Stealing Spree

A calculative mind and a calm demeanor. I guess those are traits that Enomoto possessed that the other guys do not.

That's impressive, to say the least.

Normally, one will not antagonize such a character.

Unfortunately, we already started off on the wrong foot.

He sent Nakanishi-senpai to warn me. That felt like an elitist way to keep some upstart to continue rising. It didn't work and, in a way, he simply introduced a very interesting girl to me.

Next, he allowed Uchiyama and the other two to ambush me. But then again, I'm not his friend. So, becoming a bystander was the normal path to take there. Furthermore, that instance allowed me to get closer to that very interesting girl.

And lastly, he appeared alongside Ichihara for an unknown reason; either to observe me or take me down in case I turned out pretty mediocre. As a result, the situation came about.

Uh… Thinking about it, I owe it to him that I got a reason to continue seeing Nakanishi-senpai.

Is he trying to be my wingman or something? Hell nah. That's impossible. The same reasoning as earlier, he has no reason to.

Anyway, although he became the pivotal piece to the peaceful resolution of yesterday's event, I was confident to resolve it in one way or another even if he was not there.

If anything, his appearance yesterday confirmed one thing. His interest in me has already reached the point that he had to probe me with his own eyes.

Whether he's going to become my enemy or not, that's still up for debate.

And that's why I am here.

To do the same thing as he did.

Bringing up the compensation was just another excuse for me to be here.

"You sure do move quickly, Onoda-kun. Well then, care to sit down with me? Let's talk there."

And that became Enomoto's reply to my probing question. He didn't hesitate to invite me into the lounge area of this clubroom. The one behind the curtain.

Furthermore, he didn't give any instructions to Nakanishi-senpai. The guy simply turned around to walk over there as soon as he got my agreement.

A few minutes have passed since then. At the moment, with the sizzling of chemicals and the clinking of the glass flasks and test tubes as the backdrop, I found myself sipping on a freshly brewed coffee of Nikka-senpai while comfortably sitting in the same chair I used the last time I was here with Nakanishi-senpai.

Right. Instead of sending them away, Enomoto simply let them do their 'activity' outside this curtained area. He probably believed that it's no consequence even if the two of them heard our conversation.

As for the coffee… Enomoto's childhood friend was kinda thoughtful. She moved even without his input.

I observed the guy's reaction when the girl did it but the same as earlier, it was hard to discern what was on his mind when looking at her. He probably mastered his poker face.

"Before we start, let me air this out first. I do not wish to antagonize you, Onoda-kun. You've proven yourself to be such a character that even Ichihara Jun ended up helpless against you." Enomoto raised her arm as though doing the sign of surrender.

He then keenly looked at me, waiting for my response.

Well, if he's going to be this straightforward then that's better. But I don't like the fact that he's trying to flatter me there. No matter how I hear it, it lacked sincerity mixed in with those kinds of flattery.

It sounded empty. Most likely, it's just his one-off compliments that he's using to get someone else's goodwill.

That's a smart way of using it but it's not perfect. To someone wary of him, it won't be effective.

I mean, there's no way I will trust everything coming out of his mouth. I'll always use a filter in my mind to determine whether he's being truthful or not.

Nonetheless, I could also play the same game as him. Obviously, I wouldn't be as easygoing as I was with Nakanishi-senpai. One, he's not a girl I'm interested in. And two, there's no reason to put on a mask in front of him when he's already aware of what I am capable of doing.

"I'm just here for the compensation you promised, senpai. Please turn a blind eye to what you witnessed earlier." I uncaringly shrugged before adding that extra bit to create the impression that I care about my closeness to Nakanishi-senpai.

"Alright. I didn't see anything. Not you leaning close to Reira and not Reira having fun acting with you. Oh. You know what? Let me tell you this." Enomoto paused for a bit before gesturing for me to lean over.

Understanding what he wanted to do, I unhesitatingly leaned forward.

Sure enough. The guy went for my ear and whispered something related to Nakanishi-senpai, "No one, not even me, has managed to get that close to her. You're the first."

Enomoto then patted my shoulder, looking as though he was commending me and at the same time, passing me the baton for taking care of the girl.

But like I said earlier, I couldn't simply believe his words. Only Nakanishi-senpai could confirm that.

"That's flattering but I don't think it's something to be celebrated. Nakanishi-senpai found me amusing as her junior. That's all."

"Hoh. You're saying that now? Man, are you also like this with President Asakura? You're acting too humble. If you haven't heard yet, Reira is an untouchable flower in our school. Everyone wants to pluck that flower but no one dares to make the first move."

Ah. So, he's going to do this angle. Not only did he bring up Shizu's name to the table, but he also put down information about Nakanishi-senpai.

Although I was already aware of the latter, there's no doubt that he's trying to probe me with it again.

Before replying to that, I straightened my back first and took another sip from my cup.

The coffee wasn't anything special. But I opted to act like it was savory because Nikka-senpai kept on glancing at us.

When our eyes met, I nodded to her and put on a gratified smile. Even if she was not interested in me, that still made her flustered. Most likely, Enomoto seldom showed her the same treatment.

Or there's another reason, who knows?

"I appreciate that information, senpai. But I don't think it's fair to talk about Nakanishi-senpai like that."

"Oh. Is gossiping distasteful to you?"

"Not particularly. But she's in the same room as us, is she not?"

Enomoto's lips twitched at my answer. That's the first genuine reaction I saw from him. I guess his poker face reached his limit, huh?

In any case, that's probably the first and last I would catch today. The slightly carefree air around Enomoto disappeared and was replaced by a silent pressure as though he was a predator staking out his prey.

"I see. What a gentleman, Onoda-kun. I'm in awe. Let's get down to business then."

"Mhm…" I only hummed in response. In this way, I also conveyed my intention to move past flatteries or idle talks.

"What kind of compensation do you want from me?" Enomoto asked. Straight to the point.

"Information."

And so, I did the same. But to irk him a bit, I picked up the cup again and glanced in Nikka's direction.

He didn't react that much to it but I noticed how his round eyes narrowed slightly.

He cares about her, huh?

"Oh? What kind of information?"

"About someone. Let me get specific here, senpai. I don't have a lot of time to waste…" As I said this, I gulped the remaining coffee down to indicate my haste. I then acted as though I arranged my thoughts before continuing in the same straightforward manner…

"I need to know who's the one pulling Tanaka-senpai's strings. I already have a guess on who it is, I just want confirmation."

That's a lie… I had no clue yet. My first guess that resulted from the information I heard from Shizu couldn't possibly be the mastermind now…

I mean, that first guess was Marika herself. After interacting with her and seeing that she was not as clever as I thought she would be, it instantly crumbled.

There still exists the possibility that everything was an act by the girl. If that turned out to be the reality, I'd applaud the girl for successfully fooling me.

Nonetheless, I'm 90% certain that it isn't her. I'm willing to bet my years of experience in reading the girls I targeted for it. The Marika that I get to know might be hopeless and naïve but she's genuine. Those tears cannot be faked.

"Heh… Interesting." After a minute or two of silence, that's the first thing that Enomoto uttered. Without breaking eye contact with me, he raised a finger, "Onoda-kun, that information is too valuable to be given as simple compensation for something I shouldn't be involved with. Don't you think so? What don't I ask you one thing in exchange for it?"

Oh. Now, we're talking… One thing, huh? I guess there's no hurt in hearing what it will be.

"Sure. As long as it's within my ability."