Chapter 6: The Old Man Who Looks Poor
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"Why does he look... so much like the guy I traded with?"
He also had blond hair, and his facial features were quite similar, except for their body shapes. The man Rin Matsuoka had dealt with was thin, not as strong as the blond boy lying under the tree.
Horikita Suzune turned her head and noticed Rin looking at the blond boy. "Why, do you know him?"
"I don't know him, but his hair and facial features remind me of an old friend."
"So, are you planning to go over and say hello?"
"No." Rin shook his head, then looked at the ever-cold Horikita Suzune. "Where are you heading? Planning to tour the school?"
"I'm not interested in touring the school. I plan to sit in the classroom and wait for the entrance ceremony to begin."
Rin waved the school guidebook in his hand. "But the guide requires us to gather in the classroom before 10:30, and then head to the gymnasium at 11:00 for the freshman entrance ceremony."
He glanced at a clock mounted on a streetlamp nearby. "It's only 8:23 right now. If I go to the classroom now, I'd have to sit there for over two hours."
"Hmph, I wouldn't want to walk around the school with someone like you anyway." Horikita Suzune snorted, then turned and walked off, her slender legs wrapped in black stockings.
Horikita Suzune was still clearly upset about giving up her seat on the bus.
Rin rolled his eyes at her departing figure and muttered, "You talk like I want to wander around with an ice queen like you. If it weren't for Manabu, I wouldn't even bother talking to you!"
While Horikita Suzune went to class, Rin had no intention of heading there just yet. He decided to wander around using the school map provided in the guidebook.
Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing High School was built on an island. It had a closed management system and prohibited students from contacting the outside world during their studies.
The school occupied the center of the island, while the outer areas were filled with various entertainment facilities such as karaoke bars, cinemas, cafes, clothing stores, and more, forming a small commercial district.
Parents didn't need to provide living expenses for students here since the school covered all living expenses on the island. One of the main reasons Rin had chosen to attend this school was that he wouldn't have to spend any money.
After all, Rin was short on cash.
The campus scenery was beautiful, with lush green pines and cypresses, rock gardens, flower beds, bonsai, and wisteria-covered pavilions.
However, what puzzled Rin the most was the sheer number of cameras around the school. He had been wandering for only ten minutes and had already counted fifty-four surveillance cameras.
Looking at the cameras hanging on the wall of the building in front of him, Rin muttered to himself, "With this many cameras, the entire school must be under constant surveillance."
He clicked his tongue, feeling uneasy living under so much scrutiny.
"There must be something unusual about this school," he thought. Otherwise, why would there be so many surveillance cameras?
Rin shook his head, temporarily setting aside his suspicions about the school, and continued strolling around.
After following a stone-paved walkway, Rin arrived at a cool, shaded courtyard where an elderly man sat calmly.
The old man, who had silver hair and appeared to be around forty or fifty years old, wore a light blue suit with a flat lapel that was impeccably smooth, without a single wrinkle. His attire exuded a solemn and composed aura, making him seem dignified from the inside out.
Rin Matsuoka looked at the elderly man, who could be called an old gentleman, with pity as he sat alone under the pavilion, playing chess by himself.
Watching or even hearing someone play chess alone is a pitiful sight.
[Host, the person before you is a father who has always been strong-willed. He is now distressed because he cannot beat his daughter in chess.]
[It is suggested that the host play chess with him.]
[It is recommended that the host give his all when playing chess with him; otherwise, he will feel disrespected and be unhappy.]
[Again, I suggest you capture all his chess pieces before you win.]
After listening to the narration system's prompts, Rin Matsuoka sighed and said, "If I don't give it my all, he'll be unhappy. He is certainly a strong-willed person."
"And the narrator wants me to capture all his pieces before winning… That's just cruel..."
Sakayanagi Narumori was looking at the chessboard while holding the king piece in deep thought. This was the game he had played with his daughter in the office earlier this morning, but the game was interrupted because he had to attend to something.
Now that he had some free time, Sakayanagi Narumori had come to the pavilion and arranged the pieces according to his memory.
So, Rin Matsuoka had misunderstood... Sakayanagi Narumori wasn't playing chess alone; he was reviewing the game.
Suddenly, a shadow came into Sakayanagi Narumori's sight. He looked up and was slightly stunned.
Because the person who had come to the pavilion was not his daughter, Arisu Sakayanagi, but a very handsome young man.
"Judging from the school uniform he's wearing, he must be a freshman in high school," Sakayanagi Narumori thought silently.
Rin Matsuoka smiled at the elderly man who was looking at him. "Old man, you're here alone."
"Ah? Oh, yes," Sakayanagi Narumori replied kindly.
"I'm free right now, and you happen to have a chess set. Why don't we play a few games?" Rin Matsuoka offered.
"Hmm."
Sakayanagi Narumori pondered for a while. Anyway, Arisu had told him she wouldn't arrive for over an hour, so he might as well play chess with this young man to pass the time.
"Okay."
Rin Matsuoka and Sakayanagi Narumori sat opposite each other, with the chess set neatly placed in front of them. Rin smiled and said, "Grandpa, don't hold back just because I'm young. I'm actually pretty good at chess."
"Really? Then let me see," Sakayanagi Narumori said, showing a hint of interest.
Not long after, Sakayanagi Narumori, who had just regained some interest, broke out in a cold sweat.
This young man wasn't lying; he truly knew how to play chess, and his playing style was incredibly fierce and ruthless!
If you didn't capture all his pieces, you wouldn't stand a chance to checkmate him...
Well, this couldn't be blamed on Rin Matsuoka—it was what the narration system had told him to do. It said that the old man was a strong-willed person who wanted his opponents to go all out, or else he would feel disrespected.
Rin Matsuoka had intermediate chess skills, which were more than enough to defeat any elderly man in the park!
"Checkmate! You have no moves left, old man," Rin Matsuoka said with a smile.
"Come on, I wasn't taking you seriously in that round just now. I'll beat you to pieces in the next one!"
Rin Matsuoka smiled slightly. He had often heard this line from old men in the park. Whenever they lost, they blamed everything—the heavens, the earth, and even the spectators. They were just being stubborn, refusing to admit defeat.