Chapter 5

It had been two days since I asked them about the screen.

As school ended, I slung my bag over my shoulder and walked out of the classroom. The hallway opened up before me—it was more like a grand mansion than a school. The private institution I attended was a little exclusive, catering to a minority community.

Initially, I was supposed to go to a regular folks school, but Rita's grandpa took a liking to me. With a powerhouse like the Ainsworth family backing me, getting into this school was easy.

As I strolled down the hall, I spotted two girls: one with blonde hair and blue eyes and the other with paler blonde hair and striking red eyes. Upon seeing me, Rita hissed, crossing her arms.

"Why did you keep the girls waiting for so long?"

"Sorry…" I chuckled. "My classroom is far. Now—why aren't we in the same class?"

Rita hummed, "Maybe you filled some an empty seat? Speaking of which, why don't you have any male friends?"

"'Male' sounds weird without context. Well…" I remembered how the boys here didn't like me once they discovered I was just a normal peasant who lucky enough to attend this school. To be truth. They were jealous that I got along with the school's madonna. "It's not worth worrying about. We'll become strangers anyway."

Rita giggled. "Kehe~ What a hopeless loner."

"Masamune." Mashiro turned to me, her eyes half-closed. "Let's have the same class…"

"We can't decide that."

"Why?"

"Ask the teacher."

"Understood."

"No. Don't do that please."

I held her shoulder tightly as she prepared to walk away. She seemed to take everything literally. The three of us headed to the parking area. I didn't have anyone picking me up, but my house was only a 17-minute by foot.

Another things...

My investments were going well; I had made 690,000 USD in just two days.

These past six months, I had eaten less and moved more. I was working on my weight, but losing it was harder than I thought. I hadn't taken it too seriously, but at least I was consistent. I had lost 9 kg, but I was still somewhat overweight somehow. Still, my height is growing too.

"Masamune. If you felt lonely. You can sleep at my house if you want," Mashiro suggested.

"Mashiro! You're making it sound weird! Ahem! Well, I don't mind if it's my house. Your grandpa seems to be out, though. On the other hand, my grandpa wants to see you again. Want to come?"

We stopped beside a black Royce as a man in a suit opened the back seat door.

"Hm, maybe later. I mean, my grandpa is here…"

I pointed my finger somewhere. They turned to look at the man with white hair and the company he brought with him.

"Keke~ what's up with that disappointed face?" I teased.

"I'm not disappointed!" Rita's face turned red.

"Then… can I stay at your house?" Mashiro asked.

I sighed and turned to Mashiro. "No, you're not. Ask your parents first."

"Wait, Masamune. Actually, there's someone who wants to meet you," Rita said.

"Who?" I asked.

"Actually, it's my friend who wants to be your friend. He said you're cool. Keke~ honestly, I'm confused—kyak! Don't pinch my cheek!"

"Hello," someone said from the back.

We turned to see a guy with blue eyes and blonde hair tied back in a ponytail.

"That's him," Rita said.

So, it's really a guy. I thought it would be a girl, considering I had never met a dude who used third person to ask for permission to be friends.

"You must be Masamune Makabe. I've really wanted to get to know you, but it's hard to get in touch when you seem uninterested in joining any school clubs."

He spoke in a polite, friendly manner. This guy actually I overheard the girls in my class that he's popular.

I hummed. "Hm… actually, I'm part of this girl's modern art group." I pointed at Rita next to me.

She shot me the side-eye glare. "It's contemporary art, you donkey."

"Hahaha…" the guy laughed. "You both are really close. Right, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Charles Loire. You can call me Charles, Masamune."

So, there was a guy joining our group. Still, why gramps with his friends here?

---

(Third pov)

In his eyes, Makabe Hachiro believed his grandson was not as worthless as his father claimed. Masamune, at his age, didn't have the mindset to prove anything to anyone. However, he was different—he had it.

A few months ago, Masamune had shared information that, at first, seemed laughable.

"How does this kid know something like this is going to happen?"

In his office at the Honda F1 headquarters in Berkeley, UK, Hachiro wondered aloud. He had just received word from Tokyo that there was a possibility Honda might walk out of the highest level of motorsport. If Masamune hadn't informed him beforehand, he might have reacted differently. Hachiro had begun to believe in his grandson's words after witnessing his genius in finance.

Had he invented a new investment formula? After all, within just six months, Masamune had amassed an amount of money that Hachiro could only dream of accumulating in his lifetime. This month alone, he had around 32 million USD in his account.

"Worthless? Minoru will regret everything he said to him…"

Today, Hachiro found it hard to focus on his work. What was he supposed to continue? The car chassis he had prepared for 2009 might now be useless since the team could be leaving.

Knock! Knock!

"Come in."

The door opened to reveal his colleagues, Ross Brawn, the current principal of Honda F1, and Nick Fry, the current CEO. Both were close friends outside of work. Sitting at the table, Ross got straight to the point.

"So, we're going to be unemployed soon."

Hachiro sighed. "Probably…"

"The team has already invested a lot for 2009 while abandoning this season. They'll have to dry up more funds to lay off the factory," Nick pointed out.

"Even if they haven't made an official statement yet, we won't be able to do anything except wait for something magical to happen. Even as Honda's right hand here, I guess you can't change their minds, can you?"

Hachiro didn't respond to Ross right away. He seemed to doze off, a stark contrast to his usual character.

"I know someone who might be able to help the team's situation…"

Both Ross and Nick gasped at this.

"However, I need to give you a heads-up before we meet him. It might sound absurd and irresponsible…" Hachiro continued.

"Is the person hard to approach?"

"No, it's fine. As long as it's for the team, I think both Brawn and I are on the same boat about this."

Stubborn, Hachiro thought. He guessed the CEO had efficient time management.

"Alright then. Coincidentally, I need to pick him up at 3. If you both are fine with that?"

When they arrived at the parking area of the mansion that had been converted into a private school in Oxfordshire, Ross and Nick looked at the kid who appeared to be around 11 years old.

"Erm… why are you here with Uncle Ross and Uncle Nick?"

"Masamune... sorry for doubting you. But you were right."