AlmightySkyDxddy
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BSCOTE 9: The Kind Death-Row Inmate
🕑 Added 2025-06-16 11:28:03 +0000 UTC7:10 PM, inside Horikita's dorm room.
Horikita tapped her pencil against her chin in thought. She looked at the answers to the short quiz she gave Ryuji.
All his fundamentals were flawed!
In essence, if she agreed to his request of tutoring she'd have to guide a middle-school student with barely any knowledge to high-school level.
And this was across all subjects besides English!
She frowned and began striking off all incorrect answers. She also wrote little notes beside the incorrect answers.
Just then—
“So how'd I do?”
“Did you clean after yourself?” Horikita frowned, uncomfortable having shared her bathroom with this stranger.
“That's quite an insulting question, are you always this blunt?” Ryuji was speechless, she really asked such a thing.
He wiped his hands using a few napkins and sat down in front of her.
“So how'd I do?” He repeated himself.
“Terrible, how'd you even get into this school?”
Her blunt words caused Ryuji to laugh, “Exactly! I just took the entrance exam on a whim. The management must be smoking something.”
He was lying.
The real ‘Ryuji’ had studied hard and done decently on the exam. In fact, Ryuji had all the memories of his predecessor and wasn't as bad of a student as he showed in front of Horikita. Just based on the memories, if he studied even a bit regularly, scoring around 60-70 would be no issue.
But there were two reasons he showed himself as a terrible student in front of Horikita.
First, he wanted to cling to Horikita and annoy Kushida.
Ryuji wasn't a petty man. He wasn't troubling Kushida because he was mad or something. He simply wanted to push her over the edge so she'd make a mistake early on. He didn't have the patience to wait till after the first mock exam after a month.
There were two steps he would take to make sure Kushida would be wrapped around his finger before the revelation of Class Points.
Yesterday he deliberately showed disgust towards her. He had planted the suspicion of him being from the same middle school as her.
The second step would be showing affection or close friendship with Horikita. Besides Ayanokoji who knew half the story, no one would be able to tell that Ryuji and Horikita were in a mutually beneficial relationship. They'd think they were good friends from before High School or dating.
And for Kushida this was the worst possible outcome.
To Kushida, Ryuji was a ticking time bomb.
Unlike the reserved and aloof Horikita, Ryuji appeared to be a brash and honest person on the outside. Someone who didn't think before opening their mouth.
Naturally, this would put an unprecedented amount of pressure on Kushida.
And the moment she slipped, Ryuji would have her firmly in his grasp.
“Are you listening!?”
“Ah, yes?”
“Pay attention, we'll study till 7:30 and you'll tell me your plan after that. If all of this proves to be futile then just consider this a one-time favour which I'll use later.” Horikita spoke coldly, “Do you get it?”
Ryuji looked at the beautiful girl in front of him. Her beautiful glossy black hair was adorned with a simple hair tie. The first button of her shirt was undone and her swan-like neck was on full display.
The second reason he'd shown terrible grades was to add truth to his story. By highlighting how a student like him got into ANHS he'd have a good reason behind his suspicion and Horikita would have no choice but to agree to his conclusions and theories.
If she said ‘I don't believe you, that's too far-fetched.’
He'd simply reply, ‘How’d I get into ANHS then?’
Despite appearing carefree Ryuji had to plan his steps accordingly if he wanted the benefits from the System. He wouldn't dare underestimate these so-called ‘prodigies’. After all, he was just a simple man with a somewhat sharp mind.
All he had was knowledge of a future.
Ryuji would never become complacent.
For it had once caused him immeasurable suffering.
…
Horikita stretched her arms and took a deep breath in.
“You're a quick learner.” She looked at Ryuji calmly.
She hadn't judged him wrongly. He was a smart person who simply ignored his academic studies. If he proved to be hard to teach, Horikita would have to face hell in the future.
“Thanks,” Ryuji nodded with similar calm and silence stretched across the room.
“...”
“So… how do I make my brother acknowledge me?” Despite her cold demeanor, Ryuji could tell that she was inwardly anxious.
Looking at her, he couldn't help but wonder how much of a dumbass Horikita Manabu was.
Despite all his ‘genius’ he did not realise a simple open-hearted conversation with his little sister was all he needed. Was it really that hard to confide in family?
Ryuji was somewhat disappointed, even a criminal like him had cut off his connection to his family to not implicate them due to his criminal behaviour, only re-establishing contact, after hearing about the death of his little cousin's mother and sister.
He sighed inwardly.
“Give me a brief summary of the relationship between you and your brother. Everything from young to old.” Ryuji stated his request bluntly, he did not really need it but the treatment that would follow needed to have a backbone behind it.
He couldn't simply give her words out of his ass, that would mean he had an understanding of the siblings even before contacting Horikita.
The entire sequence of events would become suspicious and Horikita would begin to feel a deep sense of distrust towards him.
He didn't doubt that with her sharp mind.
“You really have no shame? Asking about personal details so rudely,” Horikita frowned but soon she began explaining everything, from childhood till now in a soft manner.
Horikita understood that to make milkshakes you'd have to have milk first.
Ryuji having asked this only made him more credible in her mind.
She spoke freely.
It didn't take long, approximately three minutes. Ryuji listened silently, not interrupting her once. The story wasn't any different than he imagined.
A younger sister idolising her older brother to the heavens.
It wouldn't be wrong to call her a bro-con.
“This is much simpler than I thought,” Ryuji commented casually and Horikita was stunned.
“Elaborate.”
“You've been walking the wrong path from the beginning, Suzune.”
“Don't call me by my first name!” She snapped but Ryuji ignored her.
“Unless you accept us calling each other by our first names and tutoring me till the mid terms, I won't help you.” Ryuji grinned and Horikita had a few veins bulging on her forehead.
If she had her compass with her she'd surely stab him to death.
“Alright, I agree to your conditions. Now speak.”
Horikita decided that if he spoke even a second of nonsense she'd make him experience hell.
“Your brother hates you because you idolise him.” Ryuji began speaking, deciding to heal her relationship.
A death-row criminal giving family therapy, the biggest joke of the century.
