"
"Student helped me move something and got his face hit."
"Let me check him first," Misaki said, putting down her tasks.
"Thanks, Dr. Miyazaki," Watanabe Tetsu said with a smile.
Misaki paused, then said to Aona, "This must be the kid Akiko mentioned—the one who smiles beautifully, likes you, and wants to be a Tokyo heartthrob?"
"Liking me is unnecessary."
"The 'kid' part is unnecessary."
Both spoke at once, making Misaki laugh even more.
"Your name is Watanabe, right?"
"Yes." This time, Watanabe Tetsu didn't smile.
"You like Inspector Koizumi?"
"Misaki!" he exclaimed. "I like her the most."
"Ha ha ha!" Misaki laughed, then remembered the student on the bed and quickly gestured for Watanabe Tetsu to sit.
She examined his face.
"This was a fight, right? The injuries aren't light," she said, eyes seeming to see everything.
Watanabe Tetsu gave a thumbs-up. "Professional."
Misaki told Aona, "I don't recommend too playful of a handsome guy; this kid might already have several girlfriends."
"You and Akiko are in cahoots, huh?" Aona, fed up with her friend's teasing, said.
Misaki smiled, satisfied, and turned to Watanabe Tetsu: "No injuries to teeth, eyes, or nose. Apply ice at home today, switch to heat tomorrow, and you'll be fine in a few days."
"Thanks, Dr. Miyazaki. Inspector Koizumi, I'll go back to studying now."
"If it hurts, I can excuse you and let you go home early," Aona offered.
Watanabe Tetsu refused firmly. "No. My goal is at least second in the school. I have to study hard."
Every part of his body hurt worse than his face, but the more it hurt, the more determined he was to endure. Someday, when his body hurts this much again, he'd have to take out the remaining subordinates of Yuki Miki. A rare chance to get used to such pain.
The more Aona watched Watanabe Tetsu, the more she liked him. She came from a slightly better-off town, and although there were no Starbucks, there were vending machines. Knowing the hardship of coming to Tokyo alone for school, she understood him.
"Do your best, but don't overdo it," she whispered encouragement.
"Okay," he replied.
Watanabe Tetsu left the infirmary with a sigh. To avoid drawing too much attention to his injuries, he joked lightly and managed to prevent anyone from checking his other body parts.
Holding his lemon tea and cola, he slowly walked back to the club building. The infirmary trip had added extra steps, and his cola, meant for ice therapy, had warmed—what a loss.
From the still-open infirmary, he faintly heard Misaki laughing at Aona, who was being teased by him.
Finally back in the Human Observation Club activity room, Yuki Miki was there.
She had piles of manga around her, each discarded after barely two pages.
"I'm back," Watanabe Tetsu said, closing the door.
No one responded.
He placed the lemon tea in front of Seino Rin, who was reading Natsume Sōseki.
"Thanks," Rin said, setting the book down as if noticing him for the first time. "Where did you go just now?"
"I got into a fight," he answered honestly.
"Did you win or lose?"
"Could I come back if I lost?" Watanabe Tetsu snapped.
"Sorry," he immediately apologized, "I shouldn't have spoken to you like that. You still helped me."
"It's fine," Rin sipped her tea while reading. "My heart is as vast as the Seto Inland Sea. I forgive your immaturity."
As Watanabe Tetsu glanced at Rin's chest, imagining her inner breadth as vast as the Seto Inland Sea, Yuki Miki's voice cut through:
"You think you can speak to me like that?"
"Of course not," he replied instantly.
Forget it. The future great Watanabe Tetsu couldn't afford to offend anyone now.
He looked at the fancy fridge in the corner. "Miss Yuki, can I use some of your ice?"
"You're under my command now. Help yourself."
"Under your command?"
"Weren't you interviewing for the bodyguard position?" Yuki Miki put down her manga. "Are you messing with me?"
"Uh… what about wages?" Originally enemies, Watanabe Tetsu didn't intend to work for free.
Yuki Miki didn't answer, merely shifted her long legs. Watanabe Tetsu didn't understand.
Surely she wasn't offering used thigh-high socks as payment? She underestimated him—but he didn't dare ask or mention he didn't like thigh-high socks.
I admit, right now, you're stronger.
He took ice from the fridge, wrapped it in his sleeve, and pressed it gently against his bruised cheek.
Opening his differential calculus workbook and grabbing a 0.5mm mechanical pencil, he glanced at the two girls—one absorbed in literature, the other flipping quickly through manga.
"Aren't you studying?"
"The kind of knowledge we can't get without the teacher's guidance is useless. If we still don't get it after the teacher explains, we're even worse off."
"Humans who don't naturally gain that level of knowledge as they grow should be eliminated."
Good. They were sulking, not provoking him. Thanks to the ice, Watanabe Tetsu stayed rational.
I've decided. This test, I'll definitely get first place!
He tuned out the world, focusing solely on the sacred texts.