69novels Page 29
Page 29
Boring, decadent, old-fashioned?
As a student of Shuchiin Academy, to criticize Shuchiin Academy so mercilessly in public—this girl's mouth is practically a controlled weapon!
"Since you look down on Shuchiin so much, why did you come here in the first place?"
Kaguya Shinomiya said calmly and expressionlessly, "You donated 5 billion yen to the school, directly secured a seat on the board of directors, and then used the board's privileges to transfer into the high school, specifically requesting to be in Class A. Your actions and what you just said are logically contradictory."
"Oh, you misunderstood. I really don't like Shuchiin. The only reason I transferred here is for one person."
After saying this, under the shocked and incredulous gazes of all the students, including their homeroom teacher, Ashikaga Miwa, Iwanaga Kotoko walked up to Asagiri, who was sitting in the corner of the classroom, and smiled sweetly.
"As promised, I've come to find you."
058 The other two players in Shuchiin
Asagiri nodded and replied with a casual smile.
"Okay, then find a seat."
"Then I'll definitely sit next to you."
Kotoko Iwanaga made no attempt to stand on ceremony and sat down in the empty seat to Asagiri's right. She then rested her chin on her hand and gazed at him with a smile.
The classroom was now completely silent. Even Kaguya Shinomiya, who was usually calm and rational, was incredulous at the sight before her.
Donating 5 billion yen directly to the private Shuchiin Academy, not in installments but in a lump sum, is equivalent to directly buying a seat on the Shuchiin board of directors. Then, using the board's privileges, the student can directly transfer to the first-year A class. All of this...
Is it all just for this Utsunomiya Asagiri classmate?
What is this Tokyo succubus? What is this Tokyo male version of Su Daji? What is this "spending a fortune"?
"Is Kotoko Iwanaga his girlfriend...?"
Kaguya Shinomiya raised her right hand and touched her left cheek, using this gesture to regain her composure as she silently pondered.
The reason she knew Kotoko Iwanaga was that she had met her at a banquet held by the Shinomiya family when she was a child. At that time, Kotoko Iwanaga had not yet lost her right eye and left leg.
Kotoko Iwanaga's family is very wealthy, although it's not quite as wealthy as the Shinomiya Group. But if you really compare them, Kaguya Shinomiya's status is actually not as high as Kotoko Iwanaga's.
On one hand, it was due to the rumors of her being an illegitimate daughter. On the other hand, the current head of the Shinomiya family, Shinomiya Kaguya's father Shinomiya Gan'an, had many children. Shinomiya Kaguya was just the eldest daughter. Ahead of her were her third brother, Shinomiya Un'taka, and Shinomiya Akira, the current chairman of Shuchiin.
Kotoko Iwanaga's parents only had her as their child, and because of the kidnapping case when she was eleven, they doted on her and granted her every wish.
Just like this time, if Kaguya Shinomiya hadn't gone on to Shuchiin High School, the Shinomiya family wouldn't have used the board's privileges for her. They would have just thought that a good-for-nothing who couldn't even pass the Shuchiin entrance exam didn't deserve the Shinomiya family name, let alone directly sponsor Shuchiin with 5 billion yen.
Kaguya Shinomiya is chauffeured to and from school in a luxury car every day, her lunchboxes are specially made by the hotel's chef, and she has many servants at home. However, only her close friends Chika Fujiwara and Ai Hayasaka, as well as herself, know that the so-called eldest daughter of the Shinomiya family only looks glamorous. She can't even spend her allowance recklessly, otherwise she will be scolded by the main Shinomiya family.
"Stop for a moment."
Seeing that the students in the classroom were all focused on Kotoko Iwanaga and Asagiri, Miwa Ashikaga tapped the podium lightly with her pointer, adjusted her glasses, and said in a calm tone.
"Class has begun."
.............
After the morning classes ended, in Ashikaga Miwa's office.
Nominally, this is Ashikaga Miwa's office, but in reality, it has become Asagiri and Yuuki Asuna's private activity room during school hours, used to discuss dungeon-related matters and eat lunches. Students occupying the private office of their homeroom teacher and member of the school council is the ultimate example of inversion and usurpation.
"The commotion you two are making is way too much..."
Looking at Kotoko Iwanaga, who was drinking black tea with utmost elegance, and Asagiri, who was drinking iced Coca-Cola beside her, Asuna Yuuki couldn't help but sigh and rub her forehead.
"In just one morning, the whole of Shuji Academy was already buzzing with news of a girl donating a full 5 billion yen to the school just so she could be in the same class as the boy she loves. This is something that has never happened before in the history of Shuji Academy. The two of you have become celebrities in the school."
Kotoko Iwanaga put down her teacup and asked in return with a half-smile.
"What's wrong, Yuuki-kun? Are you jealous?"
"No, don't talk nonsense..."
Asuna Yuuki quickly waved her hand, trying to cover up her misunderstanding.
"I... I just felt there was no need for such a big fuss. You two are getting way too much attention. Besides, couldn't you have told me beforehand? After Chika found out about this, she even came over to ask me what was going on. I didn't know how to explain it."
"Explain what?"
Kotoko Iwanaga maintained her sweet smile and spoke slowly.
"You and Asagiri are just ordinary friends, right? What's there to explain?"
"I..."
"Alright, let's stop with the teasing and small talk."
Upon hearing Asagiri say this, Kotoko Iwanaga puffed out her cheeks and muttered a complaint in a low voice, as if she were somewhat dissatisfied.
"Hmph... How biased..."
Ignoring Kotoko Iwanaga's quiet complaints, Asagiri looked at Asuna Yuuki sitting opposite her and spoke in a flat tone.
"Actually, Iwanaga didn't ask her parents to sponsor so much money for Shuchiin Academy just so she could be in my class. The so-called 'for me' was just a smokescreen. What we really need is a seat on the Shuchiin Academy board of directors and the information that comes with that seat."
"intelligence?"
Asuna Yuuki frowned slightly, looking puzzled.
"Information from the school council... what's the use of that? It won't be of much help to clearing the dungeon, right? Is it just to make it easier to ask for leave so that the homeroom teacher won't notify the parents? But spending so much money just for this... isn't that a bit too much?"
Kotoko Iwanaga shook her head and said softly.
"There's no need to worry about my parents. After all, I disappear for a while from time to time to deal with things related to the supernatural. My parents may have vaguely sensed that I'm not quite the same as normal people, so they won't ask too many questions. As for Asagiri... there's no need to say more. My family's sponsorship of Shuchiin is indeed partly for the reasons you just mentioned, to provide you with convenience, but that's not the main reason."
Upon hearing this, Asuna Yuuki became even more curious.
"That...?"
What Asagiri said next startled Asuna Yuuki.
“I suspect that there are two other ‘players’ besides the three of us at the private Shuchiin Academy.”
Yuuki Asuna was taken aback for a moment, then hesitated.
"Two more 'players'? Who are they?"
Asagiri paused for a moment, then uttered two names that Yuuki Asuna had never expected.
"Kaguya Shinomiya from my class, and..."
"Your classmate and best friend, Fujiwara Chika."
Only two updates today. I'll write the author's note later. It will be available for purchase tomorrow, and I'll also set up a bounty in the author's note.
Author's note upon release + Unlimited bounty
Here it is, a message about the product launch, a message from him again.
Let me first talk about the initial team I envisioned for this book, and why I chose Asuna Yuuki, Kotoko Iwanaga, and Megumi Kato.
Writing this kind of crossover anime/manga/god-centric story was planned long ago. When it comes to words like dungeons, games, and guides, the first female character that comes to mind is Asuna, the Flash Swordsman, the Guide Demon, and the Berserker Healer.
As for Kotoko Iwanaga, one reason is that there are eerie-themed instances that suit her well, and another reason is...
Her personality and speech are very abstract. I wanted her to interact with the protagonist through abstraction, to achieve a perfect abstract connection.
As for Kato Megumi, since the main characters, Yuuki Asuna and Iwanaga Kotoko, are all people with very sharp personalities, Kato Megumi, with her kind and easy-going temperament and reassuring personality, is also an indispensable part of the team.
Oh right, about what was mentioned in the book review section, about male teammates and such.
No male teammates, no male teammates, no male teammates.
Actually, I don't even need to mention this. Can you imagine someone with Asagiri's personality teaming up with male players?
The strategy group is the first level, Liangshan is the second level, and Chaowu is the third level. One look at Ding Zhen, and this is the harem.
As for the issue of numerical inflation, I have already addressed it.
The main characters demonstrated the action and judgment of gamers and achieved results, so they deserve rewards of corresponding value. Moreover, I never bet on the main characters.
I've already set up the main enemies for this game, so there's no need to worry.
Regarding the dungeons, it has already been revealed that there is a bizarre world, so naturally there will be other worlds, and there will be non-original fan-made dungeons.
However, I won't write about series like Bleach, Naruto, One Piece, Demon Slayer, and Ghoul, which have been written about countless times. Instead, I will choose some less mainstream series with interesting plots, such as anime, games, or movies, like Ajin and Silent Hill PT.
As I said before, all the named women of marriageable age are part of my harem (except for Ashikaga-sensei, who shouldn't be human, at least not...). Those who have read my previous book know that I don't indulge in pretentious sentimentality; I wrote a perfect adult fairy tale.
The strategy team will create a world without regrets.
On the day of release, there will be a bonus of five or six chapters, followed by two updates per day, each with 3,000 words.
Then there's the bounty: each additional chapter is a 3,000-word update, with no limit except for recommendation votes.
20000 reward plus one more chapter
300 blades plus one more
800 monthly tickets plus one more update
One extra chapter for every 20000 recommended votes (maximum three chapters).
Golden Treasure Chest (A Happy Ending) - 10 Extra Chapters
Silver Treasure Chest (A Happy Ending) - Three More Chapters
Author of a completed crossover anime/manga novel with 2.8 million words; new book, Tangtang, is currently under a bounty.
Chapter 59: A team can only have one Leader.
"Is Chika a 'player'?"
Upon hearing Asagiri's sudden and startling guess, Asuna Yuuki's expression froze. It took her a while to react. After taking a few deep breaths to calm herself down, she asked.
Why do you think that? Is there anything suspicious about it?
Asagiri first shook her head and said calmly.
"Fujiwara Chika herself did not reveal any flaws."
Then, he abruptly changed the subject.
"However, my reason for suspecting that she is a 'player' is because of the suspicious aspects of Kaguya Shinomiya."
"Suspicious points..."
Asuna Yuuki muttered to herself, trying hard to recall all the information about Kaguya Shinomiya, but in the end she could only ask in confusion.
"In my memory, Kaguya Shinomiya... doesn't seem to have anything suspicious about her, right?"
Asagiri nodded noncommittally: "It's understandable that you would think that way. After all, you weren't at the private Shuchiin Academy when you were in junior high school, so you don't know much about Kaguya Shinomiya."
Hearing this, Asuna Yuuki tried her best to suppress the urge to retort, but she couldn't help thinking to herself, "Didn't you not attend Shuchiin High School in middle school? And you say you understand... It's only been a week, how much do you really know about Kaguya Shinomiya?"
However, what Asagiri said next made Asuna Yuuki realize that there were indeed things about Kaguya Shinomiya that were worth questioning.
"Kaguya Shinomiya is not only top of her class academically, but also has many special skills, such as kendo, tea ceremony, flower arrangement, koto, dance, and archery, which she is best at and won the national individual championship in during junior high school."
At this point, Asagiri paused slightly before speaking softly.
"However, after entering high school, Kaguya Shinomiya did not join the archery club; she did not participate in any clubs at all."
Asuna Yuuki hesitated, "This...could it be because she wants to focus on her studies?"
"That's also possible. After all, I beat her in the entrance exam, and she only came in second. Given her style of giving her all, especially when it comes to studying, it's possible that she might give up joining the archery club and focus all her energy on studying to beat me. However..."
Asagiri looked at Yuuki Asuna's face and asked in a calm tone.
"But if she really gave up archery, which she was best at, in order to defeat me, would she possibly spend the first weekend of school not studying but going to her friend Fujiwara Chika's house to play?"
Before Yuuki Asuna could even ask, Iwanaga Kotoko, standing to the side, explained with a smile.
"After securing a seat on the board of directors, my family checked the school's surveillance footage from last Friday. Kaguya Shinomiya didn't get into the car that usually picked her up; instead, she got in with Chika Fujiwara. As for whether she spent the night at Chika Fujiwara's house, that's unclear."