[Hikigaya Hachiman, 14th May, 1600 hours]

Sobu High was an elite school, with a highly competitive environment, talented students and equally competent staff. For a mere high schooler to exert any sort of significant influence on the student body and the school staff, let alone to take control of it completely, was simply unthinkable.

Which goes on to show that some things simply transcend the boundaries of common sense. Be it with blackmail, bribery or brainwashing, it is surprisingly easy to control and manipulate people if you pull the right strings and stoke the right emotions. Through these pawns, control of even more people is then possible. This was how I made my way up the corporate world, Chiba's underground, the board of education, then finally Sobu High.

My purpose was completely unrelated to shallow gains like honour or wealth. Gain and loss are intertwined like two sides of a coin, and I had no intention of losing any more than I already had. It was this sentiment that inspired me to protect my existence with everything I had. Even if I had to change the world around me in order to do so.

For more than an entire year I plowed through the masses, destroying half of the lives I encountered and using the other half. Yet no individual or organisation dared to stand against me, either due to fear of the long arm of my influence or the greed that clouded their hearts.

Who would have thought I would encounter such extraordinary individuals in Sobu High, who had the means to thrive under my rule but chose not to, just to live by their ideals.

Individuals just like me.

Right now I feel like my existence has transcended to a superior plane. Attained a new level of meaning. And my fire of my resolve burns.

[Hikigaya Hachiman, 15th May, 1301 hours]

"You're one minute late," Yukinoshita stated coldly, as I quietly shut the clubroom door behind me.

I bit my cheek. "I wasn't aware of a reporting time."

"You do now. Punctuality is crucial if you want to get anything constructive done. Please refrain from being late in future."

One day in and she's already bossing me around. "I'll keep that in mind," I replied, suppressing my mild irritation. "What constructive activity will we be doing today, then?"

"A strategy meeting," she declared, standing up with a regal grace that wasn't humanly possible. "Time is short, and soon we shall have to face the very first obstacle presented to us by the enemy. Hikigaya-kun, I trust you are aware of the methodology employed by Group S concerning clubs, right?"

I implemented them, woman.

One of the Student Council's most infamous unspoken regulations required all members of a club to be in the same social group. Several wayward clubs had been made an example out of on short notice, especially sports teams who couldn't switch out their precious members quickly enough.

Under my indirect supervision, the Group S students acted as buffer to fill in the gaps left by the student council. One representative from the group would investigate each newly-formed club under the pretense of expressing interest. They would quit immediately afterward, of course; club time would only interfere with their other duties to me.

"Yeah, I do," I replied. So that was what Yukinoshita meant by 'obstacle'. She sure knows how to think ahead, huh.

But of course. She wouldn't stand a chance against me otherwise.

"My sources of information have told me that the representative will be coming to visit the clubroom today," Yukinoshita continued. Sources of information, my ass. She probably just asked Hiratsuka-sensei. "Her name is Yuigahama Yui. She's an... unusual one."

Ah yes, Yuigahama Yui. Just like how Yukinoshita memorized the profiles of all Group F students, I made it a habit to remember every single one of my subordinates. The Yuigahama family was not a rich one, not by a long shot. Its sole heiress didn't seem to have the desire to strive for academic or career excellence, either. However, without the means or motivation to do well, she had somehow managed to claw her way to the top group, stepping on the ranks of quite a few students and leaving behind a group of rejects in her wake. To put it simply, she was a kind of enigma.

But with reference to the sizable number of students she had trampled upon to get to where she was, she seemed to understand the rule of the wild, which I could definitely respect. Just like wolves who learn to use their fangs, those who accept the filthiness in their own hearts and use it as an edge against others are the predators of society. In the outside world, the corporate workplace, or even in a school, survival goes to the ruthless and shameless.

Yukinoshita's voice broke me out of my reverie. "Despite the ruthless and bloodthirsty nature of the other Group S students, she is described by her peers as meek and kind hearted in comparison. In fact, I would say she looks out of place among the Group S students."

Idiot. That's obviously just an act to get people to cooperate with her. Even I've used that tactic before, albeit extremely sparingly.

"What," I drawled. "You think she's the mastermind?"

Yukinoshita shot me a disapproving glance. "Use your common sense, Hikigaya-kun. Would a girl with such little capability to influence others be capable of controlling an entire school?"

"Common sense is overrated," I retorted. "Besides, I'd place my bets on her exactly because of her unassuming nature. Who do you think it is?"

"Isn't it obvious?" she scoffed. "We're talking about a person with great charisma and intellect. Who else could it be than the head of Group S himself?"

Ah, she was referring to Hayama Hayato, from class 2-E. The most popular boy on campus, he was the captain of the soccer team and looked up to by approximately ninety percent of the entire school. He was, of course, also the mastermind's sole point of contact with Group S and one of my most useful subordinates.

"...wouldn't that be a bit too obvious?"

"Is there a problem with that? Flaunting his power to all those he rules over would suit his personality perfectly. Without a doubt, Hayama Hayato is our enemy, Hikigaya-kun."

Brilliant as Yukinoshita was, it appeared she was too blinded by her hatred for Hayama to consider the possibility that he might be a puppet leader. Then again, Hayama has always been extremely talented at hiding things from others.

I grunted. "So, what're we gonna do with this girl?"

Honestly speaking, as a leader who thought of all plans by himself and only communicated with his subordinates to give orders, the concept of strategy meetings was new to me. What did Yukinoshita plan on doing?

Yukinoshita inhaled. In the light of the afternoon sun, the determination on her face was apparent. Then her eyes hardened with a sudden malice that surprised even me. "We dispose of her."

"...hang on. That sounds like a crime."

The menacing look in her eyes vanished as quickly as it came. "My apologies. I got carried away by my thoughts."

What the hell? How far does her hatred for the system go?

As if reading my thoughts, Yuinoshita coughed lightly. "We will convince her that we are a completely normal club, of course."

"And why do we need a strategy meeting for that?"

"Because we cannot afford to give the enemy too many openings," Yukinoshita insisted. "As a club formed with the intent of helping the student body, we will come into contact with problems that heavily involve social groups."

"And the point of having this meeting is...?"

"We need to show Yuigahama-san that we can handle such problems with tact that does not contradict the unreasonable regulations set by the student council and her superior."

"Meeting. Purpose. What?"

"After reading the enemy's moves, I have come to the conclusion that Yuigahama-san will be presenting us with a request herself. We need to prepare for that, hence this meeting."

"Finally. I'm proud of you, Yukinoshita."

She shot me a dirty glare. "Do you have anything useful to contribute, Hikigaya-kun?"

"What, you want me to guess what her request will be about? Probably something regarding guy trouble. Those are always the hardest to crack."

"Take this seriously, please. There is no way that she won't give us a request that involves the school's legislation, so as to make us attempt the impossible. She means to destroy this club, Hikigaya-kun."

I've ignored this for a while, but what's with that honorific? We don't even know each other that well. Aloud, I said "Well, say she comes up with a totally unreasonable request. What're you gonna do about it, then?"

Thick silence reigned in the club for about two minutes. Then Yukinoshita, who would probably rather die than admit to making an oversight, said "That is what this meeting is for. I was hoping you could use your brilliant skeptical outlook to think of something."

Nice try at flattery. You really hit all the right spots there. But it's not gonna work. "I've got nothing. Let's just go with the guy stuff, shall we?"

Of course, in the worst case scenario, I could use my extensive connections to ensure that anything regarding Yuigahama Yui and any unreasonable request of hers was wiped off the face of the earth. This obstacle presented no threat to me whatsoever, but it would be enlightening to see Yukinoshita in action. For that to happen, I had to ensure that Yukinoshita would be in a calm, rational state.

Barely appeased, Yukinoshita heaved a resigned sigh and sat back down. "We can only hope so, Hikigaya-kun. If we cannot even overcome this first challenge, we are definitely not prepared for the obstacles ahead of us, not to mention the mastermind."

That's right, I crowed inwardly. Show me that you are worthy of being my adversary, Yukinoshita Yukino!

As if on cue, there was a knock on the door.

[Hikigaya Hachiman, 15th May, 1330 hours]

Yuigahama Yui shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Perhaps she was naturally shy, but I would wager it had something to do with the vengeful demon that was staring at her from the other side of the table.

This was going to be a long day.

"Welcome to the service club, Yuigahama-san. I assume you have a request for us?"

The arrangement we had hastily decided on was that Yukinoshita would handle all the talking, and that I would stop her if she slipped up. Fine by me; it gave me more opportunities to analyse Yukinoshita's strategies and her way of thinking.

Yuigahama seemed startled: apparently she hadn't expected the demon to speak. "U-um, yes! But not just that. Actually, I've been pretty interested in joining this club..."

This was the standard statement that all Group S students gave when they performed their club inspections. They never actually joined the club after their rounds were done; the sole lucky exception was Hayama with the Soccer Club, which I had allowed to happen. So long as there was a precedent, there would be a perceived possibility of the impossible happening, ensuring that clubs gave their full cooperation in the hopes of earning a promotion.

Funny how a simple singularity can change the stance of the masses. People believe in what they want to: this is the basis of manipulation.

Yukinoshita did not find this funny, as could be inferred from the narrowing of her blue eyes. "Yuigahama-san, you are fooling nobody here. I would advise that you... ow!"

She glowered at me and I stared back. "Just doing my job," I drawled, withdrawing my foot from her shin under the table.

Yuigahama laughed nervously, like a person who rolls off a cliff while taking a nap and wakes up inches before hitting the ground. "A-anyway, I have a request for the club! Are you guys supposed to help me out with it... or something?"

Yukinoshita composed herself. "The service club does not solve problems for you. We simply give you the ability to deal with it by yourself."

Interesting. So Yukinoshita believed that humans possess the capability and resolve to solve the problems that they create. That people with the will to change the world around them simply need a small push to achieve their goals.

How naive.

Glimpsing the light at the end of the tunnel, Yuigahama forced out a laugh. "Y-yeah! Um, well... see, there's this guy-"

With the loud clatter of a chair making contact with the ground, her brave step into the unknown was interrupted.

"What," snarled Yukinoshita. "Don't fool around with us! I was banking on the fact that you would give us a completely unreasonable task that would leave us with no choice but to... ow!"

She picked up her chair. I tucked my leg back in and smirked. "Told you it was guy trouble."

The Ice Queen shot me an intense glare, massaged her leg and began her retort with "I absolutely refuse to believe-" before her baser instincts made her cease talking and clutch her shin protectively.

I grinned inwardly. Manipulating people had become a sort of normality in my trade after a while, but subduing people by force had never really been my thing. Was this how Hiratsuka-sensei felt all the time?

Yuigahama's face was pale at this point, as she had probably realised that this was no ordinary club. No doubt, she was seriously considering the simplest course of action, that being giving up on the spot and arranging for the club to be disbanded. Nonetheless, to her credit, she pressed on. "Um, so about this boy... I was thinking of some way to show some sort of appreciation to him..."

"What for?" asked Yukinoshita, genuinely confused. "He hasn't done anything to merit your gratitude."

"I-it's none of your business!" Yuigahama burst out, face crimson. "I-I just wanna do it, okay?" She seems embarrassed... mortified to the point of breaking her 'cool and kindhearted' facade. What's going on?

At that moment I considered a previously unforeseen possibility. Sure, Yuigahama was definitely assessing our capability and legitimacy as a club, but could it be that the request she presented was genuine? Would that mean that she would leave us alone once we satisfied her?

"Right," I interjected before Yukinoshita could ruin our chances any further. "Do you want us to help you think of ideas, or do you have something in mind for this precious person of yours?"

For some reason, that only served to make her even more flustered. Pointedly turning her gaze to the ground but occasionally sneaking glances at me, she mumbled a "I-It's not like he's my precious person or anything, he just kinda helped me out and I wanna thank him, that's all..."

Oi, I'm trying to be the voice of reason here and she's ignoring my efforts? I suppressed a sigh. It seemed that this girl would require tact and patience in spadefuls to deal with. And, as luck would have it, Yukinoshita was currently lacking in both.

"If you have nothing constructive to say, Yuigahama-san, I would advise you to get... ow!"

"Don't give up so easily," I sniped, retracting my offensive limb. My patience was fraying at the edges; normally, if a person or subordinate pissed me off this much, he would find himself stripped of his status, education and future career options. This person would essentially be deprived of his life; I Iiked to think of it as natural selection. However, this wasn't an option here.

I inhaled.

"Yuigahama Yui. An individual who likes to go with the flow, yet who understands the merits of acting ahead of the curve and setting trends. Given that Valentine's Day has passed just weeks ago, you intend to take advantage of the lingering festive mood by presenting this male student with chocolates. Yet you don't want to appear clingy due to spending effort and money on him, so you intend for the chocolates to be handmade, probably in the form of cookies for the homely feel. As such, your request is for the Service Club to teach you how to make these chocolate cookies. Am I right?"

She stared at me in shock, and for reasons I couldn't comprehend, her cheeks brightened further. Then she hastily averted her gaze from mine. "Yes, you are. Um... was it that obvious?"

I exhaled. "Nah, just a lucky guess."

Yukinoshita, too, was staring at me with what could be called abject admiration. What? Unlike certain people I know, I'm capable of observing students that are not from Group F.

Admittedly, I hadn't used my 'predictive analysis' skill (rated 36 out of all my 108 skills) in a long time, so it was somewhat rusty. But the conversation had been moving too slowly for my liking, and I was willing to reveal one of the cards in my hand to Yukinoshita in order to move things along.

Or perhaps that had been Yukinoshita's plan. Was this woman even cautious of allies she had already taken great pains to investigate? What a formidable opponent. Looks like I'll have to tread carefully now...

Yukinoshita stood up with as much dignity as she could muster, and effortlessly took back the initiative. "I'll ask Sensei for the keys to the Home Econs classroom."

[Hikigaya Hachiman, 15th May, 1500 hours]

Yukinoshita stared in dismay at the black lumps that weren't so much cookies as they were plant food. "Didn't I tell you to shorten the baking time?"

"You're looking at the previous batch, Yukinoshita-san!" protested Yuigahama, sliding another plate across the table. "This is the newest batch."

To her credit, the newest batch of cookies actually looked brown until they oxidised five seconds later. Yukinoshita despaired as the abominations reacted with something in the air to crystallise into a solid resembling Copper(II) Sulphate. Then something in her snapped.

"That's it," she hissed, drawing herself to her full height. "You're doing this on purpose to impede our progress! Hikigaya-kun, use the thing I gave y... ow!"

Against her will, she whimpered and sunk to her knees, pitifully clutching her shin. Against my will, I noted that her slight pout and the small tears gathering at the corners of her eyes made her look somewhat endearing. Like a kitten. I mentally kicked myself.

At the very least, Yuigahama had the decency to look bashful. "Sorry. I'm not very good at cooking. Maybe I should give up, after all..."

This piqued my interest. "You're using coercion?"

She looked genuinely stunned, but only for a moment. "What... no, not at all! I'll approve your club, of course... wait, how did you know about that? You're not from Group S!"

"Don't worry about it," I sighed. "You sure you wanna give up, though? We can still keep going."

It was a pity, but it seemed that I would not be able to see Yukinoshita in action today, not even the extent of her resolve. Welp, guess I'll have to figure out how to break her some other day, then.

"It's fine," Yuigahama mumbled, casting her eyes downward. "I know I don't have the talent for cooking, so there's no point in trying more. Thanks for your help today! I'll make sure my friends don't ever bother you again..."

"No." Two heads snapped up in shock as Yukinoshita got back up, a flame burning in her cerulean eyes. Yukinoshita, who had been so eager to get Yuigahama out of her hair earlier, was now refusing to let her leave? And the look in those eyes... hope and adrenaline coursed through my system.

"By my pride as the president of the Service Club, you will not leave this room until you are satisfied with your cookies," Yukinoshita declared, slamming the next batch of batter on the table. "Those without the will to see their ambitions through until the end have no right to blame their lack of effort on being untalented. If you want to give up on baking, Yuigahama-san, I would advise that you actually start putting your back into it."

Yuigahama looked up in astonishment. "You're, like, the first person to ever say that to me. And no other club has ever refused approval before..."

"Those are irrelevant," Yukinoshita snapped, shoving all the ingredients in Yuigahama's direction. "Right now, your attitude annoys me to the extreme. Now listen to me and follow my instructions to the letter, because I'll only say them once."

Alight with newfound determination, Yuigahama saluted. "Yes, Ma'am!"

It was at that moment when I began to see that Yukinoshita's strength didn't lie in good planning and social skills, but in the way she strengthened others with her own resolve, a feat I would never be able to achieve. Watching Yuigahama mix the batter with gusto, I realised that if there was anything that would bring the request of making proper chocolate cookies to fruition, it would be this strength.

[Hikigaya Hachiman, 15th May, 1530 hours]

Carefully, Yuigahama carried the perfect-looking cookies from inside the oven. Almost immediately, they fully combusted and partially sublimed, leaving behind a mass of black lumps in their wake.

...is it just me, or did nothing change?

Yukinoshita sighed in exasperation. "Another failure? But I ensured that you followed the proper procedure..." Beside her, Yuigahama laughed bashfully.

To say I was disappointed was an understatement. Here I was, making monologues about how Yukinoshita's resolve was strong enough to inspire the people around her, and as it turned out this strength couldn't even improve a plate of cookies.

"Maybe I'll get something else for him, after all," Yuigahama laughed nervously. "But I had fun trying! Thanks, both of you."

Having fun doesn't cut it, foolish girl. I bet you would have prepared those cookies well enough if your family's lives were on the line!

Overall, it seemed that this request would end uneventfully, as would the Service Club's first obstacle. At this rate, I wouldn't be able to prove my will as superior to Yukinoshita's and completely break her... maybe I should just arrange for the club to be disbanded and be done with it.

At that exact moment, my senses tingled. Seconds later, heavy footsteps thudded outside the classroom door.

[Yukinoshita Yukino, 15th May, 1545 hours]

I cursed inwardly when I heard the security guards approach the classroom door. I had been expecting them to arrive eventually, but I had gotten carried away with teaching Yuigahama-san and had disregarded the time.

The door slammed open. Hikigaya-kun and Yuigahama-san gaped in shock at the three burly men in the doorway.

"Oi, you guys!" roared the one in front. "What're you doing here? It's way past school hours!"

"We got permission-" began Hikigaya-kun, before his face turned pale as the realisation hit him. He turned to me. "Wait a sec. We aren't allowed to use this room after school. It's in the rules. How'd you get authorisation?"

"I did not. I simply got the keys from Sensei," I replied, watching Yuigahama-san's face grow white with realisation. "For completing the request, it was a small price to pay."

"You idiot," Hikigaya-kun hissed as the burliest guard tilted his head, puzzled.

"I dunno what's going on, but you kids are in big trouble," he snarled. His two lackeys sidled up beside him in an attempt to look imposing. Hikigaya-kun's hand slid into his pocket.

The head guard moved forward, so I drove my fist into his solar plexus and flipped him over my back. Then all hell broke loose.

His lackeys were harder to subdue; fighting two individuals is exponentially harder than one. Aiming a kick at one's knee to restrict his movement, I laid out a series of punches into the other's stomach. After dodging a punch from the first guard, I then struck the temple of the second and twisted around to knock both their heads together. No sooner had their unconscious bodies hit the floor did a pair of meaty hands clamp around my throat.

"You little bitch," the head guard snarled, squeezing tighter for emphasis. "I'll report you after you're dead!" Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Yuigahama-san cowering against the wall, not that I could blame her. Black spots clouded my vision. Hikigaya-kun was... was...

Right behind the guard. It may be hard to express this in words, but the term "teleportation" may be apt. One moment he was standing behind Yuigahama-san, and the next moment he wasn't. Pressing the cloth soaked in chloroform that I had given him earlier (as a last resort to be used on Yuigahama-san), he watched impassively as the guard slumped onto the floor. Then he stood up straight and dusted his shirt off while I caught my breath on the ground.

"The other two were actual security guards, but that guy was from the mafia," he stated calmly. "Your weak hits wouldn't have floored him so easily."

Amidst my hazy mental field, this caught my full attention. "Our school hired mafia members as security guards?"

"Yeah. They work for free, after all." Hikigaya-kun looked away, as if he had divulged information that shouldn't have seen the light of day. This was correct, in a sense; even with all my research, I had not discovered this fact. Perhaps the mastermind of Sobu High had even less moral discretion than I had expected.

"Hikigaya-kun. May I ask how you obtained this information?"

He stared at me, a pair of dead-fish eyes seeming to drill a hole into my skull with their gaze. "I have sources too, y'know."

"And that physical capability?"

"Stuff happens," he grunted. I had a feeling that this was all I would get out of him at the moment.

[Hikigaya Hachiman, 15th May, 1550 hours]

"That should be okay," I announced, dragging the bodies of the unconscious security guards and depositing them outside the classroom. "They won't remember anything when they wake up."

Except that damn thug, of course; mafia members were hardier than that. What was he thinking, waltzing around like he could do as he pleased just because he wasn't getting paid? I would be having a nice long chat with his gang's Don later, I inwardly decided.

But then again, Yukinoshita was clearly to blame for this mishap. Was her resolve to fulfil Yuigahama's request so strong that she would blatantly break school rules and risk blowing her cover to achieve just that? And to think that she was this skilled at hand-to-hand combat... it appeared that I had underestimated her again.

Not to mention I had gotten her suspicions up; the 'shadow step' (skill 74 out of 108) was a move only used in Chiba's underground world to take potential assailants by surprise, and there was no possible way that a normal high schooler should get close to learning it. Now I would have to think of a cover story that involved a tragic childhood and lots of gang fights: anything that would divert her attention from the fact that I had joined the criminal underground just one year prior.

How troublesome.

My train of thought was broken as Yuigahama detached herself from the wall, face still displaying a deathly pallor. Her legs eventually gave up and she crumpled to the ground in a state of shock. "W-Wha... that was... what was that?"

"Hikigaya-kun. Much as I do not wish to harm the well-being of a fellow student, it appears you will have to put her to sleep as well," said Yukinoshita, procuring a first-aid kit from her school bag and tending to her own wounds. What the hell? Just how prepared are you? And don't just casually ask me to incapacitate a classmate!

But as things were, I had no choice but to do so. Of course, I could keep her silent through Hayama with the authority I had, but that would only serve to heighten Yukinoshita's suspicion of me. At the very least, I would have to knock her out to give Yukinoshita and Sensei a logical explanation for her silence.

Either way, I thought as I slipped my hand into my pocket. You're doomed, Yuigahama. Sorry about this, but you're just a stepping stone among many to bring out the full potential of my enemy.

At that moment, the worst possible moment, Yuigahama snapped out of her trance. "Yukinoshita-san, Hikigaya-san! What's going on?"

I paused, and Yukinoshita's head snapped up in shock. Now that Yuigahama was lucid, making her lose her memory would be considerably harder. Maybe with a concussion...

"Yukinoshita, hold her still. I'll find a heavy object."

"Alright."

"Wait a sec! This... this isn't an ordinary club, is it?" Faced with this sudden accusation, I paused, the wooden spoon (it was the heaviest object I could find) still in my hand. "You guys know how we run the school's system and stuff that only Group S students are supposed to know... and, and those fighting movements! You guys aren't, like, normal students at all!"

The silence between us thickened.

"...Right. Looks like I'll have to hit her a little harder."

"I have a taser in my bag as well. We should apply it to her cerebellum while she's unconscious," Yukinoshita suggested, tightening her grip around Yuigahama's abdomen. Sensing her impending doom, Yuigahama tried to struggle free, but to no avail.

My grip tightened around the wooden spoon. I clenched my teeth and lifted it up, focussing all of my arm's strength on the pivotal muscles...

"Wait! You're misunderstanding me! I'm not gonna report you, I want to join!"

My arm froze.

"Excuse me?" Yukinoshita hissed. "Saying unnecessary things to delay the inevitable is distasteful."

"I mean it!" Yuigahama yelped. "You guys actually want to take down the person behind the school system, don't you? I had my suspicions about this club, so I asked Hayato-kun to let me be the one to inspect it... anyway, I want to help you!"

Yukinoshita and I glanced at each other.

"...You do realise that you'll be helping us fight your precious Hayato-kun, right?" I asked out loud. Inside, I was simmering with rage. Who did this person think she was, barging in on my duel with Yukinoshita and imposing her weak will on us? How could she help us topple the system if she was enjoying its benefits each day?

"Hayato-kun is not like that!" Yuigahama shouted. "All people are good people underneath! Even the mastermind behind Sobu High's system! Hayato-kun may be a little... flashy, but he would never twist people to his will like that! He's taking orders from another person, I just know it! And I'm gonna make that person take down his rotten system!"

She squirmed around in Yukinoshita's grip, which somewhat dampened the dramatic effect.

"Your sense of justice is commendable," snorted Yukinoshita, "but you seem to lack resolve. If Hayama Hayato is not our opponent, then it is one of your other friends from Group S who is pulling the strings behind this system. Knowing that, are you still willing to fight with us?"

"I am," answered Yuigahama without hesitation. I squinted at her expression; faint as it was, the fire of resolve was undeniably burning in her eyes. "Even if you don't accept me, I'll continue to fight in my own way, because that's what I climbed up the system to do. Please, let me join the Service Club!"

[Hikigaya Hachiman, 15th May, 1600 hours]

"Are you sure about this?" I whispered to Yukinoshita. Yuigahama had gone home for the day, leaving both of us to erase the evidence that we were ever in the Home Econs classroom.

"Not at all. However, she knows about Service Club's true colours now, so it will be unwise to leave her unsupervised. We must not let our guard down, Hikigaya-kun."

I grunted.

"She is in an optimal position to act as a double agent, so I will need you to keep an eye on her at all times."

I grunted again.

"Besides, I doubt that she truly wants to fight for our cause. To me, it seemed that she lacked resolution. Hikigaya-kun? Are you listening to me?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, sure." I disagreed with Yukinoshita's last statement, but wisely kept it to myself.

'All people are good people underneath', huh... Despite her clear ideals and beliefs, this girl was willing to infringe on them and trample several lives underfoot to get to the top of the social ladder and fight against me in her own way. A person willing to betray her ideals for the sake of adhering to them... I had never encountered such warped resolution before.

Yukinoshita smiled wryly. "That rounds up our club activities for today, I suppose. Several things happened, but we managed to overcome the club's first obstacle. Good work."

With that, she strode away. Although she was clearly trying to hide it, I caught a glimpse of a worried frown on her face.

I stood in the middle of the corridor in silence, amidst the warm orange light of the setting sun.

...what the hell.

I had it all planned out! This was supposed to be my duel with Yukinoshita. My will against hers. And yet before I could figure out how to make her give in to me, an unexpected element was thrown into the mix.

And to top it off, this unexpected factor was a defecting member of my most trusted lackeys. Not that I actually trusted them, but students in Group S would usually have enough incentive to stay loyal to the system. With that in mind, I usually let Hayama do the trusting.

Speaking of which... I whipped out my phone and furiously punched in a number. Hayama picked up on the first ring.

"Boss? What's the ma-"

"Your friends are stupid," I snapped. "Investigate your recruits more closely, will you?"

I could almost feel his hesitant caution over the line. "Did one of them... do something to you?"

Rage coursed through my veins. I opened my mouth, ready to spill everything concerning the Service Club and Yuigahama's defection. The secretly rebellious organisation that I had joined just a day ago was just a few commands away from destruction...

I stopped myself. That wouldn't do.

"I have no obligation to tell you. Just do your damn job," I snipped, ending the call before Hayama could reply.

[Hikigaya Hachiman, 15th May, 1600 hours]

I could destroy this pathetic club in seconds, but I won't. Those two ignorant fools who had the gall to oppose my supreme rule don't deserve such an easy fate. Besides, it won't be a fair fight if one side crushes the other at once with overwhelming might; to solidify my existence and make an example out of these two, I need to completely bring their ideals to dust. I need to make them fall to their knees and beg for mercy. I need to make them realise how filthy humans truly are.

Yukinoshita Yukino, the cold yet capable girl who segregated herself from my system and started an undercover rebellion just to take me down. I'll make her taste defeat like never before and take pleasure in breaking her resolve.

Yuigahama Yui, the kind yet merciless girl who devastated various lives and went back on her ideals just to get closer to the top in order to take me down. I'll put all of her efforts to waste and make her suffer the guilt of futilely trampling the people around her for the rest of her life.

And what better way to do this is there, than to make them conform to the very system they have decided to fight?

Yukinoshita, Yuigahama, you can feel free to spout whatever brave words and empty ideals however much you want. At the end of it all, when we graduate from high school, I will make you look back on all the time you spent here, and how little you truly accomplished with resolve inferior to mine.

Try to change my ideals, my beliefs, my existence; try to change me, and you will pay the price for it. No matter how many strategy meetings you have, no matter times you proclaim your noble cause, you will live a normal high school life.

I will make sure of that.

END OF CHAPTER 2

Author's note: Thanks for all your support on the first chapter!