Chapter Ninety-Eight: Writing the Name of the Summit on the Rooftop

During the lunch break, Atsushi Aoki, along with Tora Maeda, Take Daibu Matsuzaka, and Mio Fujiwara, made their way to the rooftop.

Perhaps in some lighthearted romance comedies, this would be the perfect place for the main characters to deepen their relationship. Unfortunately, in the eyes of delinquents, this was a symbol of power—a private territory that proved their strength. Want to eat your lunchbox and fall in love on the rooftop? Impossible. Go try your luck at some elite school full of model students!

To stand here meant you stood at the very top of the school, the pinnacle among the school’s delinquents.

Until now, this place had always been empty, simply because Muyao High had never produced anyone truly capable of reigning at the top. But now, Atsushi Aoki had achieved just that.

On the rooftop, Atsushi watched as Tora Maeda and the others enthusiastically hauled up an old sofa and coffee table, decorating the space with the excitement of furnishing a new home. They even pulled out spray cans, painting over the walls with abandon. Atsushi couldn’t help but frown. “Aren’t you worried the school will give you trouble for this?”

Mio Fujiwara, thrilled, was painting the words “Aoki Corps” in bold red on the wall. He answered, “Boss, ever since the principal of Suzuran High tried to rebuild a wall a few years ago and got his bones broken by students, places like the rooftop have pretty much been defaulted to delinquents like us.”

“Even if the school’s not happy, what of it?” Mio finished his graffiti, glanced up at the highest point on the wall, and fished out a black spray can, handing it to Atsushi. “At most, they’ll give us a written warning. They wouldn’t dare mess with us.”

“It’s a well-known rule here at Muyao High: only those who can write their name on the rooftop truly rule the school. I think most delinquent schools share this belief. Only the strongest can claim the rooftop.”

Mio grinned. “Boss, go on—write your name up there!”

Atsushi clutched the spray can with a furrowed brow. He wasn’t fond of this sort of thing, but seeing how excited the others were—like they’d just won the lottery—he didn’t have the heart to dampen their spirits. After some thought, he realized it wasn’t a big deal and just sighed. “From now on, show some respect to the teachers and the school. If anyone asks about this, just blame it on me.”

Mio laughed off his concerns. “That won’t happen. I heard someone sprayed graffiti up here last year, and the school didn’t say anything.”

“Then why isn’t there any trace of paint?” Atsushi asked, puzzled.

“Oh, that guy barely finished before he was mobbed by other delinquents. He almost didn’t graduate. It’s not enough to claim the top for yourself—you have to earn everyone’s respect,” Mio said with disdain. “As for the wall, the other delinquents just repainted it white. Until someone truly stands at the top, the rule is no one gets to spray anything. It’s common knowledge.”

“Boss! Hurry up and tag your name!” Tora, sweating, dragged a battered sofa to the center of the rooftop, wiped his brow, and eyed the wall impatiently.

Atsushi sighed, shook the spray can a few times, and climbed the small ladder Mio had brought. He reached up and tagged his name at the highest point on the wall.

“My turn!” Tora, as soon as Atsushi stepped down, grabbed the can and gleefully sprayed his own name below Atsushi’s.

Next was Matsuzaka, then Mio Fujiwara.

Only the four of them wrote their names. According to group tradition, no one else in the “Aoki Corps” was qualified to spray their name unless they had outstanding achievements or contributions.

“This ‘Aoki Corps’ name is pretty juvenile,” Atsushi said with a wry smile, looking at the wall now ablaze with color and a distinct street flair. His own name stood proudly at the very top. Alongside a twinge of guilt for the school, he felt a secret thrill.

So… did this mean he was truly standing at the top?

Looking down from the rooftop at the ordinary, bustling students below, a surge of pride quietly welled up in Atsushi’s heart.

“Boss! Let’s eat!” Tora moved the coffee table in front of Atsushi, settled into a small sofa, and set his lunchbox on the table.

Atsushi smiled. “Where did you guys find all this stuff?”

The coffee table looked only a little worn at the corners, but the glass surface gleamed like new. He had no idea where they’d managed to scrounge it up.

Tora just grinned. “There’s a ton of this junk in the school storeroom. I think this sofa and table came from the principal’s office after they replaced the furniture.”

“Uh, did you get permission to take it?” Atsushi narrowed his eyes, staring at Tora.

Feeling the pressure of Atsushi’s gaze, Tora quickly explained, “Of course! I spoke with the teacher who manages the storeroom, and he said it was fine.”

Well, I used your name to get it, Boss, Tora thought, keeping the rest to himself.

Atsushi nodded. “That’s more like it. Honestly, you could probably sell this stuff secondhand for a bit of money. I can’t believe the teacher just gave it to you.”

Matsuzaka, sweating, finally finished cleaning the last small sofa, sat down, and said cheerfully, “All right, our headquarters is complete!”

Atsushi noticed that while the others each had a small sofa, his was a large one—plenty big enough to lie down on. His heart warmed. “Honestly, it still feels a bit unreal.”

Matsuzaka, adopting a mock-weepy face, pointed to the swelling on his cheek. “It’s plenty real for me—I was in so much pain last night I couldn’t even sleep.”

Tora clapped him on the shoulder. “Come on, man! Can’t take a little pain?”

“Ow, ow, ow!” Matsuzaka swatted his hand away. “I’m not some action-hero like ‘Tiger’ from TV!”

“Hey, did you all watch it last night?” Mio smacked his own leg in excitement. “The fight scene with Tiger in the classroom was so cool!”

“Yeah, totally!” Tora, the show’s biggest fan, chimed in at once. “Let me tell you—”

“No TV talk during lunch!” Atsushi rapped his chopsticks on his lunchbox, face stern. “Especially about that show!”

The three exchanged glances, looking genuinely disappointed.

“Boss, you really should check it out…” Tora began, but Atsushi’s attitude was firm. “I refuse!”

Tora clicked his tongue in regret, sincerely sorry that their boss couldn’t enjoy such a legendary show.

Suddenly Mio’s phone chimed. Seeing the sender, his cheeks flushed and he jumped up. “I—I need to use the restroom. I’ll eat in a minute!” he blurted, then hurried off.

The other three exchanged looks. Tora grinned slyly and whispered, “I saw who messaged him—it was Salty Fish-chan…”

“And there was a little red heart!” Tora snickered. Matsuzaka raised his eyebrow indignantly and slapped the table. “The boss doesn’t have a girlfriend—how can he get away with this? We have to see what’s up! Let’s go, Tiger!”

“Don’t call me Tiger—it makes me feel like I’m in the TV show!” Tora stood, sporting a gossipy smile. “Boss, he really shouldn’t be doing this when you don’t have a girlfriend! Want to come see?”

Atsushi was baffled. What did his lack of a girlfriend have to do with anything? Was he the kind of guy who couldn’t stand to see his friends happy just because he was single?

Putting on a serious face, he stood up. “That’s not the point. Whether I have a girlfriend or not doesn’t matter, but dating too young isn’t good. He can wait until he’s older.”

“Let’s go see!”

Tora and Matsuzaka exchanged mischievous grins.

The three of them tiptoed after Mio Fujiwara, who was grinning at his phone as he headed down the rooftop stairs, completely unaware of how close they were behind him.

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PS: Even Mio Fujiwara has a girlfriend now—do I really not deserve even a single recommendation vote… QAQ