"Not a bad take. I'm actually starting to acknowledge you now, Miss Secretary."
Ren smirked slightly.
This girl's mentality was starting to grow on him.
"Thank you for the praise, Boss."
Nao gave a polite little bow.
Then, she took out her phone and called the Hoshinoumi Academy Special Hospital, a facility dedicated to treating ability users, designed specifically to keep them from being snatched up by shady scientists during their most vulnerable moments… or worse, dissected on the operating table and disposed of like lab trash.
"Hello, this is Student Council President Nao Tomori. We have a situation, "
She began to quickly relay the events to the staff on the other end.
Once the call ended, she turned to Ren.
"All set. The ambulance will be here shortly."
"All this trouble… for some trash?" Ren asked indifferently.
"Yes, it's necessary."
Nao's tone was serious.
"No matter how vile their actions were, they're still officially students of this academy. If we don't take care of them properly, it'll create unnecessary backlash."
"Ugh. What a pain."
"That's society."
"Tell me about it," Ren muttered.
Before transmigrating, he had been just another soulless wage slave, beaten down by the system day in and day out. Every day either working or commuting to work. Not a trace of personal will.
Damn it.
He could cry just thinking about it.
"Sounds like you've got a bit of a story, huh?"
"I've got stories. You got booze?"
"Minors can't drink. Thanks."
Nao smacked him down without missing a beat.
Right. In Japan, students weren't legally allowed to drink.
"…"
Ren was speechless. Owned.
"How about milk tea, then?"
"That's acceptable."
"Great. Go get some. I'll be in the classroom waiting."
He turned to leave,
Only for Nao to grab his wrist from behind.
"Hey, what do you think you're doing? Trying to take advantage of me?"
Ren glanced back at her, raising a brow.
His personal space wasn't something just anyone could intrude on.
"Please," Nao rolled her eyes. "You're not my type."
"Then why're you holding on to me?"
"Our new assistant just showed up. We're heading to the Student Council office right now."
Ah. So that was her second reason for tailing him earlier.
"Assistant?"
"Yeah. Someone who helps us track down other ability users."
"So that's how you found me, huh?" Ren said, suddenly intrigued.
If this "assistant" could detect ability users, maybe he could copy that power for himself. Then he wouldn't need to rely on Nao to locate those adult holders of Sukuna's fingers.
"You could say that," Nao replied lightly.
Ren shrugged her off casually.
"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go."
"Love the enthusiasm. Follow me."
Nao didn't even take his rudeness to heart. In fact, she was rather pleased by his reliability.
========
Student Council Room.
Guided by Nao, the two arrived at the central hub of Hoshinoumi Academy's authority, the council chamber where ability misuse was investigated and punished.
"Yo! Morning, President. And… Ren, was it?"
A cheerful voice rang out.
On the couch nearby sat Takajō Jōjirō, one arm in a cast. He raised his uninjured hand and waved at the two.
"Morning, Takajō. You're tougher than you look. Got out of the hospital in just one night?"
Nao looked genuinely impressed. Was his ability some kind of ultra-boosted physical enhancement?
"You flatter me, President," Takajō pushed up his glasses. "The injuries I've suffered over the years have been stored in my cellular memory. A broken arm is barely a scratch."
He felt incredibly cool saying that.
"I wasn't complimenting you, dumbass."
"Eh?!"
"Now that you're up and moving, it's time to get to work. We're short-staffed."
"So cold!"
"You thought this was part-time? We're 24/7."
Nao said it without a shred of sympathy.
Then she gestured toward Ren.
"By the way, let me introduce your new colleague. This is Rikumizu Ren, you've probably heard of him. He's joining the student council, so try not to piss him off."
"Got it, President!"
Takajō turned to Ren with a friendly nod.
"Pleasure to meet you, Ren. I'm Takajō Jōjirō."
"Oh."
Ren's response was flat.
He still remembered how this guy rammed into his kidneys the other night.
Didn't hurt, but it sure as hell offended his pride.
The King of Curses, reduced to having his kidneys targeted?
What a joke.
"Uh… Did I just get rejected?" Takajō muttered.
"Maybe."
"Ouch."
"Don't take it personally," Nao said, patting his shoulder. "You're not exactly popular to begin with."
"…That hurts more."
"Then I must be really good at this."
Nao grinned, immensely satisfied.
Meanwhile, Takajō's little heart was suffering some serious internal bleeding.
He almost spiraled into depression.
Creeeaaak!
The door to the student council room groaned open.
The three turned to look.
A tall man stepped inside, soaking wet, long hair hanging in front of his face, water dripping steadily onto the floor.
Without a word, he walked up to the large map at the center of the room.
He raised his hand.
Drip.
A single droplet of water fell from his fingertip onto the map.
"This time's ability: Plunder. Stealing the powers of other ability users."
His voice was low and heavy.
Then he turned and left, not even bothering to elaborate.
Only when he passed Ren did his gaze linger for the briefest moment.
Just a moment.
No one else noticed.
Even Ren, leaning lazily against the wall, only barely caught the faint trace of attention. By the time he looked over, the man was already gone.
Not even a sliver of a chance to scan or copy his ability.
The guy was like some riddle wrapped in a ghost.
Add to Collection!
200 P.S / 1 Extra Chapter