Classroom of the Elite: Starting With Love Stock Market System

As Hikaru and Katsuragi exchanged words, Ichinose felt her heartbeat pounding in her chest.

When she heard Hikaru lie outright about spending three million Private Points to obtain the school's hidden rules, she panicked.

After all, that was an easily verifiable claim.

But then, she noticed something strange.

Hikaru was blatantly lying, yet his expression remained perfectly composed—as if he truly believed what he was saying.

He radiated an air of absolute confidence, making it impossible to doubt him.

---

"If the cost is one million, that means each student in Class 1-A would need to contribute 25,000 Private Points," Katsuragi mused, then turned to Sakayanagi.

"What's your decision, Sakayanagi?"

Sakayanagi lightly nodded, her soft smile unwavering.

"I agree with Hikaru-kun. This is an excellent deal."

"After all, who in their right mind would hesitate between paying three million or one million?"

"Good."

Though Katsuragi disliked Sakayanagi, as a Class 1-A student, he was sharp and pragmatic.

If the school truly had hidden rules, then the sooner they uncovered them, the better.

Without hesitation, he mobilized his network of supporters to collect points from the class.

Meanwhile, Hikaru glanced at Sakayanagi—but instead of helping, she simply stood still, lost in thought.

"Uh, Sakayanagi-san?" Ichinose asked hesitantly.

"Aren't you going to help gather the points?"

Sakayanagi smiled sweetly and replied,

"That's unnecessary. Katsuragi-kun is more than capable of handling such physical tasks."

"The class heard our discussion—they understand the situation and can make their own rational decisions. There's no need for me to intervene."

"I see," Hikaru murmured.

This exchange confirmed something important—

While Class 1-A's students were exceptionally skilled, their two most influential figures were in direct conflict.

This lack of unity was a good sign.

If Class 1-A remained divided, they wouldn't be able to maintain their dominance indefinitely—giving Class 1-B more opportunities to catch up.

---

Before long, Katsuragi returned with the collected Private Points.

Hikaru motioned for Ichinose to hand over the contract.

"Before we finalize the transaction, all of you in Class 1-A must sign this contract," Hikaru instructed.

"Once that's done, we can proceed with the exchange of rules and points."

The contract, printed from Hoshinomiya's office, was straightforward—

Class 1-B agrees to sell the hidden school rules to Class 1-A for one million Private Points.

Class 1-A students are strictly prohibited from reselling these rules.

Class 1-A students are also forbidden from discussing these rules with other classes.

Violating this contract would result in the school issuing the harshest possible punishment—expulsion.

Once all the necessary signatures were gathered, Hikaru reviewed the contracts before finally retrieving his notebook—the one containing the rules they had purchased.

"Alright. Payment first, then delivery."

Hikaru glanced at Katsuragi, then patted Ichinose's shoulder.

"Ichinose, collect the payment."

"Understood."

Ichinose quickly pulled out her phone, displaying her student ID.

Katsuragi completed the transfer within seconds.

"It's done," Katsuragi confirmed.

Ichinose immediately checked her balance.

The screen displayed:

[Private Points: 1,050,000]

She exhaled in relief.

"Hikaru, the points have been transferred."

"Good."

Hikaru smiled lightly, then handed the notebook over to Katsuragi.

With the deal finalized, he turned to leave.

"Wait a moment, Hikaru-kun."

For the first time, Sakayanagi spoke directly to him.

Her piercing violet eyes locked onto his, her tone soft yet inquisitive.

"I'd like to know… who in Class 1-B was the first to discover the hidden rules?"

"Was it you? Or was it Ichinose-san?"

Hikaru paused briefly, then answered without hesitation.

"It was me."

"Why do you ask, Sakayanagi-san?"

"Oh, no reason~"

Sakayanagi smiled gracefully, her expression composed yet intriguing.

"I just find you… very interesting."

"Something tells me this won't be our last conversation."

Hikaru chuckled.

"I was thinking the same thing. Well then—we'll take our leave."

"You're free to share the rules with your classmates now."

"Goodbye, everyone," Ichinose said cheerfully, waving to Class 1-A as she followed Hikaru out.

With that, they left the room, their figures disappearing down the corridor.

---

Once they were completely gone, Katsuragi and Sakayanagi opened the notebook to examine the hidden rules.

What they read shattered every assumption Class 1-A had about the school.

A meritocratic system.

Class Points and Private Points as tools of survival.

Only one class would be allowed to graduate from Class 1-A.

As Class 1-A absorbed the truth, Katsuragi immediately sensed something wrong.

"If the school is truly structured like this, then why would Class 1-B willingly sell us these rules?"

"There's definitely something we're not seeing."

"What's your theory?"

Sakayanagi's tone remained calm, her demeanor unshaken even after learning the truth.

"If this school really operates on a strict class competition system, then this transaction wasn't as simple as it seemed," Katsuragi muttered.

"They must have held back some information."

"That's possible," Sakayanagi admitted.

"But for now… let's deal with another matter first."

She closed the notebook and looked up at Katsuragi, her tone sharpening.

"Don't forget—we still haven't decided our class representative."

"..."

"Now that we know the true structure of the school, it's even more critical that Class 1-A is led by someone competent."

"Only with strong leadership can we maintain our advantage and secure our future."

Katsuragi's fists clenched slightly.

"So, you think you should be the one to lead?"

Sakayanagi tilted her head, her smile unwavering.

"Of course."

"If Hikaru-kun were in Class 1-A, I'd rate him an A."

"But you, Katsuragi-kun? You're barely a C."

"...We'll see about that."

Katsuragi's voice was low and firm.

"I'll prove to you who the true leader of Class 1-A should be."

Sakayanagi chuckled softly.

"Go ahead. But I don't plan on losing."