After a good workout, Max had returned to his apartment. He rested well, knowing that the troubles at school had now lessened.
There were two things he needed to sort out: the issue with the money, and the White Tiger Gang.
Now that he had begun to unravel the reason why he couldn't use the money, he was getting close to finally using it to further his goal, getting back at the White Tiger Gang and uncovering who had betrayed him.
Being in a weak body, the only real advantage he had was his status as a member of the Stern family and the immense wealth at his fingertips. But if he couldn't access that wealth, then he was just a regular, powerless high school student. It would still take time for him to regain his strength, so in the meantime, he had no choice but to handle the issues at school.
Before heading out, Max checked his phone and saw that he had received a message.
[Green Ranger]
Ko and most of the students won't be coming to school today. Seems like it's an order from Dipter, not that I think any of them are in the condition to do anything.
P.S. I don't think I'll be able to give you much more information after this. It seems I was even sent this text by accident. None of the others are going to talk to me anymore because I helped you out… remember what I did? And can you at least save my name as Red Ranger? Why Green!?
Having Joe as part of the group had been helpful for gathering some information, but he was still too low on the ladder to provide anything truly valuable. Still, Max appreciated what he had done.
"Thanks for the tip, Green Ranger." Max replied.
While heading to school, Max found his mind preoccupied with one particular person, Abby. The girl who was essentially holding the old Max's money hostage.
'There's a chance Abby might know more about what's going on… but I doubt it,' Max thought. 'If the real Max cared about her that much, I don't think he would've told her anything.'
'Nothing about who he really was, nothing about the situation he was in either. At least, that's what I would have done. And besides, even if she did know which family member was behind all of this, asking her for information has a chance of getting her in trouble.
'And now that I've decided to do what needs to be done, it feels wrong to drag her into this. Before I make any real moves, I need to secure my main environment first.'
Arriving at school, the classroom was just as quiet as the day before, which was all good news for Max as he made his way to his usual corner seat.
He sat down, going through his lessons, either waiting for Dipter to make his move or thinking about what his next step should be.
'Come to think of it, I don't even know what Dipter looks like,' Max realized.
What Max didn't know, however, was the movement unfolding throughout the school, and all of it was converging on him.
Meanwhile, Dipter was standing on the school rooftop for a change. He was looking down at a section of the building where he could peer through the windows and into the classrooms
"It's time for me to do what I'm paid to do," Dipter said as he hit send on his phone.
Across every classroom, regardless of the year group, a message was sent out to several students.
The heads of each class's delinquents, their underlings, all of them received it. Some pulled out their phones under the desk, while others didn't bother hiding them at all. The teachers had long since stopped caring enough to scold them.
One by one, the students read the message, and once they did, smiles began to spread across their faces. A few even snickered quietly to themselves.
In one of the classrooms, Jay Woods had received the message too. His eyes widened the moment he read it, and a troubled, uneasy expression appeared on his face.
"Haha, did you get the message too?" Jay overheard some of the students near him whispering.
"Yeah, it's been a long time since we've done something like this. Well, I guess he's getting what's coming to him."
"Don't you think it's a bit much? All of this just for one guy?"
"You saw what Mad Max did, didn't you? He's not normal. We need to send a message, to remind people not to go against the order. Some of the kids in the classrooms are already getting cocky after seeing what happened."
"Right, they think they can pull another Mad Max. I had one kid grab a pencil, so I shoved the damn thing right back in his mouth."
When nothing had happened during break or lunch, Max was quite pleased. No one had acted out, and he was able to eat in peace and spend most of his day ignoring the lessons without interruption.
This was the kind of school life he had somewhat expected, quiet enough so he could focus on dealing with the White Tiger mess in the background.
'If things continue like this, it might actually be better to wait until my body's in better condition before going after Dipter.
'If it were just the two of us in a fight, maybe I could manage something. But I doubt it'll ever be that simple. Maybe, since I'm still young and stuck in this weaker body, I should learn how to use a weapon.
'I was too stubborn in the past, relying only on my fists… but mastering a weapon could make all the difference now.'
Max hadn't even realized how deep he'd been lost in thought about his current situation until the final bell of the day had already rung.
it was the end of the day, and for the first time in a long time, it had ended without a single incident.
As Max walked over toward the door, he slid it open, only to find a large student standing right in front of him. The guy was built like a brick wall.
Max looked up, staring at the towering figure's face.
"You need to follow me. It's Dipter's orders," Jay Woods said.