COTE : I Just Want To Drop Out

Ren Ishikawa stood in front of the boy with the perpetually lifeless gaze, staring him down with a smirk that could both charm and provoke.

"Are you sure this is your seat?" Ren asked.

The boy's tone was even, devoid of emotion. "It's mine."

"Your seat has a good view," Ren replied, gesturing casually. "But it belongs to me now."

Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, as lifeless as ever, tilted his head slightly. "Interesting. But tell me, what would an ordinary person do in this situation if their seat were taken?"

Ren leaned forward with mock sincerity. "Oh, I wouldn't be able to stand it if it were me."

He grinned inwardly. Come on, show your true colors. Lose your temper, shout, fight! Let's make it spectacular—get expelled right on the first day!

Ren's mind raced with possibilities, bolstered by his decision to pick the " choose one of two " advance reward, Ren Ishikawa chose [Dominant Body ].

　　Although luck is important, Ren Ishikawa feels that real power makes people feel more secure than illusory luck .

　　Moreover, he designed many battle plans in order to drop out of school, and many of these " battle plans " required a strong body as capital to complete .

With a strong body, dropping out of school becomes much easier .

　　Apart from anything else, his dozens of plans to drop out of school inevitably involve some things that stir up hatred, and if he does too many of them, he will easily be put in the sack .

Although he had developed some pretty good skills during those years out there .

　　But it is said that this school has recruited all kinds of geniuses, and it is very likely that there are " fighting " geniuses among them .

　　I'm afraid that after I've offended someone, I won't be able to defeat them .

If he was beaten and sent to the hospital, causing him to miss the cultural examination, and then be expelled from school because of failing the examination, his [invincible luck] would be gone !

Ren Ishikawa, sixteen years old, is afraid of school violence . But it's different with [Super Body] ,with the help of [Super Body] he felt like a little superman. Even if he couldn't win, at least he wouldn't be sent to the hospital and wouldn't miss the exam .

Well, that's fine ....

Let's start fighting !

As a result, Ren Ishikawa's expectations were dashed .

Because Ayanokoji didn't react. Instead, he asked plainly, "If you couldn't stand it, what would you do?"

Ren blinked. "...What?"

"If you couldn't stand it anymore, what's next? What do you actually do?" Ayanokoji's question was as straightforward as it was baffling.

Ren stared at him, momentarily dumbfounded. What is this guy? Did he just land on Earth yesterday?

"Alright," Ren said after a beat, shaking his head. "What's your name? And be honest—are you some demon in human form experiencing life for the first time?"

" Kiyotaka Ayanokoji " the boy replied, his tone still devoid of inflection. "I'm an ordinary high school student, but I never had many friends and don't really know how to interact with people."

Ren's eyebrow twitched. "Ordinary, huh... Let's just call you 'Mr Ordinary' for now. I'm actually trying to help you out here."

"Mr Ordinary?" Ayanokoji echoed, puzzled. "And help me with what?"

"This seat doesn't suit you," Ren declared with mock authority. "I can tell you're a reserved type."

"Reserved? What does that mean?"

Ren grinned, launching into his over-the-top explanation. "It's like you bought some expensive, fancy cloth but only ever reveal a corner of it by accident. You're embarrassed to show it, but also secretly want people to notice. You're worried about being caught, but also terrified no one will notice at all!"

Ayanokoji's face remained impassive. Ren continued, undeterred. "Basically, you think you're incredible but pretend you're ordinary, while dropping hints about how extraordinary you are. You're scared people will see through you, but also scared no one will acknowledge your brilliance."

Ayanokoji hesitated, almost agreeing, but stopped himself. "No, I'm not—"

"Don't be shy!" Ren interrupted, patting his shoulder with a dramatic flourish. "Your thoughts are perfectly common!"

Something about this reassurance made Ayanokoji nod instinctively. "Yes, you're right. I'm a reserved and ordinary person."

Ren's smirk grew wider. "But being too ordinary isn't ordinary anymore. Sit in the corner, and you'll stand out as unusually unremarkable. Like getting the same exact score in every test—it's so consistent, it's suspicious!"

"Really?" Ayanokoji asked, thoughtful. "But what about someone who just happens to score evenly?"

Ren chuckled. "That's hilarious! I deliberately tanked my scores to avoid getting into this crazy school, and you're saying someone could just coincidentally do the same? No way!"

Ayanokoji studied him for a moment. "You seem like an expert on being ordinary. How can I master it?"

"You're lucky you're asking me," Ren said, his confidence practically radiating. "I'm the authority on being average! Too dazzling in personality and charm—so I have to dim myself with ordinary tactics to balance out."

"Thank you, Teacher Ordinary," Ayanokoji said earnestly, his deadpan delivery slicing through Ren's bravado. "Please guide me to peak ordinariness."

"Of course," Ren said, pride giving way to mild irritation. "But first, we swap seats to lower your conspicuous dullness to acceptable levels of averageness."

" My name is Ren Ishikawa. You can call me by my name. Teacher Ordinary doesn't sound good . "

　　" Okay, thank you ordinary teacher, please continue to guide me in the future until I become as ordinary as you, ordinary teacher . " Ayanokoji said with a deadpan.

　　After saying that, Ayanokoji went to look for Ren's location .

　　Ren : " ..."

　　Ren Ishikawa felt like he was being scolded .

　　Sure enough, this guy is a repressed person .

　　....

　　A few minutes later .

After they switched seats, Ayanokouji turned to Ren, now sitting in the row behind. "I just realized... wasn't your original seat just as marginal as mine?"

Ren coughed awkwardly. "Uh, well, everything's relative. It's slightly better."

Ren chuckled nervously, then froze. He'd been so distracted by this strange conversation, he forgot his original goal: to establish dominance and send a clear message to his classmates.

Why am I bantering with this guy instead of making an example of him?

Ren's face darkened as he sat back, silently vowing to seize another opportunity to showcase his power.

Meanwhile, Ayanokouji observed him thoughtfully. The outside world is so complicated... But even so, it's better than going back to that cold place.

He turned back to his book, leaving Ren stewing in his thoughts.

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