When Hashima and Ichinose Honami returned to Class B, the classroom immediately buzzed with excitement.
"It's Hashima and Ichinose!"
"You're back!"
"How did it go? Was the transaction successful?"
As the two entered the classroom, their classmates immediately surrounded them, eager to hear about the first transaction.
"Of course, it was a huge success!" Ichinose Honami pulled out her phone, proudly displaying the number on her student ID. "We sold the rules to Class A and earned one million private points."
"Fantastic! I knew we could trust Hashima and Ichinose."
"Yeah, it's great that it worked out."
"But why one million? Didn't we spend two million?"
Someone voiced their confusion, but they were quickly interrupted by another student.
"We're not just selling it once; there's still Class C and Class D. I'm sure Hashima has his reasons."
Seeing their classmates' confusion about the price, Hashima calmly explained, "Setting the price at one million was actually to find an excuse for them to believe in our sincerity. I told them that Class B spent three million to buy the rules."
"Then, by selling it to each class once, we recoup the three million. This way, they'll believe we're just trying to break even, not simply profit."
"After all, the students in Class A are very smart. If they asked me why we were selling the rules, how would I explain it?" Hashima shrugged, feigning helplessness.
"Haha, I see."
"Hashima, you're so clever!"
After hearing the explanation, the Class B students who had gathered around burst into laughter, and the atmosphere in the classroom became quite cheerful.
"Um, should I distribute the points to everyone now?" Ichinose Honami looked at the private points on her phone. The amount was so large that she felt uneasy. "After all, the two million to buy the rules was pooled by everyone, so it should be divided equally."
"No need to rush, Ichinose," Shibata Ibuki stopped Ichinose, advising, "Based on Hashima's plan, aren't there still two classes left to sell the rules to? Why don't we wait until everything is completed before distributing the points?"
"Shibata is right. Let Ichinose keep the points for now; we still have 50,000 each."
"Yeah, if it weren't for Hashima and Ichinose, we wouldn't have gotten this one million back."
The Class B students were all easygoing. For them, class unity was the most important thing, so they quickly reached a consensus.
Seeing everyone's trust in her, Ichinose Honami was deeply moved. A determined look appeared on the girl's pretty face as she firmly stated, "Thank you for your trust. I won't let you down, and I'll work hard to lead Class B forward!"
Hashima gazed at the resolute expression on Ichinose's face, thinking that he had indeed made the right choice in recommending her as the class leader. Her trustworthy aura was truly useful.
Whether it was uniting the class or acting as a piggy bank for points, she could do it best.
With that in mind, Hashima looked at his system panel again, and as expected, a new notification had popped up.
[Helped the class earn one million private points. Ichinose Honami's trust in you has increased. Ichinose Honami's stock price has increased by 10 points. Current stock price: 70]
Great! It seemed like he would soon break through the 100 mark, at which point he could cash in and buy items from the shop.
First, exchange for stamina potions, and then what to buy?
Just as Hashima was indulging in his future plans, he suddenly saw Ichinose Honami lean in and whisper, "Hashima, are you free later tonight?"
"What's up?"
"Shiranami and Andou are organizing a freshman mixer and wanted me to invite you."
Hashima asked doubtfully, "Is everyone in the class going?"
"No, it's organized by a few girls," Ichinose Honami quickly added, seeing the boy seemed somewhat interested. "There will probably be about seven or eight people, both boys and girls."
"Oh, I see."
Hashima had thought it was a class activity, but it turned out to be a small group gathering, so he planned to decline directly.
But then he thought again and asked, "Are you going, Ichinose?"
"Yes, I received an invitation too."
A look of anticipation appeared in Ichinose Honami's bright blue eyes. She hoped to use this opportunity to get to know Hashima better.
Through today's events, Ichinose was certain that Hashima was someone willing to contribute to the class, so she hoped to get closer to him, and if they could become friends, that would be even better.
Moreover, the girl had many questions she wanted to ask, so she hoped he would agree.
"Then I'll participate. What time and where is it?"
"5:30 pm, at the family restaurant in Keyaki Mall. Andou has already booked a table." Ichinose Honami couldn't help but feel a surge of joy when she saw the boy nod.
Hashima asked curiously, "Isn't today the first day of school? How did she manage that?"
"By phone. The school brochure has contact information for all the shops, probably to make it easier for everyone to save time."
"I see. I'll be there on time."
"Okay."
About half an hour later, the Class B students finally dispersed.
Most students went to the supermarket near the school building to buy daily necessities, then returned to their single dormitories according to the room cards they received. Starting today, they would live on this closed artificial island. Everything was a new beginning.
After leaving the school building, Hashima also followed the crowd into the school supermarket. Although he only had 50,000 private points left, it was more than enough.
He was more concerned about the changes in stock prices and system funds; he never paid much attention to food, clothing, and shelter.
As he strolled through the supermarket with his shopping basket, his eyes were suddenly drawn to a separate shelf with the words "Free" on it.
Free meant free of charge.
Hashima immediately went over and found some plainly packaged shampoo, body wash, tissues, and other consumables that seemed to be free for the taking.
"There are actually free things?"
He thought for a moment and quickly understood the school's intention. It was probably a safety net for students who had spent all their private points, otherwise, life would be impossible.
"But this means that the future class competition is going to be really fierce," Hashima mused. "Winner takes all, and the losers can only use free stuff?"
Just then, a girl with long black hair passed by him. She was carrying a small shopping basket and had an indifferent expression.
[Beep! Horikita Suzune stock is now online!]
[Current stock price: 100]
[Number of shares issued: 3000]
"?"
Such a high initial stock price?
Who is she?
Hashima abruptly turned his head, his gaze fixed on the girl who was choosing shampoo.