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Chapter 160 Meritocracy - Part 1

In truth, despite the dystopian nature of the Tachibana System, the entire process has still been quite gentle. It is clear that the true competition has yet to begin. If anything, this time period seemed more like a trial of the system than its full implementation. It made enough sense, I suppose.

I was alone in my dorm room, tidying some of the things that Kimura had left on the ground. He was an individual who was notoriously hard to read—it was definitely something that would enable him to strive in such a place as this school.

The school was nowhere near completion in terms of infrastructure development. Considering the large plot of land they purchased in the surrounding area, it was clear that the number of students attending would grow exponentially.

I received a notification on my phone.

-

To Mizuhara Ayato

From Matsuoka Rei

Ayato, I\'ll be waiting for you in room 09 in the library. I\'ve booked it for just the two of us so you don\'t have to worry.

You\'ll want to hear what I have to say.

-

Ah. It had only been a few days since I last spoke with Matsuoka. I wonder what the purpose of this meeting was. Well, I guess I\'ll find out when I get there.

Packing up the last of the clothes on the ground, I put on my shoes and left the dorm.

It was pretty short notice.

...

? ───────────────── ?

—Library Room 09

Matsuoka-san was sitting with her knees on the chair, sipping on a small cup of what appeared to be bubble tea. Swirling it around, she mixed its contents, creating a little white pattern on the top as it slowly dissipated. There was a slight crinkle as she placed it back on the table in front of her.

I took a seat opposite her.

There was a weird period of silence before she finally looked up at me.

"How\'s it going, Mizuhara-senpai?"

I guess she\'s going to begin with some small talk.

"It\'s fine."

There was a moment of silence once again, but she didn\'t appear to feel awkward at all. Looking down at her cup of bubble tea, she brought the straw to her lips and took another sip.

She looked back up at me.

"Are you enjoying your time at this school?

"I suppose so."

It seemed that she wasn\'t going to drop the main purpose of this conversation immediately. It was somewhat annoying, but I didn\'t have much else planned today.

"I\'ve liked it here as well. The milk tea is really good."

She chewed on the pearls.

...

It was interesting to see how different she could act. I guess this was probably closer to what her \'normal\' was, but I guess I\'d never really be able to tell.

She put the bubble tea on the table.

"Alright, I\'m sure you\'re bored of the small talk, Mizuhara-senpai."

"You could say that."

She laughed a little.

"Haa, you have to learn to be more social. It\'s more enjoyable this way, you know?"

"I\'ll take that into consideration."

Running her fingers through her hair, she looked up at the roof. It didn\'t seem as if she felt awkward in any way, she just appeared to be displaying some odd habits. I wonder if it was her way of imitating the other people around her.

I decided to lean back a little and relax.

...

"Well, did you hear about the fact that they restarted the Ideal Human Project?"

I guess that was what she was here to talk about.

"I didn\'t. I assumed that the project was over once Tachibana-sensei passed."

She smiled a little.

"It turns out that the project\'s gotten more funding than ever."

"Is that so."

"And moreover, they\'ve got access to an even larger pool of children."

"I guess that might be concerning."

"Concerning?"

She seemed surprised when I phrased it like that.

"What\'s there to be concerned about, Mizuhara-senpai?"

"I assumed that\'s why you called for me."

"Nope. Not at all. In fact, I\'m glad that they\'ve started it back up. It helps me with my Mission, after all."

"Ah, well, was there a reason you wanted to tell me about this?"

"Not really. I just felt that I was obligated to do so."

"How come."

"Well, you were part of my generation. And you were one of the people I was closest to."

"Was I really?"

She sighed.

"Well, maybe out of the people who managed to survive."

I guess there weren\'t exactly a lot of survivors.

She continued.

"It also just helps to think that there\'s someone I can talk about this to. Whether I like it or not, the Ideal Human Project is still strongly imprinted into my mind."

"I guess that makes sense. Couldn\'t you also talk to Hasegawa?"

"She\'s a bit different to you. And I still wasn\'t as close with her."

She brought the bubble tea to her lips once again, gulping it down more quickly than before. I decided to stretch my arms a little as well.

"That wasn\'t the only reason I called you here, though."

"What else do you want to talk about?"

"What\'s the deal between you and your little first-year."

Ah, well, I wasn\'t going to be fooling her.

"Are you talking about Akihiko?"

"Yes."

"What do you want to know."

"What\'s your relationship with her? Is she just another one of your tools? Or maybe she\'s your pet."

I guess that was one way of framing it. Although I didn\'t think I was particularly close with Akihiko-san. She was certainly useful sometimes though.

"I\'m sure you\'ve interpreted it pretty accurately."

She sighed.

"Ah, well, if that\'s the case, I suppose you don\'t mind if I take her from you."

"What do you mean?"

"I have some personal reasons for needing her. I\'m not going to hurt her, though."

I wonder, do I really care.

"I paid quite a few points for her."

"What, are you a slave trader now? I guess you want me to dish out some points too, then."

"I\'ll hear you out."

"I\'ll give you 50,000 points."

Ah.