"A very classic work by Agatha Christie."
Arisu Sakayanagi asked with a smile, "Natsuki-kun, do you enjoy reading mystery novels?"
"I'm only slightly interested."
"Sakayanagi-san, is there something wrong with being carefree?"
Natsuki Subaru didn't even bother to look up, instead opening to the title page of the novel in his hand.
Subaru wasn't particularly interested in Arisu Sakayanagi.
She was just a brat who thought she was smarter than everyone else. Uninteresting. He had no desire to probe any deeper. Compared to Kikyō Kushida and Hiyori Shiina, she was a far cry.
An NPC not even on par with Suzune Horikita.
"There is nothing wrong with being carefree in itself."
"However, if the timing is not right, perhaps it might seem a bit… extravagant?"
Arisu Sakayanagi's voice was soft, yet it carried an edge that couldn't be concealed.
Looking at Natsuki Subaru, Arisu Sakayanagi's thoughts raced.
During this first week of school, Arisu Sakayanagi naturally had no shortage of observation targets. And Natsuki Subaru, who had seen through the school's hidden rules on the very first day, was second only to Kiyotaka Ayanokōji in her observation priority.
This academy had a feature that most people wouldn't discover: contacts could check each other's specific locations.
Normally, such information would take at least a month, maybe even half a year, to spread. Arisu Sakayanagi, knowing this from the beginning, naturally had a head start.
By using the contact location feature, she could analyze the daily behavioral logic of each of her contacts.
This was one of the reasons Arisu Sakayanagi was able to so appropriately arrange this 'accidental encounter' with Natsuki Subaru.
"So, Sakayanagi-san believes that the current timing is not right?"
Natsuki Subaru still didn't look up. His tone was exceptionally calm, completely unmoved by Arisu Sakayanagi's deliberately cryptic words.
This wasn't their first chat since Natsuki Subaru had added Arisu Sakayanagi as a contact.
Over the week, Arisu Sakayanagi would occasionally make small talk with Natsuki Subaru, but she was actually using these simple chats to probe his personality and behavioral logic.
It wasn't very interesting.
The conversations were formulaic, completely devoid of any anticipation.
"Whether the timing is right or not depends on one's personal goals and perspective."
"Natsuki-kun, I'm just a little curious."
Seeing Natsuki Subaru's unresponsive demeanor, Arisu Sakayanagi wasn't discouraged. She continued with a smile, "Over this past week, I've seen the students of Class D acting like frogs in lukewarm water, gradually sinking into the comfort of the present, unaware that the water temperature is constantly rising."
"In an academy of 'meritocracy' like this, that's a very dangerous thing, you know."
Using the location feature, Arisu Sakayanagi had clearly observed Natsuki Subaru's general movements over the week—classroom, cafeteria, library, and occasionally sitting alone by the sea at night. His routine was a three-point line, almost rigid in its regularity.
Natsuki Subaru seemed out of place with his classmates who were indulging in pleasure.
But she also hadn't seen him make any moves to unite the class or improve their 'merit'.
Natsuki Subaru was like a stone thrown into the stagnant water of Class D, yet he hadn't created any of the expected ripples. This 'inaction,' which was beyond her control and predictions, was in itself a kind of anomaly.
Through the student terminal, Arisu Sakayanagi had engaged in several probing chats with Natsuki Subaru.
Natsuki Subaru's responses were always very polite, but that was all they were.
The content of their chats was very formulaic, flawless but also fruitless, so Arisu Sakayanagi adjusted her strategy. Since remote observation wasn't working, she would try a close-range approach.
She would probe with the blade of her words.
If she couldn't even handle a person like Natsuki Subaru, how could she face Kiyotaka Ayanokōji in a showdown?
At this moment, Natsuki Subaru's refusal to take the bait stirred Arisu Sakayanagi's competitive spirit.
'It's decided then, Natsuki-kun.'
'Before my showdown with Kiyotaka Ayanokōji, I'll let you be the appetizer, a dessert to whet my appetite.'
As her thoughts churned, Arisu Sakayanagi leaned her body forward slightly, her gaze seemingly trying to pierce straight through Natsuki Subaru, who had been looking down at his book from the very beginning.
"That way of putting it is rather interesting, Sakayanagi-san."
"The boiling frog analogy is indeed a classic, but Sakayanagi-san seems to have overlooked one point."
Natsuki Subaru's fingers, which were turning the pages, paused.
If he had to describe it, Natsuki Subaru felt as if he were looking at a hissing kitten, getting worked up just because he was ignoring it.
Thinking of this, Natsuki Subaru looked at Arisu Sakayanagi with some amusement and said, "When you boil a frog in lukewarm water, if the temperature becomes unsuitable and the lid isn't on, the frog will jump out on its own."
"In other words, how fast the water heats up, and whether it's scalding or not, isn't for us to say. Only the frog itself knows."
Natsuki Subaru knew exactly what Arisu Sakayanagi was trying to say.
That Year 1, Class D's performance was currently very poor, and as someone who had realized something was wrong with the school on the first day, wasn't he going to do something about it?
There was absolutely no need to do anything.
The frogs themselves don't even think the water is hot, so why meddle?
"I see. So Natsuki-kun has chosen to stay out of it?"
"What a shame, Natsuki-kun, seeing as you were the first to notice the abnormal water temperature."
Arisu Sakayanagi seemed slightly regretful. She chuckled lightly and said, "However, compared to that answer, I'm actually more inclined toward another one."
"The reason Natsuki-kun can be so carefree, could it be that…"
"...you think you've already become the frog that jumped out of the pot?~"
Arisu Sakayanagi was no longer being subtle.
Faced with Natsuki Subaru's refusal to play along, Arisu Sakayanagi directly showed her undisguised sharpness.
As her words fell, Arisu Sakayanagi's gaze locked onto Natsuki Subaru's face, trying to capture some other expression.
"Those who try to be clever often find themselves more easily trapped in the webs they weave."
Natsuki Subaru closed the novel in his hands.
Just as Arisu Sakayanagi had hoped, Natsuki Subaru finally showed a different expression.
Looking at the hissing kitten that was Arisu Sakayanagi, the formulaic smile remained on Natsuki Subaru's face, but his tone had become somewhat indifferent as he said, "Sakayanagi-san."
Natsuki Subaru wondered if Arisu Sakayanagi had noticed something.
That among the second and third years, not every Class A was the initial Class A.
___
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