However, Byakuya had a mission to complete.
His system task required him to join Fura Taishi's delinquent group, which was why he had been so quick to take this seat.
At the same time, this also ensured that Arima had to sit next to Minami Uruka.
As a transmigrator, Byakuya already knew the truth-the A+ rated ghoul "Lantern" was actually Minami Uruka.
She wanted to live like a normal human, to go to school just like any other kid.
That's why, despite being a ghoul, she was also a top student with outstanding grades.
Before arriving in this world, Byakuya had always felt that the story between Arima and Uruka was a tragedy.
So now, he intended to subtly push their relationship in a different direction.
Byakuya greeted the boy beside him.
"Nice to meet you."
Fura Taishi lazily propped his chin up with one hand and replied in a bored tone.
"Yeah, I'm Fura Taishi."
He wasn't particularly interested in school, so naturally, he didn't care much about the new transfer student either.
But what did surprise him was that Byakuya had chosen to sit next to him, someone who was obviously a delinquent, instead of taking the empty seat next to Minami.
Meanwhile, Arima who now had only one seat left to pick, was forced to sit beside Minami Uruka.
He wasn't aware of Byakuya's intentions, simply assuming it was a random choice.
Moreover, at this point, he still hadn't suspected that Minami Uruka was the ghoul "Lantern."
"Arima-kun,"
Uruka turned to her new seatmate with a gentle smile.
She had long, flowing black hair, and an elegant, quiet demeanor-the perfect image of a refined young lady.
Arima returned the gesture with a polite nod.
At this moment, everything seemed perfectly normal.
He didn't notice anything unusual.
But across the room, Fura Taishi occasionally stole glances toward Minami.
When he saw her smiling at the new guy, Arima, he clicked his tongue in annoyance.
For some reason, it bothered him.
The teacher soon handed out textbooks to Byakuya and Arima, and class officially began.
Byakuya had never actually attended school in Japan before, but with his fluency in Japanese, most subjects weren't an issue-especially math and English, which were universal.
However, there were a few subjects he found less familiar.
Japanese language studies included modern Japanese, classical Japanese, and ancient Chinese.
Japan also had uncommon elective subjects, such as home economics-a class where students learned to cook.
Fortunately, with his Mangekyō Sharingan, Byakuya's learning ability was leagues above normal students.
He could read at lightning speed and remember everything perfectly, making studying incredibly easy.
As soon as the first class ended, a group of friendly classmates immediately flocked to his desk.
Some also gathered around Arima.
"Uchiha-kun, how are you adjusting so far? Do you need my class notes?"
"By the way, what's your connection with Arima-kun? You both transferred in at the same time-was it planned?"
"I'll take Uchiha-kun on a tour of the school later. Our campus is pretty big."
Seeing so many classmates crowding around Byakuya, Fura Taishi lost interest.
Besides, he could already tell from the first class; Byakuya and Arima were both diligent students, the kind who actually cared about studying.
They didn't seem like people he could get along with.
Feeling bored, he walked out of the classroom.
"Taishi."
A girl with bright orange hair followed after him, his childhood friend, Sasada Aki.
Outside the classroom, Taishi stopped and sighed.
"Aki, I really don't think I'm cut out for school. Let's just ditch again and go have some fun."
The only reason he even bothered attending was to see Minami… Otherwise, he would have skipped like usual.
But now that everyone's attention-including hers was on those two new transfer students, what was the point of staying?
Aki chuckled.
"Yeah, I never understand anything in class anyway. Might as well skip instead of wasting time pretending to listen."
"Exactly. Let's go find Ryou."
Taishi was already set on cutting class.
He, Aki, and Ryou had been childhood friends since they were young, and whenever they skipped school, they did it together.
Not only were they delinquents, but they were also part of a motorcycle gang, spending most of their time racing around the city.
But just as Taishi and Aki were about to leave, a voice suddenly came from behind them.
"Fura-kun, mind if I come along?"
"Huh…?"
Taishi turned around, only to see Byakuya Uchiha.
"Uchiha… You're kidding, right? We're delinquents. You sure you wanna hang out with us?"
Taishi found it hard to believe.
He had no interest in dragging good students down his path.
And Byakuya definitely seemed like the studious type.
"I'm sure."
Byakuya nodded, smiling slightly.
"I might look like this, but I actually got expelled from my last school; that's why I transferred here."
He didn't care if he got labeled as a delinquent.
After all, he wasn't here for school; he was undercover for a mission.
More importantly, he needed to complete his system task, which required him to join Taishi's gang.
Once he finished his mission, he would leave.
Whatever reputation he had gained in this school would disappear along with him.
Besides, if he missed this chance, who knew when Taishi would show up at school again?
"Huh… so you're actually a troublemaker?"
Taishi finally accepted it.
No matter how much he and his friends skipped school, they never got expelled.
Whatever Uchiha had done at his previous school… must've been something serious.
"You might look all prim and proper, but maybe you're even worse than us."
The moment Taishi accepted him, a familiar system notification popped up in Byakuya's mind.
[Ding! Mission Complete!]
[Mission One: Enroll in Seisei High School and Join Fura Taishi's Delinquent Gang]
[Reward: 10 Attribute Points]
[Mission Two Unlocked]
[Mission Two: Protect Fura Taishi's Gang from Minami Uruka]
[Reward: 10 Attribute Points]
Byakuya's expression remained calm, but his mind became serious.
So the next task was to stop Uruka from attacking them?
Before he could think further, another voice cut in from behind him.
"Count me in."
Byakuya turned his head; it was Arima.