<h4>Chapter 458: Chapter 8: ss B vs. ss D</h4>
While ss A and ss C were still in the process of having their Math tests graded for their third event...
The oue of the fourth event in the battle between ss B and ss D had already been decided.
"After tallying up the results, ss B ended with 601 points, while ss D ended with 409 points. ss B wins the fourth event."
After hearing Mashima announce the results, Ichinose let out a sigh of relief.
The event had been an academic test that ss B had suggested, so it would''ve been nearly impossible for them to lose.
"Well ain''t you a lucky one, Ichinose. You should be grateful we keep drawing ss B''s events."
"...Yeah."
Despite having won, Ichinose was still clearly distraught, whereas the loser, Ryūen, seemed perfectlyposed.
Moreover, this was only natural. Out of the four events that had been drawn so far, three of them had been suggested by ss B. However, those four events hadn''t ended up ying out as expected, as the score was tied with two wins apiece between ss B and ss D. During the third event, ss B had lost at their own game, the Chemistry Test. Furthermore, the reason for their defeat was obvious.
"Sensei... Have the students with stomach achese back from the bathroom yet?"
At Ichinose''s request, Mashima got in touch with the ssroom to check on the situation in ss B.
"No, two of them still haven''t gotten back from the bathroom yet, and it seems that several of the others have also started to feel unwell now."
"Is that so..."
The reason why ss B had lost the Chemistry event was because a portion of their main fighting force had unexpectedly fallen sick.
But, that wasn''t the only reason. On the day before the exam, some of ss B''s students had gotten into a dispute with ss D, which had also had an impact.
Although aint had been made to the school, neither of the two sses had been penalized as it was nothing more than a verbal argument.
These underhanded actions had undoubtedly been orchestrated by the man seated on the other side of the table, Ryūen.
Ichinose took a few deep breaths in order topose herself once again.
"Haa... It''s okay, it''s okay."
They hadn''t given up the lead just yet. Ichinose had lost her presence of mind ever since her defeat in the Chemistry event, but now she was slowly beginning to return to normal. While it was true that problems kept popping up one after another, Ryūen''s actions were limited. As themander, he wouldn''t be able to do anything that she couldn''t do also.
Ichinose desperately tried to regain her confidence. To tell herself that, as long as she continued to fight hard, they wouldn''t lose.
"Oi, you teachers. Hurry up and start the fifth event already. Those chumps in ss B weren''t even able to take care of their health on the day of the exam. Are you really gonna make concessions for a naive bunch like that?"
"Mind yournguage, Ryūen."
Despite Chabashira''s warning for his arrogantnguage, Ryūen didn''t seem to care.
In fact, he even turned it up a notch.
"I dunno if they''re on the toilet or whatever, but they could totally be using this time to iron out their strategy. Plus, it''s strange that multiple people just so happened to get sick all at the same time. What kind of sinister tricks are you ying at, Ichinose?"
"I-I didn''t..."
Ryūen drew suspicion to the fact that several people had reported feeling unwell at the same time.
Even though Ichinose knew that there had been absolutely no wrongdoing on her part, she had no room to refute it either.
"Either way, let''s just get on with it already, aight teach''?"
With a grin on his face, Ryūen shot a look at Chabashira for confirmation.
"Ryūen is certainly right about that. Mashima-sensei, please proceed with the fifth event, if you would."
Mashima began the drawing for the fifth event.
『Karate』 Required Participants: 3 ? Time: 10 Minutes
Rules: Each match will take at most 3 minutes, using a non-contact, Sundome Karate ruleset. The matches will adopt a "Loser Leaves, Winner Stays" tournament style.
Commander Intervention: Themander may, at any point, call for one of the matches to be redone.
"Sweet, it''s one of our events this time. We''ll take on anyone, doesn''t matter who."
Ryūen chose Suzuki Hidetoshi, Oda Takumi, and Ishizaki Daichi for his three participants. The rules regardingmander intervention were perfect for him as well, granting him the ability to call for a rematch just in case something unexpected were to happen and they lost one of the matches.
On the other side, Ichinose chose Sumida Makoto, Watanabe Norihito, and Yonezu Haruto. Back when the opposing ss''s events were announced, she had tasked these three with practicing for the Karate event, but they pretty much had their hands full with just remembering the rules.
As a result, ss B suffered two staggering back-to-back losses. Even when Ichinose tried to make use of her powers as themander to call for a rematch, it still didn''t manage to change anything.
The fifth event had been one of the quickest and most decisive losses so far.
At this point, ss B didn''t have any more leeway. If they lost the next event, the sixth, they would lose the entire special exam.
"It''s funny, isn''t it, Ichinose?"
As they waited for the drawing to pass judgment, Ryūen called out to Ichinose, who had gotten quieter.
"When it was decided that you''d be going against ss D back when the special exam was announced, I''ll bet you guys felt like you had an absolute advantage. But looking at you now, it''s like the only thing you can do is sit there and pray to the heavens. Kuku."
Ichinose''s strategies were by no means naive.
If they werepeting under normal circumstances, ss B would be at 3 wins and 2 losses right now.
But instead, a sudden ident happened that had thrown everything out of order.
If they didn''t draw one of their own events here, they wouldn''t stand a chance.
And then it was chosen, the sixth event.
『Judo』 Required Participants: 1 ? Match Time: 4 Minutes (Up to 3 Matches for 12 Minutes Total)
Rules: Standard judo rules apply.
Commander Intervention: Themander may choose to invalidate the results of one match and call for a rematch.
A one-on-one event. For ss B, the event that had been chosen was the worst possible oue imaginable.
This was the first time Ichinose had ever truly felt the sensation of being plunged into darkness.
"Kukuku. Judo? Judo, eh? For THAT to get chosen out of all things. Lady luck ain''t smiling down on you, Ichinose."
"How..."
"If thest two events had been from ss B, you wouldda still had a chance at winning!"
Ryūen locked in Yamada Albert without hesitation.
Just like in the Karate event earlier, the rules regardingmander intervention were an ultimate insurance policy that practically guaranteed that he wouldn''t lose.
"Even though your opponent is Albert, don''t let it get to you. The strongest guy doesn''t always win, so ya never know until ya give it a shot."
The result was already as clear as day. It would be extremely difficult for ss B to beat an opponent whose physique and skill far surpassed their own.
It was the only event that ss B had given up on, where they wouldn''t be able to win no matter what. Ichinose had to select a single person, and she was only given thirty seconds to decide who that would be. But now, Ichinose couldn''t even make the choice to nominate someone anymore.
The seconds ticked away mercilessly until the timer finally reached 0. As per the rules, a student would be chosen at random if themander failed to make the choice in time, but after considering the danger of the event, Mashima passed the ruling immediately instead.
"ss B loses this event by default. And, this marks the fourth win for ss D, making ss D the overall victor for this special exam."
At Mashima''s merciful deration, the oue of the battle between ss B and ss D had been set in stone.