Exterior POV

Akira's group moved forward calmly, each member following the leader like sheep trailing behind their shepherd. Of course, the eyes of others couldn't help but fall on them, captivated by this strange procession. Akira walked with rare dignity, his face glowing like that of an angel descended to Earth, inspiring both respect and admiration.

But suddenly, another group of students blocked their path. They stood in front of Akira as an obstacle, ready to confront him. A blonde young man, with a provocative gaze, stepped forward, accompanied by his companions. Their presence was far from insignificant, and Akira knew it. This moment was bound to come sooner or later. After all, an emperor must always act when a force rises within his own realm.

Nagumo, the leader of the group ahead, knew that Akira represented an increasingly significant threat. He had no choice but to take measures to neutralize this new force. His presence here was merely a warning, a gesture to test Akira's intentions and establish some form of dominance. However, this public confrontation was just the first step. In the shadows, Nagumo harbored another, subtler plan. He intended to observe Akira more closely, to understand what made him such a threat.

Akira, on the other hand, was well aware of Nagumo's intentions. Thanks to some gathered information, he already had a clear idea of his adversary. By putting himself in Nagumo's shoes, he had been able to anticipate his actions and reasoning. The confrontation seemed inevitable, but Akira was ready for it, aware that this encounter would determine the course of things.

But the time for that had not yet come.

By constantly thinking about Nagumo's behavior, Akira was already visualizing his future actions. However, no one could guess what Akira was thinking—he maintained an enormous level of self-control in public. And that disturbed Nagumo. He couldn't read Akira.

Akira had an extensive understanding of human behavior, to the point that he could pass himself off as someone entirely different. By manipulating his charisma and aura, including the function of his clothes and even his words, he could transcend the stage of mere acting and become the person he portrayed. In this way, he could deceive people like Nagumo—making them believe, through his actions, words, and attire, whether he was a worthy adversary or not.

But then, why hadn't he done it?

He was simply curious to see what Nagumo would do in this situation. Even though he knew what Nagumo was likely to do, he understood that something unpredictable might happen. He had bet that Nagumo could turn out to be more interesting than he had imagined. Would he be satisfied or not?

Nagumo looked at him with increasing provocation before taking a relaxed pause. It was a moment of hesitation—what was he afraid of?

Nagumo: "So you already think you're the king, Akira. But it's truly impressive how much you overestimate yourself."

Akira: "You're the president, Nagumo, right? Pleased to meet you."

He extended his hand toward Nagumo, hoping for a handshake. What an irritating provocation—he had changed the subject to the point where it seemed like Akira couldn't care less about Nagumo's insults. He was playing dumb, but everyone could see it was intentional, and that was exactly the point of his actions.

Nagumo didn't react. He was both angry and surprised by such behavior. Although this scene was trivial, it meant a lot. Akira smiled and responded sharply.

Akira: "So you won't even shake hands or greet me? I don't talk to people who are so rude."

Nagumo didn't respond to Akira's insult. After a quick reflection, he judged that it was better not to respond to the provocation, not because it endangered his safety, but because it could damage his reputation. Although he had surely lost some prestige due to his silence, he decided that this confrontation would mark the end of his provocations toward Akira. He preferred to let this affront slide and avoid engaging in an unnecessary spiral of conflict.

However, this didn't mean he was abandoning his goal. Akira was gaining influence, not only within his own class but beyond, which made him particularly dangerous. What worried Nagumo was that Akira hadn't even needed to go through the student council, a place usually reserved for those who wish to extend their power. Yet, Akira was managing to influence others without being part of the Student Bureau (BDE), making him even more of a threat.

Akira was disappointed, though. He had expected Nagumo to insult him and humiliate him in some grand way, but he had simply observed that Nagumo had chosen to play it safe. Instead, Akira had just approached him, said almost nothing, and left. What a pointless act. Akira thought that Nagumo's arrogance had led him to provoke him and warn him in person—only to back off and avoid continuing the conversation like a coward. This is how Akira interpreted his actions.

Akira reflected on his next moves. He saw Nagumo as a potential threat, but not one interesting enough to engage with yet. He knew he should do something about Nagumo, but he chose to do nothing for the moment. Akira believed Nagumo would add more excitement to future events. Even though today had disappointed him, it wasn't too late for Nagumo to redeem himself.

Moreover, Nagumo had realized the danger Akira posed. By recognizing this, Nagumo had decided to put his ego aside and adopt a more cautious approach. If he wanted to eliminate the threat Akira represented, he needed to be careful, not give in to the thrill of confrontation. Nagumo was aware of Akira's capabilities for several reasons. He knew that Akira had established an authoritarian regime within his own class. That alone was enough to worry about. Adding to this was the fact that Akira's influence stretched beyond his class. And all of this in less than three months—a feat that, according to Nagumo, was even greater than his own. It had taken him two years to achieve something similar. This was why Nagumo had put his ego aside. He knew that facing Akira just for fun could be costly. He had to act prudently.

Akira knew Nagumo would conclude this way, so he could rest easy until Nagumo set his plan in motion. He also knew that Nagumo would start implementing defenses and strategies to prevent his influence from growing in the year. While Akira could extend his reach to other sophomore classes, Nagumo had no control over them—he could only protect his own year. Extending it to the senior year classes would also be pointless since they would graduate the following year. During this period, while Nagumo set up his strategy, Akira had time to prepare his future plans.

Since Nagumo was setting up defenses and strategies, Akira felt limited in expanding his influence. But he judged that he had already done enough in this area and decided to stop. He wasn't going to attack Hishida either. There was no point in doing that. Attacking first reveals your approach, and Hishida could act accordingly.

Even though Hishida would probably have the same reasoning and the two would never end up facing off, Akira believed it wasn't the right time. His true battle was simple. He would wait for the next special exam. Until then, he would have plenty of time to continue increasing his control over the class. Moreover, he had already devised a way to learn about the exam in advance.

Thanks to the information from several of his "servants" in the first year, Akira had compiled a list of all possible exams. It was very likely—almost certain—that some exams his seniors had taken would resurface. After all, it would be too much of a hassle to come up with completely new ones every year. It was a matter of practicality.

To know the exam, he only had to pay. You could buy anything with points, which was a golden rule of the school that reflected the broader society where everyone could be corrupted. Thanks to his ability to set up a bank in his own class and scam and trap several first-year and senior students for their points, he likely had enough points. But nothing guaranteed that it would work.

He would need to ask the teacher or the principal for this kind of information, and they no doubt knew how many points he had. They could set a price that would cost him dearly—perhaps even more than his entire point balance. Negotiation would be difficult, as they would surely recognize that Akira's goal was to cheat. Even if there was a chance he could pay, was it really worth spending his money on that?

Akira thought about this question and came up with an answer rather quickly.

Akira: "I don't need to see them. I just need to understand their interests. The teachers have their own interests, and if I use them correctly, negotiation probably won't be a problem."

Akira then tested his mind to figure out what his teacher wanted. To his surprise, he found the answer quite quickly.

Akira: "He wants to be in Class A and avoid ending up in Class D. Not for the sake of his future as a student, but for reasons of honor."

His teacher probably had the same ambitions as his colleague, Chabashira. And it was clear that he knew how much she disliked this class and its position. Even though Class D had never moved in rankings, the best course of action was to use this information. Furthermore, with Hishida in this class, he should realize that Class D had become the most dangerous class in the school's history.

Hishida Youka

A man who at first glance succeeds in everything he does, but in reality, is someone who has

A man who at first glance seems to succeed in everything he does, but in reality, a man who has always lost. No matter the battles he has won, and there have been many since his birth.

Everything has been done so that, no matter what happens, he will never, ever be able to lead a fulfilling life. I even wonder how he came to this state of mind. A normal human being would have committed suicide after living the life that Hishida did. Yet, despite his defeats, he keeps moving forward. Even though he is unhappy, even though he never knew what it felt like to be protected or reassured, he continues down his path, searching for a reason, a valid reason, to keep on living.

Akira: And that's what drives me crazy about him, how can I explain this mindset? How did he end up like this? I know how a man, a human being, would react in this situation. He would definitely die. You have no real purpose in life, you've copied and faked a personality so much that you don't even recognize yourself anymore. You don't love your sister, you try your best to love her, but you can't. You've lost so many people close to you, you've been so surrounded by death that you can't even feel affection for anyone. You've suffered so much, your dreams have been shattered, and everything has been done so that you have no reason to live, but that still wasn't enough.

Akira paused.

Akira: Father, I understand, help me, I have a problem I can't solve. I did what you asked. I took people, I made them go through the same things, but they all died. I made them live the same life as Hishida, the same trauma. Yet all of them wanted to die. They couldn't bear this life.

Akira had lived enough years to understand mankind in its entirety. Yet, there were areas where he had no answers. And that frustrated him. What was the answer to the question? How to solve this problem?

Akira: "In the end, what makes Hishida who he is, is not his talent. No, he has lived through many things, endured a lot, and faced many defeats to become who he is now. The main strength of Hishida, the reason for his abnormally high emotional and social intelligence, is solely due to his experiences."

That was the only thing he had confirmed.

But he knew that, in this sense, he resembled Hishida.

Both had suffered so much trauma to get to this point.

One was so broken that he developed an unhealthy fantasy.

The other was so broken that he searched for a reason to live, to keep existing.

But who was Hishida?

Hishida had endured so much, things so horrible for a child that normally no one would have been able to resist. Hishida was in perpetual conflict with himself.

Did he love Tokito?

No, he didn't love her, but he would have liked to love her.

Hishida still remembered the radiant smile of his best friend.

Dead.

The old woman who used to make him delicious meals after he was abused by his uncle and aunt.

They were dead too.

And his friends, each of whom reassured him, helped him, and made him smile.

All dead.

And the person responsible for all this, the one who had provoked his hatred, the one he had trained to kill. The man who taught him how to fight, how to lie, how to plan, reason, make decisions, but most importantly, how to kill. Hishida wanted to kill this man who had killed his best friend, and this man had trained Hishida so that he would kill him. But that man was also dead.

What was left for him?

What reason did he have to keep living, knowing full well that no matter how many people he loved, they would eventually die?

Hishida was only eight years old at the time. He was taken in by various people who used him as a weapon. A mafia discovered Hishida's talents and the training he had received. He worked for them, taking part in bets, games, where at every moment his life was at stake.

The person who taught him had taught him one thing: in this world, the only strength you can trust is yourself. If others discover that strength, you must hide it, behind a mask, or even multiple masks.

He began to simulate a personality, to protect himself from everyone. He adopted personalities that weren't his own, and did so repeatedly. Little by little, he became so used to it that he began asking himself a question:

Who was he?

How did he act before?

When he looked at his actions, he knew they were calculated by him to lie to the world around him. But he did it so many times that it became instinctive, and when he tried to reconnect with the old him, his habits would return.

He kept going.

He kept going again and again.

But after a certain amount of time, he understood.

His old self, his former personality, had disappeared.

All those who had known him were dead.

And his old self had vanished in the vast sea of personalities and characters he had created.

He was no longer Hishida; he had become a puppet, a puppet manipulated by the harshness of life. A puppet that could change faces and roles constantly.

What was left for him in the end?

What was his reason to continue living here?

He had no goal, no objective. What was the point of continuing to live?

It took several years, moving through the black market, through the world's organizations and mafias. He had gained a strong network of information. And he found something that made him curious.

His mother.

His real mother.

A sex slave of a rival organization.

When he tried to meet her, he learned several things.

He had a sister.

She was about to get married.

And she had ordered her daughter to kill them all.

She died in the process.

Hishida understood that Tokito was like him, she had no purpose. She watched everyone die before her eyes.

Hishida watched his mother die, but he felt no sadness.

His mother finally said:

???: "I don't know who you are, but please, listen to the words of a mother who has suffered all her life. Give Tokito what she has never had... a normal life... a life where she can decide for herself."

Hishida knew his mother didn't know her. He had been taken away from her at birth. But his mother, in an attempt to apologize, gave him a purpose, a reason to live.

Hishida then understood what he had to do.

To keep living with the sole purpose of finding a reason to keep going.

His mother had given him a goal, and he would do it. He would do everything he could, even if it meant dying. And if he failed, it didn't matter, he would find another goal.

He was a child who cried too much; now he no longer cried.

He was an emotional and joyful child; now he had become neutral and impassive to everything.

He had loved, he wanted reassurance, protection, and no longer to worry about the world.

Now, he only trusted himself.

Hishida questioned his entire existence; he had suffered so much that he reached a life philosophy never seen in anyone his age.

He considered people as means.

He considered that everything had both advantages and disadvantages.

He considered that something only had value in the attention it received.

Thanks to this, he understood everything. His own faults, his own defeats. He had lost so much that defeat meant nothing to him, just like victory.

Hishida understood the world with an eye that had never existed before.