14: Chapter 14: Knowledge is Wealth

Teitan High, Class 2-B.

It was a clear afternoon, a gentle breeze whispering through the open window, taking the edge off the warmth.

Fujino sat at his usual window seat, clad in the borrowed school uniform, a math textbook gripped tightly in his hands.

His eyes scanned the pages rapidly, the words and symbols flowing into his mind like data streams. Simultaneously, his Student Proficiency bar ticked upwards at a visible rate.

"This Natural Born Scholar skill is insane," Fujino marveled inwardly, taking a brief break to check his progress.

In just half a day, he'd already gained 75 Proficiency points.

That's right – the only reason he was diligently reading this textbook was to grind Student Proficiency.

The skill boosted his learning ability by 100%.

In just a few hours, he'd already absorbed most of the math concepts in the book.

As he learned, the proficiency points steadily increased.

Once he hit 200 points, his Student class would level up again.

A higher Student level meant he could potentially upgrade his Student Discount skill further.

In other words, he wasn't just reading a book; he was reading money!

Knowledge is wealth, indeed. The ancients weren't kidding!

"Hey Ran," Sonoko whispered from a few rows away, glancing worriedly towards ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Fujino.

"Fujino-senpai's been sitting there reading that math book all day. Like, literally all day. Do you think he's okay?"

"Now that you mention it..." Ran looked over, concerned.

"He didn't even eat lunch."

"That's not good," Sonoko murmured, then voiced a growing fear.

"You don't think... maybe the stress finally got to him? I mean, he hasn't been to school properly in ages..."

"Sonoko!" Ran hissed disapprovingly, then turned her gaze back to Fujino, frowning. His behavior was strange.

Recalling how he'd 'fainted' after gym class recently, she nodded slowly.

"You're right, Sonoko. This isn't good. With his physical condition, if he keeps pushing himself like this, he'll definitely collapse again!"

"So, what should we do?" Sonoko asked, biting her lip.

"Let's get Hiratsuka-sensei!"

"Good idea! Hiratsuka-sensei will know what to do." Sonoko agreed immediately.

In her mind, Hiratsuka Shizuka was Teitan High's go-to expert for student psychological issues.

If gentle persuasion didn't work, she wasn't afraid to employ her signature 'Iron Fist Correction.'

Her unofficial nickname around school? 'Iron Fist Holy Maiden' Soul Mentor.

A short while later.

Fujino closed the math book, stretching mightily with a loud yawn.

Honestly, he'd never actually enjoyed studying like this before. The visible rewards, the tangible progress – it made learning feel completely different.

He rolled his stiff shoulders, intending to get up, but froze when he saw Hiratsuka Shizuka standing right beside his desk, staring intently at him.

"So," Shizuka began, glancing at the math book on his desk,

"you've been sitting here reading this all day? What is this about?"

"I just felt like reviewing," Fujino replied, looking at her quizzically. He lowered his voice slightly.

"Is there a problem, Hiratsuka-sensei?"

He genuinely didn't understand. First, she got mad when he didn't come to school.

Now she was getting suspicious because he was studying too hard? Seriously, women are impossible to figure out.

"You... Come with me to the staff room!"

Without further explanation, Shizuka grabbed Fujino's arm and pulled him out of the classroom.

Fujino braced himself, thinking he'd said something wrong and was about to receive a few 'corrective' knuckle sandwiches.

But instead, she led him up the stairs and pushed open the door to the rooftop.

He let out a sigh of relief.

"So, Hiratsuka-sensei, why did you bring me up here?" Fujino asked, leaning against the railing and gazing out at the city skyline, his expression blank.

"What's really going on with you, Fujino-kun?" Shizuka turned to face him, her expression serious.

"I heard from some other students... that things are really difficult for you right now?"

"Is that why you haven't been coming to school?"

"Well..." Fujino scratched the back of his head.

"It's mainly the property taxes. 1.5 million yen a year. After covering living expenses, there isn't much left. My detective work isn't exactly stable, so... school kinda had to take a backseat."

"I see..." Shizuka's gaze softened, noticing the faint traces of loneliness and weariness in his eyes.

Losing his parents... he must have gone through so much.

That kind of pressure on a high school kid... it's just... ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠He must be suffering terribly right now.

She sighed, gently placing a hand on his shoulder.

"You must be having a really hard time..."

Fujino blinked, confused by her sudden sympathy.

He shrugged awkwardly.

"Hard time? Not really. I'm used to it."

Shizuka hesitated, then seemed to gather her courage.

"Well... would you consider letting me help you out financially—"

"Whoa! Hold on!" Fujino interrupted, frowning. Something felt off.

Hold up, is she offering to... sponsor me? But the way she said it... it sounded weirdly suggestive.

No way. Fujino might like money, but he wasn't about to become some kept man.

Besides, she was just a high school teacher. How much money could she possibly have?

The rest of the school day passed uneventfully.

Thanks to his focused studying, Fujino's Student Proficiency reached 100 points by the end of the day.

Insane progress.

Before, a full day of slacking off only netted him 50 points. Now he was earning double that just by actually learning.

But before celebrating, he had unfinished business. That remaining 600,000 yen commission fee from Ikegami Yuko.

And the woman herself needed a stern talking-to. Fujino felt genuinely annoyed.

Who hires a detective and then immediately interferes by breaking into the target's house themselves? It showed a complete lack of trust!

Later that night, back at Fujino's apartment.

"So! After accepting my commission, you immediately took Yoko Okino's case too?!" Ikegami Yuko sat stiffly on the sofa, glaring at Fujino.

"Seriously, what kind of unprofessional detective accepts a commission from the person they're supposed to be investigating?!"

"Hey, you're the one who violated the agreement first!" Fujino shot back, not bothering to coddle her.

"Do you have any idea how much trouble you were almost in? If it wasn't for me, you'd be caught up in a massive scandal right now!"

"What are you talking about?"

"You know exactly what I mean." Fujino pulled the gold earring from his pocket and held it up.

"This is yours, isn't it? I saw you wearing it when you came here to hire me."

Yuko stared at the earring in Fujino's hand, her eyes widening in shock.

That's... the earring I lost yesterday! How does he have it...?

Unless...?