Chapter 108: Laughed Out Loud

In the early morning, Tsukasa Aoki wearily opened his eyes and sat up, his heart still pounding from the lingering fear. He let out a long sigh.

Last night, he had entered the dream training room to practice mixed martial arts techniques. He had originally thought it would be like the routine training he received at Matsuyama’s place.

But to his surprise, it turned out to be endless punching drills.

And only the most basic right-hand punches.

For a full hour and a half in the dream, he struck a punching bag without a single pause. Any slack was met with a bamboo rod hitting his shoulder; if his form was inadequate, Master Li would strike his arm with the rod. It was truly a painful memory.

According to Master Li, at this pace, it would take another ten or so hours before he could barely claim to understand how to throw a punch.

Rubbing his shoulder, which bore no visible wounds yet throbbed faintly, Tsukasa sighed, “These days, nothing comes without hardship.”

He got up, quickly changed clothes, then went to the kitchen to prepare breakfast and a packed lunch. Afterward, he climbed upstairs and knocked gently on Kyō’s door.

“Kyō, time to wake up. I’ve made breakfast. Eat first, then you can go back to sleep!”

Setting the breakfast at the door, Tsukasa’s voice softened, “I left the breakfast by the door. After lunch, just put everything on the dining table. If you’re too lazy to put it away, leave it in your room; I’ll clean up tonight. Make sure you finish the porridge—it’s good for your heart.”

Inside the room, Kyō, with heavy dark circles beneath her eyes, rose wearily and sat on the bed, lost in thought.

Last night, the moment she closed her eyes, it was Tsukasa’s face so close to hers that sleep eluded her. She didn’t know what time she finally fell into a deep sleep, and now she was utterly drained of strength.

After a long while, Kyō propped herself up on her arms and opened the door to bring the medicinal porridge inside. She took a reluctant sip. “Tastes awful…”

The porridge seemed to be laden with various nourishing herbs. She sighed, resting one hand on her cheek as she slowly drank.

When she finished, warmth spread through her body. Whether it was psychological or the herbs working, Kyō felt a faint return of strength. She lazily returned to bed, hugging a black rabbit plush, wiping sweat from her brow. Her cheeks flushed slightly as she closed her eyes.

“Thank you…” she murmured softly, the faint voice uncertain if it was a dream or heartfelt.

Soon after, gentle snores filled the room again.

—

Tsukasa Aoki held a comprehensive guide to traditional Chinese medicine, his eyes wide as he studied intently. Lately, he only had a short window at night to improve his “Medical Classics” skill, which fell far short of his expectations.

From all he knew of medical knowledge, congenital heart disease was nearly untreatable. Yet, for some cardiac ailments, he was not entirely helpless. He had secretly searched through Masao Kasugano’s room for Kyō’s medical records and electrocardiograms. The situation could be described as both good and distressingly bad.

First, Kyō’s heart had undergone multiple surgeries and was nearly healed.

But her real danger did not lie with the heart itself, but the severe complications caused by years of frail health. Because of this, her heart—which for an ordinary person might be merely suboptimal—appeared dangerously precarious.

She suffered from bradycardia, chronically low blood pressure and blood sugar, and insufficient cardiac blood supply. Any emotional excitement or intense exercise could induce shock or fainting.

Her body appeared that of a delicate young girl, but her heart resembled that of an elderly person in their seventies or eighties, gradually losing vitality. This was a challenge Western medicine could not solve: they could revive a near-dead heart to beat again, but could not restore a heart steadily wasting away.

That was the bleak side.

The more hopeful side lay in the “Medical Classics” skill.

Kyō’s congenital heart disease was present at birth and had been surgically treated multiple times. Though fragile, her heart was not the kind that required surgical patching or arterial correction. Instead, its function was progressively weakening on its own.

To restore her health, first her constitution must improve, and second, her heart must be strengthened.

Traditional Chinese medicine excelled at restoration and regulation. While Tsukasa currently had no method to treat Kyō’s heart directly, he could use pharmacology to slow its decline.

He was confident that once his “Medical Classics” skill advanced sufficiently, he would find a way to rejuvenate Kyō’s heart.

“Boss Aoki!” A voice called from behind, snapping Tsukasa from his thoughts. He lifted his head from the medical text to see Maeda Tora jogging toward him.

Only then did Tsukasa realize he had unknowingly arrived at the school gate.

Maeda approached, visibly excited. “Boss, I heard you were escorted into the police station by dozens of cops last night?”

“W-what?” Tsukasa’s tired eyes widened. “Where did you hear that?”

“Huh? I don’t know. Probably some gossip from one of the girls. There’s even a photo to prove it.” Maeda pulled out his phone. The screen showed Tsukasa being pushed into a police car by two officers, blurred flashing lights behind them. The number of police cars was unclear, but a dense crowd of officers stood behind with tense, war-ready expressions.

Who the hell took this picture? Tsukasa covered his face, despair overtaking him. Originally, there had only been three or four police cars and a dozen officers, but this blurry photo made it seem like the entire Yachiyo city police force had mobilized.

Maeda scratched his head. “No idea. This photo was sent to me by Matsuzaka Daitake. He got it from someone else.”

Tsukasa pulled out his phone and connected to the internet, immediately seeing the Yachiyo city news flash for the day:

“Shock! Former heroic youth arrested on suspicion of involvement with yakuza activities.”

Staring at the exaggerated headline and the pixelated photo—where the smooth bald head was unmistakably his—Tsukasa silently stuffed the phone in his pocket. These media outlets were truly invasive, lacking any integrity, spreading rumors without proof just to smear his name.

“It’s all a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding…” Tsukasa sighed, growing irritated.

Probably those photos were taken by Kokoro Terabashi’s crew yesterday. He hadn’t paid attention then, but judging by the angle, it was likely one of them.

Frustrated, Tsukasa loosened the top button of his shirt, letting the cool breeze drift down his neck, easing some of his agitation.

Walking side by side with Maeda into the campus, the senior discipline committee members at the gate who saw Tsukasa instinctively turned away, pretending not to notice.

“It’s okay, Boss. Serizawa Tamao from Suzuran was arrested for a brawl not long ago. Look at him now—famous and untouchable,” Maeda comforted him.

Tsukasa looked up with a wry smile. What use was fame? He just wanted some peace lately!

Damn it, this irresistible yet cursed charm of his!

[Hidden Task: Thorn in the Side Completed.]

[Thorn in the Side: You are no longer just a rising star among delinquents but a target of wary ordinary people. You have become a thorn in many people’s eyes—an envy deserved by an outstanding person and a trial to be endured by a delinquent. Task Completion: Perfect. Reward: Item—Premium Delinquent School Uniform.]

[Reward can be claimed at any time.]

[Premium Delinquent School Uniform: Does a delinquent’s uniform need to be cool? Comfortable? No, it must not wear out from fights! This uniform has an auto-repair function, restoring damage to brand new condition (repair time depends on the extent of the damage).]

Tsukasa resolutely shut his mouth.

This damn system always tried to get him to say “I was wrong,” but he would never give it the satisfaction!

I, Tsukasa Aoki, am a man of principle!

Yet, the thought that he no longer had to wear that patched-up, shabby uniform from home made him chuckle gleefully.