Mash-Up: Anything for Money

"Haha…"

Hakuto let out a helpless laugh. As expected, this wasn't going to work.

Forget gathering five members—Rikka would have a hard time even finding three.

It couldn't be helped. With her overwhelming chūnibyō tendencies, she obviously didn't have any friends, let alone anyone willing to join a club with her.

In Japan's school culture, joining a club was practically a rite of passage. Almost everyone joined one. 

People like Hakuto, who avoided clubs altogether, were in the minority.

As for bending the rules… Hakuto suddenly recalled that a certain long-haired, sharp-tongued girl from the class next door had indeed managed to establish a club all by herself.

But her family background? 

Yeah, she straight-up donated an entire building to the school. With that kind of influence, not just one club—she could start ten if she wanted.

By comparison, Rikka… Hakuto really couldn't think of a single reason why Hiratsuka would make an exception for her.

Just as Hakuto was convinced this plan was a dead end, Hiratsuka suddenly spoke.

"Shiratori, just now, Takanashi said the club members include you, correct?"

"Hm?"

For a moment, Hakuto was confused.

They hadn't spoken about it explicitly, but he thought he had made it very clear—he had absolutely no intention of starting a club.

So why was Hiratsuka even asking?

The next second, he realized exactly what she was up to.

She pulled out a club application form and placed it on her desk.

"Takanashi, just to confirm—did you say the club members are yourself and Shiratori?"

Seeing the form, Rikka immediately perked up, realizing that there was a real chance this might work. 

She stood up straight, puffed out her chest, and declared,

"Yes! The club consists of the Evil Eye Lord and the Hero, but once we establish it, more members will come!"

Hiratsuka, watching Rikka's excitement, turned her gaze back to Hakuto and asked with a suspiciously gentle tone,

"So, Shiratori, what do you think?"

Hakuto nearly jumped out of his seat.

That three-word phrase—"Shiratori-kun, you…"—he hadn't heard it since the first few days of school. 

Even though it had only been a month, it felt like several lifetimes ago.

And if Hiratsuka was suddenly addressing him so formally, then she was definitely up to something.

Determined to protect his free time, Hakuto opened his mouth to reject her outright—

Only to be grabbed from behind by Rikka.

"Hero… we made a promise."

She whispered the words softly.

A promise? 

Hah! 

A promise?!

Hakuto already thought of himself as being pretty ruthless, but Rikka? She was even worse.

She had somehow bought out half his afternoons… for a price so low it was practically robbery.

If that famous Sawamura Sayuri next door found out about this deal, she would probably break down in tears on the spot.

"Evil Eye Lord, you do realize our agreement didn't include this, right?"

"Hero, please help me! This base is really important!"

"Have I not already helped you enough?"

Hakuto showed no mercy. As far as he was concerned, anyone who tried to take away his free time without compensation was asking for a fight.

Truthfully, Rikka had expected Hakuto to refuse from the start, but she wasn't about to let go of this hard-earned opportunity—especially since Hiratsuka had already given them an opening.

"Hero, I'll give you this month's… no, no, next month's too… and the month after that's allowance! How about that?"

After spending years together, Rikka knew this was the only method that worked on Hakuto.

At that moment, seeing Rikka's desperate expression, Hakuto hesitated.

To be honest, if this were just a transaction, the terms were completely unbalanced.

But… if life was only about transactions, wouldn't that make him a bit too heartless?

After a long silence, he finally relented and came up with a compromise.

"I'll help you find the other four club members."

"Eh, really—?"

"But I won't be one of them."

Rikka barely had time to get excited before Hakuto doused her enthusiasm with cold water.

However, a second later, she relaxed.

From her perspective, now that that golden-haired nuisance, Sawamura Eriri, was no longer bothering Hakuto, his free time would definitely increase.

And when that time came, all she had to do was beg him a little more, and getting him to participate in her club activities would be a piece of cake!

With that thought, Rikka smirked in satisfaction and nodded, agreeing to Hakuto's terms.

Seeing her agreement, the deal was officially sealed. Hakuto then turned to Hiratsuka.

"Sensei, as long as we gather five members, you'll be Rikka's club advisor, right?"

"That is… technically correct."

Hiratsuka nodded instinctively. After all, Rikka was her student, and as long as they followed school regulations, forming a club wasn't a big deal.

However… something about Hakuto's wording caught her attention.

It seemed he'd rather go through the trouble of gathering five members than join the club himself.

From her perspective, Hakuto and Rikka had just spent a long time whispering back and forth.

Rikka had been on the verge of tears, yet Hakuto still refused.

Clearly, Hakuto was very determined to keep his free time—or perhaps, Rikka's request simply wasn't important enough to sway him.

As she thought about it, an image of Sawamura Eriri flashed through her mind.

If it were Eriri asking Hakuto… would he have agreed?

Hiratsuka couldn't help but imagine the scene.

After all, from what she had observed, Hakuto did bring Rikka lunch today—but how could one day compare to two whole years?

At least in Hiratsuka's mind, Hakuto definitely still had feelings for Eriri. Today was probably just… a special case.

That thought only grew stronger in her heart.

She turned her gaze to Rikka and asked, "Takanashi, do you have any other business?"

"N-no, nothing else."

"If not, you should hurry back to class. Lunchtime is valuable, and the next period is about to start."

Hearing this, Rikka instinctively looked at Hakuto.

He didn't say a word—he just gave her an "OK" gesture.

Understanding his signal, she nodded, grabbed her empty lunchbox, and returned to the classroom.

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Surely you guys know who that " long-haired, sharp-tongued girl with big background having a club alone" is

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